News Unfiltered

Blunt to Pelosi: Trade is the Stimulus Our Economy Needs

On the eve of the one-year anniversary of a land-mark bipartisan trade deal, House Republican Whip Roy Blunt (Mo.) today sent the following letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) outlining why passing the Colombia trade agreement would serve as the kind of economic stimulus she has said the country needs to help our economy. Full release

Committee for Democracy in Iran Praises UK Court Ruling, Calls on US to End Blacklisting of PMOI

Committee for Democracy in Iran (San Diego-CA) praises the ruling by the British Court of Appeal to remove the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (MEK/PMOI) from the list of proscribed organizations. The Court ruled that "to the extent that the PMOI has retained networks and supporters inside Iran since, at the latest, 2002, they have been directed to social protest, finance and intelligence gathering activities which would not fall within the definition of 'terrorism' for the purposes of the 2000 Act." Full release

AFGE Endorses Barack Obama

The nation's largest federal employee union today announced its endorsement of Senator Barack Obama for President of the United States. The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 600,000 federal workers, made the decision to support Obama in this historic election citing the critical need for positive change and Obama's ability to unite the country. Full release

Democratic National Committee - McCain Myth Buster: John McCain and Spending

John McCain says he wants to spend the American people's "hard earned money wisely" and that "[e]armarks restrict America's ability to address genuine national priorities." But the truth is, McCain's economic proposals have been anything but responsible and have ignored many national priorities. Full release

McCain Did Not Suggest Hamas Supports Obama, Says Reporter

Sen. Barack Obama called on presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain, yesterday, for purportedly suggesting in a fundraising letter the Hamas terrorist organization supports Obama. Full release

U.S. Labor Department Announces Enhanced Union Transparency Rules

The U.S. Department of Labor will issue a notice of proposed rulemaking on May 12 to enhance union financial transparency. The proposed rule, issued under the authority of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA), protects the rights of labor union members to have meaningful information about union finances and expenditures. Full release

Republican National Committee: Obama's Faulty Tax Argument

The following op-ed was released today by the Republican National Committee. It was written by Andrew G. Biggs and is from The Wall Street Journal. As the presidential campaign heats up, a key issue is whether to extend the 2001 and 2003 income tax cuts, which expire in 2011. John McCain wants to make the tax cuts permanent. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton want to let the rates rise. Full release

RNC Launches New Web Site & Video

The Republican National Committee (RNC) today launched a new Web site encouraging voters to ask Barack Obama questions about the important issues facing America. Full release

Pelosi: 'Farm Bill Will Ease Strain of Rising Food Prices for American Families'

Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement on news that the House-Senate conference committee on the Farm Bill has reached a final agreement: "The bipartisan Farm Bill will ease the strain of rising food prices for American families, begin much-needed reforms to farm payments, and make a substantial commitment to land conservation and to fruits and vegetables." Full release

DNC Calls on McCain Campaign to Release Cindy McCain's Tax Returns

On the Today Show this morning, Cindy McCain defended the McCain campaign's decision to withhold her tax returns, saying they would never make her tax returns public--not even if she becomes First Lady. [See it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXDV2kZX_MU] Despite the accountability Americans expect from their elected officials and McCain's own calls for openness and transparency in government, John McCain has only released two years of his tax returns. No nominee from either party since Ronald Reagan in 1980 has disclosed that little information.
Full release

DNC - McCain Myth Buster: John McCain and the Republican Party

On the campaign trail John McCain likes to call himself a maverick Republican who bucks the Party line whenever possible. But the fact is, McCain is far from a moderate. In the same week that we found out that McCain has never voted against a Republican judicial nominee during his entire time in the Senate, the Arizona Republic reported that he rarely bucks his party on close votes. According to the paper's analysis of his Senate votes, McCain's "voting pattern seems at odds with the popular narrative that McCain's maverick tendencies make him an unreliable conservative" and a political scientist who analyzes Senate votes said, "He is a conservative who votes conservative on most issues...[b]y no means is he a liberal or even a moderate." [Arizona Republic, 5/7/08]
Full release

Amnesty International Launches National Tour of Guantanamo Cell Replica

Today, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) launched its national tour of a life-size Guantanamo prison cell replica in Miami to increase public awareness and mount pressure on the Bush administration to close down the U.S.-controlled detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Full release.

U.S. Labor Department to Hold Public Hearing to Collect Information on Use of Child and Forced Labor Worldwide

The U.S. Department of Labor will hold a public hearing on May 28 at 10:30 a.m. EDT to collect information on the use of child labor and forced labor worldwide in the production of goods. The hearing will take place at the department's headquarters at 200 Constitution Ave. N.W. in Washington. The department is accepting requests to attend from all interested parties. Full release

Richard Viguerie Launches UltimateJohnMcCain.com

Will John McCain receive the enthusiastic support from conservatives that he needs to win in November? Or will conservatives give him only grudging support... or vote for someone else? Full release.

Seniors Lose 51 Percent of Their Buying Power Since 2000

Seniors have lost 51 percent of their buying power since the beginning of the decade, according to a new study released today by The Senior Citizens League, one of the nation's largest nonpartisan seniors groups. Full release