Sunday, August 22, 2010
VOTE FOR BARBARA AND JERRY
' just writing to my friends in California to let them know I'm voting for Boxer and Brown in November. Don't get bought by Megabucks Whitman and don't let your job get sold by Fortune Fiorina.
Ten Stations of the Cross (the Twisted Cross)
Fascist America, in 10 easy steps
From Hitler to Pinochet and beyond, history shows there are certain steps that any would-be dictator must take to destroy constitutional freedoms. And, argues Naomi Wolf, George Bush and his administration seem to be taking them all
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o Naomi Wolf
o The Guardian, Tuesday 24 April 2007
o Article history
Last autumn, there was a military coup in Thailand. The leaders of the coup took a number of steps, rather systematically, as if they had a shopping list. In a sense, they did. Within a matter of days, democracy had been closed down: the coup leaders declared martial law, sent armed soldiers into residential areas, took over radio and TV stations, issued restrictions on the press, tightened some limits on travel, and took certain activists into custody.
They were not figuring these things out as they went along. If you look at history, you can see that there is essentially a blueprint for turning an open society into a dictatorship. That blueprint has been used again and again in more and less bloody, more and less terrifying ways. But it is always effective. It is very difficult and arduous to create and sustain a democracy - but history shows that closing one down is much simpler. You simply have to be willing to take the 10 steps.
As difficult as this is to contemplate, it is clear, if you are willing to look, that each of these 10 steps has already been initiated today in the United States by the Bush administration.
Because Americans like me were born in freedom, we have a hard time even considering that it is possible for us to become as unfree - domestically - as many other nations. Because we no longer learn much about our rights or our system of government - the task of being aware of the constitution has been outsourced from citizens' ownership to being the domain of professionals such as lawyers and professors - we scarcely recognise the checks and balances that the founders put in place, even as they are being systematically dismantled. Because we don't learn much about European history, the setting up of a department of "homeland" security - remember who else was keen on the word "homeland" - didn't raise the alarm bells it might have.
It is my argument that, beneath our very noses, George Bush and his administration are using time-tested tactics to close down an open society. It is time for us to be willing to think the unthinkable - as the author and political journalist Joe Conason, has put it, that it can happen here. And that we are further along than we realise.
Conason eloquently warned of the danger of American authoritarianism. I am arguing that we need also to look at the lessons of European and other kinds of fascism to understand the potential seriousness of the events we see unfolding in the US.
1. Invoke a terrifying internal and external enemy
After we were hit on September 11 2001, we were in a state of national shock. Less than six weeks later, on October 26 2001, the USA Patriot Act was passed by a Congress that had little chance to debate it; many said that they scarcely had time to read it. We were told we were now on a "war footing"; we were in a "global war" against a "global caliphate" intending to "wipe out civilisation". There have been other times of crisis in which the US accepted limits on civil liberties, such as during the civil war, when Lincoln declared martial law, and the second world war, when thousands of Japanese-American citizens were interned. But this situation, as Bruce Fein of the American Freedom Agenda notes, is unprecedented: all our other wars had an endpoint, so the pendulum was able to swing back toward freedom; this war is defined as open-ended in time and without national boundaries in space - the globe itself is the battlefield. "This time," Fein says, "there will be no defined end."
Creating a terrifying threat - hydra-like, secretive, evil - is an old trick. It can, like Hitler's invocation of a communist threat to the nation's security, be based on actual events (one Wisconsin academic has faced calls for his dismissal because he noted, among other things, that the alleged communist arson, the Reichstag fire of February 1933, was swiftly followed in Nazi Germany by passage of the Enabling Act, which replaced constitutional law with an open-ended state of emergency). Or the terrifying threat can be based, like the National Socialist evocation of the "global conspiracy of world Jewry", on myth.
It is not that global Islamist terrorism is not a severe danger; of course it is. I am arguing rather that the language used to convey the nature of the threat is different in a country such as Spain - which has also suffered violent terrorist attacks - than it is in America. Spanish citizens know that they face a grave security threat; what we as American citizens believe is that we are potentially threatened with the end of civilisation as we know it. Of course, this makes us more willing to accept restrictions on our freedoms.
2. Create a gulag
Once you have got everyone scared, the next step is to create a prison system outside the rule of law (as Bush put it, he wanted the American detention centre at Guantánamo Bay to be situated in legal "outer space") - where torture takes place.
At first, the people who are sent there are seen by citizens as outsiders: troublemakers, spies, "enemies of the people" or "criminals". Initially, citizens tend to support the secret prison system; it makes them feel safer and they do not identify with the prisoners. But soon enough, civil society leaders - opposition members, labour activists, clergy and journalists - are arrested and sent there as well.
This process took place in fascist shifts or anti-democracy crackdowns ranging from Italy and Germany in the 1920s and 1930s to the Latin American coups of the 1970s and beyond. It is standard practice for closing down an open society or crushing a pro-democracy uprising.
With its jails in Iraq and Afghanistan, and, of course, Guantánamo in Cuba, where detainees are abused, and kept indefinitely without trial and without access to the due process of the law, America certainly has its gulag now. Bush and his allies in Congress recently announced they would issue no information about the secret CIA "black site" prisons throughout the world, which are used to incarcerate people who have been seized off the street.
Gulags in history tend to metastasise, becoming ever larger and more secretive, ever more deadly and formalised. We know from first-hand accounts, photographs, videos and government documents that people, innocent and guilty, have been tortured in the US-run prisons we are aware of and those we can't investigate adequately.
But Americans still assume this system and detainee abuses involve only scary brown people with whom they don't generally identify. It was brave of the conservative pundit William Safire to quote the anti-Nazi pastor Martin Niemöller, who had been seized as a political prisoner: "First they came for the Jews." Most Americans don't understand yet that the destruction of the rule of law at Guantánamo set a dangerous precedent for them, too.
By the way, the establishment of military tribunals that deny prisoners due process tends to come early on in a fascist shift. Mussolini and Stalin set up such tribunals. On April 24 1934, the Nazis, too, set up the People's Court, which also bypassed the judicial system: prisoners were held indefinitely, often in isolation, and tortured, without being charged with offences, and were subjected to show trials. Eventually, the Special Courts became a parallel system that put pressure on the regular courts to abandon the rule of law in favour of Nazi ideology when making decisions.
3. Develop a thug caste
When leaders who seek what I call a "fascist shift" want to close down an open society, they send paramilitary groups of scary young men out to terrorise citizens. The Blackshirts roamed the Italian countryside beating up communists; the Brownshirts staged violent rallies throughout Germany. This paramilitary force is especially important in a democracy: you need citizens to fear thug violence and so you need thugs who are free from prosecution.
The years following 9/11 have proved a bonanza for America's security contractors, with the Bush administration outsourcing areas of work that traditionally fell to the US military. In the process, contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars have been issued for security work by mercenaries at home and abroad. In Iraq, some of these contract operatives have been accused of involvement in torturing prisoners, harassing journalists and firing on Iraqi civilians. Under Order 17, issued to regulate contractors in Iraq by the one-time US administrator in Baghdad, Paul Bremer, these contractors are immune from prosecution
Yes, but that is in Iraq, you could argue; however, after Hurricane Katrina, the Department of Homeland Security hired and deployed hundreds of armed private security guards in New Orleans. The investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill interviewed one unnamed guard who reported having fired on unarmed civilians in the city. It was a natural disaster that underlay that episode - but the administration's endless war on terror means ongoing scope for what are in effect privately contracted armies to take on crisis and emergency management at home in US cities.
Thugs in America? Groups of angry young Republican men, dressed in identical shirts and trousers, menaced poll workers counting the votes in Florida in 2000. If you are reading history, you can imagine that there can be a need for "public order" on the next election day. Say there are protests, or a threat, on the day of an election; history would not rule out the presence of a private security firm at a polling station "to restore public order".
4. Set up an internal surveillance system
In Mussolini's Italy, in Nazi Germany, in communist East Germany, in communist China - in every closed society - secret police spy on ordinary people and encourage neighbours to spy on neighbours. The Stasi needed to keep only a minority of East Germans under surveillance to convince a majority that they themselves were being watched.
In 2005 and 2006, when James Risen and Eric Lichtblau wrote in the New York Times about a secret state programme to wiretap citizens' phones, read their emails and follow international financial transactions, it became clear to ordinary Americans that they, too, could be under state scrutiny.
In closed societies, this surveillance is cast as being about "national security"; the true function is to keep citizens docile and inhibit their activism and dissent.
5. Harass citizens' groups
The fifth thing you do is related to step four - you infiltrate and harass citizens' groups. It can be trivial: a church in Pasadena, whose minister preached that Jesus was in favour of peace, found itself being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, while churches that got Republicans out to vote, which is equally illegal under US tax law, have been left alone.
Other harassment is more serious: the American Civil Liberties Union reports that thousands of ordinary American anti-war, environmental and other groups have been infiltrated by agents: a secret Pentagon database includes more than four dozen peaceful anti-war meetings, rallies or marches by American citizens in its category of 1,500 "suspicious incidents". The equally secret Counterintelligence Field Activity (Cifa) agency of the Department of Defense has been gathering information about domestic organisations engaged in peaceful political activities: Cifa is supposed to track "potential terrorist threats" as it watches ordinary US citizen activists. A little-noticed new law has redefined activism such as animal rights protests as "terrorism". So the definition of "terrorist" slowly expands to include the opposition.
6. Engage in arbitrary detention and release
This scares people. It is a kind of cat-and-mouse game. Nicholas D Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, the investigative reporters who wrote China Wakes: the Struggle for the Soul of a Rising Power, describe pro-democracy activists in China, such as Wei Jingsheng, being arrested and released many times. In a closing or closed society there is a "list" of dissidents and opposition leaders: you are targeted in this way once you are on the list, and it is hard to get off the list.
In 2004, America's Transportation Security Administration confirmed that it had a list of passengers who were targeted for security searches or worse if they tried to fly. People who have found themselves on the list? Two middle-aged women peace activists in San Francisco; liberal Senator Edward Kennedy; a member of Venezuela's government - after Venezuela's president had criticised Bush; and thousands of ordinary US citizens.
Professor Walter F Murphy is emeritus of Princeton University; he is one of the foremost constitutional scholars in the nation and author of the classic Constitutional Democracy. Murphy is also a decorated former marine, and he is not even especially politically liberal. But on March 1 this year, he was denied a boarding pass at Newark, "because I was on the Terrorist Watch list".
"Have you been in any peace marches? We ban a lot of people from flying because of that," asked the airline employee.
"I explained," said Murphy, "that I had not so marched but had, in September 2006, given a lecture at Princeton, televised and put on the web, highly critical of George Bush for his many violations of the constitution."
"That'll do it," the man said.
Anti-war marcher? Potential terrorist. Support the constitution? Potential terrorist. History shows that the categories of "enemy of the people" tend to expand ever deeper into civil life.
James Yee, a US citizen, was the Muslim chaplain at Guantánamo who was accused of mishandling classified documents. He was harassed by the US military before the charges against him were dropped. Yee has been detained and released several times. He is still of interest.
Brandon Mayfield, a US citizen and lawyer in Oregon, was mistakenly identified as a possible terrorist. His house was secretly broken into and his computer seized. Though he is innocent of the accusation against him, he is still on the list.
It is a standard practice of fascist societies that once you are on the list, you can't get off.
7. Target key individuals
Threaten civil servants, artists and academics with job loss if they don't toe the line. Mussolini went after the rectors of state universities who did not conform to the fascist line; so did Joseph Goebbels, who purged academics who were not pro-Nazi; so did Chile's Augusto Pinochet; so does the Chinese communist Politburo in punishing pro-democracy students and professors.
Academe is a tinderbox of activism, so those seeking a fascist shift punish academics and students with professional loss if they do not "coordinate", in Goebbels' term, ideologically. Since civil servants are the sector of society most vulnerable to being fired by a given regime, they are also a group that fascists typically "coordinate" early on: the Reich Law for the Re-establishment of a Professional Civil Service was passed on April 7 1933.
Bush supporters in state legislatures in several states put pressure on regents at state universities to penalise or fire academics who have been critical of the administration. As for civil servants, the Bush administration has derailed the career of one military lawyer who spoke up for fair trials for detainees, while an administration official publicly intimidated the law firms that represent detainees pro bono by threatening to call for their major corporate clients to boycott them.
Elsewhere, a CIA contract worker who said in a closed blog that "waterboarding is torture" was stripped of the security clearance she needed in order to do her job.
Most recently, the administration purged eight US attorneys for what looks like insufficient political loyalty. When Goebbels purged the civil service in April 1933, attorneys were "coordinated" too, a step that eased the way of the increasingly brutal laws to follow.
8. Control the press
Italy in the 1920s, Germany in the 30s, East Germany in the 50s, Czechoslovakia in the 60s, the Latin American dictatorships in the 70s, China in the 80s and 90s - all dictatorships and would-be dictators target newspapers and journalists. They threaten and harass them in more open societies that they are seeking to close, and they arrest them and worse in societies that have been closed already.
The Committee to Protect Journalists says arrests of US journalists are at an all-time high: Josh Wolf (no relation), a blogger in San Francisco, has been put in jail for a year for refusing to turn over video of an anti-war demonstration; Homeland Security brought a criminal complaint against reporter Greg Palast, claiming he threatened "critical infrastructure" when he and a TV producer were filming victims of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana. Palast had written a bestseller critical of the Bush administration.
Other reporters and writers have been punished in other ways. Joseph C Wilson accused Bush, in a New York Times op-ed, of leading the country to war on the basis of a false charge that Saddam Hussein had acquired yellowcake uranium in Niger. His wife, Valerie Plame, was outed as a CIA spy - a form of retaliation that ended her career.
Prosecution and job loss are nothing, though, compared with how the US is treating journalists seeking to cover the conflict in Iraq in an unbiased way. The Committee to Protect Journalists has documented multiple accounts of the US military in Iraq firing upon or threatening to fire upon unembedded (meaning independent) reporters and camera operators from organisations ranging from al-Jazeera to the BBC. While westerners may question the accounts by al-Jazeera, they should pay attention to the accounts of reporters such as the BBC's Kate Adie. In some cases reporters have been wounded or killed, including ITN's Terry Lloyd in 2003. Both CBS and the Associated Press in Iraq had staff members seized by the US military and taken to violent prisons; the news organisations were unable to see the evidence against their staffers.
