Allen County Democratic Party

Create 2 jobs for every 1 lost?

Create 2 jobs for every 1 lost?  Isn't that what Mitch Daniels said in his campaign commercials?  Isn't that what he said he has been doing?

Then explain this:

Indiana is seeking a federal loan of up to $330 million during the next three months to shore up its unemployment insurance fund, which has paid out $242 million more in claims this year than it has collected in employer taxes.

Gov. Mitch Daniels made the request to the U.S. Department of Labor on Monday. The fund has seen its balance steadily drop from $1.6 billion in 2000 to just $21 million at a time when more than 75,000 Indiana residents are drawing unemployment benefits.

Maybe you see yourself in this

Slate has a very interesting analysis of why "late deciders" in Virginia chose Obama.  Even if you weren't a late decider or aren't a Virginian, you may see yourself in this.

H/T to a friend of the blog.

A sad day...

Jerome "Jerry" Henry Sr., has died.

You can read a nice summary of his life in today's JG- but if you ever met Jerry, you will know that this summary is far from complete.

Growing up, the Henry children didn't have many material things, Jerry Henry Jr. said. But they all received a greater gift - seeing a father love his wife.

"My dad did that every day of their married life," he said. "My dad was very, very proud of his family."

Our thoughts and best wishes are with the Henry family.

President-Elect Obama's address on the economy

Read it here.

Or watch it:

Watch more videos from the President-Elect here.

It's nice to listen to someone speak in complete sentences again.  It's even nicer to listen to someone who understands both the gravity of our economic situation and that neocon talking points are not the solution.

Whack a mole?

I know I was pretty critical of City Councilwoman Liz Brown yesterday.  Today, the JG editorial page takes a shot as well:

First-term Councilwoman Liz Brown promised she would take a sledgehammer to the city budget Mayor Tom Henry’s administration brought to the council table. But the results of her effort appeared more like an uncivil game of Whack-a-Mole.

...

In the process she earned criticism for not knowing enough about the expenditures she wanted to cut and not considering the effect of her proposals, such as forcing city employees to pay for their own mileage when they have to drive throughout the city as part of their jobs.

So, in honor of Councilwoman Brown- here is....WHACK A MOLE!

 

3rd District Democratic Breakfast Club

This month's 3rd Congressional District Democratic Breakfast Club promises to be an especially interesting one:  a discussion of the 2008 election and lessons learned, as we look forward to gearing up for 2010.

Breakfast is at 8:30 a.m., Brevins Restaurant, 200 South Main Street, Churubusco.  $5 entrance fee plus your own breakfast.  RSVP IS NEEDED, to Steve Haines (574-269-4581) or Randy Schmidt (260-42-8215).

This is the last 3rd District Breakfast Club for the year as they do not meet in December.

Sledgehammer?

By now we all are aware that City Councilwoman Liz Brown was "going to take a sledgehammer" to the city budget.

She did come up with $7 million in cuts- but there was a problem (from today's JG):

She proposed more than $7 million in cuts to the city, but only a $109,219 cut to the Community Development department was approved. Many of her original cuts were duplicates to previous cuts, part of union contracts or not part of the city’s property tax budget.

...

Goldner criticized the cuts, saying Brown didn’t know what many of them were or how they would affect city services, calling one “insulting” to city employees.

Hey, budgets are tricky things.  But then again, I guess you should know if you cut some things previously or not...

Just to show I am not being to hard on Councilwoman Brown here is one of my all time favorite songs.

 

Public Hearing on Proposed Tax Abatement Changes Delayed One Week

Because of the very full City Council agenda on Tuesday, Nov. 18, the public hearing and initial Council discussion of the proposed changes to Fort Wayne's tax abatement policy (Municipal Code Chapter 153) will be delayed one week until Tuesday, Nov. 25.

The hearing will be at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, Room 128 in the City-County Building, One Main Street. 

Thought for the day

"Democracy is based upon the conviction that there are extraordinary possibilities in ordinary people."  (Harry Emerson Fosdick) 

Thanks to a friend of the blog for sending along this quotation, which seems particularly appropriate given the recent Presidential campaign.

How times have changed...

My wife and I live in an old house in West Central.  When we moved in about 7 years ago, I cleaned out the basement (an understatement if you ever saw the basement before we moved in- this house was  a rental since the 1970's and everyone left something behind).

A unique find, however, was that a set of shelves was lined with newspaper.  If you put the pages all together, I have "Section A" of the February 17, 1970 issue of the Journal Gazette.

What is more interesting is the small story on page 4A:

Nixon Got 'Yes" Votes Home, Left A 'No' Behind

Washington (AP)- The White House says that "perhaps it was an oversight" that a military plane sent to the Caribbean to return two Republican House members for a key vote didn't bring back a Democrat too.

Rep. Claude Pepper, D-Fla., confirmed that he and Rep. Ben Blackburn, R-Ga., were attending a savings and loan conference in Nicaragua and that a government plane picked up Blackburn while he took a commercial flight.

At Key Biscayne, Fla., White House press secretary Ronald L. Ziegler defended the free transportation for Blackburn and Rep. E.Y. Berry, R-S.D., who was vacationing with his family at San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Ziegler said such transporation has traditionally been provided for congressmen who want to return to the capital for key votes.  "This is not unique to this vote or this administration," he said.

In saying the Pepper incident was perhaps an oversight, Ziegler said opponents as well as supporters of the administration have been provided with free plane rides from time to time.

On the vote in question- President Nixon's veto of the $19.7 billion money  bill for the Departments of Welfare and labor- Berry and Blackburn voted to sustain the veto while Pepper voted to override.  Nixon's veto was sustained.

The plane, an Air Fort Jet Star, was sent form Andrews Air Force base at an estimated cost of $4,900.

Pepper commented: "What woud you say about spending money to get back to Washington to vote against inflation"  As we say in the law- res ipsa loquitor- the thing speaks for itself."

I wonder if the same thing were to happen today, in our 24 hours a day news cycle, if it would only get a few paragraphs on page 4?....