Broken Promises: Romney's Massachusetts Record

The meaning of Memorial Day

Memorial Day has come to represent many things, from the unofficial beginning of summer to a day for a trip to the mall in search of sales. But we, as a nation, never should forget the true meaning of Memorial Day and why we observe it as a holiday each year.

The three-day weekend is an occasion for cookouts, trips to visit friends and relatives, time at the beach and an extra day off from work. With gas prices dropping, hundreds of thousands of Americans are on the move.

That’s fitting in a way. We, as a nation, are enjoying the fruits of democracy and freedom, the uniquely American way of life.

But as we celebrate, we also need to reflect on the sacrifice required to preserve those values. We need to remember those who died to keep us free and to allow successive generations to live and prosper in a land of plenty.

The Memorial Day observance began humbly in 1868 as a day for the families of Civil War dead to take flowers to their graves. The holiday first was known as Decoration Day.

But after World War I, Memorial Day was expanded to honor not only those who died in the Civil War but also in every conflict that claimed the lives of Americans. In 1971, it was made an official national holiday to be held each year on the last Monday in May.

Sadly, Americans still are dying in a war on the other side of the world. While we now can see the beginning of the end of the decade-long war in Afghanistan, our troops are committed to remain for nearly two more years, to continue to remain in harm’s way in the name of national security.

We look forward to the day when we can celebrate a Memorial Day on which no American troops are involved in combat.

But Memorial Day, as its name implies, comprises a long roster of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their nation. Today, in particular, we honor those who died in World War II, whose comrades now are nearing the end of their lives.

We also honor the thousands of Americans who died in the Iraq War, now officially ended but still fresh in the nation’s memory. For so many, the grief of losing loved ones in these recent wars still is raw and ever-present.

So, as we enjoy this three-day weekend and the fun of being with family and friends, let us stop at least for a moment to remember the sacrifice of so many over the course of our history and the debt we owe them. Let us also reach out to those who are grieving over the loss of a loved one.

Let’s enjoy the holiday but not forget why we are privileged to do so.

Read more here: http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/05/27/4003047/the-meaning-of-memorial-day.html#storylink=cpy

Republican legislators in New York state want to ban anonymous comments from the Internet



"Cyberbullying has become an epidemic in this country," said Assemblywoman Nancy Calhoun.



Dubbed the Internet Protection Act, the controversial draft bill is supposedly an attempt to curb cyber bullying and "empower" users in online communities.

"With the advancement of social media, bullies are able to attack their victims wherever and whenever they choose. Most of the time, this is done anonymously and the victim is unable to fight back at all."


If moved forward, the proposed bill will obviously be challenged as unconstitutional and a serious violation of the First Amendment.
As Chris Weigant of The Huffington Post points out, even if local Republicans had their way and actually passed their so-called Internet Protection Act - the bill would likely be tossed out in a "New York minute" as soon as it arrived in a federal court.

"Speaking out on politics in whatever technological medium exists - and remaining anonymous while doing so - is not just one of the foundational rights our government was built on, it was actually largely responsible for our nation and our government even existing," wrote Weigant.

"That is not going to be taken away by any misguided modern group of politicians in Albany, New York. Whether they've read and understood the Constitution or not will not matter, even if this pathetic excuse of a law is actually passed. Because it won't last that 'New York minute' in federal court, before it is tossed on the historical ash-heap of past attempts at such censorship - and, indeed, laughed right out of the courtroom."
CNET's Violet Blue expressed similar sentiments.

"[This] all seems inexplicably impractical. Which means it could simply be yet another instance of lawmakers panicking about reigning in the 'out of control Internet' without having any clue what they're doing. 


"I don't know about you, but I find it hard to believe that anyone could be that Internet ignorant. Either way, many people are feeling like the Internet Protection Act isn't going to protect them from being bullied online - by their own elected representatives."

House Members Seek Answers From Scott Walker Amid New Evidence of Lying to Congress

There is no longer any question that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s sworn testimony before Congress has been contradicted by videotaped evidence of the controversial governor discussing with his top campaign donor a “divide and conquer” political scheme to undermine organized labor and make Wisconsin “a completely red state.”

Now, however, there is new evidence to suggest that Walker’s testimony to Congress about when he began preparing his anti-labor legislation—which sparked mass demonstrations and a recall movement that will culminate with a June 5 vote on whether to recall the governor—was not truthful.

The growing controversy over the governor’s testimony led three veteran members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee—who had previously contacted committee chairman Darrell Issa with their concerns—to write Walker directly on Friday.

The ranking Democratic member of the committee, Maryland Congressman Elijah Cummings, has joined Connecticut Congressman Chris Murphy and Virginia Congressman Gerry Connolly in asking Walker whether he would like to withdraw the testimony he gave before the committee in April 2011.

That’s an unsettling challenge for a sitting governor.

But Walker is in an unsettling circumstance.

The governor told the committee that he had not engaged in discussions about enacting anti-labor legislation in order to undermine political opponents. But there is now video evidence that he had just such a discussion with Diane Hendricks, a billionaire campaign donor who would eventually give Walker’s campaign $510,000, in January 2011.

In commentary accompanying the letter, the staff of the Oversight Committee notes: “Despite testifying under oath that he never ‘had a conversation with respect to [his] actions in Wisconsin and using them to punish members of the opposition party and their donor base,’ a newly uncovered video taken three months earlier shows Walker explaining to one of his biggest financial donors that he plans to use a ‘divide and conquer’ strategy against public sector workers in order to turn Wisconsin into a ‘completely red state.’ ”
With those details in mind, Cummings, Murphy and Connolly wrote:

Dear Governor Walker:

On May 21, 2012, we wrote to Rep. Darrell Issa, the Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, requesting that he send a letter asking you to explain your testimony before our Committee on April 14, 2011, particularly in light of a new videotape taken of you three months before the hearing and an article published by The Nation entitled, “Did Scott Walker Lie Under Oath to Congress?” Letter from Ranking Member Elijah E. Cummings and Committee Members Gerry Connolly and Christopher Murphy to Chairman Darrell E. Issa (May 21, 2012) (online at http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=v...).