Over time in closing societies, real news is supplanted by fake news and false documents. Pinochet showed Chilean citizens falsified documents to back up his claim that terrorists had been about to attack the nation. The yellowcake charge, too, was based on forged papers.
You won't have a shutdown of news in modern America - it is not possible. But you can have, as Frank Rich and Sidney Blumenthal have pointed out, a steady stream of lies polluting the news well. What you already have is a White House directing a stream of false information that is so relentless that it is increasingly hard to sort out truth from untruth. In a fascist system, it's not the lies that count but the muddying. When citizens can't tell real news from fake, they give up their demands for accountability bit by bit.
9. Dissent equals treason
Cast dissent as "treason" and criticism as "espionage'. Every closing society does this, just as it elaborates laws that increasingly criminalise certain kinds of speech and expand the definition of "spy" and "traitor". When Bill Keller, the publisher of the New York Times, ran the Lichtblau/Risen stories, Bush called the Times' leaking of classified information "disgraceful", while Republicans in Congress called for Keller to be charged with treason, and rightwing commentators and news outlets kept up the "treason" drumbeat. Some commentators, as Conason noted, reminded readers smugly that one penalty for violating the Espionage Act is execution.
Conason is right to note how serious a threat that attack represented. It is also important to recall that the 1938 Moscow show trial accused the editor of Izvestia, Nikolai Bukharin, of treason; Bukharin was, in fact, executed. And it is important to remind Americans that when the 1917 Espionage Act was last widely invoked, during the infamous 1919 Palmer Raids, leftist activists were arrested without warrants in sweeping roundups, kept in jail for up to five months, and "beaten, starved, suffocated, tortured and threatened with death", according to the historian Myra MacPherson. After that, dissent was muted in America for a decade.
In Stalin's Soviet Union, dissidents were "enemies of the people". National Socialists called those who supported Weimar democracy "November traitors".
And here is where the circle closes: most Americans do not realise that since September of last year - when Congress wrongly, foolishly, passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006 - the president has the power to call any US citizen an "enemy combatant". He has the power to define what "enemy combatant" means. The president can also delegate to anyone he chooses in the executive branch the right to define "enemy combatant" any way he or she wants and then seize Americans accordingly.
Even if you or I are American citizens, even if we turn out to be completely innocent of what he has accused us of doing, he has the power to have us seized as we are changing planes at Newark tomorrow, or have us taken with a knock on the door; ship you or me to a navy brig; and keep you or me in isolation, possibly for months, while awaiting trial. (Prolonged isolation, as psychiatrists know, triggers psychosis in otherwise mentally healthy prisoners. That is why Stalin's gulag had an isolation cell, like Guantánamo's, in every satellite prison. Camp 6, the newest, most brutal facility at Guantánamo, is all isolation cells.)
We US citizens will get a trial eventually - for now. But legal rights activists at the Center for Constitutional Rights say that the Bush administration is trying increasingly aggressively to find ways to get around giving even US citizens fair trials. "Enemy combatant" is a status offence - it is not even something you have to have done. "We have absolutely moved over into a preventive detention model - you look like you could do something bad, you might do something bad, so we're going to hold you," says a spokeswoman of the CCR.
Most Americans surely do not get this yet. No wonder: it is hard to believe, even though it is true. In every closing society, at a certain point there are some high-profile arrests - usually of opposition leaders, clergy and journalists. Then everything goes quiet. After those arrests, there are still newspapers, courts, TV and radio, and the facades of a civil society. There just isn't real dissent. There just isn't freedom. If you look at history, just before those arrests is where we are now.
10. Suspend the rule of law
The John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007 gave the president new powers over the national guard. This means that in a national emergency - which the president now has enhanced powers to declare - he can send Michigan's militia to enforce a state of emergency that he has declared in Oregon, over the objections of the state's governor and its citizens.
Even as Americans were focused on Britney Spears's meltdown and the question of who fathered Anna Nicole's baby, the New York Times editorialised about this shift: "A disturbing recent phenomenon in Washington is that laws that strike to the heart of American democracy have been passed in the dead of night ... Beyond actual insurrection, the president may now use military troops as a domestic police force in response to a natural disaster, a disease outbreak, terrorist attack or any 'other condition'."
Critics see this as a clear violation of the Posse Comitatus Act - which was meant to restrain the federal government from using the military for domestic law enforcement. The Democratic senator Patrick Leahy says the bill encourages a president to declare federal martial law. It also violates the very reason the founders set up our system of government as they did: having seen citizens bullied by a monarch's soldiers, the founders were terrified of exactly this kind of concentration of militias' power over American people in the hands of an oppressive executive or faction.
Of course, the United States is not vulnerable to the violent, total closing-down of the system that followed Mussolini's march on Rome or Hitler's roundup of political prisoners. Our democratic habits are too resilient, and our military and judiciary too independent, for any kind of scenario like that.
Rather, as other critics are noting, our experiment in democracy could be closed down by a process of erosion.
It is a mistake to think that early in a fascist shift you see the profile of barbed wire against the sky. In the early days, things look normal on the surface; peasants were celebrating harvest festivals in Calabria in 1922; people were shopping and going to the movies in Berlin in 1931. Early on, as WH Auden put it, the horror is always elsewhere - while someone is being tortured, children are skating, ships are sailing: "dogs go on with their doggy life ... How everything turns away/ Quite leisurely from the disaster."
As Americans turn away quite leisurely, keeping tuned to internet shopping and American Idol, the foundations of democracy are being fatally corroded. Something has changed profoundly that weakens us unprecedentedly: our democratic traditions, independent judiciary and free press do their work today in a context in which we are "at war" in a "long war" - a war without end, on a battlefield described as the globe, in a context that gives the president - without US citizens realising it yet - the power over US citizens of freedom or long solitary incarceration, on his say-so alone.
That means a hollowness has been expanding under the foundation of all these still- free-looking institutions - and this foundation can give way under certain kinds of pressure. To prevent such an outcome, we have to think about the "what ifs".
What if, in a year and a half, there is another attack - say, God forbid, a dirty bomb? The executive can declare a state of emergency. History shows that any leader, of any party, will be tempted to maintain emergency powers after the crisis has passed. With the gutting of traditional checks and balances, we are no less endangered by a President Hillary than by a President Giuliani - because any executive will be tempted to enforce his or her will through edict rather than the arduous, uncertain process of democratic negotiation and compromise.
What if the publisher of a major US newspaper were charged with treason or espionage, as a rightwing effort seemed to threaten Keller with last year? What if he or she got 10 years in jail? What would the newspapers look like the next day? Judging from history, they would not cease publishing; but they would suddenly be very polite.
Right now, only a handful of patriots are trying to hold back the tide of tyranny for the rest of us - staff at the Center for Constitutional Rights, who faced death threats for representing the detainees yet persisted all the way to the Supreme Court; activists at the American Civil Liberties Union; and prominent conservatives trying to roll back the corrosive new laws, under the banner of a new group called the American Freedom Agenda. This small, disparate collection of people needs everybody's help, including that of Europeans and others internationally who are willing to put pressure on the administration because they can see what a US unrestrained by real democracy at home can mean for the rest of the world.
We need to look at history and face the "what ifs". For if we keep going down this road, the "end of America" could come for each of us in a different way, at a different moment; each of us might have a different moment when we feel forced to look back and think: that is how it was before - and this is the way it is now.
"The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands ... is the definition of tyranny," wrote James Madison. We still have the choice to stop going down this road; we can stand our ground and fight for our nation, and take up the banner the founders asked us to carry.
· Naomi Wolf's The End of America: A Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot will be published by Chelsea Green in September.
From Hitler to Pinochet and beyond, history shows there are certain steps that any would-be dictator must take to destroy constitutional freedoms. And, argues Naomi Wolf, George Bush and his administration seem to be taking them all
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o Naomi Wolf
o The Guardian, Tuesday 24 April 2007
o Article history
Last autumn, there was a military coup in Thailand. The leaders of the coup took a number of steps, rather systematically, as if they had a shopping list. In a sense, they did. Within a matter of days, democracy had been closed down: the coup leaders declared martial law, sent armed soldiers into residential areas, took over radio and TV stations, issued restrictions on the press, tightened some limits on travel, and took certain activists into custody.
They were not figuring these things out as they went along. If you look at history, you can see that there is essentially a blueprint for turning an open society into a dictatorship. That blueprint has been used again and again in more and less bloody, more and less terrifying ways. But it is always effective. It is very difficult and arduous to create and sustain a democracy - but history shows that closing one down is much simpler. You simply have to be willing to take the 10 steps.
As difficult as this is to contemplate, it is clear, if you are willing to look, that each of these 10 steps has already been initiated today in the United States by the Bush administration.
Because Americans like me were born in freedom, we have a hard time even considering that it is possible for us to become as unfree - domestically - as many other nations. Because we no longer learn much about our rights or our system of government - the task of being aware of the constitution has been outsourced from citizens' ownership to being the domain of professionals such as lawyers and professors - we scarcely recognise the checks and balances that the founders put in place, even as they are being systematically dismantled. Because we don't learn much about European history, the setting up of a department of "homeland" security - remember who else was keen on the word "homeland" - didn't raise the alarm bells it might have.
It is my argument that, beneath our very noses, George Bush and his administration are using time-tested tactics to close down an open society. It is time for us to be willing to think the unthinkable - as the author and political journalist Joe Conason, has put it, that it can happen here. And that we are further along than we realise.
Conason eloquently warned of the danger of American authoritarianism. I am arguing that we need also to look at the lessons of European and other kinds of fascism to understand the potential seriousness of the events we see unfolding in the US.
1. Invoke a terrifying internal and external enemy
After we were hit on September 11 2001, we were in a state of national shock. Less than six weeks later, on October 26 2001, the USA Patriot Act was passed by a Congress that had little chance to debate it; many said that they scarcely had time to read it. We were told we were now on a "war footing"; we were in a "global war" against a "global caliphate" intending to "wipe out civilisation". There have been other times of crisis in which the US accepted limits on civil liberties, such as during the civil war, when Lincoln declared martial law, and the second world war, when thousands of Japanese-American citizens were interned. But this situation, as Bruce Fein of the American Freedom Agenda notes, is unprecedented: all our other wars had an endpoint, so the pendulum was able to swing back toward freedom; this war is defined as open-ended in time and without national boundaries in space - the globe itself is the battlefield. "This time," Fein says, "there will be no defined end."
Creating a terrifying threat - hydra-like, secretive, evil - is an old trick. It can, like Hitler's invocation of a communist threat to the nation's security, be based on actual events (one Wisconsin academic has faced calls for his dismissal because he noted, among other things, that the alleged communist arson, the Reichstag fire of February 1933, was swiftly followed in Nazi Germany by passage of the Enabling Act, which replaced constitutional law with an open-ended state of emergency). Or the terrifying threat can be based, like the National Socialist evocation of the "global conspiracy of world Jewry", on myth.
It is not that global Islamist terrorism is not a severe danger; of course it is. I am arguing rather that the language used to convey the nature of the threat is different in a country such as Spain - which has also suffered violent terrorist attacks - than it is in America. Spanish citizens know that they face a grave security threat; what we as American citizens believe is that we are potentially threatened with the end of civilisation as we know it. Of course, this makes us more willing to accept restrictions on our freedoms.
2. Create a gulag
Once you have got everyone scared, the next step is to create a prison system outside the rule of law (as Bush put it, he wanted the American detention centre at Guantánamo Bay to be situated in legal "outer space") - where torture takes place.
At first, the people who are sent there are seen by citizens as outsiders: troublemakers, spies, "enemies of the people" or "criminals". Initially, citizens tend to support the secret prison system; it makes them feel safer and they do not identify with the prisoners. But soon enough, civil society leaders - opposition members, labour activists, clergy and journalists - are arrested and sent there as well.
This process took place in fascist shifts or anti-democracy crackdowns ranging from Italy and Germany in the 1920s and 1930s to the Latin American coups of the 1970s and beyond. It is standard practice for closing down an open society or crushing a pro-democracy uprising.
With its jails in Iraq and Afghanistan, and, of course, Guantánamo in Cuba, where detainees are abused, and kept indefinitely without trial and without access to the due process of the law, America certainly has its gulag now. Bush and his allies in Congress recently announced they would issue no information about the secret CIA "black site" prisons throughout the world, which are used to incarcerate people who have been seized off the street.
Gulags in history tend to metastasise, becoming ever larger and more secretive, ever more deadly and formalised. We know from first-hand accounts, photographs, videos and government documents that people, innocent and guilty, have been tortured in the US-run prisons we are aware of and those we can't investigate adequately.
But Americans still assume this system and detainee abuses involve only scary brown people with whom they don't generally identify. It was brave of the conservative pundit William Safire to quote the anti-Nazi pastor Martin Niemöller, who had been seized as a political prisoner: "First they came for the Jews." Most Americans don't understand yet that the destruction of the rule of law at Guantánamo set a dangerous precedent for them, too.
By the way, the establishment of military tribunals that deny prisoners due process tends to come early on in a fascist shift. Mussolini and Stalin set up such tribunals. On April 24 1934, the Nazis, too, set up the People's Court, which also bypassed the judicial system: prisoners were held indefinitely, often in isolation, and tortured, without being charged with offences, and were subjected to show trials. Eventually, the Special Courts became a parallel system that put pressure on the regular courts to abandon the rule of law in favour of Nazi ideology when making decisions.
3. Develop a thug caste
When leaders who seek what I call a "fascist shift" want to close down an open society, they send paramilitary groups of scary young men out to terrorise citizens. The Blackshirts roamed the Italian countryside beating up communists; the Brownshirts staged violent rallies throughout Germany. This paramilitary force is especially important in a democracy: you need citizens to fear thug violence and so you need thugs who are free from prosecution.
