A bill funding the Department of Homeland Security passes. Doesn't target Obama's immigration action
13 replies, posted
[QUOTE]Washington (CNN)The Department of Homeland Security won't run out of money anytime soon.
The House cleared legislation Tuesday that will keep the agency operating through the end of September after a standoff last week threatened to shutter the agency and furlough thousands of workers. The 257-167 vote sends the bill to President Barack Obama for his signature.
Republican House Speaker John Boehner, who rarely casts votes, backed the bill, along with his top lieutenants. A majority of House Republicans opposed the bill. Just 75 GOP lawmakers joined with 182 Democrats to push it across the finish line.
.[/QUOTE]
[url]http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/02/politics/dhs-shutdown-john-boehner-house-vote/index.html[/url]
You'd have thought it'd be career suicide to oppose funding to the Department of Homeland Security. I don't know much about American Politics though..
[QUOTE=Simples;47251713]You'd have thought it'd be career suicide to oppose funding to the Department of Homeland Security. I don't know much about American Politics though..[/QUOTE]
American politics has this lovely feature that you can tack things onto bills while they go through Congress. Like have a bill regarding the DHS's funding and tack on something else to it like, "Global Warming is Real" or "5% Pay increase for Congress Members" or "Free Taco Tuesday in the Capital". Its how people who don't like a bill try to drag it down and make those on the fence vote in their favor. It's also why if you ever seen American political adds during election season here you see stuff like, "Senator Bob voted against funding for inner city schools" when it was tacked onto a bill that could have been like, "Abolish all labor laws and remove minimum wage".
Good. While I may not like the DHS, Obama's immigration plan is something needed imo.
[QUOTE=Simples;47251713]You'd have thought it'd be career suicide to oppose funding to the Department of Homeland Security. I don't know much about American Politics though..[/QUOTE]
All you need to know is that they're incredibly broken and no one tries to fix them for some odd reason.
Most people are either in on it or throw their arms in the air and go "EUGH, there is no point to voting, everything is pointless, we're all just dust in the wind, david lynch is my idol."
[QUOTE=draugur;47253548]All you need to know is that they're incredibly broken and no one tries to fix them for some odd reason.
Most people are either in on it or throw their arms in the air and go "EUGH, there is no point to voting, everything is pointless, we're all just dust in the wind, david lynch is my idol."[/QUOTE]
No one tries to fix them because incumbent politicians on both sides benefit from them being broken.
Yay, we solved the problem until...September?
I lost track, is the government going to run out of money again before then? Any specific agencies running out of money?
No fucking wonder they never get anything useful done, Congress is never more than a few months away from the next self-manufactured crisis.
[QUOTE=draugur;47253548]All you need to know is that they're incredibly broken and no one tries to fix them for some odd reason.
Most people are either in on it or throw their arms in the air and go "EUGH, there is no point to voting, everything is pointless, we're all just dust in the wind, david lynch is my idol."[/QUOTE]
I think a big part of the problem the US have is turnout and the number and nature of elections. Like, presidential elections are fairly popular, and 58% of eligible voters did vote in the last presidential election (although some may say that number is ridiculously low). But then you get the 2014 federal election, for all seats in House of Representatives and a third of the seats in the Senate, and only 36% of eligible voters made the effort to vote in that election. Pathetic.
The point is that I think the media creates the impression that the president is sufficiently powerful that the people need only vote in that election and disregard other elections, as if they aren't important. Therefore you get Congressmen and women and Senators who aren't really accountable to their constituents, because only one third of their constituents gave a shit about their election.
But also I think that the US is spammed with elections anyways. At the local government level you have Council members, Mayors, and even Sheriffs are elected. Then at the state level their are state legislators, state Senators, and Governors. Take that one step further to the federal level, with federal legislators, federal Senators and the President. So many elections, and do many Americans even know the differing jurisdictions of state and federal government, or the differing nature of the federal House of Representatives and Senate?
