McClatchy and the New York Times reported Wednesday that the CIA had secretly monitored computers used by committee staffers preparing the inquiry report, which is said to be scathing not only about the brutality and ineffectiveness of the agency’s interrogation techniques but deception by the CIA to Congress and policymakers about it. The CIA sharply disputes the committee’s findings.
via Obama knew CIA secretly monitored intelligence committee, senator claims.
After being burned by his nomination of Debo Adegbile to head up the civil rights division at the Department of Justice, President Obama has jumped right back into the fray with another radical nominee, this time for Surgeon General.
But what makes Vivek Hallegere Murthy such a controversial choice for the post is not what you might expect. It’s not that he is a champion of late-term abortions (though he probably is) or believes in fully government-subsidized sex reassignment surgeries (though he probably does).
The problem with Murthy, rather, is his position on guns. Namely, he thinks one of the questions doctors should ask patients during a routine medical history is whether the person has any guns in his home.
Investors.com notes that Murthy, 36, is president and co-founder of Doctors for America, an anti-gun group that advocates making gun control a facet of the practice of medicine.
Full article: http://libertyunyiel … #eSBToGzyECclmMIh.99
Saying he’s optimistic the economy and the government’s fiscal picture have finally turned the corner five years into his tenure, President Obama announced a $3.9 trillion 2015 budget Tuesday that calls for tax hikes and a $60 billion boost in spending next year.
The federal government would run a $564 billion deficit in 2015, which would be a record low for Mr. Obama’s tenure. But the deficit would remain at about half a trillion dollars a year for the next 10 years, meaning debt would continue to pile up. By 2024, Mr. Obama projects gross debt would be $27.5 trillion.
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He also rejected spending cuts he and Congress have agreed to in recent years, saying the government is wounding basic domestic programs. He instead said higher domestic spending can be accommodated by raising taxes on the wealthy.
“At a time when our deficits are falling at the fastest rate in 60 years, we’ve got to decide if we’re going to keep squeezing the middle class,” Mr. Obama said.
A $302 billion transportation-building program would be paid for by eliminating tax breaks for businesses — a move that is unlikely to sit well with Republicans, who have said any corporate tax code changes will have to be revenue neutral.
Mr. Obama also proposed a federal tobacco tax hike to pay for federal funding to guarantee preschool and full-day kindergarten for children from low- and middle-income families.
The budget is a month later than the deadline set in law.
And it arrives in a Congress unlikely to care very much about the details. Senate Democrats have already said they won’t try to pass a budget this year, while House Republicans will try — but will reject most of the president’s proposals.
Full article: http://www.washingto … ises-spending-taxes/