On May 22, you were asked about our letter by your local Fox affiliate, but rather than addressing the substance of our request, you accused us of acting politically because we did not send a letter directly to you. Walker Responds to Allegations He Lied Under Oath, Fox 6 News (May 22, 2012) (online at www.fox6now.com/2012/05/22/walker-responds-to-allegations-he-lied-under-...) (stating “I think the fact that they’ve sent it to you before I’ve even seen it suggests that it’s a political issue”).

To address your concerns, it may be helpful to explain why we wrote to Chairman Issa instead of to you. Pursuant to our Committee’s protocols, the Chairman typically writes letters on behalf of the entire Committee to seek clarification of previous testimony, to forward questions for the record from Committee Members, and for other purposes relating to witness testimony at Committee hearings. Chairman Issa has written several letters to witnesses this Congress when he believed they were not being truthful or when new information came to light suggesting that their testimony was not accurate.

Since you appear willing to entertain our inquiries directly, we ask that you submit to the Committee written answers to the following three simple questions no later than June 1, 2012:

1. Do you dispute that you met with Diane Hendricks, one of your top donors, on January 18, 2011?
   
2. Do you dispute that, in response to a question from Ms. Hendricks about whether Wisconsin could become “a completely red state,” you responded “Oh, yeah,” and that your “first step” as Governor would be to “deal with collective bargaining for all public employee unions” in order to “divide and conquer”?
   
3. In light of your answers to these questions, do you now wish to withdraw your sworn testimony before the Committee in which you asserted that you never “had a conversation with respect to your actions in Wisconsin and using them to punish members of the opposition party and their donor base”?
   

Full Post

Romney Messes Up, Tells the Truth About Austerity

Mitt Romney has periodic breakdowns when asked questions about the economy because he sometimes forgets the need to lie. He forgets that he is supposed to treat austerity as the epitome of economic wisdom. When he responds quickly to questions about austerity he slips into default mode and speaks the truth -- adopting austerity during the recovery from a Great Recession would (as in Europe) throw the nation back into recession or depression. The latest example is his May 23, 2012 interview with Mark Halperin in Time magazine.

Halperin: Why not in the first year, if you're elected -- why not in 2013, go all the way and propose the kind of budget with spending restraints, that you'd like to see after four years in office? Why not do it more quickly?
Romney: Well because, if you take a trillion dollars for instance, out of the first year of the federal budget, that would shrink GDP over 5%. That is by definition throwing us into recession or depression. So I'm not going to do that, of course.

Romney explains that austerity, during the recovery from a Great Recession, would cause catastrophic damage to our nation. The problem, of course, is that the Republican congressional leadership is committed to imposing austerity on the nation and Speaker Boehner has just threatened that Republicans will block the renewal of the debt ceiling in order to extort Democrats to agree to austerity -- severe cuts to social programs. Romney knows this could "throw us into recession or depression" and says he would never follow such a policy.

Romney, however, has not opposed Boehner's threat to use extortion to force austerity on the nation. Romney has the nomination sown up, but I predict that he will stand by and let Boehner try to throw us into a Great Depression rather than upset the Tea Party-wing of the Republican Party. Indeed, Romney will attack Democrats who have the political courage to defend our nation against his Party's demands for austerity that would throw us into recession or depression.

What does one call a politician who, solely to advance his personal political ambition, supports his Party's efforts to coerce austerity even though he knows that the austerity would cause a national economic catastrophe and states that he, "of course," would never adopt such self-destructive austerity if he were president? Romney is failing the tests of courage, integrity, and loyalty to our nation and people.

Full Post

Romney education plan

Weekly Address: Honoring Our Fallen Heroes this Memorial Day

New York's Minimum Wage is POVERTY WAGE. Raise it NOW!

Politics V. Government: Cuomo's Thin Blue Lin

Cuomo gave a rousing political speech to the New York State Democratic Committee Tuesday morning but quickly called a halt to the politicking when asked whether his enthusiasm for Democratic candidates extended to those in the state Senate.

“We’ll discuss political decisions in the political season but we are now in the government season and we’re trying to get government bills passed,” Cuomo told reporters moments after his speech to a gathering of the New York State Democratic Committee in Albany. “So let’s keep the conversation about government and when we get to the political season we’ll have a political conversation.”

The governor has had a tenuous relationship with Senate Democrats since he took office. The relationship hit a new low earlier this spring when Cuomo rejected Senate Democratic pleas to veto the redistricting maps crafted by the Senate’s GOP majority.

Cuomo’s reluctance to discuss politics with reporters was in stark contrast to his speech to the Democratic Party faithful, where he seemed to be in full campaign mode and boasted “we are going to elect Democrats in every office all across the state.”

“We could not be in a better place,” Cuomo said. “Because, think about what’s going to happen now. We’re coming out of an intense governmental season and we’re going into the political season. We’re going into the campaign season.”

While Cuomo heaped praise on several Democratic leaders, including Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan), he did not mention any Senate Democratic leaders in his remarks.

Sen. Michael Gianaris (D-Queens), head of the Senate Democrats’ campaign organization, said he was confident the governor would be helpful to all Democrats this fall.

“As the leader of the Democratic Party, Governor Cuomo's effectiveness has done much to enhance the standing of Democrats throughout the state,” Gianaris said in a statement. “That is why recent polls indicate New Yorkers want a Democratic majority in the Senate by a staggering margin of almost 20%. We are confident that the Governor will continue to be an asset as we move into the political season this fall."
Meanwhile, Cuomo, who is widely considered a frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, offered some of his strongest praise to date of President Obama, crediting the incumbent  with saving the nation’s economy.

“We are going to remind the people of this state and this nation that when President Barack Obama took the oath of office this nation was on the precipice, it was on the cusp of a financial abyss,” Cuomo said, adding that it was Obama’s “firm hand” that steadied the nation.

“We are going to give him the best mandate in the United States for America,” Cuomo said.

Assembly Republicans Look to Limit Free Speech

Proposed legislation in both chambers would require New York-based websites, such as blogs and newspapers, to “remove any comments posted on his or her website by an anonymous poster unless such anonymous poster agrees to attach his or her name to the post.”

No votes on the measures have been taken. But unless the First Amendment is repealed, they stand no chance of surviving any constitutional scrutiny even if they were approved.

