A member of Pres. Barack Obama’s administration announced another $23 million for food relief efforts in East Africa.
President Obama will return to Minnesota at the end of August to address the national meeting of the American Legion. Obama was in Minnesota on Monday as a part of his jobs tour. Also speaking at the American Legion meeting will be Michele Bachmann, considered in the top tier of Republican presidential candidates vying to defeat Obama.
Rep. Tim Walz is being targeted by the National Republican Congressional Committee with a television ad critical of his vote for health care reform. The move comes after a series of robocalls by the NRCC.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill Tuesday that would require the Obama administration to make a final decision on the expansion of the Keystone XL pipeline by Nov. 1. The vote was 279-147, with Minnesota’s delegation voting along party lines, with two exceptions: Democrat Collin Peterson voted with Republicans, and Rep. Michele Bachmann did not vote.
As Congress draws nearer to considering three new free trade agreements, union members are putting pressure on their congressional representatives to oppose them, arguing that they’d cost the state more manufacturing jobs, even as corporate supporters see new hope for quick passage.
Rep. Tim Walz introduced legislation on Tuesday that would end tax subsidies for luxury yachts. The IRS provides breaks for taxpayers who own yachts that have kitchens and bathrooms and therefore could qualify as a residence — even if the taxpayers don’t live there full time.
Minnesota’s congressional delegation, as well as its likely presidential candidates, responded to last night’s news that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has been killed in an American surgical raid near Islamabad. Reactions ranged from thanks to the military and calls for continued vigilance against the terrorist threat to rare kudos for President Obama from former Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
With roughly an hour to spare before a midnight deadline, federal lawmakers and President Barack Obama struck a deal to avoid a shutdown of the federal government — at least for this week.
Rep. Tim Walz offered an amendment on Friday that would prevent members of Congress from getting paid in the event of a government shutdown. The measure, which was to be attached to the Government Shutdown Prevention Act, failed along party lines. Democrats had hoped to use the move as a gotcha: a similar provision is already included in the shutdown prevention act, but Democrats wanted an up or down vote on it.
A bill to continue a defunct school voucher program in Washington, D.C., passed the U.S. House on Wednesday afternoon by a largely party-line vote. Reps. Michele Bachmann, Chip Cravaack, John Kline and Erik Paulsen voted for the measure while Reps. Keith Ellison, Betty McCollum, Collin Peterson and Tim Walz voted against the bill. The controversial program has been criticized as ineffective and essentially a tool to funnel taxpayer money to religious schools. President Obama stated on Tuesday that he opposes the measure.
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