AFT on the Passage of the House Budget Resolution

Source: American Federation of Teachers

Washington, D.C. - October 5, 2017 - (The Ponder News) -- American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten released the following statement on the passage of the House budget resolution:

“Republicans passed a budget resolution that decimates public education, Medicare and Medicaid to give tax breaks to the rich and corporations. This isn’t a budget; it’s a setup for a massive tax break for those at the top and will further rig our economy against working people while simultaneously hurting kids, seniors and the poor. Today’s budget action is more proof that President Trump and congressional Republicans continue to govern for the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable.

“The underlying tradeoff that runs through this budget—providing massive tax cuts to the wealthy while slashing programs that support the most vulnerable among us—reflects the absolutely wrong priority and puts key K-12 and higher education programs at risk. This is especially evident as we need to invest and rebuild after the recent hurricanes. It is no time to have to cut services to American citizens in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Texas and Florida to provide a tax cut 80 percent of which will benefit the top 1 percent.

“The AFT will encourage tax reform that improves working people’s lives, makes the tax system fairer and ensures adequate revenues for vital government services.”

Opinion/Editorial: THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM

by Anthony J Codispoti

Here is what I have learned about President Trump. He knows the news media despises him. More than 90% of mainstream media news stories about the President and and his administration are negative. How could that possibly be considered fair coverage?

Of course, it isn't fair and there are no indications anywhere that it's about to change. One might get the sense that if President Trump walked on water and talked to Jesus, the headlines in the Washington Post and the NY Times would read, "Trump Conspires with Risen Christ; Women and Minorities Most Affected."

The question the media and all Americans should ask is this: does this president deserve 90% or more negative coverage from the news media? Personally, I always knew that the news media, which didn't have an adversarial bone in its body for eight years under Obama, would suddenly rediscover those bones under ANY Republican President. The fact that the Republican President is Donald Trump offends their elitist sensibilities very deeply indeed.

He knows he isn't going to get fair coverage and it's pointless to hope for it. But he cannot allow the media bias to discredit him or undermine his authority as President. This media today is more than adversarial. They are attempting a subversion of Presidential authority which will have repercussions for future Presidents if permitted. In reaction, President Trump is duty bound to act to protect the institution of the Presidency.

So, what can he do? Well, one thing he could do is discredit the mainstream news media. He does this in speeches all the time, but that's not nearly enough. Labeling them "fake news" plays only to his base of supporters, but it doesn't prove his point to anyone else.

He needs the media to discredit itself as well, preferably, by its own hand, because that will lend credibility to his argument outside of his base of support. It is here that the mainstream news media is actually building Trump's case against themselves. He is providing the rope and they are hanging themselves while Americans are watching.

Here is just one way the President is accomplishing this:

Trump knows the media expects all Presidents to behave a certain way. He knows behaving differently, which he finds easy to do, can cause the media to focus on idiosyncratic aspects of his personality to such distraction, they will appear petty and totally obsessed in the process.

It has gotten so bad, they will create firestorms in 2-3 day news cycles obsessing over Melania's choice of footwear, or the way Trump tosses paper towels to Puerto Rican hurricane victims, and even throw away lines intended to turn media attention down another blind alley, with two words "you'll see."

The Northeastern media elites complain that Trump has no appreciation for the necessary decorum expected from Presidents, but then are continually confounded when he behaves with that decorum as he did recently in Las Vegas.

The elites are outsmarting themselves because President Trump has a deep appreciation for the decorum required of the Presidency. And that's exactly why he breaks from that decorum often because he needs to keep an almost uniformly hostile media off balance and focused on trivia.

The fact of the matter is, President Trump owns the media and they know it and they know there is nothing they can do about it. They hate him for it.

They will never give him a fair shake. And he will never stop discrediting them and making them discredit themselves as long as they don't give him that fair shake.

There has never been a President like Trump. And we hear this from news media almost daily. But there also was never a President like Obama, either. Obama also broke with a great many Presidential traditions and limitations, but we never heard the wailing and gnashing of teeth with Obama's unprecedented behavior in office. It is necessary to point out here because it illustrates the bias in the news media. They were ideologically sympathetic with Obama. Any moves in service to that ideological agenda, even outside the Constitutional guardrails set for the Presidency were given few, if any critical words.

