With just a few days left before Christmas, I want to express a happy and safe Christmas holiday to all. If you celebrate another holiday, Happy holidays to you and your family.
Peace and love for all in the upcoming year with hopes all your dreams are fulfilled.
Thank you and God Bless,
Terry Suominen
The numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics came out for unemployment figures yesterday. Unemployed rate decreased to 8.6 across the country as applicants drop off the radar unable to find work or benefits exhausted. The BLS numbers show exactly what they want you to see, numbers. Private sector jobs increased by 140,000 while government jobs dropped 20,000.
In Nevada we are still hanging around 13.4% unemployed. Our numbers are bad and not improving as the state continues to set records in foreclosures, unemployment, homeless and . According to Three Squares, a food bank in Las Vegas, 1 in 6 families are unsure what they will eat tonight. Times are tough in the Silver State with elected officials finding every issue to talk about but still no solutions that are working.
In Congress, Dean Heller offered a bill to continue tax breaks of 2% for one more year and was voted down with only 20 members for it. Harry Reid offered a bill that would increase the rate of savings from 2% to 3.2% and he to did not receive enough votes to pass the measure.
The reason these bills did not pass, “Voters want reform, not more of the same.” Yes we are at the cross roads of time and need to decide right here, right now the path we travel in America. Will we continue down the trail that brought us to this braking point or will we elect individuals who are more concerned with fixing our nation regardless of party or re-election priorities.
With a 15 trillion-dollar national debt looming over the heads of every American we need Patriots to step up to serve honorably as was true of our Founding Fathers. They were not perfect souls, they were Patriots serving the needs of a new nation without fear of consequences for their efforts. Patriots step forward and be heard once again.
It is Sunday and the Stupid Committee has come up with something finally the American people can grasp. They have wasted 3 months in special committee meetings, hearings and private engagement and came up with nothing, nada, zero, zipo.
The two-party system has eroded the quality of life for all Americans as they take money for their campaigns from Special Interest, Individuals and organizations outside their voting district to remain in power. Harry Reid receives over 70% of his campaign funding from outside the state of Nevada is a prime example.
How can you do what is right for the country, for the citizens if you have millions of dollars coming into a campaign from lawyers, lobbyists and unions? This power struggle has been a part of the problem we face in America now for over 60 years and it is critical we address the issue now, before it is too late.
Those in Congress not willing to make the huge sacrifices for the benefit of maintaining our Republic must go. We need members to stand up, roll up their sleeves and do the work of the people to save this nation from political bankruptcy. The corruption has destroyed our way of life as we know it.
Step up people this election cycle and vote your conscience to elect citizen legislators who have your best interest in common and not those of special interest. Do we need another candidate backing companies like Solyndra with our tax dollars, I think not.
Be in the know about the candidates and where they stand. If they take contributions from special interest can they represent you? Listen, learn and then vote, it is as easy as that. Make your voices heard as you travel down the dark and dusty road of politics.
As a candidate for Senate in the last election we pressed for Congress to cut the spending and reduce our national debt by $500,000,000,000.00 a year to bring us out of the deep recession we are currently in. That is 500 billion dollars a year we must cut to save this nation from self-destruction. Harry Reid didn’t listen, Joe Heck didn’t listen and the list is long if you talk to all Congress members across the nation.
They don’t understand we can not hold a 15 trillion-dollar national debt and remain solvent. We as a nation take in 2.3 trillion dollars in revenues and spend 3.6 trillion of which we must borrow 43%. This is stupid as Alan Simpson has stated on many occasions as head of the committee to find cuts in spending in Washington.
Stop the insanity running rampant in the Halls of Congress. You have a voice that will resonate with the candidates working to be your representative. One voice for the people in each state will help the situation.
Veterans Day, Honoring our Military families who sacrifice so much for us to live in a free society. Honoring those who served giving of themselves to protect what they believe is right.
In Las Vegas VFW Post 1753 presents the Annual Veterans Day Parade on 11-11-11 at 10:00am on the corner of 4th and Gass. Each year the City of Las Vegas brings together bands, ROTC members, military members from as far back as the World Wars to march in the largest parade for our Veterans West of the Mississippi.
