By Leah Valencia, University of New Mexico – Talk Radio News Service

The Consumers Union urged congress Wednesday to pass comprehensive health care reform this year in response to findings from a recent survey the Union conducted that revealed a high level of consumer dissatisfaction with the current health care model.

In a press conference on Capitol Hill, Senators Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) welcomed Consumers Union president Jim Guest to speak on what he described as an urgent need for health care reform.

Guest said the magazine Consumer Report’s, published by CU, recently did a consumer survey and found sobering inadequacies in the current health care system.

“Early this week consumer reports released a poll… nearly 73 percent of respondents said they worry that an illness or accident would be financial devastating to them, an equal number said they worry if they got sick they will be denied care or their care would be rationed by health insurance companies… those are devastating numbers,” Guest said. “51 percent in the last year said they didn’t go to the doctor, didn’t get a follow up treatment or procedure, didn’t fill a prescription they couldn’t take care of their own health because they couldn’t pay for it.”

Guest said CU is serious about health care reform because it is in the best interest of the American public.

CU, a historically nonpartisan organization, announced last week that it would run a TV ad in Washington, D.C. for two weeks that urged consumers to put pressure on Congress to pass health care reform this year. According to CU, this is something the organization has never done for any other cause since its founding in 1936.

Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), who chairs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, stated Tuesday that he believes any predictions about future elections are still premature, but expressed optimism over his party’s ability to maintain control of the Senate.

“We are still fourteen months away from an election…and that’s an eternity,” Menendez said in a pen and pad session with reporters.

However, Menendez believes that Democrats are still better positioned for the long-term, noting that Republicans have done nothing to put the U.S. in better economic shape. According to him, health care reform is a strong asset for Democrats because Republicans’ strategy is for the elimination of the public option.

“Republican strategy is short-sided…they have forfeited the two biggest issues: the economy and health care,” Menendez said.

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

Civil rights leaders and Senators joined in a rally on Capitol Hill Wednesday to voice their support for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor’s confirmation.

The familiar phrase from President Obama’s campaign, “yes we can,” was heard both in English and Spanish at the rally, which was hosted by the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR) and the National Council of La Raza (NCLR). The atmosphere was extremely celebratory as the crowd loudly responded with cheers each time the name of the historic nominee was mentioned.

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) was one of four Senators who spoke at the rally. “There are three words that sum up this nomination: It is time,” Schumer declared.

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) also showed their support, adding that they were not pleased with the overall Republican response to the nomination.

“Let us hope that as history looks back on this day, it notes the historic occasion of the confirmation of Justice Sotomayor and …not the Republicans’ strange and strained efforts to impose right-wing political orthodoxy on our courts and judges,” said Whitehouse.

Sen. Menendez spoke about the response of the Hispanic community to Sotomayor nomination, but also mentioned the appreciation of the few Republican Senators who have said they will vote yes for her confirmation.

“When she raises her hand and takes that oath of office, the Supreme Court will be better, the nation will be better, and we will have fulfilled our promise as a country,” said Menendez.

Civil rights organizations including the Hispanic Federation, the Alliance for Justice, the NAACP and others were also present in support of Sotomayor. Many people held signs with the slogan “I stand with Sotomayor,” and at one point, a chant of, “What do we want?-Sonia-When do we want it?-Now,” erupted.

By Joseph Russell- Talk Radio News Service

Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) held a press conference Wednesday with billionaire clean energy advocate T. Boone Pickens to present the bipartisan New Alternative Transportation to Give Americans Solutions Act (NAT GAS), which aims to provide financial incentives for the use of natural gas.

“Our economic crisis has shined a spotlight on the urgent need for alternative, cleaner, and cheaper sources of energy that we don’t have to import,” Menendez said. “By making it easier and cheaper to own a vehicle that runs in natural gas, we can help families save money on energy, create new manufacturing jobs and clear our air.”

According to Pickens’ website, www.PickensPlan.com, the U.S. possesses a secure and abundant supply of natural gas, with estimated domestic reserves nearly twice that of petroleum. The website also claims that natural gas is 85 percent cleaner and 75 percent cheaper than petroleum.

“We have dramatically increased our nation’s natural gas reserves. We have much more natural gas than we thought we had just a few years ago. And there is a sufficient supply to significantly increase the use of cleaner, greener fuel, as a transportation fuel,” explained Hatch.

The NAT GAS Act will extend and increase tax credits for natural gas vehicles and refueling for state and local governments, as well as manufactures.

Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) says he’ll continue to urge his colleagues to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s appointment to the Supreme Court in a timely manner. He says the average number of days from nomination to confirmation for a Supreme Court Justice is 72 days and that he doesn’t expect the situation to be any different for Sotomayor. (0:54)

 

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Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) spoke out Tuesday in favor of Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s Supreme Court nomination. Menendez says Sotomayor’s nomination to the Supreme Court is proof that the American dream is within reach for everyone who is “willing to work hard, play by the rules, and give back to their communities, regardless of their ethnicity, gender or social economic background.” Menendez noted that it shows further proof of the deep roots the Hispanic community in the U.S. (0:12)

 

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By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

A group of Latino leaders expressed their full support of Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor on Capitol Hill today. A number of leaders from organizations such as the National Hispanic Bar Association (HNBA) and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund met with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to discuss Sotomayor, who is undergoing a confirmation process with the U.S. Senate.

“At a time in our history, when the Supreme Court is constantly balancing he expansion of law enforcement against individual rights, it is critical that a justice understand the real life consequences the opinions of the highest court in the land have on the lives of the Latinos.” said John Amaya, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund Legislative Staff Attorney. “We strongly believe that Judge Sotomayor has the experience and legal judgement that will best serve all Americans.”

In a press release, the Hispanics for a Fair Judiciary (HFJ) said that Sotomayor’s perspective would be critical to the increasing number of cases that are being heard before the Supreme Court that ultimately affect the Latino and immigrant communities.

Reid said just as much as he can’t change who he is and what his life experiences are, “She can’t change who she is. She is going to rely on her life experiences in writing her opinions. That’s who she is. She has made 3,400 decisions while she has been a member of the federal judiciary. She has written opinions on hundreds of those decisions that she’s made and her life story is part of her opinions,” he said.

Sotomayor also continued her meetings with senators on Capitol Hill today. She met with Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) this morning. Following their meeting, Menendez said he fully supports Sotomayor and praised her for her depth of judicial experience.

Menendez said he finds her “incredibly well qualified and with an enormous intellectual prowess that I think the committee will see when she answers questions.”

“Not only is the money being used in ways that Congress did not intend but we do not have the transparency that was promised” said, Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY)

Today the US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs held a full committee hearing on the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Witnesses were present to give their testimonies. The purpose of this hearing was to explore how the program could be more effective while addressing the current issues of the financial crisis. TARP was initially created last October as part of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-CT) indicated that Congress granted the Treasury 700 billion of tax payer dollars to aid the economic crisis, however; serious concerns were addressed regarding the misuse of this money due to gaps in Treasury monitoring. Future concerns regarding 350 billion dollars was also critically addressed for the sake of restoring the public’s confidence in government spending.

“So many Americans losing their homes, their jobs and their healthcare. That kind of abuse of taxpayer money is offensive” said, Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ)

By Candyce Torres, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service

Today Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) introduced a new bill called the Safety Improvement Act of 2008 to improve airline safety, and was joined by supporters Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ). Patrick Forrey, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, and Transportation Trades Department President Ed Wytkind joined the senators to voice their support. The bill was described as an effort to improve runway safety and reduce risk of collision during take-off and landing, as well as ensure that airport first-responders are prepared to handle an emergency situation.
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