The years following 9/11 have proved a bonanza for America's security contractors, with the Bush administration outsourcing areas of work that traditionally fell to the US military. In the process, contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars have been issued for security work by mercenaries at home and abroad. In Iraq, some of these contract operatives have been accused of involvement in torturing prisoners, harassing journalists and firing on Iraqi civilians. Under Order 17, issued to regulate contractors in Iraq by the one-time US administrator in Baghdad, Paul Bremer, these contractors are immune from prosecution
Yes, but that is in Iraq, you could argue; however, after Hurricane Katrina, the Department of Homeland Security hired and deployed hundreds of armed private security guards in New Orleans. The investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill interviewed one unnamed guard who reported having fired on unarmed civilians in the city. It was a natural disaster that underlay that episode - but the administration's endless war on terror means ongoing scope for what are in effect privately contracted armies to take on crisis and emergency management at home in US cities.
Thugs in America? Groups of angry young Republican men, dressed in identical shirts and trousers, menaced poll workers counting the votes in Florida in 2000. If you are reading history, you can imagine that there can be a need for "public order" on the next election day. Say there are protests, or a threat, on the day of an election; history would not rule out the presence of a private security firm at a polling station "to restore public order".
4. Set up an internal surveillance system
In Mussolini's Italy, in Nazi Germany, in communist East Germany, in communist China - in every closed society - secret police spy on ordinary people and encourage neighbours to spy on neighbours. The Stasi needed to keep only a minority of East Germans under surveillance to convince a majority that they themselves were being watched.
In 2005 and 2006, when James Risen and Eric Lichtblau wrote in the New York Times about a secret state programme to wiretap citizens' phones, read their emails and follow international financial transactions, it became clear to ordinary Americans that they, too, could be under state scrutiny.
In closed societies, this surveillance is cast as being about "national security"; the true function is to keep citizens docile and inhibit their activism and dissent.
5. Harass citizens' groups
The fifth thing you do is related to step four - you infiltrate and harass citizens' groups. It can be trivial: a church in Pasadena, whose minister preached that Jesus was in favour of peace, found itself being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, while churches that got Republicans out to vote, which is equally illegal under US tax law, have been left alone.
Other harassment is more serious: the American Civil Liberties Union reports that thousands of ordinary American anti-war, environmental and other groups have been infiltrated by agents: a secret Pentagon database includes more than four dozen peaceful anti-war meetings, rallies or marches by American citizens in its category of 1,500 "suspicious incidents". The equally secret Counterintelligence Field Activity (Cifa) agency of the Department of Defense has been gathering information about domestic organisations engaged in peaceful political activities: Cifa is supposed to track "potential terrorist threats" as it watches ordinary US citizen activists. A little-noticed new law has redefined activism such as animal rights protests as "terrorism". So the definition of "terrorist" slowly expands to include the opposition.
6. Engage in arbitrary detention and release
This scares people. It is a kind of cat-and-mouse game. Nicholas D Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, the investigative reporters who wrote China Wakes: the Struggle for the Soul of a Rising Power, describe pro-democracy activists in China, such as Wei Jingsheng, being arrested and released many times. In a closing or closed society there is a "list" of dissidents and opposition leaders: you are targeted in this way once you are on the list, and it is hard to get off the list.
In 2004, America's Transportation Security Administration confirmed that it had a list of passengers who were targeted for security searches or worse if they tried to fly. People who have found themselves on the list? Two middle-aged women peace activists in San Francisco; liberal Senator Edward Kennedy; a member of Venezuela's government - after Venezuela's president had criticised Bush; and thousands of ordinary US citizens.
Professor Walter F Murphy is emeritus of Princeton University; he is one of the foremost constitutional scholars in the nation and author of the classic Constitutional Democracy. Murphy is also a decorated former marine, and he is not even especially politically liberal. But on March 1 this year, he was denied a boarding pass at Newark, "because I was on the Terrorist Watch list".
"Have you been in any peace marches? We ban a lot of people from flying because of that," asked the airline employee.
"I explained," said Murphy, "that I had not so marched but had, in September 2006, given a lecture at Princeton, televised and put on the web, highly critical of George Bush for his many violations of the constitution."
"That'll do it," the man said.
Anti-war marcher? Potential terrorist. Support the constitution? Potential terrorist. History shows that the categories of "enemy of the people" tend to expand ever deeper into civil life.
James Yee, a US citizen, was the Muslim chaplain at Guantánamo who was accused of mishandling classified documents. He was harassed by the US military before the charges against him were dropped. Yee has been detained and released several times. He is still of interest.
Brandon Mayfield, a US citizen and lawyer in Oregon, was mistakenly identified as a possible terrorist. His house was secretly broken into and his computer seized. Though he is innocent of the accusation against him, he is still on the list.
It is a standard practice of fascist societies that once you are on the list, you can't get off.
7. Target key individuals
Threaten civil servants, artists and academics with job loss if they don't toe the line. Mussolini went after the rectors of state universities who did not conform to the fascist line; so did Joseph Goebbels, who purged academics who were not pro-Nazi; so did Chile's Augusto Pinochet; so does the Chinese communist Politburo in punishing pro-democracy students and professors.
Academe is a tinderbox of activism, so those seeking a fascist shift punish academics and students with professional loss if they do not "coordinate", in Goebbels' term, ideologically. Since civil servants are the sector of society most vulnerable to being fired by a given regime, they are also a group that fascists typically "coordinate" early on: the Reich Law for the Re-establishment of a Professional Civil Service was passed on April 7 1933.
Bush supporters in state legislatures in several states put pressure on regents at state universities to penalise or fire academics who have been critical of the administration. As for civil servants, the Bush administration has derailed the career of one military lawyer who spoke up for fair trials for detainees, while an administration official publicly intimidated the law firms that represent detainees pro bono by threatening to call for their major corporate clients to boycott them.
Elsewhere, a CIA contract worker who said in a closed blog that "waterboarding is torture" was stripped of the security clearance she needed in order to do her job.
Most recently, the administration purged eight US attorneys for what looks like insufficient political loyalty. When Goebbels purged the civil service in April 1933, attorneys were "coordinated" too, a step that eased the way of the increasingly brutal laws to follow.
8. Control the press
Italy in the 1920s, Germany in the 30s, East Germany in the 50s, Czechoslovakia in the 60s, the Latin American dictatorships in the 70s, China in the 80s and 90s - all dictatorships and would-be dictators target newspapers and journalists. They threaten and harass them in more open societies that they are seeking to close, and they arrest them and worse in societies that have been closed already.
The Committee to Protect Journalists says arrests of US journalists are at an all-time high: Josh Wolf (no relation), a blogger in San Francisco, has been put in jail for a year for refusing to turn over video of an anti-war demonstration; Homeland Security brought a criminal complaint against reporter Greg Palast, claiming he threatened "critical infrastructure" when he and a TV producer were filming victims of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana. Palast had written a bestseller critical of the Bush administration.
Other reporters and writers have been punished in other ways. Joseph C Wilson accused Bush, in a New York Times op-ed, of leading the country to war on the basis of a false charge that Saddam Hussein had acquired yellowcake uranium in Niger. His wife, Valerie Plame, was outed as a CIA spy - a form of retaliation that ended her career.
Prosecution and job loss are nothing, though, compared with how the US is treating journalists seeking to cover the conflict in Iraq in an unbiased way. The Committee to Protect Journalists has documented multiple accounts of the US military in Iraq firing upon or threatening to fire upon unembedded (meaning independent) reporters and camera operators from organisations ranging from al-Jazeera to the BBC. While westerners may question the accounts by al-Jazeera, they should pay attention to the accounts of reporters such as the BBC's Kate Adie. In some cases reporters have been wounded or killed, including ITN's Terry Lloyd in 2003. Both CBS and the Associated Press in Iraq had staff members seized by the US military and taken to violent prisons; the news organisations were unable to see the evidence against their staffers.
Over time in closing societies, real news is supplanted by fake news and false documents. Pinochet showed Chilean citizens falsified documents to back up his claim that terrorists had been about to attack the nation. The yellowcake charge, too, was based on forged papers.
You won't have a shutdown of news in modern America - it is not possible. But you can have, as Frank Rich and Sidney Blumenthal have pointed out, a steady stream of lies polluting the news well. What you already have is a White House directing a stream of false information that is so relentless that it is increasingly hard to sort out truth from untruth. In a fascist system, it's not the lies that count but the muddying. When citizens can't tell real news from fake, they give up their demands for accountability bit by bit.
9. Dissent equals treason
Cast dissent as "treason" and criticism as "espionage'. Every closing society does this, just as it elaborates laws that increasingly criminalise certain kinds of speech and expand the definition of "spy" and "traitor". When Bill Keller, the publisher of the New York Times, ran the Lichtblau/Risen stories, Bush called the Times' leaking of classified information "disgraceful", while Republicans in Congress called for Keller to be charged with treason, and rightwing commentators and news outlets kept up the "treason" drumbeat. Some commentators, as Conason noted, reminded readers smugly that one penalty for violating the Espionage Act is execution.
Conason is right to note how serious a threat that attack represented. It is also important to recall that the 1938 Moscow show trial accused the editor of Izvestia, Nikolai Bukharin, of treason; Bukharin was, in fact, executed. And it is important to remind Americans that when the 1917 Espionage Act was last widely invoked, during the infamous 1919 Palmer Raids, leftist activists were arrested without warrants in sweeping roundups, kept in jail for up to five months, and "beaten, starved, suffocated, tortured and threatened with death", according to the historian Myra MacPherson. After that, dissent was muted in America for a decade.
In Stalin's Soviet Union, dissidents were "enemies of the people". National Socialists called those who supported Weimar democracy "November traitors".
And here is where the circle closes: most Americans do not realise that since September of last year - when Congress wrongly, foolishly, passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006 - the president has the power to call any US citizen an "enemy combatant". He has the power to define what "enemy combatant" means. The president can also delegate to anyone he chooses in the executive branch the right to define "enemy combatant" any way he or she wants and then seize Americans accordingly.
Even if you or I are American citizens, even if we turn out to be completely innocent of what he has accused us of doing, he has the power to have us seized as we are changing planes at Newark tomorrow, or have us taken with a knock on the door; ship you or me to a navy brig; and keep you or me in isolation, possibly for months, while awaiting trial. (Prolonged isolation, as psychiatrists know, triggers psychosis in otherwise mentally healthy prisoners. That is why Stalin's gulag had an isolation cell, like Guantánamo's, in every satellite prison. Camp 6, the newest, most brutal facility at Guantánamo, is all isolation cells.)
We US citizens will get a trial eventually - for now. But legal rights activists at the Center for Constitutional Rights say that the Bush administration is trying increasingly aggressively to find ways to get around giving even US citizens fair trials. "Enemy combatant" is a status offence - it is not even something you have to have done. "We have absolutely moved over into a preventive detention model - you look like you could do something bad, you might do something bad, so we're going to hold you," says a spokeswoman of the CCR.
Most Americans surely do not get this yet. No wonder: it is hard to believe, even though it is true. In every closing society, at a certain point there are some high-profile arrests - usually of opposition leaders, clergy and journalists. Then everything goes quiet. After those arrests, there are still newspapers, courts, TV and radio, and the facades of a civil society. There just isn't real dissent. There just isn't freedom. If you look at history, just before those arrests is where we are now.
10. Suspend the rule of law
The John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007 gave the president new powers over the national guard. This means that in a national emergency - which the president now has enhanced powers to declare - he can send Michigan's militia to enforce a state of emergency that he has declared in Oregon, over the objections of the state's governor and its citizens.
Even as Americans were focused on Britney Spears's meltdown and the question of who fathered Anna Nicole's baby, the New York Times editorialised about this shift: "A disturbing recent phenomenon in Washington is that laws that strike to the heart of American democracy have been passed in the dead of night ... Beyond actual insurrection, the president may now use military troops as a domestic police force in response to a natural disaster, a disease outbreak, terrorist attack or any 'other condition'."
Critics see this as a clear violation of the Posse Comitatus Act - which was meant to restrain the federal government from using the military for domestic law enforcement. The Democratic senator Patrick Leahy says the bill encourages a president to declare federal martial law. It also violates the very reason the founders set up our system of government as they did: having seen citizens bullied by a monarch's soldiers, the founders were terrified of exactly this kind of concentration of militias' power over American people in the hands of an oppressive executive or faction.
Of course, the United States is not vulnerable to the violent, total closing-down of the system that followed Mussolini's march on Rome or Hitler's roundup of political prisoners. Our democratic habits are too resilient, and our military and judiciary too independent, for any kind of scenario like that.
Rather, as other critics are noting, our experiment in democracy could be closed down by a process of erosion.
It is a mistake to think that early in a fascist shift you see the profile of barbed wire against the sky. In the early days, things look normal on the surface; peasants were celebrating harvest festivals in Calabria in 1922; people were shopping and going to the movies in Berlin in 1931. Early on, as WH Auden put it, the horror is always elsewhere - while someone is being tortured, children are skating, ships are sailing: "dogs go on with their doggy life ... How everything turns away/ Quite leisurely from the disaster."
As Americans turn away quite leisurely, keeping tuned to internet shopping and American Idol, the foundations of democracy are being fatally corroded. Something has changed profoundly that weakens us unprecedentedly: our democratic traditions, independent judiciary and free press do their work today in a context in which we are "at war" in a "long war" - a war without end, on a battlefield described as the globe, in a context that gives the president - without US citizens realising it yet - the power over US citizens of freedom or long solitary incarceration, on his say-so alone.
That means a hollowness has been expanding under the foundation of all these still- free-looking institutions - and this foundation can give way under certain kinds of pressure. To prevent such an outcome, we have to think about the "what ifs".
What if, in a year and a half, there is another attack - say, God forbid, a dirty bomb? The executive can declare a state of emergency. History shows that any leader, of any party, will be tempted to maintain emergency powers after the crisis has passed. With the gutting of traditional checks and balances, we are no less endangered by a President Hillary than by a President Giuliani - because any executive will be tempted to enforce his or her will through edict rather than the arduous, uncertain process of democratic negotiation and compromise.
What if the publisher of a major US newspaper were charged with treason or espionage, as a rightwing effort seemed to threaten Keller with last year? What if he or she got 10 years in jail? What would the newspapers look like the next day? Judging from history, they would not cease publishing; but they would suddenly be very polite.