This day is a day to honor those who sacrifice so much of their lives so we don’t have too. This day is about our VETERANS both old and young who shows a love of country most citizens can not or will not. This day is to honor and respect these fine folks for who they are and what they do for our Nation.
This is not a day politicians should be waving their banners and traveling in a motorcade in the parades. This day is for our Veterans and should be honored as such. Politicians please show respect and honor those members for one day without political affiliation or self promotion. I thank you for those who don’t use the Veterans Day Parade as a political platform.
Thank you to all of our military family who have served honorably protecting the rights and liberties of this great nation. We owe a debt of gratitude that words alone cannot express.
Today former Republican Senator from Wyoming Alan Simpson laid it on the line as he answers questions on Fox News “Happening Now” program. During his telephone interview Alan emphasized the importance of getting our national debt under control.
As he spoke to the Super Committee put in charge of reining in the out of control spending Alan stated with total conviction, “We don’t need charts when we go out, we don’t use power points, we just say if you spend more than you earn you lose your butt.” As the committee members hash out the details to cut 1.2 trillion dollars from the deficit Alan is wary they will accomplish the goals ahead of them.
With our National Debt close to 15 trillion dollars and a Congress that continues to borrow more than revenues received Alan had this to say to them, “If you spend a buck and borrow 42 cents of it, you’ve got to be stupid!” The time has come for partisan politics to stop and start working for the good of the nation and it’s citizens before the country goes bankrupt.
The Senator believes Congress needs to remove the obstacles that hinder the progress of passing legislation that will elevate the economic drain on our nation. The lobbyists and special interests groups dictate to our elected officials what they expect or the campaign contributions will dry up. His words of wisdom to Congress is to make the tough choices and do what is right for America.
This situation we are experiencing today is at the critical point for our nation. Mr. Simpson goes on to say “This is it, if we don’t do something the markets are gonna respond, the tipping point will come, interest will go up, inflation will go up and guess who gets hurt the worse, the little guy.”
The time has come for our elected officials to start listening to the voice of the people to do what is right for this nation. As concerned citizens we expect to hear the truth and have our elected officials offer us solutions to the problem instead of continually telling us the problem and never putting solutions on the table.
It is refreshing to hear any politician speaking boldly and bluntly about the direction our country is heading and where we will be if we fail to address these problems head on. Mr. Simpson many of us who have heard you agree with your assessment of the situation.
On the floor in the House the debate is going on right now on a resolution to reaffirm “IN GOD WE TRUST” as our nations motto. The Republicans are all standing up voicing their strong support of the bill as this nation was founded on the principles of God. The Democrats are saying the resolution was put on the floor to hide the insures that are prevalent in the country at this time.
Personally, my belief is as the official motto of the United States of America “IN GOD WE TRUST” should be maintained for all of eternity as our nation grows and develops. You don’t have to believe in GOD if you choose not too, however as a nation you should respect the principles this nation was founded on.
The motto does not ask you to go to church and pray or become a religious zealot unless you choose to be. Just because you believe in God or you do not believe in God does not make you a better American as Representative Jerrold Nadler (D) New York just stated in his remarks.
Regardless of what you believe or don’t believe, this is our nation and our motto and so it should be. Our Founding Fathers envisioned a Nation like no other in the history of the World. They worked tirelessly to write a Bill of Rights and a Constitution that unlike any ever written. These writings were based on individuals rights to live free of a dictator or ruler that would impose their ideologies the citizens.
Written in the First Amendment the words state “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,” which was why Puritans came to this country on the Mayflower to escape religious persecution from the King of England.
The Church of England was the official Church with the Monarch being the Supreme Governor of the religion.
For over 2 centuries those living in England could not publicly proclaim their faith if it differed from those few accepted by the Monarchy. If you were Protestant or Catholic glory be you were safe, any other and death was imminent if anyone found out not in your immediate sphere of influence.
So American’s can worship to any GOD they believe in and will not be persecuted by the government. Our tolerances for all religions is unheard of anywhere else in the World. In many countries if you do not believe in the faith of the country you are exiled or killed. Here we are free to worship to any GOD of our choosing.
