April 30, 2010

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) called an outline of legislation circulated by the Senate Democratic leadership, "yet another attempt to reward illegal aliens and cheap labor employers at the expense of the American public." The outline, offered by Senators Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) offers amnesty to millions of illegal aliens and family members residing outside the U.S., and increased flows of unskilled foreign labor, in exchange for promises of future enforcement-many of which the authors acknowledge have been made and broken in the past. Full release.

Feeding America today announced their strong endorsement of the "Weekends Without Hunger Act", which was recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congresswoman Dina Titus (NV) and the U.S. Senate by Senators Arlen Specter (PA) and Robert P. Casey, Jr. (PA). This critical piece of legislation will be instrumental in helping to provide nutritious food to children who might otherwise be at risk of hunger during the weekends and school vacations. This legislation establishes a pilot program that provides commodities to eligible institutions, such as schools and emergency food providers, to carry out projects that would provide nutritious food to at-risk school children on weekends and during extended school holidays during the school year. Full release.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that he is dispatching a team of attorneys from multiple divisions within the Justice Department to New Orleans to meet with the U.S. Attorney and response teams and to monitor the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "The British Petroleum oil spill has already cost lives and created a major environmental incident," said Attorney General Holder. "The Justice Department stands ready to make available every resource at our disposal to vigorously enforce the laws that protect the people who work and reside near the Gulf, the wildlife, the environment and the American taxpayers." Full release.

Amnesty International USA voiced serious concerns today regarding priorities for a comprehensive immigration reform (CIR) bill proposed by U.S. Senators Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ). A draft version of the bill summary touts increased border patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel and penalties for immigration status-related crimes. However, it pays little attention to long-needed reform of ICE's unnecessary home-invasion style enforcement operations, targeting and often terrorizing undocumented persons. Full release.

The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) today commended the Florida Legislature for passing legislation (SB 1752) that will provide economic incentives for digital interactive media productions in the state. As part of SB 1752, interactive digital media projects will be eligible for a 20% percent tax credit for qualifying production expenses. State Representative Steve Precourt and State Senator Mike Haridopolos spearheaded legislative efforts in support of dramatically improving and expanding the state's current entertainment incentive program to encourage the expansion of interactive digital media and film production in Florida. Full release.

The best tasting produce is right out your backdoor. Join the over 41 million American households last year growing their own produce. A few simple planning ideas can help you grow bountiful harvests all season long-and plenty to share with your family, friend, neighbors and the local food bank. Full release.

The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has the potential to destroy the most productive fishery in the world, according to Mobile Baykeeper, the largest environmental advocate in the Gulf Coast. At the same time, Mobile Baykeeper is calling on the government to demand transparency, monitoring and caution in implementing crisis clean-up solutions that could make the situation worse, such as controlled burns and chemical dispersants. The region that spans from the Mobile Bay Estuary all the way to Galveston Bay is the most productive fishery in the world, with 69% of all domestic shrimp and 70% of all domestic oysters at stake. Full release.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today on news that the gross domestic product expanded at an annual rate of 3.2 percent in the first quarter of 2010: "One year after President Bush left our country mired in the most severe economic crisis since the Great Depression, today's solid growth in GDP, driven by consumer spending, is a sign of progress for our economy and for the middle class. Congressional Republicans fought this progress at every opportunity. Not a single House Republican stood up for economic recovery. Instead, they tried to obstruct progress for the American people-siding with Wall Street over Main Street, insurance companies over America's families, and Big Oil over small business." Full release.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, addressing the AJC Annual Gala tonight, delivered a powerful reaffirmation of the U.S.-Israel relationship, and the shared goal of achieving a negotiated comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace. "Israel's right to exist is non-negotiable and no lasting peace is possible unless that is accepted," said Clinton. "Regional peace must begin with the recognition by every party that the United States will always stand behind Israel's security," said Clinton, adding that guaranteeing Israel's security "is more than a policy position; it is a personal commitment." Speaking before a standing-room audience of some 1,500, Clinton said, "AJC is a force for peace and progress here at home and around the world," pointing out that the United States' relationship with Israel is premised on the values held by AJC. Full release.

Archive of Previous Posts