Capitol View: January 26, 2011 Archive

Walz brings a different kind of date to the SOTU

Posted at 12:45 AM on January 26, 2011 by Tom Scheck (1 Comments)
Filed under: MPR in D.C., U.S. House, U.S. Senate

Walz reacts to the State of the Union from tommy scheck on Vimeo.

WASHINGTON - While most of the members of Congress were busy worrying about which member of Congress they planned to sit with, DFL Rep. Tim Walz decided to invite a Republican from his congressional district. Walz invited GOP state Sen. Julie Rosen to attend tonight's State of the Union in an effort to show bipartisanship.

"We represent the same people," Walz said. "I think it's important for us that this isn't, just as the President said, sitting together tonight but an effort to keep working and move forward on that."

Rosen said she felt that there was a firm commitment from both Republicans and Democrats to work together. Something she hopes will also occur on the state level.

"I walked away feeling much better about the cooperation and collaboration and communication that I felt in that room," Rosen said. "Hopefully tomorrow and the next two weeks and two years will show results in that manner."

Rosen's hope could be put to the test later this week. Her committee, the Senate Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications Committee, will vote on a bill that lifts the moratorium on building new nuclear power plants in Minnesota. Walz took the rare move of stepping into state politics by announcing he backed the move.

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Ellison has mixed feelings about Obama's speech

Posted at 12:57 AM on January 26, 2011 by Tom Scheck
Filed under: MPR in D.C., U.S. House, U.S. Senate

Ellison reacts to the State of the Union from tommy scheck on Vimeo.

WASHINGTON - DFL Rep. Keith Ellison says he has mixed feelings about President Obama's State of the Union address and said Obama's move to the middle is dealing with the reality of a mixed government.

After the speech, Ellison told reporters that he's pleased to see Obama is making a commitment to invest in public works projects and end tax breaks for oil companies but is concerned about the level of cuts put on the table.

"He said he's not going to let the cuts fall on the poorest Americans, but you know what?," Ellison said. "We'll see. I'm very concerned about that. Unless we're talking about some real cuts in the military, which he did mention, to his credit, I don't know where he's going to get it from."

Ellison said he thinks President Obama and Congress should look first to making cuts to military programs and projects are considered "outdated" or out of use. Ellison also said he'd like to see Obama address what he called "income inequality" between the nation's wealthiest and poorest citizens.

Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, also praised President Obama for encouraging the nation to embrace many cultures including the Muslim faith.

"He didn't have to say what he said about Muslims being American family but he did," Ellison said. "I can tell you there's a lot of people who really appreciated him saying that..."

Kline's reaction to the State of the Union

Posted at 1:01 AM on January 26, 2011 by Tom Scheck
Filed under: MPR in D.C., U.S. House, U.S. Senate

WASHINGTON - Here's GOP Rep. John Kline's reaction to President Obama's State of the Union:

Since the President took office two years ago, he and Congressional Democrats have overseen the largest budget deficit in the history of our nation, driving the national debt to a staggering $14 trillion. While the nation suffers from 20 straight months of unemployment above 9 percent, Washington has been on an unsustainable job-killing spending spree. After listening to the President's remarks during his State of the Union address, I hope his actions match the rhetoric we heard tonight.

In the first weeks of the new Congress, House Republicans have demonstrated that they are listening to the American people and leading by example: we have cut our own budgets by 5 percent, repealed ObamaCare, and rolled back non-defense government spending to 2008 levels.

This needs to be a Congress focused on jobs and the economy. One way my Republican colleagues and I have demonstrated our resolve to restore America's fractured fiscal house is by banning earmarks. I was pleased to hear the President is following our lead in putting an end to wasteful pork-barrel projects.

As the Chairman of Education and the Workforce Committee, I am pleased the President highlighted education reform as one of his priorities. As I did last week when Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and I visited Crystal Lake Elementary School in Lakeville, I am continuing to seek input from principals, teachers, parents, and students on what is working - and what is not working - at the school level and whether federal policies are supporting or hindering the work schools across the country are doing to ensure students are prepared to succeed.

Later this year, in its second-largest deployment since World War II, the Minnesota National Guard will send more than 2,400 troops - the famed "Red Bulls" - to the Middle East. As a member of the House Armed Services Committee and a veteran of the Marine Corps, I was pleased to hear the President reiterate his commitment to winning the war against Islamist extremists. Through initiatives like "Beyond the Yellow Ribbon," we must ensure we take care of our sons and daughters in uniform, and their families.

I encourage the Administration and Congressional Democrats to join Republicans in showing we are serious about restoring trust between the American people and those elected to represent them. I encourage Washington to heed the calls of the American people to do what we were sent here to do - provide security and freedom for our country, restore economic certainty, and enable America's job creators to put our nation back to work.

Quam to lead U.S. State Department's Global Health Initiative

Posted at 10:01 AM on January 26, 2011 by Tom Scheck (3 Comments)
Filed under: MPR in D.C.

Lois Quam, a former executive with UnitedHealth Group and senior adviser to former First Lady Hillary Clinton's health care task force, has been appointed to lead the President's Global Health Initiative. State Department Spokesman Phillippe Reines confirmed the hire to MPR News this morning. he said more details of the announcement will be released later today.

The hire means Quam will oversee billions of dollars in federal funds that are geared to improve "health outcomes through strengthened health systems - with a particular focus on improving the health of women, newborns and children through programs including infectious disease, nutrition, maternal and child health, and safe water."

The funds are aimed to reduce HIV/AIDS, malaria, TB and other preventable diseases across the world.

Quam and her husband, former DFL state Rep. Matt Entenza, have been close with former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for some time. Quam worked with Clinton in the early nineties and the two have been long time backers of the political campaigns of both Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Here's more information from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton about the Global Health Initiative and how she sees the mission of the agency:

The President's new global health initiative will be a crucial component of American foreign policy and a signature element of smart power. Bringing better health to people around the globe is an avenue to a more secure, stable, and prosperous world. Our investments in programs to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, TB, and other preventable diseases save millions of lives, reduce maternal and child mortality, and reflect our nation's leadership as a positive force for progress around the world.

With the President's new initiative and expanded focus, we have an opportunity to further leverage our technical knowledge and expertise, build stronger regional and global partnerships, and use our resources to expand the promise of good health that is the foundation of stronger and more stable families, communities, and societies.

I look forward to working with agencies across the government, with Congress, and with the private and non-governmental sectors to lead a coordinated and effective approach to global health that leaves a safer and more stable world for generations to come.

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