Republican Assemblyman Jim Conte said the legislation would cut down on “mean-spirited and baseless political attacks” and “turns the spotlight on cyberbullies by forcing them to reveal their identity.”

Had the internet been around in the late 1700s, perhaps the anonymously written Federalist Papers would have to be taken down unless Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay revealed themselves.

“This statute would essentially destroy the ability to speak anonymously online on sites in New York,” said Kevin Bankston, a staff attorney with the Center for Democracy and Technology. He added that the legislation provides a “heckler’s veto to anybody who disagrees with or doesn’t like what an anonymous poster said.”

POST

Charlie King will soon be leaving his role as executive director of the state Democratic committee

Charlie King will soon be leaving his role as executive director of the state Democratic committee, a source just told me.

The Democratic insider said King will leave after the national Democratic convention in September to seek private sector job opportunities.

"It was always his plan to do the national (convention) stuff and leave," the source said.
King is the second top official exiting the committee, following state party chairman Jay Jacobs, who will be replaced by Assemblyman Keith Wright and Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner.

King has had a close relationship with Gov. Cuomo over the years. He was his lieutenant governor candidate in 2002 when Cuomo unsuccessfully sought the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. He briefly challenged Cuomo in an attorney general primary four years later before dropping out and endorsing him.

King was named state Democratic party executive director in April 2010--a move many saw at the time as Cuomo putting his imprint on the party machinery. Jacobs had been appointed by then Gov. David Paterson.

UPDATE:
The New York State Democratic Committee Meeting kicks off this morning (5/24/2012) at 10am at the Hotel Albany. The Party is expected to vote to change the current bylaws paving the way for Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner and Assemblyman Keith Wright to be the next co-chairs of the party.
Governor Cuomo will speak to the committee at 10:30am.

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Mitt Romney: Not a Job Creator

GM CEO Dan Akerson Says That Mitt Romney's Position on the Auto Bailout ...

Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner And Assembly's Keith Wright To Take Over NYS Democratic Party

Gov. Cuomo, the de facto head of the state Democratic Party has spoken: Syracuse Mayor Miner and Wright (pictured), a Harlem Assemblyman and head of the New York County branch of the party, will take the helm after what should be a perfunctory vote on June 5.

“Mayor Miner and Assemblyman Wright are outstanding leaders both for our party and our state," Cuomo said in a statement announcing the picks, which also included laudatory canned quotes about the new racially/geographically/gender balanced partnership from Sen. Chuck Schumer and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.

"They have been dedicated community leaders and champions of the key missions of the Democratic Party. I thank them for agreeing to serve in these critical positions and look forward to working with them in their new roles.”

Jacobs announced a week ago today that he planned to step down as chairman of the party. He will remain head of the Nassau County party.

“I expect to turn the Chairman’s gavel over to both of them with full confidence that they will continue the good work we have done over the last few years supporting our elected leaders and candidates at all levels of government in the State," Jacobs said in a release.

The Truth About the President and the Deficit

Arguably the biggest lie coming from the Republicans and the Romney campaign is that President Obama is a tax and spend liberal who's directly and personally responsible for record deficits and a crushing national debt.

Not only is Mitt Romney telling his supporters that President Obama continues to spend out of control, but additionally that the president is responsible for doubling the budget deficit since he took office. This is not a new attack. Republicans who blindly greenlit trillions in Bush-era spending have been engaged in this nonsense practically since the minute the president was inaugurated.

I like to do this from time to time, so consider this a one-stop source for debunking what the Republicans are claiming about the Obama administration's fiscal record. Before I do, however, I'd like to note that Republicans often confuse the national debt with the federal budget deficit, not unlike the way they scramble the stimulus and the bailouts. (The "stimulus," passed by President Obama, is the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the "bailout," passed by President Bush, is also known as TARP.) They're not interchangeable terms.

For example, Karl Rove's new and highly deceptive anti-Obama commercial somehow conflates the national debt and unemployment, calling it "job-killing debt," even though job-creation and the national debt are about as interdependent as Rove and The Truth. We can assume that Rove simply doesn't know what the debt actually is, or that he's deliberately lying to voters.

To be clear: the federal budget deficit is the annual difference between what the government spends and what it collects in revenue. It's often similar, higher or lower, than the previous fiscal year's deficit. The debt is the total amount of money the United States owes to creditors, and this much larger figure accrues from year to year. A lot of people don't know the difference, and I've even heard very serious cable news people mix them up, too.

So let's start from the beginning -- prior to 2009 when the president was inaugurated. While it's true that, in a general sense, the deficit and debt are higher than ever before, it has less to do with President Obama, and more to do with the previous administration's careless spending, ridiculously large tax cuts for the super-rich coupled with the globally massive economic depression from which we're still extricating ourselves.

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CBO Report Says Deficit Reduction Will Cause New Recession

A new government report said spending cuts scheduled to go into effect in 2013, coupled with the simultaneous expiration of Bush-era tax cuts, will shrink the U.S. economy and raise unemployment -- contradicting the Republican claim that reducing the federal budget deficit will spur economic growth.

The Congressional Budget Office report, released on Tuesday, estimated that the policies slated to kick in on Jan. 1 would slash the deficit and shrink the national economy by 1.3 percent during the first half of next year, likely throwing the country over a "fiscal cliff" into another recession.

If left in place, the current policies would reduce the federal deficit by $607 billion, or 4 percent of gross domestic product, the report said. That reduction, from immediate tax increases or spending cuts, would "represent an added drag on the weak economic expansion," the CBO noted in its report.

"The resulting weakening of the economy will lower taxable incomes and raise unemployment, generating a reduction in tax revenues and an increase in spending on such items as unemployment insurance," the report said.

Post

SPEAKER SHELDON Silver isn’t happy with Gov. Cuomo’s dire predictions about hiking the state’s minimum wage.

SPEAKER SHELDON Silver isn’t happy with Gov. Cuomo’s dire predictions about hiking the state’s minimum wage.

“He’s a great governor,” Silver (D-Manhattan) said Monday.

“I’m not sure he’s a great prognosticator.” Silver — unlike Cuomo — said he still believes the GOP-controlled state Senate can be persuaded to take up a measure raising the wage from $7.25 per hour to $8.50.

