Liberal in the Land of Conservative

Each year, AmeriCorps offers 75,000 opportunities for adults of all ages and backgrounds to serve through a network of partnerships with local and national nonprofit groups. Whether your service makes a community safer, gives a child a second chance, or helps protect the environment, you’ll be getting things done through AmeriCorps!

AmeriCorps members address critical needs in communities all across America. As an AmeriCorps member, you can:

• Tutor and mentor disadvantaged youth
• Fight illiteracy
• Improve health services
• Build affordable housing
• Teach computer skills
• Clean parks and streams
• Manage or operate after-school programs
• Help communities respond to disasters
• Build organizational capacity

To assist in the conservation of cranes by supporting and providing, through projects of persons and organizations with expertise in crane conservation, financial resources for the conservation programs of countries the activities of which directly or indirectly affect cranes and the ecosystems of cranes.

On March 11, 2009, House Republicans defeated identical legislation (S. 22) under suspension of the rules. After defeat, the Senate considered the legislation again by bringing up the House-passed Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Battlefield Protection Act (H.R. 146) and replacing its text with the text of the House-passed Omnibus Lands Package (S. 22). Procedurally, this means the House can only “concur” with the Senate amendment and prevents House Republicans from offering a motion to recommit.

KEY CONCERNS:

– Blocks millions of acres from new oil and gas leasing, logging, mining, and all other business activity in these areas.

– Eliminates 1.2 million acres from mineral leasing and energy exploration in Wyoming alone - withdrawing 331 million barrels of recoverable oil and 8.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas from domestic energy supply.

– Designates more than 2 million acres of land as wilderness areas; permanently eliminating human access for energy exploration or recreational opportunities.

– Eliminates a proposed terminal site for importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Massachusetts by designating a river that runs through a city as “wild and scenic”.

– Authorizes $5.5 billion of new discretionary spending over five years and $900 million of direct spending.

– Makes collecting fossils an illegal activity, subjecting thousands of hobbyists to 5 years in federal jail.

– Pork Projects: $3.5 million to the city of St. Augustine, FL for a birthday party, $200,000 for a tropical botanical garden in Hawaii, $250,000 to study the birthplace of Alexander Hamilton in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and $37 million for a park in New Jersey that is not even supported by the National Park Service.

(a) Recognition of the Suffering of the Residents of Guam- The United States recognizes that, as described by the Guam War Claims Review Commission, the residents of Guam, on account of their United States nationality, suffered unspeakable harm as a result of the occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces during World War II, by being subjected to death, rape, severe personal injury, personal injury, forced labor, forced march, or internment.

(b) Recognition of the Loyalty of the Residents of Guam- The United States forever will be grateful to the residents of Guam for their steadfast loyalty to the United States of America, as demonstrated by the countless acts of courage they performed despite the threat of death or great bodily harm they faced at the hands of the Imperial Japanese military forces that occupied Guam during World War II.

Section 1. ELIMINATING STATE MANDATES.
Subdivision 1. Intent; purpose. To ensure that public services are delivered as
cost-effectively as possible, it is the intent of the legislature to eliminate unnecessary
state regulations and mandates. By July 1, 2010, mandates or regulations that result in
unnecessary paperwork, are redundant, or contain outdated or irrelevant requirements
shall be eliminated or revised. Requirements that are necessary to protect the health
and well-being of Minnesotans or that are necessary to meet federal requirements shall
not be eliminated.
Subd. 2. State mandate review. Any county, city, school district, professional
association, or other entity affected by state mandates may submit to the legislature a
list of mandates that are required by state statute or rule that the entity determines to be
unnecessary or in need of reform. The legislature shall review the mandates that have
been submitted.

"Emergency Help For Homeowners in Foreclosure: IMPORTANT: You are eligible to have the foreclosure of your home stopped until at least (end of deferment period). The state of Minnesota recently passed a law that lets homeowners stop a foreclosure sale. To qualify, you must currently live at the home in foreclosure and intend to live at the home until the end of the deferment period. You will also need to complete and sign a special form (called an "affidavit") and provide that affidavit to us at the following address: (insert address in the state of Minnesota). There are many government agencies and nonprofit organizations that can help you complete this affidavit. For the name and telephone number of an organization near you, please call the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency (MHFA) at (insert telephone number/Web site). The state does not guarantee the advice of these agencies. Do not delay dealing with the foreclosure because your options for foreclosure deferment end with the foreclosure sale."