Right now, only a handful of patriots are trying to hold back the tide of tyranny for the rest of us - staff at the Center for Constitutional Rights, who faced death threats for representing the detainees yet persisted all the way to the Supreme Court; activists at the American Civil Liberties Union; and prominent conservatives trying to roll back the corrosive new laws, under the banner of a new group called the American Freedom Agenda. This small, disparate collection of people needs everybody's help, including that of Europeans and others internationally who are willing to put pressure on the administration because they can see what a US unrestrained by real democracy at home can mean for the rest of the world.
We need to look at history and face the "what ifs". For if we keep going down this road, the "end of America" could come for each of us in a different way, at a different moment; each of us might have a different moment when we feel forced to look back and think: that is how it was before - and this is the way it is now.
"The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands ... is the definition of tyranny," wrote James Madison. We still have the choice to stop going down this road; we can stand our ground and fight for our nation, and take up the banner the founders asked us to carry.
· Naomi Wolf's The End of America: A Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot will be published by Chelsea Green in September.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
A LONG LIST OF OBAMA'S ACCOMPLISMENTS IN 18 MONTHS.
Arts and Culture
Funded the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) at the highest level since 1992. ref, ref, ref, ref
Created an artist corps for public schools. ref
Championed the importance of arts education. ref
Promoted cultural diplomacy. ref
Banking and Financial Reform
The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act. ref, ref
Managed the Troubled Asset Relief Plan (TARP) ref; (Banks have repaid 75%, bringing the cost down to $89B.) ref
Played a lead role in G-20 Summit, which produced a $1.1 trillion deal to combat the global financial crisis. ref
The Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010. ref, ref
The Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act. ref, ref
Established the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. ref1,
Closed offshore tax safe havens, tax credit loopholes. ref, ref, ref
Reformed Deferral Rules to curb tax advantages for investing overseas. ref
Permanently extended Research and Experimentation Tax Credit for domestic investments. ref
Established new Off-shore investment policy, which promotes in-sourcing. ref, ref
Reformed credit card swipe fees (via Amendment to H.R. 4173 – Sec. 1079) ref
New criminal penalties for mortgage fraud. ref
Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals. ref
Congress investigated Goldman Sachs for its role in subprime mortgage meltdown. ref
(U.S.) charges Goldman with subprime fraud. ref
(Treasury Department) Sold 1.5 billion shares of Citigroup at a profit. ref
(Pay Czar) Cut salaries for 65 bailout executives. ref
Issued compensation guidelines for bank executive salary and bonuses ref, ref
The biggest financial reform law since the Great Depression ref
Civil Rights
This category is still under construction. Many items that will be included in it are already embedded in Humanitarianism, and other overlapping categories.
Commerce, Trade & Communications
Expanded loan programs for small businesses. ref
The Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act. ref
The Credit CARD Technical Corrections Act of 2009. ref
Webcaster Settlement Act of 2009. ref
The Satellite Television Extension Act of 2010.ref
Established a credit card bill of rights. ref
Launched the National Export Initiative, with the goal of doubling US exports by 2015. ref, ref
Appointed the nation’s first Chief Technology Officer. ref
Launched piracy crackdown. ref
Promoted Internet Freedom as Part Of U.S. Foreign Policy. ref, ref, ref
Denied Federal contracts to tax delinquents. ref
(Senate Panel) Passed tougher rules on derivatives. ref
(Democrats) Unveiled Citizens United response bill. ref, ref ^roytoric
Proposed tougher meat industry antitrust rules. ref, ref
Economy, Employment and Labor
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA): A $789 billion economic stimulus plan. ref
Assigned a Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program Act of 2009 . ref
Unveiled 33 Billion-dollar jobs package. ref, ref
Provided $5,000 tax credit for every new worker. ref
Provided a US Auto industry rescue plan. ref, ref
(HHS) Provided New Health IT Workforce Grants (under ARRA). ref
The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act. ref
The Jobs for Main Street Act (2010). ref
Established President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability to assist in financial education for all Americans. ref, ref, ref
The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009. ref
Established FERA. ref
Established the National Export Initiative ref
A temporary extension of programs under the Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. ref
The American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010. ref
Found $20 Billion in budget cuts. ref
Created an Advanced Manufacturing Fund to invest in peer-reviewed manufacturing processes. ref
Increased minority access to capital. ref
Established economic justification requirement tax changes. ref
Provided grants to encourage energy-efficient building codes. ref
Extended and indexed the 2007 Alternative Minimum Tax patch. ref
Created task force to fight deficit. ref
Restored funding to the EEOC and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. ref
Established partnerships to share environmental technology with other countries. ref
More than doubled federal spending for research on clean fuels . ref
CBO found 3.7 Million jobs created by stimulus. ref
Raised the small business investment limit to $250,000 through the end of 2009. ref
Extended unemployment insurance benefits and temporarily suspend taxes on these benefits. ref ref
Made Haiti Donations Tax Deductible For 2009. ref
Equalized tax breaks with driving to promote public transit. ref
Provided National Export Initiative/Progress report and named President’s Export Council. ref, ref
Established POWER Initiative – Protects Government workers, ensures reemployment, reduces worker’s comp claims and payments. ref
Signed the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act – establishes a Federal “Do Not Pay” list; aims for annual savings of $110 billion. ref
Education, Children, and Families
Signed largest reform of student aid in 40 years. ref
Expanded Pell grants for low-income students . ) ref
Expanded Pell Grants by eliminating private lender subsidies for student loans. ref
Established State Equalization Fund (Part of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009). New funds for school construction. ref
Reduced subsidies to private student lenders and protect student borrowers. ref
Provided for students struggling to make college loan payments to have their loans refinanced. ref
Created the Race to the Top Fund ($4.35 billion) to reward States that create comprehensive education reform plans. ref
Provided over $2.3 billion in additional funding to Head Start and Early Head Start programs in 2009. ref
Eliminated Abstinence-Only Funding In Budget. ref
Recruited math and science degree graduates to the teaching profession. ref
Provided $77 Billion for reforms to to strengthen Elementary and Secondary education. ref
Provided $5 billion dollars for Early Learning Programs under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.ref
The Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010. ref
Provided $12.2 billion in new funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Act through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. ref
Roughly doubled the amount available in Federal Child Care Block Grants. ref
Established “Promise Neighborhood” Grants (modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone). ref, ref
The Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 . ref
Expanded the Nurse-Family Partnership to all low-income, first-time mothers . ref
Fully funded the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). ref
Provided affordable, high-quality child care. ref
Established school programs to highlight space and science achievements. ref
Helped rebuild schools in New Orleans. ref
Increased funding for land-grant college. ref
Provided funding for high-speed, broadband Internet access to K-12 schools. ref
Proposed new rules for college recruitment ref
Unveiled fatherhood measures (“most important job”). ref
Section curators:
Energy, Environment and Climate
The North American Wetlands Conservation Act. ref
The Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National Environmental Policy Amendments Act of 2009. ref
Increased funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. ref
Amended Oil Pollution Act of 1990 authorizing advances from Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund for the Deepwater Horizon oil spil. ref
Issued Executive Order, October 2009 – Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy and Economic Performance. ref, ref
Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic. ref, ref
Reengaged in the agreements/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions. ref, ref
(Congress) Launched investigation into gas drilling practices. ref
Offered 17% US Emissions Cuts at Climate Summit. ref
Oil Spill Recovery Bill. ref
Ended the previous policy of not regulating and labeling carbon dioxide emissions. ref
(Senate Panel) Approved Lifting BP’s Liability Cap. ref
(White House) Endorsed Unlimited Liability Cap For Spill. ref
Fined BP subsidiary $5.2 million for false reporting. ref
Establishing bill allowing oil rig worker’s families to sue. ref
Opened Civil and Criminal Investigations into Gulf Oil Spill. ref, ref
Established New Drilling Agency with Investigative Arm. ref
(US) Mandated new safety rules for offshore drilling. ref
Launched new Climate Service. ref
(EPA) Sharply Limited Mountaintop Mining. ref
(U.S.) Lead Effort To Phase Out Whaling. ref
(EPA) Announced Historic Plans to Regulate Coal Ash. ref
Required electric utilities to produce 20% of their electricity demand from renewable energy sources by 2020. ref
Raised fuel economy standards. ref
Established tax credit for consumers for plug-in hybrid cars. ref, ref
(Federal Government) Purchased 5,000 Hybrids. ref
(US Government) provided for 28% cut in greenhouse emissions. ref
(DOL) Announced Green Jobs Training Grants. ref
(NIST) Completed first release of Smart Grid framework. ref
Created a “Green vet Initiative” to promote environmental jobs for veterans. ref
Announced the long-term development of a national energy grid with renewable sources and cleaner, efficient energy production–also part of ARRA. ref
Ended previous practice of having White House aides rewrite scientific and environmental rules, regulations and reports. ref
Established the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. ref
(EPA) ordered BP to use less toxic dispersant. ref
(FTC) Toughened Anti-Greenwashing Rules. ref
Highlighted vision for clean energy economy. ref
(EPA) Barred Texas’ authority to issue refinery operating permits. ref
Established an Energy Partnership for the Americas. ref
Encouraged water-conservation efforts in the West. ref
Created Interagency Task Force on Carbon Capture and Storage). ref
Established the Biofuels Working Group to develop a comprehensive approach to alternative fuels. ref
Implemented renewable fuels mandate of 36 billion gallons by 2022. ref
Established Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future. ref
Pursued a wildfire management plan. ref
Increased funding for national parks and forests. ref
Encouraged farmers to use more renewable energy and be more energy efficient. ref
Ordered removal of more brush, small trees and vegetation that fuel wildfires. ref
Encouraged more controlled burns to reduce wildfires. ref
Established program to convert manufacturing centers into clean technology leaders. ref
Worked toward deploying a global climate change research and monitoring system. ref
Invested $2 Billion in Solar Power, Hailed New Jobs. ref, ref, ref
Set national standards for fuel economy and first ever greenhouse gas emission levels for passenger cars and light trucks. ref
Set aside $60 Billion in spending and tax incentives for renewable and clean energy. ref
Additional measures to advance clean energy/solar investments and job creation (part of Recovery Act). ref
Invested in all types of alternative energy. ref
Pledged more than $8 billion for new nuclear reactors. ref
Closed loophole that allowed drilling in Rockies without environmental review. ref
Ordered inspections of mines with troubling safety records ref
Doubled funding for bicycling, walking projects ref, ref
(EPA) Set Smog Limit: New strict proposal to replace Bush-era rule. ref
Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009. ref, ref
(EPA) Put health first by limiting mercury emissions. ref
Created job training programs for displaced workers in clean technologies. ref
Required states to provide incentives for utilities to reduce energy consumption. ref
(EPA) Regulated greenhouse gases for large industrial sources. ref
Provided grants to encourage energy-efficient building codes. ref
Increased funding for the Environmental Protection Agency. ref
Instituted “Cash for Clunkers” to spur auto sales and promote fuel efficiency. ref, ref
Issued Executive Order 13508 – Chesapeake Bay Protection and Restoration. ref, ref
Permitted states to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards. ref
Purchased fuel efficient American-made fleet for the federal government. ref
(US) created offshore drilling safety review board. ref
Issued Executive Order – Stewardship of the Ocean (National Ocean Council: protecting our Coasts and the Great Lakes). ref
Expanded greenhouse gas reduction targets for Federal operations -13% reduction from indirect sources by 2020. ref
Foreign Affairs & International Relations
Returned the rights of Americans to visit and assist their families in Cuba. ref, ref, ref
Restored international engagement by visiting more countries and world leaders than any first year president. ref
Re-established the United States standing in the world. ref, ref, ref
Appointed envoys to the Middle East and AFPAK affirming the power of American diplomacy . ref
Authorized President Bill Clinton’s mission to secure the release of two Americans held in North Korea. ref
Authorized discussions with Myanmar and mission by Sen. Jim Webb to secure the release of an American held captive. ref
Renewed loan guarantees for Israel. ref
Pledged $400 million in aid to Gaza civillians. ref
Pressured Israel To End Gaza Blockade ref
Refused to give Israel a “green light” to strike Iran, augmenting Mid-East stability. ref
Told Israel that continued settlements damages prospects for peace. ref, ref
The Lord’s Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009. ref
Negotiated nuclear arms agreements with Australia (5/5/2010), India (5/4/2010), and Russia (5/10/2010). ref, ref, ref, ref
Nuclear arms agreement with Russia. ref, ref
Issued Executive Order to address factors contributing to instability in Somalia. ref
Launched an international Add Value to Agriculture Initiative (AVTA). ref
Created a rapid response fund for emerging democracies. ref
Bolstered the military’s ability to speak different languages. ref
Iran Sanctions Act ref
Agreement with Switzerland to bolster tax information exchange ref, ref
Renewed import restrictions under Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003. ref
Government Spending and Waste
Established the President’s Management Advisory Board. ref
Ordered federal agencies to study and recommend ways to cut spending. ref, ref
Cut salaries of senior White House aides. ref
Provided that Members of Congress shall not receive a cost of living adjustment in pay during fiscal year 2011. ref, ref, ref
Eliminated F-22 fighter jet program after lobbying Senate vote to strip financing for more jets from a defense funding authorization bill. ref, ref, ref
Canceled contract for new Presidential helicopter fleet (28 helicopters, $11.2 billion). ref
Streamlined and modernized government to save taxpayer dollars. ref
Enhanced payment accuracy through a “Do Not Pay” list. ref
Returned taxpayer monies for refurbishment of White House offices and living quarters. ref, ref
Health Care and Medicine
The Patient Protection and Affordable Coverage of 2010, signed March 23, 2010. ref, ref
Established a New Patient’s Bill of Rights. ref
Required insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions. ref, ref
Increased regulation of drug manufacturers. ref, ref
Preserved Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act of 2010. ref
Cut prescription drug costs for Medicare recipients by 50% and began eliminating the plan’s gap (“donut hole”) in coverage. ref
Required children to have health insurance coverage. ref
Expanded eligibility for State Children’s Health Insurance Fund (SCHIP). ref, ref
Expanded eligibility for Medicaid. ref
Eliminated the higher subsidies to Medicare Advantage plans. ref
Expanded vaccination programs. ref, ref
The TRICARE Affirmation Act. ref
The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. ref
The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009. ref
Established independent commission to make recommendations on slowing the costs of Medicare. ref
The Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009. ref, ref, ref, ref
