Archive - Feb 2009

Photo: Hawaiian activists hang a banner along Wakiki beach over land dispute

• Obama: We’ll Be (Sort Of) Out of Iraq in 19 Months
• Obama Budget Proposal Increases Military Spending
• Senate Approves Voting Rights for DC
• Bankruptcy Closing Hospitals in New York
• National Groups Organizing Over Civilian Posse in Maricopa County
• Supreme Court Takes Up Native Hawaiian Land Title Conflict
• Chile’s Mapuche Try to Reclaim Land

• Obama Will Overturn Bush’s Healthcare ‘Conscience’ Rules
• Enemy Combatant Will Be Tried as Civilian
• UK Govt Wants to Reduce Huge CEO Payout in Largest UK Bank Bailout
• Rocky Mountain News Shutting Down
• Bangladesh Mass Graves Uncovered
• Big Weekend of Environmental Activism in DC
• Pay Raise Given to Workers in Guadeloupe

A big day for President Barack Obama, as he announced his plan for Iraq:

“As a candidate for President, I made clear my support for a timeline of 16 months to carry out this drawdown, while pledging to consult closely with our military commanders upon taking office to insure that we preserve the gains we’ve made and to protect our troops. These consultations are now complete, and I’ve chosen a timeline that will remove our combat brigades over the next 18 months.”

Meanwhile, the 3-point-6 trillion dollar budget plan Obama released yesterday includes an increase in defense spending. If he gets his way, the new president will spend more on the military than President George W. Bush. Tanya Snyder  has more:

Senate Approves Voting Rights for DC

The Senate has passed a measure that would give the District of Columbia a seat in the House of Representatives with full voting rights. DC's current representative cannot vote on the house floor. A similar bill failed in 2007 when it fell short of enough Republican support to prevent a filibuster. In addition to the House seat with voting rights for Democratic-leaning DC, the bill passed by the Senate yesterday evening would also create a new Congressional district for the staunchly Republican state of Utah.

Hundreds of thousands of residents of Queens Borough in New York City could be left without a hospital. Two hospitals are going bankrupt and are set to close today, affecting about 2,500 medical professionals and more than 200,000 patients annually. James Williams has more:

And an update on a story we’ve been following on Free Speech Radio News. In Maricopa County, Arizona, Sheriff Joe Arpaio has been at the center of a growing civil rights controversy over his treatment of immigrants and prisoners. Arpaio has used his authority from a federal program to deputize volunteer possees to perform immigration sweeps, armed workplace raids, and set up checkpoints. Now national civil rights groups are getting involved. Salvador Reza is an organizer for Puente:
Today, immigrants’ rights organizers are meeting to forge a strategy on changing the federal programs that have allowed Sheriff Arpaio to form armed civilian possees; tomorrow they’ll be marching on Sheriff Arpaio’s offices.