National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A): Mandates that the Bush Administration conduct annual lease sales for 5 years to ensure that the lands in the NPR-A are more rapidly leased for oil and gas production. Even though it has more oil than the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (10.6 billion barrels vs. 10.4 billion barrels) and it has been open to drilling for 26 years, only four lease sales have been conducted since 1999, and only 14% of the NPR-A is leased. The bill will protect sensitive areas, such as around Teshekpuk Lake. Unlike ANWR, which is protected by law from drilling as an environmental preservation area, NPR-A is already designated for oil and gas production so it could occur more rapidly. Based on EIA projections, oil production in ANWR is four to six years behind that of the NPR-A.

Extension of Oil and Gas Pipeline to the NPR-A: Requires the Transportation Secretary to facilitate the necessary pipeline infrastructure to bring the producing oil fields in NPR-A online. Right now, available pipelines reach to within 5 miles of NPR-A. The bill requires project labor agreements for both the NPR-A and Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline to provide good paying jobs.

Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline: Requires the President to work with the Canadian government, state of Alaska, and oil and gas producers to facilitate construction of the pipeline. While this pipeline was proposed in 1976, and Congress authorized up to $18 billion in loan guarantees for this project in 2004, there has been no progress in building this critical energy infrastructure under the Bush Administration. The planned pipeline would have a daily capacity of 4 billion cubic feet of natural gas, or almost 7% of current U.S. consumption. Not only is this pipeline critical to our energy security -- transporting natural gas from Alaska to America’s Midwest -- it will create good-paying American jobs and would be among the largest construction projects ever undertaken.

Banning the export of Alaskan oil: Reinstates the Alaskan export ban that was in place from 1973 to 1995, imposed to ensure that American oil helps the American people. In 2000, about 7% of crude oil production from the Alaskan North Slope was exported to South Korea, Japan, and China.

Use It or Lose It: Requires oil companies to diligently develop leases on federal lands (onshore and offshore) that they are already holding. If they cannot certify that they are doing so, they must give up the unused leases — so that someone else can develop them – before obtaining any new leases.

Fair Return on Production of Federal Oil and Gas Resources. Directs the Interior Secretary to take steps to ensure that federal oil and gas lease holders are making prompt and accurate royalty payments so that the owners of these lands, the American taxpayers, are fully reimbursed for their use.


Preserving American Natural Resources

Untouched Beaches and Coastline – President George H.W. Bush put in place a moratorium on certain offshore drilling by executive order in 1990 in response to the catastrophic Exxon-Valdez oil spill. A Congressional ban has existed for more than a quarter century, since 1981. Drilling would expose the nation's shores to oil spills and other threats at a time when coastal resources — fisheries and habitats especially — are already severely stressed. These shorelines and waters are also critical to the multibillion-dollar tourism industry. There have been at least 117 spills in the Outer Continental Shelf waters since 2000. There are 33 million acres of the federal OCS lands that are under lease but are not producing, and nearly 80 percent of offshore oil is already in areas that are open for exploration. Opening new areas to development would save consumers little at the pump -- a decade or two down the road.

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) – Alaska’s ANWR is one of America’s last pristine untouched wilderness areas – home to more than 250 animal species and birds. The potential benefit of drilling oil in ANWR is pennies per gallon a decade or two down the road – a point on which even Senator John McCain agrees.

To direct the Election Assistance Commission to establish a program to make grants to participating States and units of local government which will administer the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held in November 2008 for carrying out a program to make backup paper ballots available in the case of the failure of a voting system or voting equipment in the election or some other emergency situation, and for other purposes.

Dear Mr. Miller,

I was wondering if Representative Bachmann could provide me with a comment as to why she chose to oppose H.R. 5803. She has previously supported the idea of grants over earmarks but seems to be voting against bills that provide grants. Also, paper ballots would ensure that all votes are counted. What about a backup paper ballot is Representative Bachmann opposed to?