The Social Security Disability Applicant Access to Professional Representation Act of 2010. ref
Offered tax credits to those who need help to pay health premiums. ref
Required large employers to contribute to a national health plan. ref
Provided $20 billion increase for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. ref
Provided $500 million in expanded funding for Health Professions Training Programs. ref, ref
Established the National Prevention, Health Promotion, and Public Health Council . ref, ref
The Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009. ref, ref, ref, ref
The Social Security Disability Applicant Access to Professional Representation Act of 2010. ref
Provided minimum essential health care coverage by Veteran’s Affairs. ref
The TRICARE Affirmation Act. ref
The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. ref
Expanded funding to train primary care providers and public health practitioners. ref
Provided funding to strengthen hospital preparedness and emergency response ref
Implemented a National HIV/AIDS Strategy 7/13/10 ref
Engaged global efforts on HIV/AIDS issues. ref
Established President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. ref
Established Standards For Accessible Medical Diagnostic Equipment. ref
Established Early Retiree Reinsurance Program. ref
Increased funding to expand community based prevention prog: rams. ref
(DHHS) Questioned Prestigious Hospitals in Electronic Health Records Probe (DHHS). ref
Established Patient Safety and Medical Liability Demonstration Projects. ref, ref Arnie
Established HealthCare.gov – A web portal for determining and comparing all consumer health insurance and health care options ref, ref Arnie
Banned sale of “light” cigarettes. ref
(FDA) to discuss stricter guidelines for tanning beds due to skin cancer. ref
Ordered Tobacco Companies to Disclose Cigarette Ingredients. ref, ref, ref
FDA now regulating tobacco. ref, ref
Issued new guidance limiting antibiotic use in cattle to preserve efficacy in humans (6/28/2010) ref
Ended previous policy of cutting the FDA and circumventing FDA rules. ref
Reconsidered safety of Bisphenol A, initiates study. ref
COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) subsidies to provide laid-off employees with financial assistance to continue health insurance coverage. ref, ref, ref
Executive Order Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities (celebrating 20th anniversary of the ADA). ref,ref
Housing
$275 billion dollar Housing Plan ref
Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, helping millions avoid foreclosure . ref, ref
Established the Making Home Affordable Plan, which will provide for the refinance or loan modification for $9 Million homeowners. ref
The Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act. ref
Provided $510 Million for the rehabilitation of Native American Housing. ref
Provided $2 billion for Neighborhood Stabilization Program . ref SPC
Provided $5 billion for Weatherization Assistance Program for low income families. ref
Established “Opening Doors” – A Federal strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness. ref, ref
Humanitarianism
The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act; Instituted equal pay for women. ref, ref, ref
Presidential Memorandum extending benefits to Same-Sex Partners of Federal Employees. ref, ref, ref, ref
Presidential Memorandum protecting gay and lesbian partners’ visitation/healthcare decision-making rights (4/15/2010) . ref
The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act. ref
Awarded the Presidential Medal of freedom to Harvey Milk and Billie Jean King. ref
The Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act, advancing press freedom and safety for journalists. ref, ref,
The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act to include gender, sexual orientation and disability. ref
Established White House Council on Women and Girls (Executive Order 13506 ). ref CAFalk
Awarded 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. ref
The Civil Rights History Project Act of 2009. ref, ref
Accelerated tax benefits for charitable cash contributions for Haiti earthquake relief. ref
Signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. ref
The Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009. ref
Appointed an American Indian policy advise r. ref
Supported Repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, as Pentagon continues to review the policy. ref
(EPA) Reversed Controversial “Human Guinea Pig” Rule. ref
Immigration
Requested emergency funding of $600 million for Border Security. ref
Deployed more drones on Mexico border. ref
Established Panel to Control Immigrant Workers. ref
Deported higher numbers of Illegal Immigrants. ref
Infrastructure
Recovery Act Funded 10000th Highway Project. ref
Opened 500 MHz of wireless spectrum over next 10 years to expand wireless/mobile broadband use. ref
Initiated modifications to Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO) regulations. ref , ref
Announced additional $800 million to fund rapid rollout of Rural Broadband Expansion (7/2010). ref
Introduced plan to expand broadband Internet across U.S. ref, ref
Signed national service legislation; expanded national youth service program. ref
Funded a major expansion of AmeriCorps. ref
The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which expands the senior Corps volunteer program. ref, ref
Awarded $234 million in AmeriCorps expansion. ref
Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect. ref
Commenced 10,000th road project, Columbus, OH (part of ARRA); June 2010. ref, ref
The Airport and Airway Extension Act. ref
Invested $13 Billion (ARRA: $8B + $1B 5-year federal budget) in high speed rail projects in 13 major corridors ref, ref, ref
Invested in Public Transportation. ref
Created a Social Investment Fund Network. ref
Announced $290 million in funding for 53 grants to “fund new streetcars, buses, and transit facilities.” ref
Law and Justice
Appointment of first Latina to the Supreme Court. ref, ref
Restored funding for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne/JAG) program. ref
Matthew Sheppard Act. ref
Emphasizeed Prevention, Treatment Over Old Drug-War Tactics. ref
New Federal Drug Control Policy. ref
Established special crime prevention programs for the New Orleans area. ref
Ordered review of mandatory minimum sentences. ref
Settlement of the Black Farmers Lawsuit against USDA . ref, ref
Ordered checks of “troubling” mines. ref
The DTV Delay Act. ref
The Criminal History Background Checks Pilot Extension Act of 2009. ref
The Tribal Law and Order Act. ref, ref, ref, ref
Military and National Security
Increased pay and benefits for military personnel. ref
Supported Repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, as Pentagon continues to review the policy. ref, ref
Began restructuring the military to reflect present day threats and technology. ref
Caught more Taliban Leaders in one month than Bush/Cheney did in six years. ref
(House) panel supported 1.9% pay raise for military. ref
Established new cyber security office following extensive policy review. ref, ref
Changed the failing/status quo military command in Afghanistan. ref, ref
Began gradual troop withdrawals from Iraq . ref
Set troop pullout in Afghanistan set for next summer. ref, ref
Increased US Navy patrols off Somali coast. ref
Ordered SEAL operation that resulted in killing of three terrorists, and the release of US captain held by Somali pirates. ref
Refocused attention and troops on the source of the 9/11 attacks and stabilization of that region. ref
Established Afghan War policy that limits aerial bombing, prioritizes aid, development of infrastructure, diplomacy, and good government practices. ref
Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date. ref
Closing secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere. ref, ref
Recommitted the U.S. to a policy of “no torture” and full compliance with the Geneva Conventions. ref
Cut the missile defense program by $1.4 billion in 2010. ref
Restarted the nuclear nonproliferation talks, building back up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols. ref
The Defense Production Act Reauthorization of 2009. ref
Provided $1.1 Billion for improving airport security. ref
The Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act. ref
The Nuclear Forensics and Attribution Act. ref
New Start Treaty and Protocol with Medvedev. ref
Signed Executive Order Optimizing the Security of Biological Select Agents and Toxins in the US. ref
Ordered military to withdraw fast food joints from Afghan bases. ref
Military Veterans and Families
Provided for the expenses of families of fallen soldiers to be on hand when the body arrives at Dover AFB.ref
Improved benefits for veterans. ref, ref, ref, ref, ref
Ended media blackout on war casualties; reporting full information. ref, ref, ref, ref
Initiated a new policy to promote federal hiring of military spouses. ref, ref
The Military Spouses Residency Relief Act. ref
Authorized construction/opening of additional health centers to care for veterans. ref
The Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 improving care for millions of veterans. ref
The Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act of 2009. ref
Improved housing for military personnel. ref (Donated 250K of Nobel prize money to Fisher House). ref
Provided minimum essential health care coverage by Veteran’s Affairs. ref
Established the Blinded Veterans Association. ref
Established the Major Charles R. Soltes, Jr., O.D. Department of Veterans Affairs Blind Rehabilitation Center. ref
The Medal of Honor Commemorative Coin Act of 2009. ref
The Korean War Veterans Recognition Act. ref
Promoted a bill to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the Women Airforce Service Pilots (“WASP”). ref
Established the Interagency Task Force on Veterans Small Business Development . ref
The Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009. ref
The Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2009. ref
Worked to clear the backlog of Veterans claims to streamline benefits to those who served. ref
Made it easier for Veterans with PTSD to receive the benefits and treatment they need. ref Arnie
Natural Disasters and Emergencies
Ordered an extensive review of hurricane and natural disaster preparedness. ref, ref
Provided $210 Million for building and upgrading Fire Stations. ref
Ordered $20 billion escrow fund by BP to reimburse lost incomes in Gulf, and $100 million to compensate those hurt by drilling moratorium. ref
The Haiti Economic Lift Program Act of 2010. ref
The Haiti Debt Relief and Earthquake Recovery Act of 2010. ref
The Emergency Aid to American Survivors of the Haiti Earthquake Act. ref
Memorandum on the Long-Term Gulf Coast Restoration Support Plan ref
National Service
National service legislation; expanded national youth service program. ref
Funded a major expansion of AmeriCorps. ref
The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act — Expands the senior Corps volunteer program. ref, ref
Government awarded $234 million in AmeriCorps expansion. ref
Created a Social Investment Fund Network. ref
Scientific and Medical Research
Removed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research. ref, ref, ref
Provided Federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research. ref
Provided new federal funding for science and research labs. ref
Provided grants to early-career researchers. ref
Extended the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. ref, ref
Supported Landsat Data Continuity Mission to Enhance earth mapping. ref
Appointed an assistant to the president for science and technology policy. ref
Optimized the Security of Biological Select Agents and Toxins in the United States ref
Space Exploration & Space Station
Added another Space Shuttle flight ref
Used the private sector to improve spaceflight ref
Worked with international allies on space station ref
Partnered to enhance the potential of the International Space Station ref
Opened door to space arms treaty. ref, ref
Used the International Space Station for fundamental biological and physical research ref
Determined whether International Space Station can operate after 2016 ref
Conducted robust research and development on future space missions ref
Increased spending to prepare for longer space missions ref
Supported commercial access to outer space ref
Transparency and Accountability
Established new classification standards for accelerated declassification in support of the Freedom of Information Act. ref
Instructed all federal agencies to promote openness and transparency as much as possible. ref
Released presidential records. ref
Imposed limits on lobbyist’s access to the White House. ref,ref
Imposed limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administratio n. ref
Closed lobbyist loopholes with respect to the Recovery Act ref
Banned lobbyist gifts to executive employees. ref
Provided more town halls and media access than previous administration. ref, ref
Required health plans to disclose how much of the premium goes to patient care. ref
Established an independent health institute to provide accurate and objective information. ref
Required new hires to sign a form affirming their hiring was not due to political affiliations or contributions. ref, ref
Established a uniform standard for declassifying, safeguarding and classifying national security information (12/29/2009). ref
Created a national declassification center. ref
(DOD) Opened access to social media sites (Air Force News). ref
(DOD) Will film all interrogations. ref
Unveiled “open government” plans. ref
Signed Order Cracking down On Tax Cheats. ref
Dismantled the Minerals Management Service, cutting ties between industry and government. ref, ref
Introduced Federal IT Dashboard, “a website enabling federal agencies & the public to view details of information technology.” ref
Established the USA.gov portal connecting people to the services they require ref
White House Voluntary Disclosure Policy – Visitor Access Records/450,000 records to date ref, ref
Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act. ref, ref
Recovery, Progress and Change
March payrolls surge by 162,000 US says . ref
Financial reform has ‘strongest consumer financial protections in history.’ ref
Wall St Reform will end taxpayer bailouts. ref
Six-month report card: exports in the first four months of 2010 were 17 percent higher than in the first four months of 2009 . ref
682,370 jobs created under the Recovery Act Between January 1 — March 31,2010. ref, ref, ref
Job loss exploded under Bush, improves under Obama. ref
New jobless claims tumble. ref
March jobs data showed biggest growth in three years .ref
U.S. economy added 90000 jobs in April . ref
Tax refunds up 10 percent due to stimulus . ref
Federal deficit shrunk 8% year-on-year. ref
Jobless rates dropped in 34 states and DC (AP). ref
U.S. Economy: Manufacturing grew by most since 2004. ref
Economy grew 5.9% in 4th quarter. ref
U.S. GDP up 3.2% in first quarter, consumer spending showed biggest rise in 3 years . ref
Orders for most durable goods rose. ref
New-home sales saw biggest jump in 47 years. ref, ref
Wholesale inventories and sales rose in March. ref
Tax bills hit lowest level since 1950 . ref
Good news: Foreclosures fall 2%. ref
Consumer confidence highest in 2 years. ref
Start-Up activity now higher than it was during the dotcom boom. ref
Study: Almost 5 million charging stations by 2015. ref
Wind power growth up 39% due to government stimulus. ref
Poll: World’s opinion of U.S. has “improved sharply” under Obama.ref
47 nations rise to Obama’s challenge at US nuke summit and agree to four years of non-proliferation efforts.ref
U.S. jail population declined for first time in decades. ref
Miscellaneous
Funded the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) at the highest level since 1992. ref, ref, ref, ref
Created an artist corps for public schools. ref
Championed the importance of arts education. ref
Promoted cultural diplomacy. ref
Banking and Financial Reform
The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act. ref, ref
Managed the Troubled Asset Relief Plan (TARP) ref; (Banks have repaid 75%, bringing the cost down to $89B.) ref
Played a lead role in G-20 Summit, which produced a $1.1 trillion deal to combat the global financial crisis. ref
The Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010. ref, ref
The Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act. ref, ref
Established the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. ref1,
Closed offshore tax safe havens, tax credit loopholes. ref, ref, ref
Reformed Deferral Rules to curb tax advantages for investing overseas. ref
Permanently extended Research and Experimentation Tax Credit for domestic investments. ref
Established new Off-shore investment policy, which promotes in-sourcing. ref, ref
Reformed credit card swipe fees (via Amendment to H.R. 4173 – Sec. 1079) ref
New criminal penalties for mortgage fraud. ref
Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals. ref
Congress investigated Goldman Sachs for its role in subprime mortgage meltdown. ref
(U.S.) charges Goldman with subprime fraud. ref
(Treasury Department) Sold 1.5 billion shares of Citigroup at a profit. ref
(Pay Czar) Cut salaries for 65 bailout executives. ref
Issued compensation guidelines for bank executive salary and bonuses ref, ref
The biggest financial reform law since the Great Depression ref
Civil Rights
This category is still under construction. Many items that will be included in it are already embedded in Humanitarianism, and other overlapping categories.
