| |
|
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
|
|
Political Wire: "'Early exit polling from Michigan appears to bode well for Mitt Romney and ill for John McCain,' according to the Boston Globe. Low turnout due to the weather is seen keeping crossover voters home, favoring Romney over McCain."
"2008 pres"
6:27:26 PM 
|
|
TalkLeft: "One of the worst immigration policies we have is that non-citizens, including those present in this country legally, not only face mandatory removal if convicted of an assortment of non-violent crimes, but must first serve their full sentences in U.S. prisons and jails. If we know the defendant is going to be deported, why the cruelty of the double whammy of a prison sentence followed by removal, and why pay to house them for years before sending them back?"
"2008 pres"
6:20:03 PM
|
|
American Water Works Association: "Conserve to Enhance offers an innovative municipal water conservation mechanism designed to motivate consumers to conserve water and set aside funds to purchase water for environmental needs. The concept and program elements were developed with the collaboration of utility representatives, elected officials, interested citizens, as well as more than 40 experts in water and environmental concerns."
Thanks to The Water Information Program for the link.
"colorado water"
5:56:57 PM
|
|
TalkLeft: "On January 30, 2008, Attorney General Michael Mukasey will testify at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on 'Oversight of the Department of Justice.' Politico reports that waterboarding could be a topic and that the hearing will concern 'the Justice Department's inquiry into the CIA's destruction of secret interrogation tapes.'"
"2008 pres"
5:48:34 PM
|
|
Box Turtle Bulletin: "Today marks a very important milestone in LGBT history. Fifty years ago today, on January 13, 1958, the U.S. Supreme Court delivered its first ever pro-gay ruling in ONE Inc. v. Olesen, a landmark decision that allowed a magazine for gays and lesbians to be sent through the U.S. mail."
Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the link.
"2008 pres"
5:47:26 PM
|
|
Colorado Dems: "Yesterday more than 200 people were on hand for the Engaged Spirituality Forum at Iliff School of Theology. We will be posting copies of remarks and a video of the proceedings on the website in the near future. However, I want to provide some highlights from the day on this site."
"2008 pres"
5:42:41 PM
|
|
Politics West: "Fearing the worst, security officials from Denver Public Schools and the city and county of Denver urged the Denver school board Monday to postpone the start of the school year until after Labor Day when the Democratic National Convention will be over. "We want to hope for the best but we have to plan for the worst," said Ed Ray, chief of DPS security. "It would be very prudent if we could accomodate the delayed start to the school year." The school board will set next year's calendar Jan. 24. The district has delivered surveys to parents and teachers, asking for their input on two separate calendars -- one that begins before Labor Day and one that begins after."
"2008 pres"
5:40:24 PM
|
|
The Moderate Voice: "The Mexicans are watching all this voting malarkey that is going on north of their border. They seem sure of just two things: that American voters are turning their backs on the political establishment and all the mess it has made over the last few years ... (as in the form of McCain and Obama) ... but that whomever those Americans choose, they're doomed anyway ... because all of the candidates are compromised by the Imperial model to which they are all committed..."
Political Wire: "The final American Research Group poll before today's GOP Michigan primary finds Sen. John McCain and Mitt Romney are essentially tied with McCain at 31%, Romney at 30% and Mike Huckabee at 19%."
Political Wire: "Sen. Barack Obama 'in recent days has sprinted ahead in the endorsement derby against Hillary Rodham Clinton when it comes to a certain breed of Democrat -- politicians who have won statewide in places where Republicans dominate presidential politics,' The Politico observes."
Political Wire: "The final Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll before the Michigan primary found Sen. John McCain and Mitt Romney in a statistical dead heat. The survey shows McCain with a tiny 27% to 26% edge over Romney, with Mike Huckabee a distant third at 15% support. About 8% of voters said they were undecided [^] a potentially critical factor in such a close election."
Political Wire: "A new SurveyUSA poll in California finds Sen. John McCain leading in the Republican presidential race with 33% support, followed by Rudy Giuliani at 18%, Mike Huckabee at 14% and Mitt Romney at 13%. Since August, McCain is up 19 points and Giuliani is down 10 points. California is central to Giuliani's 'big state' strategy, which kept him out of early caucuses and primaries, to allow him to concentrate on Florida on Janurary 29 and the delegate rich states such as California which vote on February 5. In the Democratic race, Sen. Hillary Clinton leads Barack Obama, 50% to 35%, with John Edwards trailing at 10%."
Elevated Voices: "While all eyes have been on the early primary and caucus states, the candidates for President are also thinking about Tsunami Tuesday, Feb. 5, when 22 states, including Colorado caucuses or votes. Barack Obama opened six campaign offices in Colorado last week. Hillary Clinton doesn't seem to have as many Colorado offices, but her campaign is holding events this week from Larimer County to Douglas Douglas County and calling on some big local names, like Dottie Lamm and Pat Schroeder, to help her out. The campaign will also have a presence in our Martin Luther King, Jr. Day parade."
"2008 pres"
5:36:47 PM
|
|
Edward Blum (via The National Review Online): "Before the recess, Congress was busy introducing a slate of legislation to address illegal immigration. Two bills -- the Prevention of Unsafe Licensing Act and the Secure America Through Verification and Enforcement Act (SAVE) -- have drawn 120 co-sponsors, most of whom are Republicans, though the list includes a couple of dozen Democrats as well.
