Macaca
07-20 07:56 AM
Breakdown in Relations in the Senate Hobbles Its Ability to Get Things Done (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/20/washington/20cong.html?_r=1&oref=slogin) By CARL HULSE (http://www.nytimes.com/gst/emailus.html) New York Times, July 20, 2007
WASHINGTON, July 19 � Arlen Specter is a senior United States senator who expects to be allowed his say on the Senate floor. So he bristled when Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader, brusquely cut him off at the end of the Iraq debate.
�The leadership is setting a dictatorial tone,� Mr. Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania, said Thursday, still furious over his treatment the day before. �Senators didn�t get here to be pushed around.�
It may seem small-minded to bicker over a few words at the end of a 24-hour debate. But the clash between the two veteran senators is evidence of a larger breakdown in relations in the Senate, a deterioration in cooperation that is hobbling the Senate�s ability to get things done. The situation is not likely to improve with a presidential election on the horizon.
As the cots were rolled away and lawmakers left for a decent night�s rest after the around-the-clock debate that ended � like others this year � in stalemate, lawmakers of both parties said they had rarely seen the tone so poisonous and the willingness to work together on the floor at such a low ebb.
�The last vestiges of courtesy seem to be going out the window,� said Senator Trent Lott, the Mississippi Republican who has served as majority and minority leader. �Every time I think the Senate � Republican or Democrat � has gone to a point where you can�t go any lower, we go lower.�
It is hardly startling that members of the two parties do not see eye to eye. And the spirit of bipartisanship in the Senate always rises and falls depending on the subject and the election calendar. But seven months into the new Democratic regime, the environment seems unusually hostile. Occasionally, senators do, too, as exhibited in a Sunday television exchange between Senators Jim Webb, Democrat of Virginia, and Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, that looked for a moment as if it might turn physical as the two men argued about the war in Iraq.
The angry attacks nearly spiraled out of control Thursday night as the two parties lobbed political bombs at each other during the windup of work on an otherwise popular higher education measure.
After Republicans brought forward proposals intended to embarrass Democrats on terror detainees and union elections, Democrats countered with a resolution urging President Bush not to pardon I. Lewis Libby Jr., a former top White House aide. Republicans struck back with a resolution deploring the pardons issued by President Bill Clinton.
The floor descended into chaos as members of the two parties glowered at one another across the aisle. Evidently recognizing they had gone too far, party leaders pulled back and agreed to try to finish the education bill as Democrats struck their Libby proposal from the record.
Hard feelings have consequences. Without agreements between the leaders of the opposing parties, the Senate has been plunged into a procedural knife fight, with Democrats forced to scramble to find 60 votes not just on contentious issues like an Iraq withdrawal plan, but on once-routine matters like motions to proceed to a spending bill.
The feuding has spilled into subjects that would seem to hold the potential for common ground, like antiterror legislation and lobbying reform, and will doubtless tie up other measures to come.
Democrats contend that Republicans have embarked on a strategy of delay, using Senate rules to chew up scarce legislative time and deny Democrats any accomplishments. Republicans complain that Democrats are trying to jam through objectionable bills and are mainly interested in building a political case for 2008. The relationship between Mr. Reid and his Republican counterpart, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, has cooled after it was initially thought the two Senate tacticians would be able to do business.
Senator Edward M. Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat who has been in the Senate for more than four decades, said he was not sure bipartisanship was at an all-time low, but acknowledged things were tense.
�The fact the Senate is so evenly divided makes big causes out of smaller events,� Mr. Kennedy said.
Besides the narrow 51-49 majority Democrats enjoy, lawmakers and others attribute what senators deplore as a lack of comity to various reasons, including the emotions surrounding the Iraq war debate, a Republican payback for Democratic stalling in recent years and pure political maneuvering in a hot-house environment.
Mr. Reid on Thursday blamed Republican ideology, saying the Senate�s conservative contingent was unwilling to swallow legislation sought by most Americans.
�Republicans in the Senate do not represent mainstream Republicans around the country,� he said.
Members of both houses have been contending for years that the sort of personal interaction that can lead lawmakers to overcome partisan differences has been on the decline, leaving Congress polarized.
But Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Specter and others say they find that committee leaders still tend to be able to work together. And a bipartisan group of senior lawmakers put together the Senate�s immigration proposal, though it went down in flames to the broader political divide in Congress.
Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, the chairman of the Armed Services Committee who has been in the heat of the battle over the Iraq legislation, said he did not believe feelings were frayed beyond repair.
�The Senate is a unique place where wills are tested, and this was a very important issue that people have very strong feelings on,� he said, referring to the Iraq debate. �Instead of fighting over it physically, there are battles that are fought on the floor of the Senate. But these are important disagreements and they should be aired.
�Isn�t that what we are here for?�
WASHINGTON, July 19 � Arlen Specter is a senior United States senator who expects to be allowed his say on the Senate floor. So he bristled when Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader, brusquely cut him off at the end of the Iraq debate.
�The leadership is setting a dictatorial tone,� Mr. Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania, said Thursday, still furious over his treatment the day before. �Senators didn�t get here to be pushed around.�
It may seem small-minded to bicker over a few words at the end of a 24-hour debate. But the clash between the two veteran senators is evidence of a larger breakdown in relations in the Senate, a deterioration in cooperation that is hobbling the Senate�s ability to get things done. The situation is not likely to improve with a presidential election on the horizon.
As the cots were rolled away and lawmakers left for a decent night�s rest after the around-the-clock debate that ended � like others this year � in stalemate, lawmakers of both parties said they had rarely seen the tone so poisonous and the willingness to work together on the floor at such a low ebb.