Commerce, Trade & Communications
Expanded loan programs for small businesses. ref
The Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act. ref
The Credit CARD Technical Corrections Act of 2009. ref
Webcaster Settlement Act of 2009. ref
The Satellite Television Extension Act of 2010.ref
Established a credit card bill of rights. ref
Launched the National Export Initiative, with the goal of doubling US exports by 2015. ref, ref
Appointed the nation’s first Chief Technology Officer. ref
Launched piracy crackdown. ref
Promoted Internet Freedom as Part Of U.S. Foreign Policy. ref, ref, ref
Denied Federal contracts to tax delinquents. ref
(Senate Panel) Passed tougher rules on derivatives. ref
(Democrats) Unveiled Citizens United response bill. ref, ref ^roytoric
Proposed tougher meat industry antitrust rules. ref, ref
Economy, Employment and Labor
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA): A $789 billion economic stimulus plan. ref
Assigned a Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program Act of 2009 . ref
Unveiled 33 Billion-dollar jobs package. ref, ref
Provided $5,000 tax credit for every new worker. ref
Provided a US Auto industry rescue plan. ref, ref
(HHS) Provided New Health IT Workforce Grants (under ARRA). ref
The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act. ref
The Jobs for Main Street Act (2010). ref
Established President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability to assist in financial education for all Americans. ref, ref, ref
The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009. ref
Established FERA. ref
Established the National Export Initiative ref
A temporary extension of programs under the Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. ref
The American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010. ref
Found $20 Billion in budget cuts. ref
Created an Advanced Manufacturing Fund to invest in peer-reviewed manufacturing processes. ref
Increased minority access to capital. ref
Established economic justification requirement tax changes. ref
Provided grants to encourage energy-efficient building codes. ref
Extended and indexed the 2007 Alternative Minimum Tax patch. ref
Created task force to fight deficit. ref
Restored funding to the EEOC and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. ref
Established partnerships to share environmental technology with other countries. ref
More than doubled federal spending for research on clean fuels . ref
CBO found 3.7 Million jobs created by stimulus. ref
Raised the small business investment limit to $250,000 through the end of 2009. ref
Extended unemployment insurance benefits and temporarily suspend taxes on these benefits. ref ref
Made Haiti Donations Tax Deductible For 2009. ref
Equalized tax breaks with driving to promote public transit. ref
Provided National Export Initiative/Progress report and named President’s Export Council. ref, ref
Established POWER Initiative – Protects Government workers, ensures reemployment, reduces worker’s comp claims and payments. ref
Signed the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act – establishes a Federal “Do Not Pay” list; aims for annual savings of $110 billion. ref
Education, Children, and Families
Signed largest reform of student aid in 40 years. ref
Expanded Pell grants for low-income students . ) ref
Expanded Pell Grants by eliminating private lender subsidies for student loans. ref
Established State Equalization Fund (Part of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009). New funds for school construction. ref
Reduced subsidies to private student lenders and protect student borrowers. ref
Provided for students struggling to make college loan payments to have their loans refinanced. ref
Created the Race to the Top Fund ($4.35 billion) to reward States that create comprehensive education reform plans. ref
Provided over $2.3 billion in additional funding to Head Start and Early Head Start programs in 2009. ref
Eliminated Abstinence-Only Funding In Budget. ref
Recruited math and science degree graduates to the teaching profession. ref
Provided $77 Billion for reforms to to strengthen Elementary and Secondary education. ref
Provided $5 billion dollars for Early Learning Programs under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.ref
The Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010. ref
Provided $12.2 billion in new funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Act through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. ref
Roughly doubled the amount available in Federal Child Care Block Grants. ref
Established “Promise Neighborhood” Grants (modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone). ref, ref
The Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 . ref
Expanded the Nurse-Family Partnership to all low-income, first-time mothers . ref
Fully funded the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). ref
Provided affordable, high-quality child care. ref
Established school programs to highlight space and science achievements. ref
Helped rebuild schools in New Orleans. ref
Increased funding for land-grant college. ref
Provided funding for high-speed, broadband Internet access to K-12 schools. ref
Proposed new rules for college recruitment ref
Unveiled fatherhood measures (“most important job”). ref
Section curators:
Energy, Environment and Climate
The North American Wetlands Conservation Act. ref
The Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National Environmental Policy Amendments Act of 2009. ref
Increased funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. ref
Amended Oil Pollution Act of 1990 authorizing advances from Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund for the Deepwater Horizon oil spil. ref
Issued Executive Order, October 2009 – Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy and Economic Performance. ref, ref
Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic. ref, ref
Reengaged in the agreements/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions. ref, ref
(Congress) Launched investigation into gas drilling practices. ref
Offered 17% US Emissions Cuts at Climate Summit. ref
Oil Spill Recovery Bill. ref
Ended the previous policy of not regulating and labeling carbon dioxide emissions. ref
(Senate Panel) Approved Lifting BP’s Liability Cap. ref
(White House) Endorsed Unlimited Liability Cap For Spill. ref
Fined BP subsidiary $5.2 million for false reporting. ref
Establishing bill allowing oil rig worker’s families to sue. ref
Opened Civil and Criminal Investigations into Gulf Oil Spill. ref, ref
Established New Drilling Agency with Investigative Arm. ref
(US) Mandated new safety rules for offshore drilling. ref
Launched new Climate Service. ref
(EPA) Sharply Limited Mountaintop Mining. ref
(U.S.) Lead Effort To Phase Out Whaling. ref
(EPA) Announced Historic Plans to Regulate Coal Ash. ref
Required electric utilities to produce 20% of their electricity demand from renewable energy sources by 2020. ref
Raised fuel economy standards. ref
Established tax credit for consumers for plug-in hybrid cars. ref, ref
(Federal Government) Purchased 5,000 Hybrids. ref
(US Government) provided for 28% cut in greenhouse emissions. ref
(DOL) Announced Green Jobs Training Grants. ref
(NIST) Completed first release of Smart Grid framework. ref
Created a “Green vet Initiative” to promote environmental jobs for veterans. ref
Announced the long-term development of a national energy grid with renewable sources and cleaner, efficient energy production–also part of ARRA. ref
Ended previous practice of having White House aides rewrite scientific and environmental rules, regulations and reports. ref
Established the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. ref
(EPA) ordered BP to use less toxic dispersant. ref
(FTC) Toughened Anti-Greenwashing Rules. ref
Highlighted vision for clean energy economy. ref
(EPA) Barred Texas’ authority to issue refinery operating permits. ref
Established an Energy Partnership for the Americas. ref
Encouraged water-conservation efforts in the West. ref
Created Interagency Task Force on Carbon Capture and Storage). ref
Established the Biofuels Working Group to develop a comprehensive approach to alternative fuels. ref
Implemented renewable fuels mandate of 36 billion gallons by 2022. ref
Established Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future. ref
Pursued a wildfire management plan. ref
Increased funding for national parks and forests. ref
Encouraged farmers to use more renewable energy and be more energy efficient. ref
Ordered removal of more brush, small trees and vegetation that fuel wildfires. ref
Encouraged more controlled burns to reduce wildfires. ref
Established program to convert manufacturing centers into clean technology leaders. ref
Worked toward deploying a global climate change research and monitoring system. ref
Invested $2 Billion in Solar Power, Hailed New Jobs. ref, ref, ref
Set national standards for fuel economy and first ever greenhouse gas emission levels for passenger cars and light trucks. ref
Set aside $60 Billion in spending and tax incentives for renewable and clean energy. ref
Additional measures to advance clean energy/solar investments and job creation (part of Recovery Act). ref
Invested in all types of alternative energy. ref
Pledged more than $8 billion for new nuclear reactors. ref
Closed loophole that allowed drilling in Rockies without environmental review. ref
Ordered inspections of mines with troubling safety records ref
Doubled funding for bicycling, walking projects ref, ref
(EPA) Set Smog Limit: New strict proposal to replace Bush-era rule. ref
Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009. ref, ref
(EPA) Put health first by limiting mercury emissions. ref
Created job training programs for displaced workers in clean technologies. ref
Required states to provide incentives for utilities to reduce energy consumption. ref
(EPA) Regulated greenhouse gases for large industrial sources. ref
Provided grants to encourage energy-efficient building codes. ref
Increased funding for the Environmental Protection Agency. ref
Instituted “Cash for Clunkers” to spur auto sales and promote fuel efficiency. ref, ref
Issued Executive Order 13508 – Chesapeake Bay Protection and Restoration. ref, ref
Permitted states to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards. ref
Purchased fuel efficient American-made fleet for the federal government. ref
(US) created offshore drilling safety review board. ref
Issued Executive Order – Stewardship of the Ocean (National Ocean Council: protecting our Coasts and the Great Lakes). ref
Expanded greenhouse gas reduction targets for Federal operations -13% reduction from indirect sources by 2020. ref
Foreign Affairs & International Relations
Returned the rights of Americans to visit and assist their families in Cuba. ref, ref, ref
Restored international engagement by visiting more countries and world leaders than any first year president. ref
Re-established the United States standing in the world. ref, ref, ref
Appointed envoys to the Middle East and AFPAK affirming the power of American diplomacy . ref
Authorized President Bill Clinton’s mission to secure the release of two Americans held in North Korea. ref
Authorized discussions with Myanmar and mission by Sen. Jim Webb to secure the release of an American held captive. ref
Renewed loan guarantees for Israel. ref
Pledged $400 million in aid to Gaza civillians. ref
Pressured Israel To End Gaza Blockade ref
Refused to give Israel a “green light” to strike Iran, augmenting Mid-East stability. ref
Told Israel that continued settlements damages prospects for peace. ref, ref
The Lord’s Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009. ref
Negotiated nuclear arms agreements with Australia (5/5/2010), India (5/4/2010), and Russia (5/10/2010). ref, ref, ref, ref
Nuclear arms agreement with Russia. ref, ref
Issued Executive Order to address factors contributing to instability in Somalia. ref
Launched an international Add Value to Agriculture Initiative (AVTA). ref
Created a rapid response fund for emerging democracies. ref
Bolstered the military’s ability to speak different languages. ref
Iran Sanctions Act ref
Agreement with Switzerland to bolster tax information exchange ref, ref
Renewed import restrictions under Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003. ref
Government Spending and Waste
Established the President’s Management Advisory Board. ref
Ordered federal agencies to study and recommend ways to cut spending. ref, ref
Cut salaries of senior White House aides. ref
Provided that Members of Congress shall not receive a cost of living adjustment in pay during fiscal year 2011. ref, ref, ref
Eliminated F-22 fighter jet program after lobbying Senate vote to strip financing for more jets from a defense funding authorization bill. ref, ref, ref
Canceled contract for new Presidential helicopter fleet (28 helicopters, $11.2 billion). ref
Streamlined and modernized government to save taxpayer dollars. ref
Enhanced payment accuracy through a “Do Not Pay” list. ref
Returned taxpayer monies for refurbishment of White House offices and living quarters. ref, ref
Health Care and Medicine
The Patient Protection and Affordable Coverage of 2010, signed March 23, 2010. ref, ref
Established a New Patient’s Bill of Rights. ref
Required insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions. ref, ref
Increased regulation of drug manufacturers. ref, ref
Preserved Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act of 2010. ref
Cut prescription drug costs for Medicare recipients by 50% and began eliminating the plan’s gap (“donut hole”) in coverage. ref
Required children to have health insurance coverage. ref
Expanded eligibility for State Children’s Health Insurance Fund (SCHIP). ref, ref
Expanded eligibility for Medicaid. ref
Eliminated the higher subsidies to Medicare Advantage plans. ref
Expanded vaccination programs. ref, ref
The TRICARE Affirmation Act. ref
The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. ref
The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009. ref
Established independent commission to make recommendations on slowing the costs of Medicare. ref
The Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009. ref, ref, ref, ref
The Social Security Disability Applicant Access to Professional Representation Act of 2010. ref
Offered tax credits to those who need help to pay health premiums. ref
Required large employers to contribute to a national health plan. ref
Provided $20 billion increase for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. ref
Provided $500 million in expanded funding for Health Professions Training Programs. ref, ref
Established the National Prevention, Health Promotion, and Public Health Council . ref, ref
The Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009. ref, ref, ref, ref
The Social Security Disability Applicant Access to Professional Representation Act of 2010. ref
Provided minimum essential health care coverage by Veteran’s Affairs. ref
The TRICARE Affirmation Act. ref
The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. ref
Expanded funding to train primary care providers and public health practitioners. ref
Provided funding to strengthen hospital preparedness and emergency response ref
Implemented a National HIV/AIDS Strategy 7/13/10 ref
Engaged global efforts on HIV/AIDS issues. ref
Established President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. ref
Established Standards For Accessible Medical Diagnostic Equipment. ref
Established Early Retiree Reinsurance Program. ref
Increased funding to expand community based prevention prog: rams. ref
(DHHS) Questioned Prestigious Hospitals in Electronic Health Records Probe (DHHS). ref
Established Patient Safety and Medical Liability Demonstration Projects. ref, ref Arnie
Established HealthCare.gov – A web portal for determining and comparing all consumer health insurance and health care options ref, ref Arnie
Banned sale of “light” cigarettes. ref
(FDA) to discuss stricter guidelines for tanning beds due to skin cancer. ref
Ordered Tobacco Companies to Disclose Cigarette Ingredients. ref, ref, ref
FDA now regulating tobacco. ref, ref
Issued new guidance limiting antibiotic use in cattle to preserve efficacy in humans (6/28/2010) ref
Ended previous policy of cutting the FDA and circumventing FDA rules. ref
Reconsidered safety of Bisphenol A, initiates study. ref
COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) subsidies to provide laid-off employees with financial assistance to continue health insurance coverage. ref, ref, ref
Executive Order Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities (celebrating 20th anniversary of the ADA). ref,ref
Housing
$275 billion dollar Housing Plan ref
Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, helping millions avoid foreclosure . ref, ref
Established the Making Home Affordable Plan, which will provide for the refinance or loan modification for $9 Million homeowners. ref
The Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act. ref