Cuomo earlier in the day said he supported “the concept” of a wage increase but doubted one would be approved this year.

“I don’t think this, at this time, is in the realm of the possible because the Senate has a heartfelt position in opposition,”

 Cuomo said.

Read more:
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/senate-minimum-wage-increase-silver-article-1.1082239#ixzz1vb2wCOJz

Romney Economics: Job Loss and Bankruptcy at Ampad

Appeal likely in Oswego County Clerk case

An Article 78 proceeding filed against Oswego County Clerk George Williams has been dismissed by Oswego County Supreme Court Judge Norman Seiter.
(former Republican Party Chairman)

“Judge Seiter dismissed our proceeding. We are waiting for the order to be prepared,” said Scott Chatfield, who represents APS Information Services and its owner, Aaron P. Smith.

Chatfield said he will obtain a copy of the judge’s written decision as for the reasons for dismissal and will review the information.

“It’s highly likely an appeal will be filed,” Chatfield said.

The lawsuit was filed to challenge Williams’ charging a fee for criminal record searches. The lawsuit contends that criminal records are public records and should be made available for public searches free of charge.

At issue, Chatfield said, is whether Williams, when charging the fee, is acting as the clerk of the court or the county clerk.  POST

Nancy Pelosi Confident Of Taking Back House

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) struck a confident chord Sunday in an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos.

"If the election were held today, you think the Democrats would win?" Stephanopoulos asked.

"Yes, I do," Pelosi, the Democratic minority leader, said. Pelosi noted that current House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) had himself predicted about a one-in-three chance that Republicans would lose the House. "What he did say that was correct was that there are about 50 Republican seats in play. I would say 75. I feel pretty good about where we are," Pelosi said.               

 POST

Poll: New Yorkers back raising minimum wage to $8.50

Nearly eight in 10 New York voters are in favor of raising the state’s minimum wage, according to a new poll released Monday.

The Siena Research Institute survey found 78 percent of voters — including 88 percent of Democrats and 58 percent of Republicans — support increasing the state’s minimum wage to $8.50 an hour. It’s currently $7.25, the federal rate.


A bill being pushed by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, would increase the rate to $8.50 beginning January 1 while tethering it to the rate of inflation.


“About two-thirds of voters have heard or read a great deal or some about the issue and the vast majority would like to see the Legislature pass the minimum wage increase before session ends next month,” Siena pollster Steve Greenberg said in a statement.


Support for the minimum wage proposal is high across all regions of the state, the poll found. Eighty-six percent of New York City voters support it, along with 77 percent in suburban New York City and 70 percent upstate.


The poll was held via phone from May 6 through 10, with 766 New York voters participating. The margin of error is 3.5 percentage points. POST

Assembly passes minimum wage bill...ALL FOUR OSWEGO COUNTY ASSEMBLY PERSONS VOTED NO TO SUPPORTING OSWEGO COUNTY WORKERS.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver declared in early January that raising the minimum wage was his top legislative priority. Since then, he has presented the issue as a choice between right and wrong.

"I think when push comes to shove, it’s a moral issue," Silver said.

But despite his considerable push, it's unclear if the proposal to raise the state's minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.50 has enough support to pass both houses and be signed into law.

"I'm just telling you that we will not pass the speaker's bill," said Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos.
While Republicans call an increase a job killer, Democrats say the opposite is true.

"Research supports that over the past 15 years, higher wages do not result in job losses, even for minimum wage increases during the weak economic periods," Assemblyman Keith Wright said.

Polls show New Yorkers favor an increase but the governor has not committed to pushing for its passage.
"I've had conversations with the governor as recently as yesterday and I think if you ask him today, you'll find that he is very supportive," Silver said.

But in a statement late Tuesday, the governor's spokesman said, "The governor supports raising the minimum wage, as we have made clear repeatedly. Unfortunately, we do not believe there will be an agreement this session, as we have also said repeatedly."

Senator Jeff Klein of the four-member Independent Democratic conference is the Senate sponsor. He says his conference, being separate from the other Democrats, could help the bill's chances.

"Well, I certainly hope that is the case. That is the reason picked up the bill. Because I think it's an important issue and I want to make sure it gets done before the end of session," Klein said.

There had been some discussion about the governor issuing an executive order to raise the minimum wage, but administration officials now say it must be done legislatively.

ALL FOUR OSWEGO COUNTY ASSEMBLY PERSONS VOTED NO TO SUPPORTING OSWEGO COUNTY  WORKERS.

 Min-Wage-15-May-2012

Weekly Address: Congress Must Move Forward, Not Back On Wall Street Reform

Elixir of Life

Defense Budget That Breaks Spending Agreement Passed By House

The House passed a defense budget Friday that exceeds the deal cut by Congress and President Barack Obama last summer, and that would have to be paid for with cash taken from poverty programs, health care and the federal workforce.

The National Defense Authorization Act permits $642 billion in defense spending next year. The White House has threatened to veto the bill, which passed 299 to 120, citing more than 30 changes to the budget the administration was seeking.

But the measure also adds $8 billion more than called for in the Budget Control Act that Congress agreed to last summer in exchange for raising the nation's debt limit.

"We increase the spending for defense due to the priorities that we feel are most important and the constitutional requirement we have to provide for the common defense," Armed Services Committee Chairman Buck McKeon (R-Calif.) said. "But we will cut in other areas of the budget so that we comply fully with the deficit reduction act."

Those other areas were spelled out in the broader budget plan passed last week. Written by House Budget Committee chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), it would cut more than $80 billion in federal retirement benefits, nearly $50 billion from Medicaid programs and more than $36 billion from programs to feed the poor.

Full Post

VAWA in Retreat: House’s version withdraws necessary protections

“A victim is a victim is a victim,” said Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle, R-Onondaga Hill, defending a flawed bill she co-sponsored that would renew — but alter — the Violence Against Women Act. The 1994 law is credited with cutting in half incidents of domestic violence.

As a longtime Vera House volunteer, Buerkle knows about domestic violence. And the battle is far from over: As recently as 2008, 1.8 million women and girls over age 12 were victims of a crime of violence; 2,918 women were murdered, many of them by intimate partners.

