Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Racial tensions roil NC school board; 19 arrests
RALEIGH, N.C. — Protesters and police scuffled Tuesday at a school board meeting in North Carolina over claims that a new busing system would resegregate schools, roiling racial tensions reminiscent of the 1960s.
Nineteen people were arrested, including the head of state NAACP chapter who was banned from the meeting after a trespassing arrest at a June school board gathering.
"We know that our cause is right," the Rev. William Barber said shortly before police put plastic handcuffs on his wrists before the meeting started.
Inside, more than a dozen demonstrators disrupted the meeting by gathering around a podium, chanting and singing against the board's policies.
After several minutes, Raleigh police intervened and asked them to leave. When they refused, the officers grabbed arms and tried to arrest the protesters. One child was caught in the pushing and shoving, as was school board member Keith Sutton, who was nearly arrested before authorities realized who he was.
"Hey, hey, ho, ho, resegregation has got to go," some protesters chanted.
Sutton, the only black member of the board, said he went into the crowd to try and calm things down and encourage officers not to use such strong force. He said he felt insulted that he almost got arrested and believes the officer who tried to detain him owes him an apology.
"I'm just real dismayed and disappointed," Sutton said.
The Wake County School Board has voted multiple times over the last several months to scrap the district's diversity policy, which distributed students based on socioeconomics and for years had been a model for other districts looking to balance diversity in schools. Several school board members elected last year have built a majority in favor of focusing on neighborhood schools.
The board's chairman, Ron Margiotta, said the panel would not be distracted in its effort to "provide choice and increased stability for families."
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Barack Obama Cedes Presidency To Glenn Beck
By Oliver WillisConsider me disgusted. It is increasingly becoming clear that the USDA official forced out by the Obama administration was not only pushed out thanks to conveniently edited video, but especially because the right wing media has President Obama’s extremities in a vice.
If Shirley Sherrod’s story told on CNN is accurate, the Obama administration had Deputy Undersecretary of Rural Development call Sherrod and had her resign because she would be featured on Glenn Beck’s show. What the hell is that?
Look, Barack Obama, you’re not in the White House to do Glenn Beck’s bidding. We put you there to fight for the American people, not placate the right wing nutjobs who nearly ruined this country. I know you want to bring people together, but that doesn’t mean conceding the government to neo-McCarthyite like Glenn Beck.
This is appalling, and easily the worst thing that’s been done since you were elected. Under Secretary Cook should be packing her bags, and Ms. Sherrod should be reinstated with some sort of compensation to make up for this egregious error.
If Shirley Sherrod’s story told on CNN is accurate, the Obama administration had Deputy Undersecretary of Rural Development call Sherrod and had her resign because she would be featured on Glenn Beck’s show. What the hell is that?
Look, Barack Obama, you’re not in the White House to do Glenn Beck’s bidding. We put you there to fight for the American people, not placate the right wing nutjobs who nearly ruined this country. I know you want to bring people together, but that doesn’t mean conceding the government to neo-McCarthyite like Glenn Beck.
This is appalling, and easily the worst thing that’s been done since you were elected. Under Secretary Cook should be packing her bags, and Ms. Sherrod should be reinstated with some sort of compensation to make up for this egregious error.
Giant Laser Cannon Shoots Down Planes, Sets Fear Into Hearts
The day has finally come — the laser wars have officially begun. Yup, in just a few years things are get totally Terminator around the world. See, the company Raytheon has officially unveiled their Laser Close-In Weapon System at an air show in England, which can take down unmanned aircraft easily with it’s 50 kilowatt beam. The U.S. Navy is now incorporating it into their anti-missile defense, which would situate it as a last defense on their massive battleships. It won’t be long now — which side will you be on in the laser wars?
Bailout Reaches $3.7 Trillion
Posted By Pat Dollard
WASHINGTON, July 21 (Reuters) - Increased housing commitments swelled U.S. taxpayers’ total support for the financial system by $700 billion in the past year to around $3.7 trillion, a government watchdog said on Wednesday.
The Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program said the increase was due largely to the government’s pledges to supply capital to Fannie Mae (FNMA.OB) and Freddie Mac (FMCC.OB) and to guarantee more mortgages to the support the housing market.
Increased guarantees for loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, the Government National Mortgage Association and the Veterans administration increased the government’s commitments by $512.4 billion alone in the year to June 30, according to the report.
“Indeed, the current outstanding balance of overall Federal support for the nation’s financial system…has actually increased more than 23% over the past year, from approximately $3.0 trillion to $3.7 trillion — the equivalent of a fully deployed TARP program — largely without congressional action, even as the banking crisis has, by most measures, abated from its most acute phases,” the TARP inspector general, Neil Barofsky, wrote in the report.
