By Kayleigh Harvey and Celia Canon

Today, at her weekly press conference, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi brought good news when she announced that $250 checks were on their way to 50 million seniors and disabled veterans. The check is part of the $700 billion The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which was passed by Congress in February 2009.

“The recovery act is a gift that keeps on giving,” Pelosi said, adding that “Right now these checks are in the mail, and in June the checks for the disabled veterans will be there. Of course we hope that this will continue to stimulate the economy as it helps people make ends meet.

“In the past seven days there’s been good news for consumers and taxpayers. We’ve had the Credit Card Holder’s Bill of Rights which passed at the end of last week. Today we have the Anti-Fraud Bill which contains a Commission to look into how the financial collapse occurred and we can make sure that it doesn’t ever happen again, and tomorrow we will have the Predatory Mortgage Lending Bill. So as part of the President’s initiative to stabilize the economy to protect the taxpayer and the consumer we have three important pieces of legislation,” she said.

Pelosi joked at the end of her address, and said, “Aren’t you glad the first hundred days is over?”

By Kayleigh Harvey – Talk Radio News Service

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) welcomed the President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai to the U.S. Capitol today for a meeting with the bi-partisan leadership of the House of Representatives.
Speaker Pelosi said: “The relationship between the United States and Afghanistan began as one of importance to our country and it continues to be so.”

 

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By Kayleigh Harvey – Talk Radio News Service

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) welcomed the President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai to the U.S. Capitol today for a meeting with the bipartisan leadership of the House of Representatives.
Boehner said: “This is an important period in our relationship with the Afghan government and with President Karzai.”

 

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By Kayleigh Harvey – Talk Radio News Service

Today on Capitol Hill Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi fielded questions on water-boarding and interrogation during her weekly press conference.

Asked about whether or not she raised objections during her time on the House Intelligence Committee during a briefing on interrogation methods, including water-boarding, Pelosi said, “It’s not appropriate for me to talk about what happens at briefings.”

“It’s very interesting that people are talking so freely, but I can say this…we were not and I repeat, we were not told that water-boarding or any of these other enhanced interrogation methods were used. What they did tell us was that they had some, the office of legislative council opinions that they could be used…further if and when they would be used they would brief Congress at that time,” said Pelosi.

Pelosi added, “Flat out they never briefed us this was happening. In fact they said they would, if and when they did….they can say whatever they want but the fact is they did not brief us in that regard.”

Pelosi said, “I have questioned the value of the briefings over and over and over again, we only know what they chose to tell us.”

In terms of investigations into the the people who made the decisions to use interrogation methods Pelosi said, “I have always been for a truth commission because I think that this is very important…I don’t think there should be total immunity, I think it should be a case by case basis.”

In closing Pelosi said, “Let me make this clear. These are not glory days for our country in terms of this enhanced interrogation and the rest, and in terms of how information is acquired in our country outside the law. It is clear now that, that has happened.”

Pelosi added, “As a member of the Intelligence Committee I thought I was being briefed, until I became a Senior member and then I realized that the members of the committee are not privy to a great deal of information and that simply is not right.” –

By Kayleigh Harvey – Talk Radio News Service

During her weekly press conference today, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was asked whether or not she raised objections during her time on the House Intelligence Committee during a briefing on interrogation methods including water-boarding. Pelosi said, “It’s not appropriate for me to talk about what happens at briefings, it’s very interesting that people are talking so freely, but I can say this…we were not and I repeat, we were not told that water-boarding or any of these other enhanced interrogation methods were used. What they did tell us was that they had some, the office of legislative council opinions that they could be used…further if and when they would be used they would brief Congress at that time.”

 

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By Michael Ruhl, University of New Mexico – Talk Radio News Service

To mark Earth Day, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi introduced a plan to paint green the marble columns of the Capitol with energy efficiency and environmental initiatives. She calls it the “Green the Capitol Initiative.”

Pelosi’s plan involves 15 distinct steps to conserve energy and reduce waste, and is aimed specifically at congressional offices. Among Pelosi’s 15 measures are the use of compact florescent light bulbs, recycling used office items, and conserving electricity by powering off lights and computers while not in use. Additionally, Speaker Pelosi is encouraging the use of public transportation and the conservation of basic office supplies.

“The Capitol, which has always served as a beacon of freedom, is now a shining example of sustainability.” Pelosi said. She continued that the House has reduced its carbon emissions by 72 percent recently. She continued that if all Congressional offices adopt this plan, it will result in a savings of $1 million in energy costs and will cut energy consumption in the Capitol by nearly 10 percent.

Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-Oreg.), who Pelosi called “the main instigator” of the green plan, believes that Congress is setting a good example for the rest of the country. He said, “If we model the behavior we want the rest of America to follow, it has a profound effect.”

Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) said that one of the first things he did when coming into Congress was institute a recycling program in his offices. He grinned at the savings

“Just during the transition from the 110th to 111th Congress, Congress saved over 60,000 pounds of paper. Lujan joked with the Speaker, “I was going to bring an example of that, but I couldn’t forklift it in, just to give an example of what we’ve truly saved.”

Pelosi called it the moral responsibility of Congress. Her office is encouraging all members to adopt these “green” plans. “I think most members of the Congress are doing some of this,” but she could not give exact numbers on who has implemented all of these recommendations. “The Speakers office is doing all of this,” Pelosi said proudly of the recommendations.

