TYPICAL DEMOCRAT BEHAVIOR
I've been warning you that the greatest danger of a Barack Obama Presidency would be to NASA and our future in space. Space Politics proves my point."...Earlier this week Sen. Russell Feingold (D-WI) introduced S.3457, the “Support for Democracy and Human Rights in Ethiopia Act of 2008″. The legislation outlines some of the challenges democracy and human rights are facing in Ethiopia, despite some recent positive progress, and asks the president to “support the implementation of democracy and governance institutions and organizations in Ethiopia” through a number of measures, ranging from unspecified programs to protect human rights to Voice of America programming. The legislation authorizes $20 million to carry out these activities by this means: “Of the amounts available to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for fiscal year 2009, $20,000,000 shall be available to carry out the provisions of this Act.”..."
I'm all for helping people, but let's take the money from the State Department, or maybe from the Department of Education."...I make it a practice to pay for all bills I introduce, and the authorization in this bill is offset by a transfer of funds from NASA. Some may disagree with me on the need for an offset, but recent Office of Management and Budget projections confirm that we now have the biggest budget deficit in the history of our country.
We cannot afford to be fiscally irresponsible so we must make choices to ensure that our children and grandchildren do not bear the burden of our reckless spending. Instead of cutting specific programs, which are likely to have begun and thus would cost more to close, transferring $20 million from the general budget would allow appropriators to evaluate, at their discretion, how best to make this transfer.
I ask my colleagues to consider what our own State Department has said about the political situation in Ethiopia and then consider how best to rectify the situation.
The 2007 State Department Report on Human Rights notes that in Ethiopia the following occurred:
“limitation[s] on citizens’ right to change their government during the most recent elections; unlawful killings, and beating, abuse, and mistreatment of detainees and opposition supporters by security forces; poor prison conditions;
arbitrary arrest and detention, particularly of those suspected of sympathizing with or being members of the opposition or insurgent groups; detention of thousands without charge and lengthy pretrial detention; infringement on citizens’ privacy rights and frequent refusal to follow the law regarding search warrants;
use of excessive force by security services in an internal conflict and counter-insurgency operations; restrictions on freedom of the press; arrest, detention, and harassment of journalists for publishing articles critical of the government;
restrictions on freedom of assembly; limitations on freedom of association; violence and societal discrimination against women and abuse of children; female genital mutilation, FGM; exploitation of children for economic and sexual purposes;trafficking in persons; societal discrimination against persons with disabilities and religious and ethnic minorities; and government interference in union activities, including killing and harassment of union leaders.”..."
I keep telling you that you can't trust Democrats, especially when it comes to NASA.We cannot afford to be fiscally irresponsible so we must make choices to ensure that our children and grandchildren do not bear the burden of our reckless spending. Instead of cutting specific programs, which are likely to have begun and thus would cost more to close, transferring $20 million from the general budget would allow appropriators to evaluate, at their discretion, how best to make this transfer.
I ask my colleagues to consider what our own State Department has said about the political situation in Ethiopia and then consider how best to rectify the situation.
The 2007 State Department Report on Human Rights notes that in Ethiopia the following occurred:
“limitation[s] on citizens’ right to change their government during the most recent elections; unlawful killings, and beating, abuse, and mistreatment of detainees and opposition supporters by security forces; poor prison conditions;
arbitrary arrest and detention, particularly of those suspected of sympathizing with or being members of the opposition or insurgent groups; detention of thousands without charge and lengthy pretrial detention; infringement on citizens’ privacy rights and frequent refusal to follow the law regarding search warrants;
use of excessive force by security services in an internal conflict and counter-insurgency operations; restrictions on freedom of the press; arrest, detention, and harassment of journalists for publishing articles critical of the government;
restrictions on freedom of assembly; limitations on freedom of association; violence and societal discrimination against women and abuse of children; female genital mutilation, FGM; exploitation of children for economic and sexual purposes;trafficking in persons; societal discrimination against persons with disabilities and religious and ethnic minorities; and government interference in union activities, including killing and harassment of union leaders.”..."
Trackposted to Diary of the Mad Pigeon, Rosemary's Thoughts, Woman Honor Thyself, The World According to Carl, Pirate's Cove, Cao's Blog, Wingless, NN&V, and Right Voices, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.
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