Obama Calls For Consumer Financial Protection
In this weekend’s Presidential YouTube Address, President Obama advocated for a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency, to crack down on complicated and deceptive lending practices:
“This new agency will have the responsibility to change that,” said Obama. “It will have the power to set tough new rules so that companies compete by offering innovative products that consumers actually want – and actually understand. Those ridiculous contracts – pages of fine print that no one can figure out – will be a thing of the past. You’ll be able to compare products – with descriptions in plain language – to see what is best for you. The most unfair practices will be banned. The rules will be enforced.”
McConnell: Democrats Are “Rush And Spend” On Health Care — Like With Stimulus
In this weekend’s Republican YouTube, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) warned that Democratic proposals on health care will spend too much money — and compared it unfavorably with the stimulus:
“If the stimulus bill taught us anything, it’s that we should be wary anytime someone in Washington says the sky’s going to fall unless Congress approves trillions of dollars immediately,” said McConnell. “Yet once again in the health care debate, it’s rush and spend, rush and spend. Americans want health care reform, but they want the right health care reform. And that means taking the time and the care necessary to get it right.”
No Obama Or Biden Public Events
President Obama and Vice President will each ben in Washington, DC, this weekend. They do not have any scheduled public events.
Drug Firms To Lower Prices To Medicare By $80 Billion
Pharmaceutical manufacturers have reached a tentative deal with the government to lower the prices that they charge under the Medicare drug plan, saving the government $80 billion. As the Washington Post points out: “The move by drugmakers may have been intended to forestall more severe cuts. In his radio and Internet address last week, Obama called for extracting $75 billion in savings, though industry sources said at the time that the White House initially set a target of $100 billion.”
NYT: Sotomayor Objectively Not An Activist
The New York Times reports that empirical studies measuring an objective standard of “activism” by judges — the number of times they move to strike down decisions by the elected branches of government — puts Sonia Sotomayor slightly below the average. Professor Richard Epstein of the University of Chicago took issue with the whole debate. “‘Judicial activism’ tells you nothing,” said Epstein. “The term ought to be scrapped. In today’s world it’s just a synonym for bad decisions.”
Sotomayor Quits Belizean Grove
Sonia Sotomayor has resigned her membership in the Belizean Grove, an elite all-female networking club, in the wake of Republican criticism. In a letter to Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Sotomayor said she does not believe the group practices “invidious discrimination” that would conflict with judicial ethics — but that she does not want the issue to “distract anyone from my qualifications and record.”
Coleman Likely To Get FEC Nod On Legal Fees
Roll Call reports that the Federal Election Commission appears ready to grant former Sen. Norm Coleman’s (R-MN) request to use campaign funds to pay his legal fees associated with the Nasser Kazeminy case, involving an allegation that a donor sought to funnel money to Coleman via his wife. Two alternative draft opinions propose that Coleman be allowed to use campaign money for much of — though not all — the associated costs.
Vegas Newspaper Rejects “Discreet Affair” Ad Featuring Ensign’s Image
The Las Vegas Review-Journal has turned down an ad from a dating site, which would have used John Ensign’s image to appeal to readers “looking to have a discreet affair.” Review-Journal publisher Sherman Frederick rejected the accusation that his paper is protecting Ensign. “I simply didn’t think the Web site was appropriate for our daily newspaper,” Frederick told the Associated Press. “The Ensign story was our lead Page 1 news story for the last two days. Any suggestion we are protecting the senator is simply a PR stunt on behalf of an adultery Web site.”
