Swamp Gas, November 30, 2007: The Swamp
 
The Swamp
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Posted November 30, 2007 8:38 AM
The Swamp

by Frank James

A quick guided tour of some of the morning's most important, most interesting, or both, Washington-related stories.

The Bush Administration and some of the nation's largest banks are near an agreement that would temporarily freeze interest rates on some home-mortgage loans, a pact that could buoy both two million homeowners whose adjustable-rate loans are soon due to reset to higher rates, and the financial markets.

Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke was the latest central bank official to indicate that more interest cuts could be ahead as concerns grow that turmoil in the financial markets related to the subprime-mortage mess and resulting credit crunch could further harm the economy.

Iraq doesn't have a plan to reintegrate returning refugees into neighborhoods which is seen as essential if Iraq is to avoid renewed sectarian violence.

Progress in Iraq as measured by basic services essential to the quality of life like electricity and water remains uneven with many there doubting the Iraqi government's ability to provide such services.

The U.S. Army is trying to train its troops in Afghanistan in counterinsurgency methods that include how to think like Taliban insurgents and better navigate the tribal and local politics in that nation.

People in the U.S. are moving across state lines at higher rates in recent years than they have in more than a decade, according to the Census which says immigrants moving beyond the border states and young adults in their 20s account for much of the movement.

The nation's food banks are experiencing shortages in food supplies that are forcing them to turn to rationing and in some cases close.

Republican Presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani makes use of a lot of statistics about how he improved New York as mayor or to make other points meant to enhance his candidacy, but much of the data he cites is incomplete or wrong.

The Virginia Tech shooting has led the Federal Bureau of Investigation's list of people deemed mentally ineligible to possess guns to more than double.

CNN apologized for allowing a retired general, who happens to be gay and serves on an advisory panel to Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign, to ask a question at Wednesday night's debate. Meanwhile, questions were raised about two other debate questioners who turned out to be supporting Democrats as well.

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Comments

Democratic questioners at the last debate.

God is this a non-issue.

So tell me. Does the President of the U.S. get elected by ALL of the people, or just the people from one party.

Personally party affiliation shouldn't be an issue as to what questions are asked. It isn't an issue. I'd love to see half the questioners chosen from the opposing party. Those are possibly going to be some of the most pointed, and some of the best questions.

When George W. Bush starts negotiating with the President of Iran do you think his administration gets to choose the questions or the negotiating points?


When George W. Bush starts negotiating with the President of Iran do you think his administration gets to choose the questions or the negotiating points?

Posted by: dogjudge | November 30, 2007 10:43 AM

They are certainly going to try.


Today's Tribune buried the good news out of Iraq on page 15.

The DNC Swamp doesn't even mention the good news.

And the Tribune Company wonders why its losing readership and revenue.


Freeze interest rates on some home mortgage loans? Republicans controlling the free market? It's terrible for anyone to lose their home, but they should have taken that into account when they gambled on a risky loan.

I remember our mortgage company approving us for a loan that I knew was much higher than we could afford. Only when the banks are threatened does the government step in.


Dog,

Would that be like the dems answering all those questions when they debated on Fox News?


I only thought you apologized when you did something wrong, so what did Cnn do wrong to warrant this apology?


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