In the past, VAWA was reauthorized by bipartisan votes. Its provisions now protect “underserved” populations — immigrants and seniors, victims with disabilities, Native American women. This year, despite partisan wrangling in Congress, VAWA reauthorization passed the Senate with remarkably little controversy, in a bipartisan, 68-31 vote.

In the House, though, VAWA emerged from the Judiciary Committee last week by a partisan 17-15 vote. The House bill is so controversial that seven Republicans have proposed an alternative that mirrors the Senate version.

Why the controversy? Buerkle notes her bill has similar funding levels as the Senate bill. It covers all forms of domestic abuse, and even enhances federal penalties.

But it also rolls back protections for immigrants and Native American women. And it fails to extend protection to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender victims of violence.

Buerkle argues that identifying groups for special treatment is problematic. “When you start singling out, you don’t mention others left out,” she said. “Our bill just deals with protection.” Any other approach is “reprehensible” and “political,” she said.

A full House vote on VAWA reauthorization could come any day. Passage would mean rancorous reconciliation talks between the House and Senate. Before Buerkle and her colleagues vote, however, they should consider the following evidence that protecting underserved groups is not pure partisanship:
In a survey last year, 85 percent of advocates for LGBT domestic abuse victims reported clients turned away because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity.

The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office recently reported U.S. attorneys still decline to prosecute 50 percent of rape cases when the victim is Native American and the assailant is not.
The House bill allows immigration officials to interview the alleged abuser before granting the alleged victim protected status, compromising confidentiality and allowing abusers to manipulate the process. It intimidates victims by restricting access to protective visas — though law enforcers are asking for more such visas. And it mandates more burdensome interviews for battered immigrants. VAWA is not the place to solve the immigration problem.

America always has been about equality. That didn’t stop lawmakers from adding necessary rights protections — from the Emancipation Proclamation to women’s suffrage, from the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act to the Americans with Disabilities Act and hate crimes laws.
All victims of domestic abuse deserve protection. The Senate bill moves toward that goal. Buerkle’s bill retreats from it.

http://blog.syracuse.com/opinion/2012/05/vawa_in_retreat_houses_version.html

Democrat Amy Tresidder kicks off campaign challenging State Senator Patty Ritchie

Oswego County Legislator Amy Tresidder says she has always been interested in politics.
"It has to be one of the most honorable things that you can do and it's such a privilege to be able to serve other people," said Tresidder.

That's why after decades as a homemake, and mother of five, Tresidder became an Oswego County legislator. She's now serving her second term, an experience that has left her wanting more.

Tresidder said, "People just want to have faith in their government and I want to try to restore some of that. I believe in integrity."

Thursday afternoon, Tresidder announced her candidacy for the 48th District State Senate seat with stops in Canton, Watertown and Oswego, challenging incumbent Patty Ritchie. She says while the area faces a number of issues, job creation would be her first priority if elected.

"I would like to see this area be a place where people want to stay, where people enjoy their lives, where people can enjoy the work they do and come home and be able to provide for their families and still enjoy themselves. I think that's the definitely of success," said Tresidder.

Issues aside, Tresidder says voters should always be able to trust their elected officials.
"As a candidate, I know I won't make any promises I can't keep. There's no point in that. It invalidates a lot of what you stand for if you can't measure up the standards you've set for yourself," said Tresidder.

Standards Tresidder hopes will propel her to Albany to bridge what she sees as a growing gap between residents and their representatives.

State Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs confirmed the NYT report that he has tendered his resignation

State Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs confirmed the NYT report that he has tendered his resignation to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, clearing the way for the governor to select his own leader of an organization of which he became the de facto head when he was elected back in 2010.

This move is not unexepected – in fact, it has been speculated since the gubernatorial campaign when Cuomo installed his political frenemy, Charlie King, as the party’s executive director. King, as you’ll recall, worked for the governor at HUD, ran as his LG in that ill-fated 2002 race and then challenged him (and dropped out) in the 2006 AG race.

Jacobs, who was elevated by former Gov. David Paterson in 2009 over Cuomo’s objections (he replaced June O’Neill, an Eliot Spitzer holdover who had worked in the Cuomo I administration), acknowledged that his departure has been under discussion “on and off” for some time, although he insisted there was “never any urgency” to the talks.

Tresidder Criticizes Incumbent

A St. Lawrence County native, who is now an Oswego County legislator, says Republican Senator Patty Ritchie has a number of vulnerabilities, including turning her back on her constituents.

Amy Tresidder kicked off her campaign for the 48th Senate District seat at the Canton VFW before a crowd of family, friends and party faithful.

The 56 year old Democrat is in her second term on the Oswego County Legislature.

She told her supporters she was ready to go to Albany to fight for the senate district.

Tresidder said she supports Home Rule legislation which would allow counties to raise the local sales tax rate.

She criticized Ritchie for continually refusing to sponsor the legislation.

"We're supposed to have some autonomy so that the people who live in counties have a say in what's going on. By not carrying Home Rule, you're telling the counties that you know better than them and I don't think that's right," said Tresidder.

Additional Story

Romney's Cowardly Speech on the Deficit

Another day, another economic speech by Mitt Romney. Romney is constantly trying to refocus the campaign on the economy. After being sidetracked by President Obama’s announcement that he supports gay marriage speech last week, and Romney’s appeal to the religious right at Liberty University on Saturday, Romney is once again on the attack against Obama’s economic record. Romney’s Tuesday afternoon speech in Des Moines, Iowa, was nominally focused on deficit reduction.

There are plenty of reasons to worry about the rate of job growth in the short term and federal debt accumulation in the long term, but unfortunately Romney’s proposals would make both problems worse. Rather than offer specific investments or incentives to hire now and plausible plans to reduce the deficit later, when the economy is strong enough to withstand spending cuts, Romney offers the same austerity measures that have crippled the recovery in much of Europe.

It’s worse than just that. If Romney specified which tax loopholes he would close and spending he would cut, at least we’d get deficit reduction, if nothing else. It would also allow for an honest debate about the American people’s priorities on taxes, spending and deficit reduction. But he stubbornly refuses, out of cowardice. Specific cuts could trigger opposition, so Romney offers only bromides.