�The last vestiges of courtesy seem to be going out the window,� said Senator Trent Lott, the Mississippi Republican who has served as majority and minority leader. �Every time I think the Senate � Republican or Democrat � has gone to a point where you can�t go any lower, we go lower.�
It is hardly startling that members of the two parties do not see eye to eye. And the spirit of bipartisanship in the Senate always rises and falls depending on the subject and the election calendar. But seven months into the new Democratic regime, the environment seems unusually hostile. Occasionally, senators do, too, as exhibited in a Sunday television exchange between Senators Jim Webb, Democrat of Virginia, and Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, that looked for a moment as if it might turn physical as the two men argued about the war in Iraq.
The angry attacks nearly spiraled out of control Thursday night as the two parties lobbed political bombs at each other during the windup of work on an otherwise popular higher education measure.
After Republicans brought forward proposals intended to embarrass Democrats on terror detainees and union elections, Democrats countered with a resolution urging President Bush not to pardon I. Lewis Libby Jr., a former top White House aide. Republicans struck back with a resolution deploring the pardons issued by President Bill Clinton.
The floor descended into chaos as members of the two parties glowered at one another across the aisle. Evidently recognizing they had gone too far, party leaders pulled back and agreed to try to finish the education bill as Democrats struck their Libby proposal from the record.
Hard feelings have consequences. Without agreements between the leaders of the opposing parties, the Senate has been plunged into a procedural knife fight, with Democrats forced to scramble to find 60 votes not just on contentious issues like an Iraq withdrawal plan, but on once-routine matters like motions to proceed to a spending bill.
The feuding has spilled into subjects that would seem to hold the potential for common ground, like antiterror legislation and lobbying reform, and will doubtless tie up other measures to come.
Democrats contend that Republicans have embarked on a strategy of delay, using Senate rules to chew up scarce legislative time and deny Democrats any accomplishments. Republicans complain that Democrats are trying to jam through objectionable bills and are mainly interested in building a political case for 2008. The relationship between Mr. Reid and his Republican counterpart, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, has cooled after it was initially thought the two Senate tacticians would be able to do business.
Senator Edward M. Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat who has been in the Senate for more than four decades, said he was not sure bipartisanship was at an all-time low, but acknowledged things were tense.
�The fact the Senate is so evenly divided makes big causes out of smaller events,� Mr. Kennedy said.
Besides the narrow 51-49 majority Democrats enjoy, lawmakers and others attribute what senators deplore as a lack of comity to various reasons, including the emotions surrounding the Iraq war debate, a Republican payback for Democratic stalling in recent years and pure political maneuvering in a hot-house environment.
Mr. Reid on Thursday blamed Republican ideology, saying the Senate�s conservative contingent was unwilling to swallow legislation sought by most Americans.
�Republicans in the Senate do not represent mainstream Republicans around the country,� he said.
Members of both houses have been contending for years that the sort of personal interaction that can lead lawmakers to overcome partisan differences has been on the decline, leaving Congress polarized.
But Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Specter and others say they find that committee leaders still tend to be able to work together. And a bipartisan group of senior lawmakers put together the Senate�s immigration proposal, though it went down in flames to the broader political divide in Congress.
Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, the chairman of the Armed Services Committee who has been in the heat of the battle over the Iraq legislation, said he did not believe feelings were frayed beyond repair.
�The Senate is a unique place where wills are tested, and this was a very important issue that people have very strong feelings on,� he said, referring to the Iraq debate. �Instead of fighting over it physically, there are battles that are fought on the floor of the Senate. But these are important disagreements and they should be aired.
�Isn�t that what we are here for?�
wallpaper The Department of Music in the
newuser
01-14 10:23 PM
Voted.
Search for "Green Card" as the keyword also
Search for "Green Card" as the keyword also
amsgc
05-15 11:59 PM
There is no biometric fee for AP. It is only if you are applying for a Re-entry permit or a Refugee travel document.
Here is the link fo the instructions:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/I-131instr.pdf
Here is the link fo the instructions:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/I-131instr.pdf
2011 music staff paper. music staff
visli_com
06-19 07:31 PM
I have a question. I heard about new premium processing rule for 140.
my friend�s six years is going to complete in next month , he has applied labour certification via PARM 10 months back and its pending, did he is eligible to file 140? Or he has to live next month?
my friend�s six years is going to complete in next month , he has applied labour certification via PARM 10 months back and its pending, did he is eligible to file 140? Or he has to live next month?
more...
hazza
07-09 06:16 PM
i am currently working towards my university degree in Music Technology and am familiar with all kinds of styles of music and all kinds of programs with which to create them (am currently running Cubase SX, Wavelab, Sibelius and a long list of samplers).
scores, samples and sound FX, midi... whatever - and for FREE!
the reason that im providing this service for free is purely becuase i want to boost my portfolio - i am for real!
contact me via email or msn on - harry22440011@hotmail.com
or just post here!
-hazza
scores, samples and sound FX, midi... whatever - and for FREE!
the reason that im providing this service for free is purely becuase i want to boost my portfolio - i am for real!
contact me via email or msn on - harry22440011@hotmail.com
or just post here!
-hazza
cox
August 10th, 2005, 03:22 PM
Animal portraits are my "thing", so I don't mean to be overcritical... Try to get the animal's face in the light. The rooster's a good subject, and you got down to rooster height, which is really good, and you got him when crowing - a great behavior. Unfortunately, the face is in shadow, and that means you don't get the "catchlight" sparkle in the eye. Also, you often don't get the eye quite in focus, since autofocus works on contrast. A lot of faults in a protrait can be overlooked if the eye is sharp. In this case, you're focused on the neck feathers, not quite on the eye, so if you can reshoot it, try for getting light in the eye, and I think you'll like the results even more. Good luck & have fun with it!