"However useful these bills may be, Congress is remiss in not addressing another serious immigration issue. Dozens of cities, towns, school districts, and other jurisdictions in which non-citizen immigrant populations have mushroomed in recent years are being strong-armed by the Department of Justice into changing centuries-old forms of governance to accommodate non-citizens. From Port Chester, New York, to Alamosa County, Colorado, to Santa Paula, California, to Sunnyside, Washington, lawsuits filed by the DOJ or public-interest legal-defense organizations have forced these jurisdictions and others to change their at-large system of representation to single-member districts because of the massive influx of illegal immigration. In the case of Sunnyside (pop. 14,000), the mere threat of a lawsuit by the DOJ caused the city to nix its current form of governance. Sunnyside caved in without even fighting back."
"2008 pres"
6:26:45 AM
|
|
From Reuters, "Antarctica lost billions of tonnes of ice over the last decade, contributing to the rising seas around the world, a climate researcher said on Monday. The ice melted from two particular parts of the southern continent, according to Eric Rignot and colleagues, who wrote about the phenomenon in the journal Nature Geoscience. Using satellites to monitor most of Antarctica's coastline, the scientists estimate that West Antarctica lost 132 billion tonnes of ice in 2006, compared to about 83 billion tonnes in 1996. The Antarctic Peninsula, which stretches toward South America, lost about 60 billion tonnes in 2006. To put this in perspective, 4 billion tonnes of ice would be enough to provide drinking water to the more than 60 million people of the United Kingdom for a year, fellow author Jonathan Bamber of the University of Bristol said in a statement. This ice loss is not from the so-called ice sheets that cover the water around the continent. This melting occurred in the glaciers that cover much of the Antarctic land mass, and when that melts, it contributes to sea level rise in a way that sea ice does not."
"2008 pres"
6:22:59 AM
|
|
Here's an opinion piece from The High Country News in favor of the proposed H.R. 2262, the Hardrock Mining Act of 2007. From the article:
Though congressional reform never seems to go the distance, last November marked a milestone: The Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2007 passed the House of Representatives 244-166, and was a huge victory for hunters and anglers. The bill was strongly supported by a coalition called Sportsmen United for Sensible Mining, made up of organizations and individual grassroots partners and spearheaded by the National Wildlife Federation, the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, and Trout Unlimited.
Now, it's the Senate's turn, and as the issue gains momentum, sportsmen in the West want to make sure the bill retains four principles that will make all the difference in the world to fish and other wildlife:
*Allow reclamation incentives and common-sense liability relief to those "good Samaritans" who buy or own land damaged by mining. Companies and nonprofit organizations that didn't create the problems created by abandoned mines or their waste need to be encouraged to return the land to other uses while being protected against unreasonable liabilities.
*Prohibit the patenting or sale of public lands under this law. Since 1872, public lands have been practically given away to mining companies for as little as $2.50 to $5 per acre. Our wildlife needs public land to survive, and reform should prohibit the sale of that land.
*Create a royalty from any minerals taken from public lands to fund fish and wildlife conservation programs and reclamation of mined land. Sportsmen for over a century have been paying to play on public land; it's time mining companies paid their share.
*Strengthen protections for fish, wildlife and water resources from the impacts of mining. This can be done by entrusting federal land managers with the authority to ensure reclamation of mining sites and to approve or deny mining permits based on environmental impacts.
More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.
"2008 pres"
6:17:16 AM
|
|
The Great Lakes Basin Compact is an state election issue in Michigan. They're hoping to prevent any large scale movement of water to the Southwest. From The Sturgis Journal, "People and business moved out of Michigan to warmer and drier climates and now they want Great Lakes water, one member said. Where do the candidates stand on the water issue? Rob Sisson, a member of Republicans for Environmental Protection since 1999, was passionate. "I really believe water is our future," he said. In the next 20 years, Sisson believes industry will be moving to the water, and Michigan has water. One of the most water-intensive manufacturing process is the creation of computer chips, Sisson said, and all the companies are in California. He is frustrated with Republicans in Lansing dragging their feet, hesitant to sign the Great Lakes Basin Compact which prevents the shipping of water from the basin out of the area. The Colorado River is going dry and that's not an acceptable option for the Great Lakes, he said. Bordner, a farmer, also an advocate for keeping Great Lakes water "local," said while he agrees with the compact, farmers have run into issues concerning the use of water because of wording in similar compacts."
"2008 pres"
6:03:13 AM
|
|
From The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, "Nevada is turning into a test-drive of tactics to be expected as Hillary Clinton battles the eloquent insurgent, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois. Obama is threatening what Miller called 'the soon-to-be second Clinton presidency.'[...]The Nevada caucuses were supposed to reacquaint the Democratic Party with the Mountain West. The region elects Democratic governors -- five at last count -- but it has gotten scant attention from the party's presidential candidates. Bill Clinton carried Nevada twice, and narrowly won Arizona in 1996. If John Kerry had won three competitive Mountain states in 2004 -- Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado -- he would be sitting in the White House.
"2008 pres"
5:47:28 AM
|
|
|
© Copyright 2009 John Orr.
Last update: 3/15/09; 2:00:32 PM.
|
|
|
