Obamanomics - Current Issues

There’s quite a bit to keep up with where Obamanomics is concerned; it’s been a long time since a President took office and immediately took action. Many skeptics are saying he is doing too much too fast, but there are just as many people saying he is doing what long should have been done.
Here are some bullet points to keep the Ponderers up to speed on some of the key initiatives that are taking place within the Obama administration:

• Stimulus Bill – the $787 Billion Stimulus bill was approved in the House on Friday Feb 13, 2009 (with no Republican support) and was also approved in the Senate later that night. President Obama signed the bill on Tuesday Feb 17, 2009 in Denver, Colorado. More info from For You to Ponder on the bill.
• Housing Relief Program – President Obama is scheduled to unveil his Housing Relief Program at 12:15 PM ET. Stay tuned to For You to Ponder for a full breakdown.
• Afghanistan – President Obama has agreed to increase our presence in Afghanistan. The Pentagon released news that they are sending 17,000 more troops into Afghanistan. The President has stated that he believes there is something more needed there other than troops and will be looking towards diplomacy as a key ingredient.
• The Auto Industry – Obamanomics gave and additional $billion to GM on Wednesday Feb 17, 2009. The bailout continues.
• Buy American – To increase jobs, there is a provision in the Stimulus package requiring the use of U.S.-produced iron, steel, and other manufactured goods in public works projects funded by the $787 billion economic stimulus bill.
• Don’t Ask Don’t Tell – Spokesperson Robert Gibbs responded Yes to the question of whether the President still intended to get rid of this policy within the Military; he later expanded his answer to say that "So not everything will get done in the beginning but he's committed to following through". It looks like it’s coming, just no hard date on when.

These are all issues we should stay on top of, the time has come for us to be aware of the decisions our leaders make, and how those decisions affect our daily lives. Our President has come out of the gate at full speed; we owe it to him to keep up.

Obamanomics Position on Afghanistan

Ponders, a decision is expected "shortly" (this could be days in political talk) on whether

President Obama will increase the number of troops in Afghanistan. Obama's Republican Defense Secretary Robert Gates made a statement that decisions have to be made on this matter. A strategic review is being conducted to help determine the best course of action.

Now I know what you are thinking, "Is this the change we can believe in?", It sounds vaguely familiar to the Iraq situation and the trillions of dollars spent on our activities there.

Obama stated many times during his campaign for presidency that he was in favor of withdrawing troops from Iraq, so far, there is no reason to think that he won't stand by that conviction, the bigger question to ponder is whether those troops will be diverted to Afghanistan.

Unnamed pentagon officials relayed that thousands of ground combat Marines, a marine aviation unit and Army Special Forces could be sent to southern Afghanistan in the weeks ahead.

Money spent on war is money spent on war, regardless of the location. I will be anxious to see how Obamanomics plays this out.

Due to the amount of press the Stimulus bill has gotten, this item has almost been left in the shadows; keep your eyes on it Ponderers, this decision will have a large impact on the American dollar.

To Tell The Truth

Say it aint so, is this another one bites the dust. I had a sneaking suspicion that this was coming, but I quietly hoped that it wouldn't. Illinois Republicans are gunning for a perjury investigation of Senator Roland Burris.
It appears, our Mr. Burris may have "selectively forgotten" to mention several phone calls he received from past Gov. Rod Blagojevich's brother soliciting him for campaign cash. I say "selectively forgotten" because Burris did not mention any of the phone calls during his January 8 testimony before the Illinois House impeachment panel. I'm wondering how you could forget something like this, or think it wasn't important enough to mention. If there was no wrong doing on his part, it would seem he would have provided this informationm during the hearing.
Almost like a child who broke the cookie jar but didn't eat the spilled cookies, Burris decided to submit an affidavit providing information that Rob Blagojevich (the Governors brother) asked him to contribute or help raise money before the governor tapped Burris on December 30 to take Obama's senate seat.
I'm more than a little skeptical of this whole, "oh yea, now I remember!" deal. Was it perjury? For You To Ponder.

Stimulus Bill Has Been Approved

Here Ye Here Ye, Obamanomics has cleared it's first hurdle! The $787 billion stimulus bill passed by a 246-183 vote in the House earlier today. Voting in the Senate was delayed as they awaited the arrival of Democratic Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown who was delayed due to the death of his mother. Brown cast his vote at approximately 10:45 PM. Although the bill has passed and President Obama is expected to sign the bill on Monday, the bill has had many revisions over the past weeks to get to the approval point.
There was little to no Republican support of the bill in the House, but the bill was still able to gain approval.
Check back to For You To Ponder as you know I will have to give you the skinny on what this means to the everyday Joe. Just wanted to let those inquiring minds know that the bill was passed. Now get back to your regular scheduled Friday activities!