APPARENTLY, ITīS A LIBERALīS #1 JOB TO "WHINE"
Gary Ater
September 22, 2010
Even with all of the things that the new Democratic President has accomplished, the far left continues to "whine" that everything hasnīt been fixed in his less than two full years in office.
Oh, and letīs just not mention that the Senate filibuster has been used by the Senate Republicans a record number of times and that they have voted "no", as they had promised, on just about every bill introduced by the Democrats. Right or wrong, the conservative GOP sticks together like glue, while three liberal Democrats in the same room will argue for hours over three different opinions.
In addition, what the conservative Republicans have done to ruin this great nation took multiple decades. It started with Ronald Reagan and it didnīt stop or slow down under Bush I and Bush II, and even the Democratic President, Bill Clinton, gave America some bad decisions with NAFTA the WTO, and by signing the bill to get rid of the Glass-Steagall banking regulations.
Letīs see what has been done to the American Middle-Class since the 80īs and the Reagan presidency:
>>> The average working middle-class American stopped having their wages progress, as they did for four decades, along with Americaīs productivity levels. Since the 1980īs, wages stagnated and since 1999, the average American family has lost $2000 per year due to increased medical and educational costs. (And even today, Americaīs productivity continues to increase.)
>>> Today, Americans work longer hours than those in any other modern industrialized nation. They also take fewer sick days off and they get fewer vacation days.
>>> America is now the only industrialized nation that does not provide overall health care and a free 4 year college education.
>>> In the 1980īs, only 9% of the "wealth-of-the-nation" was held by the top 2% of the nationīs wealthiest Americans. Today, 23% of the nationīs wealth is held by the top 2% of the nation. (The old saying has since changed. It now says: The rich get richer, the poor get poorer, as the middle- class disappears.)
In the 1980īs, the top US banks controlled 23% of the nationīs money. Today the top 5 US banks control 63% of the nationīs money. (It is very dangerous for so few banks to control so much. Is this the definition of, "Too big to fail?")
>>> Since the 1980īs, the conservatives in power made it profitable for companies to outsource their jobs overseas. They also rewarded those companies that moved their headquarters outside the United States.
>>> Today, the US is looked at for providing lower cost service labor jobs instead of higher paying skilled manufacturing jobs.
>>> Since the US economy is dependent today on consumers instead of manufacturers, and due to the massive imbalance of trade deficits and past unnecessary spending, it will take decades to correct the issues that took decades to develop.
>>> The only large and profitable US manufacturers today are those that manufacture arms and military equipment. The US is by far, the largest weapons manufacturer in the world. If the worldīs nations stop shooting at each other, (which is highly doubtful), the US goes out of business. (Just before he left office, President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned the American public about the potential harm that could come from not controlling the Military Industrial Complex. We should have listened to him.)
The point here is that since Barack Obama took office, besides saving the nation from another "Great Depression", here is just a portion of what he has accomplished, in spite of the conservatives in Congress:
Ordered a study for making recommendations for ways to cut spending
Ordered all federal operations to identify and cut wasteful spending and practices
Instituted enforcement for equal pay for women
Begun the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq
Had expenses of families of fallen soldiers covered to be on hand when the bodies arrived at Dover AFB
Ended media blackout on reporting on war casualties
Ended media blackout on covering the return of fallen soldiers to Dover AFB.
The White House and federal government are respecting the Freedom of Information Act
Instructed all federal agencies to promote openness and transparency as much as possible-
Put limits on lobbyistsī access to the White House
Put limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administration
Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date
Phasing out the expensive F-22 war plane and other outdated weapons systems.
Removed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research
Federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research
New federal funding for science and research labs
States are permitted to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards
Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect
Funds for high-speed, broadband Internet access to K-12 schools
New funds for school construction
Signed an Executive Order on government contracting to fight waste and abuse.
Signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, restoring basic
Protections against pay discrimination for women and other workers.
Renewed dialogue with NATO and other allies and partners on strategic issues.
Announced a plan to responsibly end the war in Iraq.
Provided funding to families of fallen soldiers have expenses covered to be on hand when the body arrives at Dover AFB.
Ended media blackout on war casualties and the return of fallen soldiers to Dover AFB.
Signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which has created 2.1 million jobs (as of 12/31/09).
Launched Recovery.gov to track spending from the Recovery Act, an unprecedented step to provide transparency.
Announced the "Making Home Affordable" home refinancing plan.
Launched a $15 billion plan to boost lending to small businesses.
Invested heavily in education both as a way to provide jobs now and lay the foundation for long-term prosperity.
Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with more than $1.4 billion to improve services to Americaīs Veterans.
Signed an Executive Order establishing the White House Office of Urban Affairs.
Issued an Presidential Memorandum to restore scientific integrity in government decision-making.
Answered questions at the first online town hall from the White House that were submitted on transparently @ WhiteHouse.gov.
Established a central portal for Americans to find service opportunities.
Launched Business.gov enabling conversation and online collaboration between small business owners & government
Appointed the first ever Federal Chief Information Officer to provide management and oversight over federal IT spending.
Signed the Childrenīs Health Insurance Reauthorization Act on February 4, 2009, provides quality health care to 11 million kids
Issued an Executive Order repealing the Bush-Era restrictions on embryonic stem cell research.
Signed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act, the first piece at improving the lives of Americans living with paralysis.
Announced creation of a Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record for members of the U.S. Armed Forces to improve medical care.
Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date..
Provided federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research.