Coffee Brown, University of New Mexico, Talk Radio News

The legislative stars were out for H.R. 1388 – Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education (GIVE) Act, which supports volunteerism, partially with a stipend or grant toward higher education.

Backed by phalanx of representatives from Be the Change, AmeriCorps alums, Experience Corps, Serve Next, Survivor Corps, DC Central Kitchen, the court-appointed special advocates of DC, and the Young Marines, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) thanked everyone who worked on the bill and compared Obama’s effect on this generation with the way John Kennedy had inspired her and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.).

Hoyer said, “In one year, the millions of Americans (who volunteered) generated in excess of $150 billion. Every dollar we invest in AmeriCorps gives anywhere from $1.50 to $3.90 in return. Boy, oh boy, wouldn’t we like to have a lot of companies who did as well as that.” He cited several volunteer home-weatherizing projects around the country.

Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Tom Perriello (D-Va.) said volunteerism is for everyone: young, retired, and those displaced from their jobs.

Perriello, who has spent his entire career working for non-profits in Africa and the U.S., said, “What we’ve all found is that service isn’t just a matter of giving back to our community, it was a matter of forming our very character. Every American feels a call to service, this cannot be something that only rich young people can afford. This is a bill that is not about anything other than enabling young people to answer that call.” He also pointed out the expertise that volunteers gain doing this work, and the need to bank those skills against emergencies and disasters. “We’ve found that once people have volunteered a little bit, they become a volunteer for life.“Volunteerism is addictive,” he finished.

Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) introduced Survivor Corps US Program Manager Capt. Scott Quilty. While leading a patrol in the Sunni Triangle in Oct. ’06, he was a victim of a roadside bomb,losing his right arm and leg.

“Service saved my life twice. Veterans and their families will be given the chance to continue serving their community, by this legislation,” Quilty said. “ Service doesn’t have to end when we take of the uniform, and it shouldn’t end.”

Miller predicted strong bipartisan support in Congress today and tomorrow.

Addendum: H.R. 1388 passed the House 03/18/09

The Washington Bureau is covering The House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on “Preventing Stimulus Waste and Fraud: Who Are the Watchdogs?”, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) weekly press conference, and the Save Darfur Coalition.

Talk Radio News is also covering the House Ways and Means Committee Oversight Subcommittee hearing on the “Troubled Asset Relief Program: Oversight of Federal Borrowing and the Use of Federal Monies,” the U.S.-Mexico Chamber of Commerce (USMCOC) 13th Annual U.S.-Mexico Border Issues conference, and the Center for American Progress (CAP) discussion on “Sustainable Security in Afghanistan Requires Sweeping U.S. Policy Overhaul.”

By Suzia van Swol, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service

Following a Democratic Steering and Policy Committee listening session on the economy, Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said that, “we just had a very productive session with some leading economists who for over a year now have been giving us advice and guidance and an assessment of the state of our economy and some judgments about how we should go forward.” She went on to state that, “it is very clear that as we implement our recovery package, we must make sure that it works. And again, confidence is a big part of that investment that we have made. And we also must make sure the public understands this is a very fiscally sound package. The choices that were made in it were to create jobs, jobs, jobs and jobs and jobs as soon as possible and jobs over a period of time to stabilize the economy.” Pelosi emphasized that the baseline for spending has not been raised, but rather the stimulus is targeted in a timeframe to make the difference.

Congressman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) said that this is not some effort to supplant the private market, and he believes that what we are doing is actually very pro market. “We are halting the erosion and laying the foundation for things to get better,” stated Frank.
He expressed that one of the things the market suffers from today is a lack of investor confidence, “I think there is this danger that people will look at the mistakes that were made in the administration of the TARP funds in the past administration inpute them to the current administration,” said Frank.

Congressman George Miller (D-Calif.) said that we cannot discount the amount of time that was lost during the previous administration. “What we now see is a concentrated effort to refine those programs, to make sure that they are accountable, to make sure that in fact there is a response to the actions we are taking,” said Miller. He stated that the first release of the TARP money really discouraged the public because they saw billions of dollars flow to the money center banks and nothing loosening up.

The Speaker and members of Congress will continue to call on economists to provide expertise on the best way to move forward during this long term process of restoring the economy.

By Suzia van Swol, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service
At a news conference which took place on the steps of the Capitol, concerning the House Wounded Warriors Program, Speaker of the U.S. House, Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and Members of Congress, announced the initial hiring to include nine of the twenty-five wounded warriors who will continue to serve America as staff of members of Congress. The U.S. House established the Wounded Warriors Program last year to provide employment for wounded and disabled veterans within the House of Representatives.

“For us this is a very, very proud day. But the Wounded Warrior program is only one part of the new direction congress; of our sustained commitment to meeting the needs of America’s veterans,” Pelosi said.

Hoyer stated that this program opens the doors of Congress to our Veterans when they return home, as they have served so deeply overseas, and they defended our country, they will now serve their country in another capacity. “It provides a unique opportunity for Veterans to pursue an interest in public service and gain valuable experience working on Capito Hill that will open doors for employment and future opportunities,” Hoyer said.

Dan Lasko, a fellow in the Wounded Warrior program, now works for Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz (D-PA). Lasko said that, “I saw this as a great opportunity once again to serve my country, and especially our nations hero’s.”