Why :Health Care Reform
When: Saturday, August 29th – 1:00 PM
Where: Downtown Orlando Rec. Center, 649 W. Livingston Street
Nationally recognized speakers to be announced.

Reforming Health Insurance (not Healthcare)
Both the Washington Post and the New York Times report that the Obama administration is signaling a new willingness to jettison the public plan element of healthcare reform legislation. Jonathan Cohn at The Treatment questions whether anything’s really changed, though, because Obama has consistently praised the public option as a good idea without insisting that it be included in the final bill.
Kosmas schedules tele-town hall for Wednesday night
U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, D-New Smyrna Beach, has scheduled a tele-town hall meeting for Wednesday, Aug. 19th, from 6:20 p.m. to 7:20 p.m., to talk about health insurance reform. Constituents who want to listen in should call her office at 407-208-1106 and register their phone number to ensure that they are contacted to participate on Wednesday evening.
Grayson Pledges Town Hall Rd. 2 Before Final Health Care Vote
Moments after U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Orlando, wrapped up his first town hall meeting on health care issues Monday night -- one that Democrats held most of the seats to -- the freshman congressman vowed to hold another one.
How the Democrats sold out health care reform
THE RAUCOUS right-wing protesters who have stormed congressional town hall meetings have thrust the debate over health care reform into the 24-hour news cycle. As a result, the effort to overhaul the U.S.'s broken health care system has become bogged down in a surreal discussion about "death panels," forced euthanasia and Big Brother government.
Obama's healthcare gap: Persistent
The vocal few standing up at summer "town hall'' meetings with complaints about the president's proposed healthcare reforms aren't the only ones with concerns, polling shows.

Will the health care bosses get their way?
WARNING: THE federal government is poised to commit robbery. And the poor, defenseless victim is...the health insurance industry.

- A Win for Bank Customers - In the Bush years, federal regulators not only failed to protect borrowers, they aggressively prevented the states from doing it. New York’s attorney general sued, challenging the regulators’ interference. This week, the Supreme Court ruled that federal regulators cannot prevent the states from enforcing consumer protection and fair lending laws against national banks.

What’s So Super About a Supermajority? -
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats are about to reach the magical threshold of 60 votes, allowing them in theory to sweep aside Republican delaying tactics. But the arrival of that 60th vote, in the person of Al Franken of Minnesota, is not likely to make the party’s very real difficulties in advancing contentious legislation disappear.

Stimulus or Not, States Are Cutting Summer School
COCOA, Fla. — A year ago, the Brevard County Schools ran a robust summer program here, with dozens of schools bustling with teachers and some 14,000 children practicing multiplication, reading Harry Potter and studying Spanish verbs, all at no cost to parents

News 22 December 2008

USA Today vs EPA on Schoolyard Air
 Recently, USA Today published a series of alarming articles about air pollution near schools. It plotted school locations against results from an EPA model, and found that 435 were likely to have dangerous levels of pollution; then, it took air samples near 95 schools and found elevated levels of toxic chemicals outside 64 of them. Read more...
Madoff talked softly, wrote big DC checks:
Bernard Madoff, Wall Street's alleged Ponzi king, made political donations to Washington types which evidently bought him some access in here. Read more....
Sands' losses could be in the millions
House Democratic Leader Franklin Sands, D-Weston, reported his net worth last year at $7.3 million, most of it in cash investments that now could be wiped away by the alleged Ponzi scheme of Bernard Madoff. Read more...
Commentary
Tis a sad day when the sharks start feeding on each other, Oh I apologize to sharks for that last remark!
Property Developers Request Bailout:
Some of the biggest U.S. property developers are asking for government money in the face of $160 billion in maturing commercial mortgages next year, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday. Read more
Commentary
Help! The sharks are feeding on us! Maybe it's time to get out of the waters! They sure wish that a gopher turtle or scrub blue jay would go to Congress for them

House Democratic leader ask for funds for committee posts

House Democratic Leader Franklin Sands of Weston has issued a statement in response to today's Palm Beach Post story about Sands asking his own members to raise coin for the state Democratic Party in exchange for plum committee posts. Read more...