Provided new federal funding for science and research labs.
Played a lead role in G-20 Summit that produced a $1.1 trillion deal to combat the global financial crisis.
Signed the Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act to stop fraud and wasteful spending in the defense programs.
Ordered the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay and a review of our detention prgm. and prohibited the use of torture.
Appointed Special Envoys for Climate Change
Empowered states to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards.
Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect.
Increased minority access to capital.
Developed a comprehensive new strategy on Afghanistan and Pakistan that will help defeat Al Qaeda
Signed the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act which gives the federal government more tools to prosecute fraud
Signed the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act.
Increased, for the first time in more than a decade, the fuel economy standards for cars and trucks so they will get better mileage.
Issued a Presidential Memorandum to the Department of Energy to implement more aggressive efficiency standards
Unveiled a program on Earth Day 2009 to develop the renewable energy projects
Announced a new U.S.-Mexico border initiative.
Concluded cyberspace policy review.
Announced a strategy to address the international nuclear threat.
Established a new "U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue".
Announced new policy steps towards Cuba.
Provided funding for advanced manufacturing technologies.
Issued a Presidential Memorandum on the Freedom of Information Act
Funded the design of a new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History
The Executive Order on Presidential Records brings those principles to presidential records 50.
Signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve --America Act, a hallmark piece of legislation.
Signed the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act to protect Americans
Signed an Executive Order establishing a White House Council on Women and Girls
Launched a U.S. financial and banking rescue plan.
Ordered secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere to be closed.
Ended the previous policy; the US now has a no torture policy and is in compliance with the Geneva Convention standards.
Launched U.S. Auto industry rescue plan.
Provided better body armor to our troops.
Authorized cutting the missile defense program by $1.4 billion in 2010.
Restarted the nuclear nonproliferation talks and building back up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols.
Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic.
Reengaged in the agreements/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions
Supported the first steps of a legally-binding treaty to reduce mercury emissions worldwide.
Visited more countries and met with more world leaders than any president in his first six months in office.
Managed several natural disasters successfully, including severe winter ice storms and flooding in several states.
Provided new car tax credit.
Provided attractive tax write-offs for those who buy hybrid automobiles.
Purchased fuel efficient American-made fleet of vehicles for the federal government.
Endorsed Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2009 that would close offshore tax havens.
Nominated Sonia Sotomayor to Supreme Court. She's confirmed and becomes the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice.
Helped reverse a downward spiral of the stock market.
Earned an unprecedented success rate of 96.7% on winning congressional votes on issues where he took a position.
Provided affordable, high-quality child care to working families.
Restored America's reputation as a global leader that will do the "right thing" in world affairs.
Issued an executive order to create the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.
Increased funding for student loans and pell grants for 2010 students.
Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals.
Provided tax credit to workers thus cutting taxes for 95% of America's working families.
Cracked down on companies that deny sick pay, vacation and health insurance
Signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act
Appointed the first Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy.
Signed the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act
Held impromptu press conference to urge Congress to investigate Anthem Blue Cross and other corporate health insurance
Designated $1.5 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program to fund programs at local housing finance agencies in the states
Protected 300,000 education jobs, such as teachers, principals, librarians, and counselors through the Recovery Act
Extended discounted COBRA health coverage for the nation's unemployed from 9 months to 15 months.
Extended unemployment benefits for 2,000,000 unemployed Americans by 20 weeks.
Eliminated federal funding for abstinence-only education which was increased during by Bush to $176 million annually.
Rescinded the Global Gag Rule.
Appointed the most diverse Cabinet in history including more women appointees
Committed to no permanent military bases in Iraq through the Defense Authorization Act. For your reference.
Provided tax credits to first-time home buyers through the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009
Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs the largest spending increase in 30 years to improve medical facilities
Strengthened the Endangered Species Act.
Empowered states that legalized medical marijuana to regulate themselves.
Enhanced earth mapping.
Increased funding for national parks and forests in 2010, and plans to do it again for FY 2011.
Changed failing war strategy in Afghanistan.
Allocated special funding to the Labor Department to provide green job training to veterans.
Allocated funding to states and the Department of Homeland Security to save thousands of police or firefighter jobs
Sustained 2.1 million jobs and stimulated the economy 3.5% through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Signed on to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Responded with compassion and leadership to the earthquake in Haiti.
Signed the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009.
Ordered a review by the Sentencing Commission of mandatory minimum sentences.
Signed the Travel Promotion Act of 2010 to increase travel to the United States.
Expanded the Rural Energy for America Program and USDA energy grants
Increased funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Launched and extended the "Cash for Clunkers" program.
Donated his $1.4 million Nobel Prize to nonprofits.
Revitalized and empowered the EPA, OSHA and the SEC to protect workers and consumers
Signed the HIRE Act.
This is just a small selection of what the president has accomplished, and I did not include his first actions toward Health Care for all Americans in 70 years. Going forward with abolishing "Donīt ask, donīt tell," in the military. Efforts to get more revenue for jobs bills and extending the unemployment insurance. Nor the appointment of two women to the US Supreme Court, and a host of other items.
The GOP has not offered any plans to help this nation back on its feet. They have also stated that if they get back the control of the Congress, they will go back to the Bush era policies that got us into this mess!!!!
So Please "STOP WHINING & HELP TO GET OUT THE *@#$%^&* 2010 VOTE!!!!!!"
Copyright G.Ater 2010
Follow me on Twitter: gater01
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