The total includes Federal Reserve programs and a myriad of asset guarantees, including Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. protection for bank deposits.
The increased government commitments more than offset about a $300 billion decline in the U.S. Treasury’s TARP commitments in the past year as programs have closed and banks have repaid taxpayer funds.
HOUSING PROGRAMS CRITICIZED
Barofsky also in the report ramped up his criticism of the Treasury’s housing relief efforts, saying that its program to reduce monthly mortgage payments for struggling homeowners was showing “anemic” participation numbers and had failed to “put an appreciable dent in foreclosure filings.”
He said Treasury had refused his repeated recommendations to announce more effective goals and benchmarks for its mortgage modification program, which could reach up to $50 billion in TARP funds.
“Treasury’s refusal to provide meaningful goals for this important program is a fundamental failure of transparency and accountability that makes it far more difficult for the American people and their representatives in Congress to assess whether the program’s benefits are worth its very substantial cost,” Barofsky wrote.
Among other recommendations repeated in the report, Barofsky called for the Treasury to consider making its voluntary mortgage principal reduction program mandatory, saying this would make it less likely for “underwater” homeowners to abandon their properties.
The Treasury has declined to adopt the recommendation, citing the prospect that mandatory principal reduction would cause mortgage servicing firms to opt out of the program and fairness issues in reducing principal for both responsible homeowners hit by value declines and homeowners who overleveraged their properties in refinancings.
U.S. Treasury officials defended the Home Affordable Modification Program, saying that it was still on track to reach its goal to keep 3 million to 4 million homeowners in their homes by the end of 2012 and was adapting to changing conditions by offering forbearance to unemployed people and extra funding for the hardest-hit markets.
Herbert Allison, Treasury assistant secretary for financial stability, said the Treasury often agrees with Barofsky’s recommendations, “but once in a while, we differ on what type of policy will best carry out our mandate.”
The report provoked swift criticism of Obama administration housing policies from U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, a California Republican who has taken every opportunity to blast the Treasury’s handling of financial bailout programs.
“The fact that the Obama administration is treating TARP like its own personal slush-fund is beyond egregious and a complete betrayal of what the American people were told would be then when their tax-dollars were used to bailout Wall Street,” Issa said in a statement, adding that the housing efforts were “dumping good money after bad”. (Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Kazunori Takada)
Michael Steele Accused of Hiding RNC Debts
Wow, it’s pretty bad when your own treasurer accuses you of hiding stuff. Via Taegan-
The RNC failed to report more than $7 million in debt to the FEC in recent months — “a move that made its bottom line appear healthier than it is heading into the midterm elections and that also raises the prospect of a hefty fine,” the Washington Times reports.
RNC Treasurer Randy Pullen accused Chairman Michael Steele “of trying to conceal the information from him by ordering staff not to communicate with the treasurer — a charge RNC officials deny.” Pullen said that he “had discovered $3.3 million in debt from April and $3.8 million from May, which he said had led him to file erroneous reports with the FEC.”
The Hotline notes Pullen’s allegations “are sure to incite fireworks” at the party’s August meeting. “Both Steele and Pullen have allies on the party’s budget committee, where influential members of the RNC often find themselves. The proxy battle between the 2 is likely to dominate the gathering in Kansas City.”
The RNC failed to report more than $7 million in debt to the FEC in recent months — “a move that made its bottom line appear healthier than it is heading into the midterm elections and that also raises the prospect of a hefty fine,” the Washington Times reports.
RNC Treasurer Randy Pullen accused Chairman Michael Steele “of trying to conceal the information from him by ordering staff not to communicate with the treasurer — a charge RNC officials deny.” Pullen said that he “had discovered $3.3 million in debt from April and $3.8 million from May, which he said had led him to file erroneous reports with the FEC.”
The Hotline notes Pullen’s allegations “are sure to incite fireworks” at the party’s August meeting. “Both Steele and Pullen have allies on the party’s budget committee, where influential members of the RNC often find themselves. The proxy battle between the 2 is likely to dominate the gathering in Kansas City.”
Obama Signs Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act
At a press conference moments ago, President Barack Obama signed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act into law. See Conference Report version prior to signing of Act; see also FEI summary of highlights of the Act by Cady North, manager of Government Affairs, FEI.
The White House Blog has a post by Jesse Lee linking to White House summaries of the Act and a related 3 minute video, What Wall Street Reform Means To You.