Thank You

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Misreading MarketWatch: would "Bachmann's" bill bring gas down to $2?

We had a good belly laugh today when we read an attempt to use a recent MarketWatch article to defend Congresswoman Bachmann's prize press conference pandering for the "No Excuse for This Energy Act."

Readers may remember that Bachmann claimed that enacting the legislation--not a bill she actually authored or introduced, mind you, just one she decided to co-sponsor in April--would bring down the price of gas to $2 in four years.

We can certainly understand why Mitch Berg at Shot in the Dark ( crossposting to True North) would glom on to an article with this headline:

Gas could fall to $2 if Congress acts, analysts say

to vindicate the widely-ridiculed Mrs. Bachmann. Unfortunately for that reading of the article, the details tell a much different story about what might make gas prices fall. Hint: a different piece of legislation.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide tax incentives for the production of renewable energy and energy conservation.

An Act to move the United States toward greater energy independence and security, to increase the production of clean renewable fuels, to protect consumers, to increase the efficiency of products, buildings, and vehicles, to promote research on and deploy greenhouse gas capture and storage options, and to improve the energy performance of the Federal Government, and for other purposes.

Between 1995 and 2005, there were 132 injuries or escapes by primates in the United States, according to the coalition. Also, some 80 percent of health and behavioral issues pertaining to primates involve those kept as pets.

Dr. Golab told subcommittee members that the evidence is clear that primates kept as pets are unsafe. Not only are these animals a physical threat, they may also be a source of the herpes B virus and other zoonotic pathogens. "Make no mistake about it," Dr. Golab, said, "nonhuman primates kept as pets—while cute and often very entertaining—can also pose serious injury risks for their human caretakers and other domestic animals."

Rep. Michele Bachmann Votes Against Protecting Primates, Public Health and Safety

(June 18, 2008) WASHINGTON — Last night, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) yet again voted against a common-sense animal welfare measure that was overwhelmingly approved by the U.S. House of Representatives. This time, she voted against a bipartisan bill called the Captive Primate Safety Act, an anti-cruelty and public safety measure written to stop the movement of primates for the pet trade. The House of Representatives passed the bill by an overwhelming vote of 302 to 96.

"Primates belong in the wild, not in our basements and bedrooms," said Michael Markarian, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund. "Michele Bachmann is out of step with Minnesota citizens who want common-sense animal welfare policies and want their communities protected from dangerous attacks and diseases."

The bipartisan Captive Primate Safety Act, H.R. 2964, prohibits the interstate and foreign commerce in apes, monkeys and other primates for the exotic pet trade. These animals can inflict serious injuries and spread life-threatening disease, and the average pet owner cannot provide for the animals' basic social, psychological and physical needs in captivity. These highly intelligent and social creatures are often confined in small cages, and their teeth are pulled out to make them less dangerous.

Twenty states, including Minnesota, already prohibit private possession of these animals as pets, but primates are easily obtained over the Internet and through out-of-state dealers and auctions, making federal legislation necessary to complement the efforts of state law enforcement. The bill has received strong support from a broad range of scientists and organizations, including Dr. Jane Goodall, the American Veterinary Medical Association, and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.qq

In Minnesota, a boy pried open a trailer door at a 2004 fair, allowing several monkeys to get loose; a capuchin monkey bit two people before being recaptured.

The Humane Society Legislative Fund notes that Rep. Bachmann has consistently voted against common-sense humane laws. She has voted to allow the trophy shooting of threatened polar bears, and to allow the commercial sale and slaughter of wild horses and burros from public lands so their meat can be consumed in foreign countries.

DCCC Chairman Chris Van Hollen released the following statement after the vote:

"House Republican efforts to defend the status quo and protect George Bush's and John McCain's failed economic polices have reached a new low. Less than one week after the largest one-month jump in America's unemployment rate in two decades, House Republicans blocked passage of a bill to extend unemployment insurance to workers, who are struggling to find a new job in this slowing economy.

"This is a firm reminder that Republicans are absolutely comfortable with the status quo and are completely out of touch with the harsh economic realities facing American workers."