But President Trump's agenda is not ideological. It's populist. Populists bend to the popular will. The media is chock full of progressive ideologues wishing to impose their vision for America over the popular will. They are fundamentally undemocratic. They will seek as they have already sought to bring down this President. So far, it's hurt them more than it's hurt Trump.

The media behavior here is reminiscent of President Nixon's words as he left the White House upon resigning from office:

"Others may hate you, but those who hate you don't win, unless you hate them. And then, you destroy yourself." The media needs to review that one, I think.

First Liberty Institute Praises New Exemptions to Contraceptive Mandate, DOJ Guidance on Religious Liberty

Source: First Liberty Institute

Plano, TX - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- The Trump administration announced two significant policy positions that will protect the religious liberty of all Americans—critical protections that will immediately benefit First Liberty Institute’s clients and aid many others.

Thanks to a new interim final rule announced by the Trump administration, clients of First Liberty are now exempt from the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate, which forced businesses, ministries, and other non-profit organizations to reject their religious beliefs and moral convictions or violate the law.

Jeremy Dys, Deputy General Counsel for First Liberty, issued the following statement regarding the HHS interim final rule:

“The new rule is a huge win for business and ministry leaders who, since 2013, have been fighting the government’s disregard for their religious beliefs and moral convictions. Now, they can lead their organizations in good conscience without choosing between their convictions and obeying law.”

In July, First Liberty attorneys held an in-person, on-the-record meeting with officials from the Office of Management and Budget, Department of Labor, and Health and Human Services—agencies tasked with reviewing the rules related to the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate. (Read First Liberty’s letter on behalf of its clients to Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney by clicking here.)

The Department of Justice also announced new religious liberty guidelines that build upon critical protections for religious liberty set down in the Clinton administration. The following statement may be attributed to Hiram Sasser, General Counsel for First Liberty:

“Our country has a long history of protecting religious liberty. This guidance is part of a tradition of administrations helping to educate the public and officials regarding the laws that protect religious liberty, such as President Clinton’s pioneering guidance protecting religious liberty in public schools. Further, our nation has a longstanding bi-partisan commitment to religious liberty as evidenced by Senator Ted Kennedy’s passionate advocacy for the passage of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). We welcome President Trump’s commitment to continue this legacy of protecting religious liberty.”

FRC Applauds DOJ Guidance Protecting Religious Freedom, Exempting from Oppressive HHS Mandate

Source: Family Research Council

Washington, D.C. - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Family Research Council applauded two major actions by the Trump administration that safeguard religious freedom. The Department of Justice (DOJ) is directing federal agencies to respect religious freedom while the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is exempting religious entities from the oppressive Obama contraceptive mandate.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins released the following statement:

“After eight years of the federal government’s relentless assault on the First Amendment, the Trump administration has taken concrete steps today that will once again erect a bulwark of protection around American’s First Freedom – religious freedom.

“President Trump is demonstrating his commitment to undoing the anti-faith policies of the previous administration and restoring true religious freedom. Last May, the president ordered the federal government to vigorously promote and protect religious liberty –and now the DOJ and HHS are moving to make that order a reality.

“Under the Obama administration, agencies lost the understanding that religious freedoms extend to the public square, not just one’s place of worship. As a result, our own government began threatening hardworking, patriotic Americans with crushing fines for simply seeking to live their lives according to their faith.

“President Trump and the Department of Justice are putting federal government agencies on notice: you will not only respect the freedom of every American to believe but live according to those beliefs. This is a freedom that has been a fundamental part of our society since the beginning of our nation.

“To aid the Trump administration’s efforts in vigorously promoting and protecting religious liberty, Family Research Council today is launching a web hotline for those who believe that they have suffered discrimination at the hands of federal agencies based on their religious beliefs or practices. The ‘Free to Believe’ hotline will help ensure that no federal employee, contractor or citizen will be forced to choose between their faith and equal treatment by the federal government.

"As President Trump continues to follow through on his promises on these core issues, he will continue to have the support of social conservatives on his policy initiatives,” concluded Perkins.

U.S. Chamber Statement on House Passage of the 2018 Budget Resolution

Source: U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Washington, D.C. - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- U.S. Chamber of Commerce Senior Vice President and Chief Policy Officer Neil Bradley issued the following statement today after passage of the 2018 budget resolution in the U.S. House of Representatives:

“Passage of the 2018 budget resolution in the House today is an important and consequential first step toward achieving the pro-growth tax reform promised to American business owners, workers, and families. But the work is just beginning. We need the Senate to act quickly and to come together with their colleagues to deliver legislation that unlocks the potential for an overhaul of the tax code that will grow the economy, create jobs, and raise wages.