So if we must reaffirm our Nations motto “IN GOD WE TRUST” so be it. If you don’t agree with it or don’t like our National motto tough. If it offends you, pack up your bags and head to a country that will accept you as you are with hopes you would respect their Nations motto regardless of what it is.
Today Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebeluis told leading members of Congress Obama Administration will not pursue portion of ObamaCare as they don’t know how to implement it without spending more than is allotted in legislation.
CLASS is the largest portion of the health care bill to fail on its own and Republicans have stated it won’t be the last as many deem the bill Unconstitutional as written. Many conservatives in Nevada agree. When asked about this newest bombshell Jeff stated “We don’t need a court to convene to discuss this issue, not only is it illegal but it is bad for the country.”
Of course, the plan started out with a price tag of 600 billion dollars and escalated to a cost close to 1 trillion dollars when implemented but as details kept emerging the price tag skyrocketed first hundreds of billions and then up another trillion. Today the numbers continue to move as more details are revealed as to how the government will implement the processes.
These are estimates which can not be confirmed because everything is hypothetical, based on the details within that 2400 plus pages of the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”. The CBO can only give their professional analysis on what is presented to them without prejudice. As time goes by there will be additional pages and dollars added to this monstrosity of a bill which currently will save 143 billion dollars of taxpayers money over the next 10 years according to Douglas Elmendorf, the Director of the Congressional Budget Office.
Early next year it appears as if the Supreme Court of the United States will hear the case on ObamaCare. Both sides of the argument will plea their case as to why or why not this law is Constitutional and then the Justices will have to decide. Will they write their opinion concurring with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care bill or will the majority write a dissenting opinion? Will it be legal for our government to mandate products for citizens to purchase under penalty of fines if they do not? We will wait to see when the case appears on the docket, stay tuned.
Since presenting the “American Jobs Act” last month the President has traveled across the country imploring all who would listen for passage of the jobs bill, stating “If you love me, you gotta help me pass this bill”. Last night the Senate couldn’t get enough votes to pass the bill as sent to the chambers with members of both parties calling it DOA.
The Senator Mitch McConnell stated on the floor “This whole exercise is a charade” referring to the means to which this bill came about. The Democratic plan was to present a bill that would fail so the American people would be prepared to vote against any member in Congress who did not vote for the passage of a bill meant to create jobs so desperately needed in this country. Will this ploy work or have voters finally figure out the problem in Washington is Washington.
The President continues to leave his carbon foot print each day as he travels in Air Force 1 consuming thousands of gallons of fuel to appear at his next campaign stop. As he speaks of the inequalities here in America and how his jobs plan will be paid for he continues to sign bills into law where we have to borrow 43 cents out of every dollar to implement them. To pay for his jobs bill is simple, raise taxes on the rich who don’t pay their fair share and drastic cuts in entitlement programs. According to the President, “This makes an additional hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts in spending, but it also asks the wealthiest Americans and the biggest corporations to pay their fair share of taxes.
Now the President is on the road traveling to cities and towns near you with a new message since his jobs bill was DOA. That message now is, he will continue to fight for what he believes is right for America and having the rich pay their fare share will not disappear because of the lack of interest in Congress. As he stated previously “The public is not paying close attention to the ins and outs of how a Treasury option goes. They shouldn’t.” He feels with his endless stump speeches he can persuade Americans with different ideologies that his way is the right way.
The Peterson Pew Commission report released November 10, 2010 advocates a different approach. They concentrate on three areas needing improvement called the Three T’s”. To get back in the black Congress must focus on “Creating fiscal targets; establishing automatic budgetary triggers; and increasing transparency of budgetary information and procedures.” None of which include raising taxes or spending more than you have as this country has been doing for the past 60 years.
Polls show Congress at an all time low with only 13% approval rating and the President according to Rasmussen is at his lowest numbers with 23% of those polled strongly approve of his record, in total 43% somewhat approve of his record. The American people are tired of politics as usual. Just talk to anyone at the grocery store while waiting in line, or at the gas station, better yet at your favorite restaurant to see what the popular opinion is about our Congress, our President and our Jobs. My guess is after talking to thousands of people over the past year they want something better for this country and “Hope and Change” isn’t it any longer.