The President's signing of the Act was shown via live-stream video on http://www.whitehouse.gov/ earlier today, and an archived video will be availalble later today. (I assume the written text of his remarks will be posted in the White House Briefing Room later today as well.)
Obama opened his remarks noting that we faced the greatest recession since the Great Depression, and that "Although the economy is growing again, too many people are still feeling the pain of the downturn."
In listening to Obama's remarks earlier today, here are some things I noted as highlights:
While a number of factors led to such a recession, the primary cause was a breakdown in the financial system, a breakdown in responsibility, from the halls ...corners of wall street, to ...Washington, DC ... ...antiquated rules... unscrupulous lenders... firms like AIG placed massive, risky bets with borrowed money. While the rules left abuse unchecked, they also left taxpayers on the hook.
Obama reminded people numerous times during his remarks that, "Ulltimately there's no dividing line between Main Street and Wall Street." (I believe he was trying to demonstrate there is mutual reliance or a symbiotic relationship, so to speak, between the two, and the two should not view each other as 'opponents.') For example, Obama said: "The fact is, the financial industry is central to our nation's ability to grow, prosper, compete."
Bill Will Foster, Not Hamper, Innovation; Nothing To Fear From Reform
He added, "There are a lot of banks who understand this, a whole lot of bankers who want to do right.. this bill will help foster, not hamper, innovation, so firms compete based on price and quality, not on tricks, not on traps... provides certainty ... unless your business model depends on cutting corners or bilking customers, you've got nothing to fear from reform."
Among the things the President listed under the topic of "what Wall Street Reform Means to you," were:
•making credit contracts "fine print" more understandable
•looking out for people: companies will have to seek out customers by better products, not abusive practices
•reform will finally bring transparency
•shareholders will have greater say on pay of exec's, so they can reward success, instead of failure
No More Tax Funded Bailouts
Obama emphasized: "There will be no more tax funded bailouts, period.... If a large financial institution should ever fail, this bill gives us [a way] to wind it down... [no more] too big to fail, so we won't have another AIG."
Regulators' Role
"Regulators will have to be vigilant," noted Obama, adding, "we may need to make adjustments along the way." As noted further above, he also referenced 'antiquated rules' that will have to be addressed.
Posted by Edith Orenstein
The White House Blog has a post by Jesse Lee linking to White House summaries of the Act and a related 3 minute video, What Wall Street Reform Means To You.
The President's signing of the Act was shown via live-stream video on http://www.whitehouse.gov/ earlier today, and an archived video will be availalble later today. (I assume the written text of his remarks will be posted in the White House Briefing Room later today as well.)
Obama opened his remarks noting that we faced the greatest recession since the Great Depression, and that "Although the economy is growing again, too many people are still feeling the pain of the downturn."
In listening to Obama's remarks earlier today, here are some things I noted as highlights:
While a number of factors led to such a recession, the primary cause was a breakdown in the financial system, a breakdown in responsibility, from the halls ...corners of wall street, to ...Washington, DC ... ...antiquated rules... unscrupulous lenders... firms like AIG placed massive, risky bets with borrowed money. While the rules left abuse unchecked, they also left taxpayers on the hook.
Obama reminded people numerous times during his remarks that, "Ulltimately there's no dividing line between Main Street and Wall Street." (I believe he was trying to demonstrate there is mutual reliance or a symbiotic relationship, so to speak, between the two, and the two should not view each other as 'opponents.') For example, Obama said: "The fact is, the financial industry is central to our nation's ability to grow, prosper, compete."
Bill Will Foster, Not Hamper, Innovation; Nothing To Fear From Reform
He added, "There are a lot of banks who understand this, a whole lot of bankers who want to do right.. this bill will help foster, not hamper, innovation, so firms compete based on price and quality, not on tricks, not on traps... provides certainty ... unless your business model depends on cutting corners or bilking customers, you've got nothing to fear from reform."
Among the things the President listed under the topic of "what Wall Street Reform Means to you," were:
•making credit contracts "fine print" more understandable
•looking out for people: companies will have to seek out customers by better products, not abusive practices
•reform will finally bring transparency
•shareholders will have greater say on pay of exec's, so they can reward success, instead of failure
No More Tax Funded Bailouts
Obama emphasized: "There will be no more tax funded bailouts, period.... If a large financial institution should ever fail, this bill gives us [a way] to wind it down... [no more] too big to fail, so we won't have another AIG."
Regulators' Role
"Regulators will have to be vigilant," noted Obama, adding, "we may need to make adjustments along the way." As noted further above, he also referenced 'antiquated rules' that will have to be addressed.
Posted by Edith Orenstein
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