“As we’ve said before, failure is not an option, and the Chamber will be holding lawmakers accountable to make sure tax reform gets done for the American people.”

ERLC’s Russell Moore calls HHS religious liberty exemption ‘crucial achievement’

Source: Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission

Washington, D.C. - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, commented today on the decision by the Trump administration to provide a robust religious liberty exemption to Health and Human Services’ contraceptive mandate, which provides employers with religious or moral objections an exemption to the requirement that they must pay for contraception, including contraceptives with abortifacient properties.

Moore commented:

“This religious exemption is a crucial achievement in the preservation of religious liberty. The government has no business whatsoever forcing citizens to subsidize the destruction of human life and the exploitation of families and communities. More still, the contraceptive mandate revealed the audacity of a state that believed it could annex the human conscience, which is why I have long opposed it as an unlawful overreach asking citizens to choose between obedience to God and compliance with the regulatory state. A government that can pave over the consciences of some can steamroll over dissent everywhere. I am thankful for this move, which recognizes that freedom of conscience is a natural and inalienable right, not an allowance handed out by Uncle Sam.”

Seeking the overturning of the HHS contraceptive mandate has been a signature issue for the ERLC, beginning in 2014 after Guidestone Financial Resources and many other Baptist institutions filed suit against the United States Department of Health and Human Services, citing religiously held convictions that would prevent them from including such coverages in their health plans.

EEI CONTINUES TO COORDINATE WITH FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND INDUSTRY PARTNERS TO SUPPORT POWER RESTORATION EFFORTS IN PUERTO RICO, AS NEW STORM DEVELOPS IN GULF

Source: Edison Electric Institute

Washington, D.C. - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Edison Electric Institute (EEI) Executive Director of Security and Preparedness Scott Aaronson released the following statement on EEI’s efforts to coordinate with the federal government and industry partners to support power restoration and recovery efforts in Puerto Rico.

“The primary focus in Puerto Rico has been on the distribution of commodities such as food, water, and fuel for temporary power at critical facilities, as well as improving security, removing debris, and clearing roads. As these operations bring stability to Puerto Rico, efforts are shifting to long-term recovery and restoration of critical infrastructure, including the energy grid.

“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been tasked with leading power restoration efforts on the island and will be working directly with the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority on this mission.

“Along with our colleagues at the American Public Power Association and the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council, EEI will continue to monitor the progress of this restoration mission and will work closely with all industry mutual assistance networks to ensure that any additional worker and resource needs are addressed quickly. EEI member companies and the entire electric power industry stand ready to support the long-term recovery efforts in Puerto Rico.

“EEI also is tracking a new storm in the southern Gulf of Mexico that could threaten the Gulf Coast this weekend. The electric power sector remains in close coordination during this already historic hurricane season, and CEOs from electric companies in the new storm’s path already have convened to prepare the industry and our customers for the possibility of another significant weather event.”

Consumer advocates launch ad opposing air traffic control privatization

Source: Consumer Action

Washington, D.C. - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Leading airline passenger, consumer and rural organizations, including National Consumers League, FlyersRights.org, Consumer Action, the Alliance for Aviation Across America and In the Public Interest, launched an ad to set the record straight on the airlines' push to privatize the air traffic control system. The ad specifically aims to correct a number of misleading claims put forth by the airlines and their paid front groups that privatization would somehow benefit passengers or communities.

Under the airlines' privatization plan, oversight of air traffic control would be transferred from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to a corporate board essentially controlled by industry with zero seats for consumer or passenger rights organizations. This unaccountable body would have unlimited power to raise fees and taxes on passengers, cut critical access to community airports and make decisions based on their own business priorities instead of in the interest of safety and the public.

"From major computer meltdowns and lost luggage and children to dragging their passengers through the aisles of aircraft, the airlines have repeatedly demonstrated an inability to manage their own operations, let alone oversee the world’s busiest air traffic control system. They point the finger at air traffic control, but the Department of Transportation's (DOT) own data confirm that the airlines themselves are responsible for the vast majority of delays,” said Paul Hudson, president of FlyersRights.org.

Notwithstanding the efforts by airline-backed lobbying and PR groups to mislead the public, a wide range of consumer, business and labor stakeholders as well as notable experts strongly oppose privatization.

