March 2010 Archives

One of the most unpopular aspects of the new healthcare reform originated with republicans, reports The Miami Herald.

The insurance mandate idea was created in the 1980's by a conservative, reports the Miami Herald.

The mandate of insurance coverage was implemented in Massachusetts by then Gov. Mitt Romney, who opposes the new federal mandate, reports the Associated Press.

Since the passing of the bill, at least 12 GOP attorneys general have said the new mandate is unconstitutional, reports The Associated Press.

The obituary in The New York Times for Jim Marshall follows the traditional obituary format. The lead explains what Jim did and also give examples of his notable work.

The famed photographer of many musicians was highlighted not only for his work, but also how it differed from others in his field. Unlike a resume the obituary goes beyond describing his accomplishments, but also describes what made them possible and what others thought of his work.

Democrats will decide which congressional candidate to endorse to run against Michelle Bachmann in the November election, reports The Star Tribune.

Either Maureen Reed, a physician in Stillwater or Tarryl Clark, a state senator from St. Cloud, will receive the endorsement, reports Minnesota Public Radio.

If Clark does not receive the endorsement she has said she will step aside, while Reed has said she will continue to run even without an endorsement, reports MPR.

Either candidate will have a lot of catching up to do to compete with Bachmann, who raised over $1 million last year for her upcoming campaign, reports MPR.

The debate is back on whether or not the TCF Bank Stadium at the University of Minnesota will remain dry, reports The Minnesota Daily.

In an effort to ease the pain of the current deficit, the University is revisiting the possibility of allowing alcohol sales in the premium seats, reports The Star Tribune.

Last season, tickets for premium seats were offered at a discount due to the alcohol ban which resulted in less revenue, reports the Star Tribune.

The absence of alcohol sales resulted in a $200,000 loss, while the decline in premium ticket sales brought the loss to $1.3 million, reports The Star Tribune.

Lawmakers have received threats and vandalism since the polarized vote in the House approved healthcare reform, reports the Associated Press.

The bill was approved on Sunday and since then legislatures, primarily democrats who voted for the bill, have endured scare tactics ranging from phone calls threatening family members to cut gas lines, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Republicans have condemned acts of violence and some have accused Democrats of using the situation to increase negative opinions of Republicans, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Some Democrats have reportedly credited the threats to the rally rhetoric of the Republicans, according to Reuters.

Sarah Palin's Facebook page and Twitter account have gotten attention due to gun related solutions that were offered for those who oppose the new bill, Reuters reports.

According to the Associated Press, at least 10 democrats, and two Republicans have been targeted with threats.

Google decided to relocate its Chinese search engine into Hong Kong after years of censoring content that China deemed unacceptable, reports The New York Times.

Google's choice to cease censorship in the largest Internet market occurred after hackers that infiltrated Google, and e-mail accounts of human rights activists, were traced back to China, reports The New York Times.

Google, which has had a censored search engine in China since 2006, is aware that China can block out the new search engine, reports USA Today.

The stocks of the more popular Chinese search engine, Baidu, have had a steady increase in the past months, reports The New York Times.

Michelle Bachmann lead a rally against the proposed healthcare bill Saturday, reports The Star Tribune.

Minnesota Public Radio reports hundreds of attendees while The Star Tribune report thousands.

Bachmann called upon the attendees to voice their "outrage" against the bill that will expand health coverage to those who are currently without, reports MPR.

John Kline also spoke at the rally calling for lawmakers to "start over", reports The Star Tribune.

The House is expected to vote on the bill this week, reports MPR.

Coolidge High of Washington welcomed a new head coach on Friday, reports The Star Tribune.

Natalie Randolph is one of two females to head coach in America, The Washington Post reports that Debbie Vance of New York has been a head coach for two years.

Randolph is a science teacher and has played football for the D.C. Divas, a team of the Independent Women's Professional League, reports The Star Tribune.

March 12, 2010 was declared "Natalie Randolph Day" by Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, The Washington Post reports.

The European Union is moving closer to an agreement that will put more regulation on hedge funds, reports Bloomberg News.

The New York Times reports that the British are concerned that they will lose some hedge fund business with these new regulations.

The U.S. Treasury Secretary is concerned that the new regulations will require U.S. based hedge funds to follow the rules when doing business with European nations, reports Bloomberg News.

Some European politicians believe hedge funds to be a factor in the Greece economy, reports The New York Times

A new social studies curriculum for Texas textbooks was approved Friday, reports the Associated Press.

KTRE of Texas reports that the impact will effect millions of students nation-wide since Texas publishes the most textbooks.

The word "democratic" will be replaced with "constitutional republic" in reference to the government, reports the Associated Press.

Political ideas will be explained as "laws of nature and nature's God" and attempts to highlight the separation of church and state involving the birth of the nation were not accepted, reports the Associated Press.

Also denied were attempts to include historical Hispanics and the relevance of Hip Hop pertaining to cultural movements, reports the Associated Press.

Information on institutional racism in American societies also will not be included in the curriculum.

Attorney Al Garcia was acquitted of rape charges Monday, reports The Star Tribune.

The accuser and three other women testified against Garcia throughout the trial, reports The Star Tribune.

Garcia's attorney convinced the jury that there was not enough evidence to prove Garcia guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, reports The City Pages.

The Star Tribune reports that Garcia is in custody due to a federal drug charge.

Garcia also faces witness-tampering charges related to the rape case, reports The City Pages.

President Obama spoke on health care during his weekly radio and internet address. The press release is the proposed transcript.

USA today, with information from the Associated Press, reported and offered video of Obama's address. Aside from reporting the on the address, the AP also explained the conflict between the parties, offered the opposing parties perspective, and explained what the next step will be.
The AP put Obama's words into the context of the legislative process. Obama did not say that he plans to move forward without the republicans but the AP, knowing about the process, is able to assume that Obama is referring to the reconciliation process.

The man who was suing Ramsey County died Wednesday, reports the Associated Press.

Patrick Uzalac claim was that he was not treated for his frostbitten feet while in custody of jail in January,The Star Tribune reports.

If a connection is found with Uzalac's death and his frostbite, Ramsey County could face a wrongful death suit, reports The Star Tribune.

A sales tax on clothing is being proposed by Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL, in Minnesota.

The $257 million earned in the first year would be used towards education, reports The Star Tribune.

The tax would also lower the tax for outdoors and arts and additional sales tax in Hennepin county that was created for the Minnesota Twins stadium, reports Pioneer Press.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty does not support the proposed sales tax saying that clothes are a necessity, reports Pioneer Press.

Bakk said that the new sales tax would lower the overall sales tax in Minnesota, reports The Star Tribune.

More than 140 couples applied for marriage licenses Wednesday in Washington D.C. where same-sex marriage has become legal, reports The New York Times.
Same-sex marriage was approved on Dec. 15 by the D.C. Council and then signed into a law by Mayor Adrian Fenty, reports the Washington Post.

Efforts to block the legalization of same-sex marriage by Bishop Harry Jackson were not successful reports the Washington Post.

Couples waiting in line Wednesday were aware that their freedom could be cut short reports The Washington Post.

The postmaster general met with the Postal Regulatory Commission on Tuesday to propose plans to ease the budget deficit of the United States Postal Service reports The New York Times.

The Star Tribune reports that if approved by congress, stamp prices may increase next year and postal service may no longer run on Saturdays.

Union groups for postal workers oppose the elimination of Saturday deliveries but the change could save the USPS $3 billion a year according to the chief financial advisor of the service reports The New York Times.

This is not the first attempt at switching to a five -day service. The previous attempt was not approved by congress, reports The Star Tribune.