Romney compared the rising federal debt to a “prairie fire” sweeping the nation. “The people of Iowa and America have watched President Obama for nearly four years, much of that time with Congress controlled by his own party. And rather than put out the spending fire, he has fed the fire,” said Romney. “He has spent more and borrowed more.”

While technically true, this is a bit misleading. Obama inherited an imbalance between spending and revenue because of tax cuts and wars started by George W. Bush and congressional Republicans. Much of the increase in the deficit since Obama took office can be attributed to increases in mandatory spending such as food stamps and decreases in tax revenue that were caused by the recession he also inherited, rather than any of his policies. While Obama did sign some new spending bills, he also signed the Affordable Care Act, which would reduce the deficit. Romney pledges to repeal the ACA and complains that it cut spending on Medicare.

“The time has come for a president, a leader, who will lead. I will lead us out of this debt and spending inferno,” Romney promised. But how? Romney does not say. He wants to extend the Bush tax cuts, then cut taxes an additional 20 percent and raise spending on defense. All of this increases the deficit.

To pay for all of this and then reduce the deficit from current levels would require drastic cuts in domestic programs. But Romney knows that the American people like the idea of cutting domestic spending more than they like cutting actual programs they rely upon. So he avoids offering any specifics. “Move programs to states or to the private sector where they can be run more efficiently and where we can do a better job helping the people who need our help,” said Romney. “Shut down programs that aren’t working. And streamline everything that’s left.” None of this really means anything. No one is for programs that aren’t working or inefficiencies. Unless you say which programs you believe are not working, or which inefficiencies you will remove, you aren’t really saying anything at all. Romney says he will lead on this issue, but he offers no leadership at all. POST

Oswego County Legislator to Announce Bid for 48th Senate District Seat

An Oswego County legislator is expected to formally announce her candidacy for the 48th Senate District seat Thursday at the Jefferson County Democratic Committee headquarters in Watertown.

Amy M. Tresidder, D-Oswego, 56, who is serving a second term on the legislature since she was first elected in 2009, said she plans to run a “grass-roots” campaign “to truly represent the people,” many of whom the candidate described as being fed up with politicians being lobbied to run by parties and money’s influence on political outcomes.

Mrs. Tresidder said she made the decision to run against state Sen. Patricia A. Ritchie, R-Heuvelton, apart from any outside influence.

“We all know that we vote our elected officials in but with the introduction of so much money into campaigns now, it makes it difficult to have their voices heard,” she said. “My point right now with me is that I chose to do this - I wasn’t chosen to do this by anyone else and I want to truly represent the people.”

While she decided to remain tight-lipped about her views on state issues until her formal announcements are made Thursday in Jefferson, St. Lawrence and Oswego Counties, Mrs. Tresidder said jobs and high unemployment rates are among the most important issues facing the district.

According to state Department of Labor unemployment statistics issued in April, Mrs. Tresidder’s home county has the fourth highest rate of unemployment in the state at 11.3 percent.

The mother of five grown children, who left her position with the Retired & Senior Volunteer Program of Oswego to focus her attention on the county legislature, is also apparently fed up with state spending.

“My reputation as a legislator here is someone who asks a lot of questions and I question all of our spending,” she said. “I’m critical of wasting money.”

Betty White, Obama: Actress Says She 'Very, Very Much Favors' The Incumbent

Betty White says she usually keeps her political views private but in this presidential election strongly favors one candidate.

As she prepares to visit the Smithsonian Institution and National Zoo next week, White told The Associated Press she "very, very much favors" President Barack Obama in the election.

The 90-year-old actress said Friday she is very bi-partisan and has stayed away from politics all of her life. She usually never says who she is for or against because she doesn't want to turn off any of her adoring fans.

White says in this year's election, she likes what Obama has done and "how he represents us."

Did the Oswego County historian follow NY Law ?

A request for information in regard to the duties performed by the Oswego County historian yielded few documents and raised the question as to whether the county legislature must follow state law.

Under the Freedom of Information Law, a request was made for all of the correspondence between County Historian Justin White and other town historians, including hard copies and e-mail as well as annual reports of activity that are required to be filed with both the county legislature and the state.

The county responded to the request by stating that there are no reports available and that no correspondence is maintained.

New York State Arts and Cultural Affairs Law states in regard to county historians, “He or she shall make an annual report, in the month of January, to the local appointing officer or officers and to the state historian of the work which has been accomplished during the preceding year.”

White said he does not file the reports because the legislature does not require him to do so. “It’s not required of me by the county legislature, which is my appointing governing body,” White said. “The county has never required me to file one.”

White holds two positions with the county. He works full-time in the records center and part-time as the county historian. Both are paid positions.

POST Valley News

Romney Won't Evolve

Congress Must Act on "To-Do List"

President Obama is calling on Democrats and Republicans to come together and act on his Congressional “to-do list,” which will create jobs and help restore middle class security. In this make-or-break moment for the middle class, these five initiatives have bipartisan support and will help create an economy that is built to last.

Meeting scheduled to discuss Family Court problems

A meeting has been scheduled between state court administration and interested parties in regard to allegations of problems with (R) Oswego County Family Court Judge Kim Seager.

Oswego County Department of Social Services Commissioner Gregg Heffner confirmed that a meeting has been scheduled for June 15 and will be attended by “all interested parties.”

Those parties include Heffner, school superintendents and Legislature Chairman Fred Beardsley.

In February, Beardsley went public with concerns over the handling of child protective cases by Seager. A special executive session was called with school superintendents and legislators to address the concerns.

Those involved expressed concerned that Seager sometimes sends children back to parents or guardians who are not fit to receive them.

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Scott Walker Describes 'Divide And Conquer' Strategy Against Public Unions In New Documentary

Newly released documentary film footage shows embattled Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker shortly after his election describing a "divide and conquer" strategy for taking on unions by first going after public employees' collective bargaining rights.

Walker's opponents insist the remarks undermine the Republican governor's long-held claim that the polarizing law he and the GOP-led Legislature pushed through, stripping most public workers of nearly all their collective bargaining rights, was meant solely as a budget-balancing measure. They also say the comments signal that Walker ultimately means to go after private sector unions by making Wisconsin a right-to-work state, which would allow workers to not pay dues even if they are covered by a union contract.

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Hey ....Jude --- Seymour....Respond to this ??? !!!