“Our air traffic control system is a public good that should not be gifted over to the same big airlines that assault and drag paying customers off flights, shrink seats to medically unsafe proportions and invent increasingly outrageous new fees,” said Linda Sherry, director of national priorities at Consumer Action.

John Breyault, vice president of public policy at National Consumers League, stated: “In just the past few weeks, we’ve witnessed big airlines engaging in troubling hurricane-related price gouging to go along with the ongoing passenger abuses and unsavory marketing and pricing practices that harm consumers. This industry continues to put profits before passengers; based on their track record, they would likely do the same if handed control of our air traffic system.”

“Privatizing the air traffic control system would allow the airlines to run it for their own benefit and further direct investment and infrastructure away from thousands of smaller communities around the country, including many towns that have already lost commercial air service,” said Selena Shilad, executive director of the Alliance for Aviation Across America.

“Why would we take a critical piece of our national, public infrastructure and turn it over to one, self-interested private interest in the system, without any oversight from Congress? The airlines continue to be the only ones pushing for this risky idea, because they are the only ones that would benefit. Our national airspace system should be operated in the public’s best interest, not any one customer’s private interest,” stated Donald Cohen, executive director of In the Public Interest.

New Mexico: Comments on Anti-Free Speech Measures Ignored

Source: Concerned Veterans for America

Albuquerque, NM - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Concerned Veterans for America (CVA) released a digital ad focusing on New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver’s refusal to acknowledge and consider the individual comments of hundreds of New Mexicans opposing her anti-free speech measure.

After several public hearings, the Secretary’s office received over 750 comments from citizens opposed to her rule, which will force citizens to publicly list personal information in order to support a cause in the state. However, Secretary Oliver refused to count these comments individually because they were submitted using CVA’s digital tool, which allowed New Mexicans to submit official comments to her office opposing the measure. This was not a distinction the Secretary chose to draw after the first round of public comments, when several citizens submitted comments from a form letter that favored her measure.

“Government officials abusing their power to shut out the voices who disagree. This is exactly why we need to protect freedom of speech,” the ad states. The group urges New Mexicans to take action and oppose the measure by contacting the Secretary’s office.



Concerned Veterans for America (CVA) Policy Director Dan Caldwell issued the following statement:

“Secretary Oliver has shown she is willing to do whatever it takes to limit free speech in New Mexico – even silencing the citizens she was elected to protect. It is startling to see her ignore hundreds of New Mexicans who have every reason to oppose this deeply flawed measure. We share the concerns of citizens who believe the Secretary is overstepping her authority by ignoring New Mexico’s legislative process in an attempt to force this rule into law.”

CVA released a coalition letter of 29 individuals representing 14 different organizations, including former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson, to abandon her measure.

Governor Martinez vetoed S.B. 96, a similar anti-free speech measure that passed the legislature in April. CVA led a coalition of eleven different organizations and sent a letter to Governor Martinez asking her to reject the measure.

Earlier last year, CVA started “Defend the First,” a project dedicated to beating back threats against free speech at the state and federal level.

CEI’s Myron Ebell Hopes EPA Court Filing Will End Clean Power Plan “In Its Entirety”

Source: Competitive Enterprise Institute

Washington, D.C. - October 7, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- In anticipation of the Environmental Protection Agency’s upcoming filing in the litigation concerning the so-called Clean Power Plan, the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Myron Ebell said:

“If it had gone into effect, the ‘Clean Power’ Plan rule to limit greenhouse gas emissions from coal and natural gas power plants would have been one of the most expensive regulations ever imposed, causing electric rates for consumers to go up and threatening the reliability of the electric grid.

“We hope that in its court filing the EPA will propose to rescind the so-called Clean Power Plan in its entirety. Whether it should be replaced by a more modest regulation is something that can be discussed, and it is our understanding that this is what the EPA plans to do with an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

“The Supreme Court blocked implementation of the rule in February 2016. There is little doubt that the court would have eventually decided that the rule is illegal. Thus the EPA under Administrator Scott Pruitt is not only doing the right thing for the economy, but is also simply following the laws that govern regulatory activity.

“Scrapping the ‘Clean Power’ Plan is a key part of President Trump’s de-regulatory agenda, which is designed to get the economy moving again. This rule and other greenhouse gas emissions rules are depressing investment and job growth in resource and manufacturing industries.”

See more from CEI on the Clean Power Plan here.