Halloween is fast approaching so you want to get your costumes early before they run out at the party stores. For Conservatives I recommend the Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi or President Obama costume if you want to horrify your right-wing neighbors and friends. When you ring that doorbell don’t yell out trick or treat, yell redistribution of wealth or Tea Party Extremist and the door will most likely be slammed in your face almost immediately.
If you are a liberal you’re going to want to find Paul Ryan, Sarah Palin or maybe Eric Cantor to scare your left-wing neighbors and friends. As you approach their homes or apartments try yelling at the top of your lungs, tax cuts for the rich or let’s balance the budget now to see what response you will receive. I guarantee you, it won’t be pretty.
Let me warn you once you find the costume of your choice you will have to wear it for several nights after work and practice those lines in front of the mirror because it won’t come easy to enunciate those words you so vehemently oppose. But try to get the emotion along with the tone as you practice then get a few close friends in on the secret to practice with them as you tailor your skills for the night of fright to see if you can scare the, well you know what I mean out of them.
This could be the best Halloween every if you come up with the right costume with the right voice as you creep around the neighborhood posing as a member of Congress. Try betting with your friends who can come home with the least amount of candy as you count how many times the residents went running as the door slammed in your face. It could be fun. Boo, Happy Halloween one and all.
Moments ago the House failed to pass the continuing resolution which would fund the Federal Government through November 20,2011. A short-term fix to a long-term problem that has eroded the quality of life for all Americans. With a vote of 195 to 230 Democrats held out because the disaster relief they sought would have to be paid for in this bill.
It has been 873 days now since the Democratically held Congress has passed a budget for the country. 873 days and Senator Harry Reid has refused to put a budget on the floor that would address the debt problem we have in this country. Is it because Harry can not cut the budget nor the spending habits of Congress due to campaign contributions received from those individuals living outside the state of Nevada? Could he have gotten re-elected had he told those corporate executives and those special interests groups who funded his campaign, I have to balance the budget and can’t give you what you want any longer? I doubt it!
Open Secrets (http://bit.ly/oo0KIg) compiled a list of businesses which have contributed to Mr. Reid’s Senatorial Campaign over the past 7 years in no certain order. With the information provided from the FEC we know 78% of all funds received for Harry’s re-election bids come from out-of-state. These businesses listed can not give donations directly to any political candidate so they create PAC’s and members of the organizations contribute as individuals.
Blackstone Group contributed a total of 79,800 dollars. This group was founded in 1985 with clients and investors dealing in private equity funds, advancing to hedge funds, Real Estate, mutual funds and other financial ventures. To date they have a portfolio worth billions as they continue to invest in the free market.
Caesars Entertainment the worlds largest casino operator, formerly Harrah’s Entertainment gave 83,600 to help elected Harry. Company revenues for the year ending 2010 were 8.9 billion dollars. Former Mayor Jan Jones is the senior vice president of communications and holds special functions with political leaders both past and future.
Lobbyists from across the country contributed over 1 million dollars to his campaigns over the years. Lawyers and law firms have offered over 3.6 million dollars toward his re-election campaigns. Over the years Harry has been one active fundraiser with over 18 million raised in the past few election cycles. At the age of 72 will he have enough in him to attempt to run one more race come 2016?
Since his first election to the Senate in 1986 our national debt has risen 12.6 trillion dollars. In 1986 our national debt was a meager 2.125 trillion dollars fiscal year ending September 30, and a few months later the new Senator would make history as he along with other members of Congress would continually increase spending without increasing revenues causing this unsustainable debt we now have.
I agree it is not the fault of Harry Reid only, he had help in passing those bills that somehow never were addressed until the Tea Party movement stepped in to inform our elected leaders they can not continue to spend what they don’t have. Both Republicans and Democrats are the blame as both parties could not control the spending habits which lobbyists and special interest groups condoned to get what they wanted for helping members get elected.
We now must act responsibly by addressing the problem that roams the Halls of Congress. Members must stand up and fight for what is right for America and not what is required to get re-elected. Members must now make tough choices to reduce the spending, chop the size of the Federal Government and control the fraud and waste in every aspect of spending by our government officials.