Provided $510 Million for the rehabilitation of Native American Housing. ref
Provided $2 billion for Neighborhood Stabilization Program . ref SPC
Provided $5 billion for Weatherization Assistance Program for low income families. ref
Established “Opening Doors” – A Federal strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness. ref, ref
Humanitarianism
The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act; Instituted equal pay for women. ref, ref, ref
Presidential Memorandum extending benefits to Same-Sex Partners of Federal Employees. ref, ref, ref, ref
Presidential Memorandum protecting gay and lesbian partners’ visitation/healthcare decision-making rights (4/15/2010) . ref
The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act. ref
Awarded the Presidential Medal of freedom to Harvey Milk and Billie Jean King. ref
The Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act, advancing press freedom and safety for journalists. ref, ref,
The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act to include gender, sexual orientation and disability. ref
Established White House Council on Women and Girls (Executive Order 13506 ). ref CAFalk
Awarded 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. ref
The Civil Rights History Project Act of 2009. ref, ref
Accelerated tax benefits for charitable cash contributions for Haiti earthquake relief. ref
Signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. ref
The Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009. ref
Appointed an American Indian policy advise r. ref
Supported Repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, as Pentagon continues to review the policy. ref
(EPA) Reversed Controversial “Human Guinea Pig” Rule. ref
Immigration
Requested emergency funding of $600 million for Border Security. ref
Deployed more drones on Mexico border. ref
Established Panel to Control Immigrant Workers. ref
Deported higher numbers of Illegal Immigrants. ref
Infrastructure
Recovery Act Funded 10000th Highway Project. ref
Opened 500 MHz of wireless spectrum over next 10 years to expand wireless/mobile broadband use. ref
Initiated modifications to Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO) regulations. ref , ref
Announced additional $800 million to fund rapid rollout of Rural Broadband Expansion (7/2010). ref
Introduced plan to expand broadband Internet across U.S. ref, ref
Signed national service legislation; expanded national youth service program. ref
Funded a major expansion of AmeriCorps. ref
The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which expands the senior Corps volunteer program. ref, ref
Awarded $234 million in AmeriCorps expansion. ref
Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect. ref
Commenced 10,000th road project, Columbus, OH (part of ARRA); June 2010. ref, ref
The Airport and Airway Extension Act. ref
Invested $13 Billion (ARRA: $8B + $1B 5-year federal budget) in high speed rail projects in 13 major corridors ref, ref, ref
Invested in Public Transportation. ref
Created a Social Investment Fund Network. ref
Announced $290 million in funding for 53 grants to “fund new streetcars, buses, and transit facilities.” ref
Law and Justice
Appointment of first Latina to the Supreme Court. ref, ref
Restored funding for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne/JAG) program. ref
Matthew Sheppard Act. ref
Emphasizeed Prevention, Treatment Over Old Drug-War Tactics. ref
New Federal Drug Control Policy. ref
Established special crime prevention programs for the New Orleans area. ref
Ordered review of mandatory minimum sentences. ref
Settlement of the Black Farmers Lawsuit against USDA . ref, ref
Ordered checks of “troubling” mines. ref
The DTV Delay Act. ref
The Criminal History Background Checks Pilot Extension Act of 2009. ref
The Tribal Law and Order Act. ref, ref, ref, ref
Military and National Security
Increased pay and benefits for military personnel. ref
Supported Repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, as Pentagon continues to review the policy. ref, ref
Began restructuring the military to reflect present day threats and technology. ref
Caught more Taliban Leaders in one month than Bush/Cheney did in six years. ref
(House) panel supported 1.9% pay raise for military. ref
Established new cyber security office following extensive policy review. ref, ref
Changed the failing/status quo military command in Afghanistan. ref, ref
Began gradual troop withdrawals from Iraq . ref
Set troop pullout in Afghanistan set for next summer. ref, ref
Increased US Navy patrols off Somali coast. ref
Ordered SEAL operation that resulted in killing of three terrorists, and the release of US captain held by Somali pirates. ref
Refocused attention and troops on the source of the 9/11 attacks and stabilization of that region. ref
Established Afghan War policy that limits aerial bombing, prioritizes aid, development of infrastructure, diplomacy, and good government practices. ref
Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date. ref
Closing secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere. ref, ref
Recommitted the U.S. to a policy of “no torture” and full compliance with the Geneva Conventions. ref
Cut the missile defense program by $1.4 billion in 2010. ref
Restarted the nuclear nonproliferation talks, building back up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols. ref
The Defense Production Act Reauthorization of 2009. ref
Provided $1.1 Billion for improving airport security. ref
The Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act. ref
The Nuclear Forensics and Attribution Act. ref
New Start Treaty and Protocol with Medvedev. ref
Signed Executive Order Optimizing the Security of Biological Select Agents and Toxins in the US. ref
Ordered military to withdraw fast food joints from Afghan bases. ref
Military Veterans and Families
Provided for the expenses of families of fallen soldiers to be on hand when the body arrives at Dover AFB.ref
Improved benefits for veterans. ref, ref, ref, ref, ref
Ended media blackout on war casualties; reporting full information. ref, ref, ref, ref
Initiated a new policy to promote federal hiring of military spouses. ref, ref
The Military Spouses Residency Relief Act. ref
Authorized construction/opening of additional health centers to care for veterans. ref
The Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 improving care for millions of veterans. ref
The Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act of 2009. ref
Improved housing for military personnel. ref (Donated 250K of Nobel prize money to Fisher House). ref
Provided minimum essential health care coverage by Veteran’s Affairs. ref
Established the Blinded Veterans Association. ref
Established the Major Charles R. Soltes, Jr., O.D. Department of Veterans Affairs Blind Rehabilitation Center. ref
The Medal of Honor Commemorative Coin Act of 2009. ref
The Korean War Veterans Recognition Act. ref
Promoted a bill to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the Women Airforce Service Pilots (“WASP”). ref
Established the Interagency Task Force on Veterans Small Business Development . ref
The Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009. ref
The Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2009. ref
Worked to clear the backlog of Veterans claims to streamline benefits to those who served. ref
Made it easier for Veterans with PTSD to receive the benefits and treatment they need. ref Arnie
Natural Disasters and Emergencies
Ordered an extensive review of hurricane and natural disaster preparedness. ref, ref
Provided $210 Million for building and upgrading Fire Stations. ref
Ordered $20 billion escrow fund by BP to reimburse lost incomes in Gulf, and $100 million to compensate those hurt by drilling moratorium. ref
The Haiti Economic Lift Program Act of 2010. ref
The Haiti Debt Relief and Earthquake Recovery Act of 2010. ref
The Emergency Aid to American Survivors of the Haiti Earthquake Act. ref
Memorandum on the Long-Term Gulf Coast Restoration Support Plan ref
National Service
National service legislation; expanded national youth service program. ref
Funded a major expansion of AmeriCorps. ref
The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act — Expands the senior Corps volunteer program. ref, ref
Government awarded $234 million in AmeriCorps expansion. ref
Created a Social Investment Fund Network. ref
Scientific and Medical Research
Removed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research. ref, ref, ref
Provided Federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research. ref
Provided new federal funding for science and research labs. ref
Provided grants to early-career researchers. ref
Extended the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. ref, ref
Supported Landsat Data Continuity Mission to Enhance earth mapping. ref
Appointed an assistant to the president for science and technology policy. ref
Optimized the Security of Biological Select Agents and Toxins in the United States ref
Space Exploration & Space Station
Added another Space Shuttle flight ref
Used the private sector to improve spaceflight ref
Worked with international allies on space station ref
Partnered to enhance the potential of the International Space Station ref
Opened door to space arms treaty. ref, ref
Used the International Space Station for fundamental biological and physical research ref
Determined whether International Space Station can operate after 2016 ref
Conducted robust research and development on future space missions ref
Increased spending to prepare for longer space missions ref
Supported commercial access to outer space ref
Transparency and Accountability
Established new classification standards for accelerated declassification in support of the Freedom of Information Act. ref
Instructed all federal agencies to promote openness and transparency as much as possible. ref
Released presidential records. ref
Imposed limits on lobbyist’s access to the White House. ref,ref
Imposed limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administratio n. ref
Closed lobbyist loopholes with respect to the Recovery Act ref
Banned lobbyist gifts to executive employees. ref
Provided more town halls and media access than previous administration. ref, ref
Required health plans to disclose how much of the premium goes to patient care. ref
Established an independent health institute to provide accurate and objective information. ref
Required new hires to sign a form affirming their hiring was not due to political affiliations or contributions. ref, ref
Established a uniform standard for declassifying, safeguarding and classifying national security information (12/29/2009). ref
Created a national declassification center. ref
(DOD) Opened access to social media sites (Air Force News). ref
(DOD) Will film all interrogations. ref
Unveiled “open government” plans. ref
Signed Order Cracking down On Tax Cheats. ref
Dismantled the Minerals Management Service, cutting ties between industry and government. ref, ref
Introduced Federal IT Dashboard, “a website enabling federal agencies & the public to view details of information technology.” ref
Established the USA.gov portal connecting people to the services they require ref
White House Voluntary Disclosure Policy – Visitor Access Records/450,000 records to date ref, ref
Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act. ref, ref
Recovery, Progress and Change
March payrolls surge by 162,000 US says . ref
Financial reform has ‘strongest consumer financial protections in history.’ ref
Wall St Reform will end taxpayer bailouts. ref
Six-month report card: exports in the first four months of 2010 were 17 percent higher than in the first four months of 2009 . ref
682,370 jobs created under the Recovery Act Between January 1 — March 31,2010. ref, ref, ref
Job loss exploded under Bush, improves under Obama. ref
New jobless claims tumble. ref
March jobs data showed biggest growth in three years .ref
U.S. economy added 90000 jobs in April . ref
Tax refunds up 10 percent due to stimulus . ref
Federal deficit shrunk 8% year-on-year. ref
Jobless rates dropped in 34 states and DC (AP). ref
U.S. Economy: Manufacturing grew by most since 2004. ref
Economy grew 5.9% in 4th quarter. ref
U.S. GDP up 3.2% in first quarter, consumer spending showed biggest rise in 3 years . ref
Orders for most durable goods rose. ref
New-home sales saw biggest jump in 47 years. ref, ref
Wholesale inventories and sales rose in March. ref
Tax bills hit lowest level since 1950 . ref
Good news: Foreclosures fall 2%. ref
Consumer confidence highest in 2 years. ref
Start-Up activity now higher than it was during the dotcom boom. ref
Study: Almost 5 million charging stations by 2015. ref
Wind power growth up 39% due to government stimulus. ref
Poll: World’s opinion of U.S. has “improved sharply” under Obama.ref
47 nations rise to Obama’s challenge at US nuke summit and agree to four years of non-proliferation efforts.ref
U.S. jail population declined for first time in decades. ref
Miscellaneous
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
TYPES OF REPUBLICAN IDIOTS posted by "republicans are idiots"
Posted by republicansareidiots on August 3, 2010 at 3:51 PM
I'm going to start with the most intelligent of the Republican idiots, then work my way down the list getting progressively more stupid.
The Educated Republicans:
These are the rarest of all Republicans. Occasionally you will run into one in public, or in a public-forum online. These Republicans are the smartest of the Republican idiots. They have learned everything there is to know about their position, from a Republican perspective. They've educated themselves on all the reasons why their position is correct.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
Anyone with the internet and 5 minutes can find something that thoroughly discredits their version of the "facts". Even when confronted with contradictory facts though they will continue to fall back on their original arguments, try to change the subject to something they are more comfortable talking about, or start expressing opinions with no factual merit.
What to Remember when debating them:
Keep them on-topic. Don't let them ignore your counter-points and then change the subject on you. They're masters of that, but if you can keep them on topic eventually they will just start expressing opinions to which you can say "do you have any facts to back that up?"
Fox News and Conservative Talk Radio Republicans:
These are one of the angriest groups of Republicans. They watch Fox News or listen to Conservative Talk Radio and they think it makes them an expert on politics. The only knowledge they have of politics is parroted talking points without any facts to back them up. When you defeat them in debate they will result to calling you names like "Liberal", or "commie" or "socialist" or "baby-killer" etc. They think all liberals are socialists that want to take their money and give it to people who don't deserve it.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They have no idea what they are talking about. Usually they're just repeating things they have heard from Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh. They think that liberals want to take away their freedoms and they clearly don't know what the word "liberal" means, or what liberal have done for our country and freedom. They think President Obama is comparable to Hitler for passing health-care reform. They accuse you of watching MSNBC if you don't agree with them. They call you a sheep but expect you to blindly believe everything they tell you, without question.
What to Remember when debating them:
Keep demanding facts from them to back up their assertions until they break down and call you any of the aforementioned names. Ask them to name specific freedoms that liberals have taken away from them. They have a tendency to become violent so watch their hands if you are debating them face to face.
Christian Republicans:
These Republicans are hypocrites. They do everything in the name of Christ, while simultaneously acting as un-Christlike as humanly possible. They support the right to carry assault weapons, are pro-War, and completely ignore the fact that the Bible depicts Christ as a Liberal who was opposed to capitalism and violence. They sincerely believe that this is God's country and that God loves us more than anyone else in the world. They think that anyone that is not 100% pro-Israel is anti-semitic. They hate everyone that doesn't agree with them and think the Bible tells them to, and they hate Gay people because they think they are sinners.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They do terrible things in the name of their Lord. They think that anyone that doesn't agree with them is damned to hell or hates America. They believe that we are a Christian Nation even though the Founding Fathers made sure that they did not brand this country as a Christian Nation. The Founding Fathers wanted a country of religious freedom, free from religious persecution, but these Republicans will never admit that.