It looks like Jude has a lot to say this week. As long as he has so much time to attack Congressman Owens why not take a few minutes and give us a response to this.....the Doheny campaign has been silent

Also why has Mark L Barie, Founder and Chairman of the Upstate New York Tea Party been silent on this obvious "family values issue??"

Does character count... Matt Doheny?

It’s not hard to make a case that politicians don’t have the best reputation, especially when they are picking a jury in the John Edwards trial.
With the congressional primary just two months away, we have some concerns about one of the prominent candidates.

Matt Doheny, an investment fund manager from Watertown, and Kellie Greene, an international business consultant and seminary student from Sackets Harbor, are both seeking the Republican nomination for the new 21st Congressional District, which includes Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga County. We don’t know much about Greene, and we sort of wish we knew less about Doheny.

Making headlines in the New York Post is never a good way to kick off your campaign.

Yes, we watched the video.

This is the kind of story that makes newspaper editors uncomfortable and readers squirm, right before they hit the replay button and forward the video to 10 of their friends.

Doheny, who is engaged to be married in June, was in Washington, D.C., recently to attend a Republican Party event for possible congressional candidates. He attended without his fiancee. The website gawker.com published a report and photographs in late March, and the New York Post followed with a story and video that showed Doheny being a little too friendly with a female aquaintance who is not his fiancee.

Hey, none of our business; but then again, these shenanigans seem pervasive in the political arena these days. Just tune in to the Edwards trial for a reminder — and he was running for president.

We have not met Mr. Doheny yet and know little about him, but what we do know is a concern. He was charged twice in 2004 for boating while intoxicated and subsequently paid fines. While we believe past transgressions can be forgiven after frank discussion, we have found Mr. Doheny’s statements regarding those 2004 charges and his friendly encounter in Washington more spin than explanation.

The video shows Doheny on the terrace of a restaurant, leaning closely in to a woman while his hand wanders down her back, well, to a place that could lead to a slap in the face.

Romney the Bully

Mitt Romney’s prep school classmates recall pranks, but also troubling incidents

Mitt Romney returned from a three-week spring break in 1965 to resume his studies as a high school senior at the prestigious Cranbrook School. Back on the handsome campus, studded with Tudor brick buildings and manicured fields, he spotted something he thought did not belong at a school where the boys wore ties and carried briefcases. John Lauber, a soft-spoken new student one year behind Romney, was perpetually teased for his nonconformity and presumed homosexuality. Now he was walking around the all-boys school with bleached-blond hair that draped over one eye, and Romney wasn’t having it.

“He can’t look like that. That’s wrong. Just look at him!” an incensed Romney told Matthew Friedemann, his close friend in the Stevens Hall dorm, according to Friedemann’s recollection. Mitt, the teenage son of Michigan Gov. George Romney, kept complaining about Lauber’s look, Friedemann recalled.

A few days later, Friedemann entered Stevens Hall off the school’s collegiate quad to find Romney marching out of his own room ahead of a prep school posse shouting about their plan to cut Lauber’s hair. Friedemann followed them to a nearby room where they came upon Lauber, tackled him and pinned him to the ground. As Lauber, his eyes filling with tears, screamed for help, Romney repeatedly clipped his hair with a pair of scissors.

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New Auto Industry

Paul Krugman: Rich People Want To Be Praised 'As The Salvation Of The Rest Of Us'

Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman has a theory about the super-rich: They just want to be loved.

"If you're really, really rich, an additional dollar, an additional hundred million dollars doesn't matter too much for you. But feeling that you are being respected -- it matters a lot," the Princeton professor and New York Times columnist, said in an interview with Reuters on Monday.

"I think what really rich people want to buy often is they want the world to praise them for their wealth, so they want economic theories that praise rich people as the salvation of the rest of us."

Krugman went on to say that the wealthy support Republican economic policies both because they want more money for themselves and they want everyone to respect them.

"It's not just that they don't want to pay higher taxes, they also want everyone to respect them," Krugman added. "President Obama has very gently hinted that maybe not everything that Wall Street does is in the interest of society, and they've gone berserk."

Krugman warned that the rich may be pushing for policies that are actually detrimental to them. Since John F. Kennedy's presidency, the U.S. economy has gained around 42 million private jobs during Democratic presidencies, compared to roughly 24 million during Republican ones, according to a Bloomberg study.

"It’s actually a pretty overwhelming thing that Wall Street does better under Democrats than it does under Republicans. Better economic management, whatever, but the historical record is pretty clear," Krugman said. "I suspect if we ever get the full Republican menu of policies, you'll have an awful lot of people in the financial industry wailing because things will go very badly for them."

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Job Creation Under Democratic Presidents Roughly Double That Of GOP: Report

Democrats sure know how to create jobs, if recent history is any indication.

Since John F. Kennedy was elected president in 1961, job growth under Democratic presidents has outnumbered that under Republicans by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, according to a Bloomberg Government analysis. During that period, non-government payrolls grew by almost 42 million jobs under Democratic presidents, compared to 24 million when a Republican party member was in power.

The pattern seems to be holding true under President Obama. During the first three years and two months of his presidency, the country hasn't lost nearly as many jobs as during that same first period of his predecessor, according to an analysis from left-leaning and Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman. In April, the total number of private sector jobs finally surpassed that which existed when Obama took office in January 2009, according to the Bloomberg Government report.

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President Obama's "To-Do List" for Congress

President Obama has put together a "to do" list for Congress that, if acted upon quickly, will create jobs and help restore middle class security. These initiatives all have bipartisan support, and the President believes that they will help create an economy built to last that supports secure American jobs and makes things the rest of the world buys - not one built on outsourcing, loopholes, or risky financial deals.

Here are the items on Congress’s To-Do List:

1. Reward American Jobs, Eliminate Tax Incentives To Ship Jobs Overseas: Attract and keep good jobs in the United State sby passing legislation that gives companies a new 20 percent tax credit for the cost of moving their operations back to the U.S. Congress should pay for this credit by eliminating tax incentives that allow companies to deduct the costs of moving their business abroad.

2. Cut Red Tape So Responsible Homeowners Can Refinance: Pass legislation to cut red tape in the mortgage market so that responsible families who have been paying their mortgages on time can feel secure in their home by refinancing at today’s lower rates.