Like, one reason I'd advocate for parliamentary democracy is that your vote for your MP is a vote for both legislative and executive branches, so it doesn't require voters to distinguish between each and therefore encourages them to consider both, as they are inseparate. Otherwise, you get like right now where no one gives a shit about the legislative branch of government (US Congress), and that's how shit flingers get elected. I also believe it was a mistake for the US Senate to become directly elected, because not only does it burden the voters with yet another election, but it reduces state input on the federal level.
Whoops where did that wall o text come from
I'm somewhat excited for the next few congressional elections. The baby boomer is on its way out, maybe we can get stuff done then. But there seems to be an endless supply of dumbasses(see: bobby jindal) so we might be a bit farther off, lets hope they don't kill the country before then.
[QUOTE=Used Car Salesman;47253779]Yay, we solved the problem until...September?
I lost track, is the government going to run out of money again before then? Any specific agencies running out of money?
No fucking wonder they never get anything useful done, Congress is never more than a few months away from the next self-manufactured crisis.[/QUOTE]
Well they haven't passed a budget yet and that usually needs to be done by like june
[editline]5th March 2015[/editline]
[QUOTE=Map in a box;47254030]I'm somewhat excited for the next few congressional elections. The baby boomer is on its way out, maybe we can get stuff done then. But there seems to be an endless supply of dumbasses(see: bobby jindal) so we might be a bit farther off, lets hope they don't kill the country before then.[/QUOTE]
It would appear that genx and the tail end of the baby boomers are incredibly selfish and stupid and are going to do their damnedest to stick to their god given convictions even in the face of mounting evidence to the contrary
And its funny because the millenials generation has always been called the most selfish and self-indulgent generation yet millenials by in large believe in global warming, evolution, scientific research gay marriage and decriminalization of certain drugs that have questionable scheduling
[QUOTE=Sableye;47263285]And its funny because the millenials generation has always been called the most selfish and self-indulgent generation yet millenials by in large believe in global warming, evolution, scientific research gay marriage and decriminalization of certain drugs that have questionable scheduling[/QUOTE]
I strongly believe the openness of the millennials is that they grew up with the horrors of the internet and gay marriage isn't as bad as goatsy or lemon party
[editline]5th March 2015[/editline]
And the stronger belief in global warming and evolution stemming from the selfishness and being worried and bitchy about whether or not they're too hot/cold and if they had cool ancestors to brag about.
[QUOTE=Sableye;47263285]And its funny because the millenials generation has always been called the most selfish and self-indulgent generation yet millenials by in large believe in global warming, evolution, scientific research gay marriage and decriminalization of certain drugs that have questionable scheduling[/QUOTE]
And who exactly is calling us selfish? Oh, right. The previous hypocritical, selfish generations.
[QUOTE=Used Car Salesman;47253779]Any specific agencies running out of money?[/QUOTE]
BATF please :v:
[QUOTE=Senscith;47252851]American politics has this lovely feature that you can tack things onto bills while they go through Congress. Like have a bill regarding the DHS's funding and tack on something else to it like, "Global Warming is Real" or "5% Pay increase for Congress Members" or "Free Taco Tuesday in the Capital". Its how people who don't like a bill try to drag it down and make those on the fence vote in their favor. It's also why if you ever seen American political adds during election season here you see stuff like, "Senator Bob voted against funding for inner city schools" when it was tacked onto a bill that could have been like, "Abolish all labor laws and remove minimum wage".[/QUOTE]
That's not even what happened here. The DHS funding bill allocates resources for the fiscal year. Border Control and Immigration are both part of DHS, and their budget included policy changes instituted by the President.
The DHS funding bill included elements of DHS funding that Republicans in Congress didn't like, so they rejected it. It wasn't some irrelevant piece of legislature tacked on.
People seem to think that the DHS is just TSA, there's a lot more to it than that:
[quote][b]Agencies [/b]
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
U.S. Coast Guard (USCG)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
U.S. Secret Service (USSS)
Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
[b]Divisions[/b]
DHS Management Directorate
DHS National Protection and Programs Directorate
DHS Office of Health Affairs
DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis
DHS Office of Operations Coordination
DHS Office of Policy
DHS Science and Technology Directorate
Domestic Nuclear Detection Office
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center[/quote]
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