What to Remember when debating them:
There's a list of all the quotes that prove our Founding Fathers wanted a Country of religious freedom. The link is HERE. Another thing to remember is that the Christian Right is neither. Start asking them questions like "how would Jesus feel about war?", "how would Jesus feel about assault rifles?", or "do you REALLY think that America is God's favorite country, in the ENTIRE universe?". And of these questions should yield a response that thoroughly proves that they are hypocrites, and continuing to argue with them would be a waste of time.
Tea Party Republicans:
These Republicans are a dumbed-down combination of the previous 2 groups of Republicans. They think Sarah Palin is intelligent and it's the media filter's fault that she looks so stupid. They think Reagan was fiscally Conservative even though he tripled the deficit. They watch Fox News religiously, and think Glenn Beck is credible. They don't understand why people think they're racist while they're standing next to people holding racist signs. They protest higher taxes even though taxes have gone down for 95% of working families.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They parrot Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin talking points. When you discredit one thing they say they immediately move on to the next subject. Anyone that doesn't agree with them is a socialist, even though they can't give you the actual definition of socialism. Many of them are on Medicare while protesting "socialism". They have never met a socialist, so they have no idea what socialists believe. They think liberals are socialists and socialists are Nazis.
What to Remember when debating them:
They have no idea what they're talking about. Ask them to prove what they are saying. If you ask them a question and they respond with a question refuse to answer their question until they answer yours. Don't back down. Remind them that taxes have actually been lowered for 95% of working families. If debating them in public be careful because they are known to carry guns in places they don't need them, like public parks and bars and churches.
Birther Republicans:
The birthers think that Obama was born in Kenya. No matter how much evidence you present them with that is contradictory to that they will continue to insist that he is not the legitimate President. They are sore-losers because McCain lost the election, and they will never support Obama, even if he paid off the entire National Debt.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They think Obama was born in Kenya. They think that Orly Taitz, who grew up in a socialist country, is credible, and that Obama is a socialist. They think that Obama's birth announcements in Hawaiian newspapers were propagated over 40 years in advance of his election, just so that he could be elected someday.
What to Remember when debating them:
Don't waste your time. You could wave Obama's actual birth certificate in their face and they would still say it's a fake. They are sore-losers and they will never be happy as long as Obama is President. Make jokes asking to see their birth certificates, or Sarah Palin's birth certificate. This is the best way to get them to go away.
Racist Republicans:
[DISCLAIMER: I am putting this one almost last for a reason. I do NOT think that all Republicans are racists. I have Republican family members who are not racist. This section is only about the small percentage of Republicans that are ACTUALLY racist, because they do exist. I'm not "playing the race card" or "race-baiting", I'm just describing a small group of racists who also affiliate themselves with the Republican Party]
Racist Republicans hate Obama because he's black. They think that all Muslims are terrorists. They think Obama is a terrorist Muslim. Anyone with a name like Obama's is a terrorist.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They're racist, but they think Obama is a racist. They can't understand why people call them racists when they post racist pictures or racist comments and then claim not to be racist. Whenever they possibly can they will call you a racist, to hide the fact that they are actually racists.
What to Remember when debating them:
They're racists. Racists are uneducated bigots. You would have a much easier time convincing an apple tree to start growing oranges.
Extremely Idiotic Republicans:
These Republicans are Republicans because they think it's cool. They have a Republican in one of the other groups listed, so they think they know what they're talking about. They have terrible spelling and grammar but they expect you to believe whatever they say because they are saying it to you.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
It's hard to tell if they ever made it past the 4th grade. Most of their posts are illegible. The don't know anything about their position other than what they have heard their friends say. They think that Republicans are fiscally conservative because they say that they are, and call anyone that doesn't agree with them sheep. They ignore all historical information that is contradictory to what they say. They are 100% blind to facts.
What to Remember when debating them:
No amount of facts or logic will ever convince them that their buddies are wrong. You could be a college professor and they will still think that your opinion isn't credible. Instead of trying to argue with them try explaining Algebra to your dog. I'm sure it will be much more productive.
I hope that this has been an informative resource for you. I hope you will remember some of the things I have said the next time you are engaged in a debate with a Republican idiot.
I'm going to start with the most intelligent of the Republican idiots, then work my way down the list getting progressively more stupid.
The Educated Republicans:
These are the rarest of all Republicans. Occasionally you will run into one in public, or in a public-forum online. These Republicans are the smartest of the Republican idiots. They have learned everything there is to know about their position, from a Republican perspective. They've educated themselves on all the reasons why their position is correct.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
Anyone with the internet and 5 minutes can find something that thoroughly discredits their version of the "facts". Even when confronted with contradictory facts though they will continue to fall back on their original arguments, try to change the subject to something they are more comfortable talking about, or start expressing opinions with no factual merit.
What to Remember when debating them:
Keep them on-topic. Don't let them ignore your counter-points and then change the subject on you. They're masters of that, but if you can keep them on topic eventually they will just start expressing opinions to which you can say "do you have any facts to back that up?"
Fox News and Conservative Talk Radio Republicans:
These are one of the angriest groups of Republicans. They watch Fox News or listen to Conservative Talk Radio and they think it makes them an expert on politics. The only knowledge they have of politics is parroted talking points without any facts to back them up. When you defeat them in debate they will result to calling you names like "Liberal", or "commie" or "socialist" or "baby-killer" etc. They think all liberals are socialists that want to take their money and give it to people who don't deserve it.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They have no idea what they are talking about. Usually they're just repeating things they have heard from Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh. They think that liberals want to take away their freedoms and they clearly don't know what the word "liberal" means, or what liberal have done for our country and freedom. They think President Obama is comparable to Hitler for passing health-care reform. They accuse you of watching MSNBC if you don't agree with them. They call you a sheep but expect you to blindly believe everything they tell you, without question.
What to Remember when debating them:
Keep demanding facts from them to back up their assertions until they break down and call you any of the aforementioned names. Ask them to name specific freedoms that liberals have taken away from them. They have a tendency to become violent so watch their hands if you are debating them face to face.
Christian Republicans:
These Republicans are hypocrites. They do everything in the name of Christ, while simultaneously acting as un-Christlike as humanly possible. They support the right to carry assault weapons, are pro-War, and completely ignore the fact that the Bible depicts Christ as a Liberal who was opposed to capitalism and violence. They sincerely believe that this is God's country and that God loves us more than anyone else in the world. They think that anyone that is not 100% pro-Israel is anti-semitic. They hate everyone that doesn't agree with them and think the Bible tells them to, and they hate Gay people because they think they are sinners.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They do terrible things in the name of their Lord. They think that anyone that doesn't agree with them is damned to hell or hates America. They believe that we are a Christian Nation even though the Founding Fathers made sure that they did not brand this country as a Christian Nation. The Founding Fathers wanted a country of religious freedom, free from religious persecution, but these Republicans will never admit that.
What to Remember when debating them:
There's a list of all the quotes that prove our Founding Fathers wanted a Country of religious freedom. The link is HERE. Another thing to remember is that the Christian Right is neither. Start asking them questions like "how would Jesus feel about war?", "how would Jesus feel about assault rifles?", or "do you REALLY think that America is God's favorite country, in the ENTIRE universe?". And of these questions should yield a response that thoroughly proves that they are hypocrites, and continuing to argue with them would be a waste of time.
Tea Party Republicans:
These Republicans are a dumbed-down combination of the previous 2 groups of Republicans. They think Sarah Palin is intelligent and it's the media filter's fault that she looks so stupid. They think Reagan was fiscally Conservative even though he tripled the deficit. They watch Fox News religiously, and think Glenn Beck is credible. They don't understand why people think they're racist while they're standing next to people holding racist signs. They protest higher taxes even though taxes have gone down for 95% of working families.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They parrot Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin talking points. When you discredit one thing they say they immediately move on to the next subject. Anyone that doesn't agree with them is a socialist, even though they can't give you the actual definition of socialism. Many of them are on Medicare while protesting "socialism". They have never met a socialist, so they have no idea what socialists believe. They think liberals are socialists and socialists are Nazis.
What to Remember when debating them:
They have no idea what they're talking about. Ask them to prove what they are saying. If you ask them a question and they respond with a question refuse to answer their question until they answer yours. Don't back down. Remind them that taxes have actually been lowered for 95% of working families. If debating them in public be careful because they are known to carry guns in places they don't need them, like public parks and bars and churches.
Birther Republicans:
The birthers think that Obama was born in Kenya. No matter how much evidence you present them with that is contradictory to that they will continue to insist that he is not the legitimate President. They are sore-losers because McCain lost the election, and they will never support Obama, even if he paid off the entire National Debt.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They think Obama was born in Kenya. They think that Orly Taitz, who grew up in a socialist country, is credible, and that Obama is a socialist. They think that Obama's birth announcements in Hawaiian newspapers were propagated over 40 years in advance of his election, just so that he could be elected someday.
What to Remember when debating them:
Don't waste your time. You could wave Obama's actual birth certificate in their face and they would still say it's a fake. They are sore-losers and they will never be happy as long as Obama is President. Make jokes asking to see their birth certificates, or Sarah Palin's birth certificate. This is the best way to get them to go away.
Racist Republicans:
[DISCLAIMER: I am putting this one almost last for a reason. I do NOT think that all Republicans are racists. I have Republican family members who are not racist. This section is only about the small percentage of Republicans that are ACTUALLY racist, because they do exist. I'm not "playing the race card" or "race-baiting", I'm just describing a small group of racists who also affiliate themselves with the Republican Party]
Racist Republicans hate Obama because he's black. They think that all Muslims are terrorists. They think Obama is a terrorist Muslim. Anyone with a name like Obama's is a terrorist.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
They're racist, but they think Obama is a racist. They can't understand why people call them racists when they post racist pictures or racist comments and then claim not to be racist. Whenever they possibly can they will call you a racist, to hide the fact that they are actually racists.
What to Remember when debating them:
They're racists. Racists are uneducated bigots. You would have a much easier time convincing an apple tree to start growing oranges.
Extremely Idiotic Republicans:
These Republicans are Republicans because they think it's cool. They have a Republican in one of the other groups listed, so they think they know what they're talking about. They have terrible spelling and grammar but they expect you to believe whatever they say because they are saying it to you.
The reason why this type of Republican is an idiot:
It's hard to tell if they ever made it past the 4th grade. Most of their posts are illegible. The don't know anything about their position other than what they have heard their friends say. They think that Republicans are fiscally conservative because they say that they are, and call anyone that doesn't agree with them sheep. They ignore all historical information that is contradictory to what they say. They are 100% blind to facts.
What to Remember when debating them:
No amount of facts or logic will ever convince them that their buddies are wrong. You could be a college professor and they will still think that your opinion isn't credible. Instead of trying to argue with them try explaining Algebra to your dog. I'm sure it will be much more productive.
I hope that this has been an informative resource for you. I hope you will remember some of the things I have said the next time you are engaged in a debate with a Republican idiot.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
HOW THE REPUBLICANS ARE DESTROYING AMERICA
Four Deformations of the Apocalypse
By DAVID STOCKMAN
Published: July 31, 2010
More fundamentally, Mr. McConnell’s stand puts the lie to the Republican pretense that its new monetarist and supply-side doctrines are rooted in its traditional financial philosophy. Republicans used to believe that prosperity depended upon the regular balancing of accounts — in government, in international trade, on the ledgers of central banks and in the financial affairs of private households and businesses, too. But the new catechism, as practiced by Republican policymakers for decades now, has amounted to little more than money printing and deficit finance — vulgar Keynesianism robed in the ideological vestments of the prosperous classes.
This approach has not simply made a mockery of traditional party ideals. It has also led to the serial financial bubbles and Wall Street depredations that have crippled our economy. More specifically, the new policy doctrines have caused four great deformations of the national economy, and modern Republicans have turned a blind eye to each one.
The first of these started when the Nixon administration defaulted on American obligations under the 1944 Bretton Woods agreement to balance our accounts with the world. Now, since we have lived beyond our means as a nation for nearly 40 years, our cumulative current-account deficit — the combined shortfall on our trade in goods, services and income — has reached nearly $8 trillion. That’s borrowed prosperity on an epic scale.
It is also an outcome that Milton Friedman said could never happen when, in 1971, he persuaded President Nixon to unleash on the world paper dollars no longer redeemable in gold or other fixed monetary reserves. Just let the free market set currency exchange rates, he said, and trade deficits will self-correct.
It may be true that governments, because they intervene in foreign exchange markets, have never completely allowed their currencies to float freely. But that does not absolve Friedman’s $8 trillion error. Once relieved of the discipline of defending a fixed value for their currencies, politicians the world over were free to cheapen their money and disregard their neighbors.
In fact, since chronic current-account deficits result from a nation spending more than it earns, stringent domestic belt-tightening is the only cure. When the dollar was tied to fixed exchange rates, politicians were willing to administer the needed castor oil, because the alternative was to make up for the trade shortfall by paying out reserves, and this would cause immediate economic pain — from high interest rates, for example. But now there is no discipline, only global monetary chaos as foreign central banks run their own printing presses at ever faster speeds to sop up the tidal wave of dollars coming from the Federal Reserve.
The second unhappy change in the American economy has been the extraordinary growth of our public debt. In 1970 it was just 40 percent of gross domestic product, or about $425 billion. When it reaches $18 trillion, it will be 40 times greater than in 1970. This debt explosion has resulted not from big spending by the Democrats, but instead the Republican Party’s embrace, about three decades ago, of the insidious doctrine that deficits don’t matter if they result from tax cuts.
In 1981, traditional Republicans supported tax cuts, matched by spending cuts, to offset the way inflation was pushing many taxpayers into higher brackets and to spur investment. The Reagan administration’s hastily prepared fiscal blueprint, however, was no match for the primordial forces — the welfare state and the warfare state — that drive the federal spending machine.
Soon, the neocons were pushing the military budget skyward. And the Republicans on Capitol Hill who were supposed to cut spending exempted from the knife most of the domestic budget — entitlements, farm subsidies, education, water projects. But in the end it was a new cadre of ideological tax-cutters who killed the Republicans’ fiscal religion.
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