3. Invest in a New Hire Tax Credit for Small Businesses: Invest in small businesses and jumpstart new hiring by passing legislation that gives a 10 percent income tax credit for firms that create new jobs or increase wages in 2012 and that extends 100 percent expensing in 2012 for all businesses.

4. Create Jobs By Investing In Affordable Clean Energy: Help put America in control of its energy future by extending the Production Tax Credit to support American jobs and manufacturing and expanding the 30 percent tax credit to investments in clean energy manufacturing (48C Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit).

5. Put Returning Veterans to Work Using Skills Developed in the Military: Honor our commitment to returning veterans by creating a Veterans Job Corps to help Afghanistan and Iraq veterans get jobs as cops, firefighters, and serving their

"If Mitt Romney's an economic heavyweight, we're in trouble."

Obama Spokeswoman Says Romney Response to ‘Treason’ Comment Proves He Won’t ‘Stand Up to Hateful and Over-The-Line Rhetoric’

President Obama’s campaign spokeswoman, Lis Smith, sent out an outraged response after the president was blasted by a woman who said he should be “tried for treason” and a local politician made a speech slamming him for taking vacations at Mitt Romney’s town hall event in Euclid, Ohio.

“Today we saw Mitt Romney’s version of leadership: standing by silently as his chief surrogate attacked the President’s family at the event and another supporter alleged that the President should be tried for treason,” Ms. Smith said. “Time after time in this campaign, Mitt Romney has had the opportunity to show that he has the fortitude to stand up to hateful and over-the-line rhetoric and time after time, he has failed to do so. If this is the ‘leadership’ he has shown on the campaign trail, what can the American people expect of him as commander-in-chief?”

The “treason” comment was made by a female supporter during a question and answer session.

“We have a president right now that is operating outside the structure of our Constitution,” the woman said. “I do agree he should be tried for treason, but I want to know what you’re going to be able to do to help restore balance between the three branches of government and what you’re going to be able to do to restore our constituion in this country.”

In his answer to the woman, Mr. Romney didn’t specifically address the issue of whether President Obama could be tried as a traitor.

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Recovery Is Happening But More Is Needed

Violence Against Women Act

Mitt Flip-Flop

Final decisions made by the Board of Elections commissioners on challenged congressional petitions...that effect Oswego County

Some developments of note: Dan Lamb, a top aide to retiring Democratic Rep. Maurice Hinchey who is challenging Republican Rep. Richard Hanna, has lost the Working Families Party line because he failed to faile an acceptance of the labor-backed party’s endorsement. That strikes me as a seriously amateurish error.

According to a reader, no Democrat has won the Binghamton or Utica congressional seats without WFP line in this century.

Hanna has troubles of his own, however. He submitted signatures to qualify for the Conservative line, but didn’t get the party’s nod (in the form of a Wilson Pakula authorization, which is required for all non-enrolled members), and so won’t be running on Row C in November.

http://www.elections.ny.gov/

A New Chapter in Afghanistan

Oswego County clerk case continues

An Article 78 proceeding filed against Oswego County Clerk George Williams will continue Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. at the Oswego County Court House.

Attorney Scott Chatfield, who represents APS Information Systems in a case against Williams, said Thursday that he received notice of the date.

APS is suing Williams for his policy of charging fees to research criminal court records. State law allows a $5 fee to be charged for each name searched for every two years provided the search is certified. APS alleges that Williams has been charging for all searches, including those that are not certified.

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Wrapped in the Flag

Henry Aaron, Inventor Of Paul Ryan's Medicare Reform Concept, Explains Why It's Wrong

The co-creator of the concept that Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) is relying upon to reform Medicare no longer thinks it will work. Henry Aaron, now of the Brookings Institution, got the chance to tell Ryan exactly why at a recent Capitol Hill hearing.

Aaron and former Urban Institute president Robert Reischauer came up with the idea of "premium support" in 1995, after the failure of then-First Lady Hillary Clinton's bid to reform the health care system.

The basic idea is simple: let people pick their health insurers in the private market, subsidize the premiums, and competition will drive down costs. That's the theory behind Ryan's plan, recently endorsed by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) in a white paper the two wrote.

It differs from Aaron's original vision -- in part because it has fewer protections for beneficiaries -- but the essential concept is the same. Aaron said this isn't the time to test it out.

"In the years since Bob Reischauer and I put this Idea forward, I've changed my mind," Aaron said at a hearing of the House Ways and Means Committee last week.

The big reason is that Aaron has seen no evidence since the two men came up with the idea that their assumptions have been borne out.

A key assumption was that the insurance industry or government would figure out how better to adjust risk among companies so that if one insurer suddenly was saddled with an unusually expensive population, it would share the costs with other insurers or the government. That would keep costs down because it removes some of the incentive to cherry-pick healthier customers or shun sicker ones.

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FORWARD

Republican Legislator's hide financial disclosure forms (?)

Oswego County Legislator Doug Malone attempted to bring up two issues during Monday’s meeting of the legislature’s Strategic Planning and Government Committee- but he was not allowed to speak.

Malone, a member of the committee, wanted to address the issue of his failure to receive a financial disclosure form as well as the length of the Health and Human Services Committee meetings.

None of the Democrat legislators received the financial disclosure form that is required to be filled out and Malone, because it is the jurisdictional committee, attempted to address the matter.

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Related Story

GOP Abuse Of Filibuster 'Unconscionable'

Harry Reid, as majority leader of the United States Senate, has done "a terrific job," according to the most celebrated historian of the institution in a generation. Robert Caro, author of "Master of the Senate," the Pulitzer Prize-winning volume of his Lyndon Johnson biography, said that Reid's opposition and its abuse of the filibuster have made running the upper chamber "near impossible."

Caro sat down for an interview with The Huffington Post in conjunction with the release of the fourth volume of his biography, "The Passage of Power," which covers Johnson's vice presidency and some of his presidency.

"Harry Reid as a majority leader operated in near impossible circumstances," Caro said. "The other side is intractable and it has the votes to stop legislation. That he has been able to get as much as he has -- as little as it is -- through the Senate is a tribute to him as majority leader. I think he's in near-impossible circumstances. I think he's done a terrific job."

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