OmniSpeak

And the probes continue, as there are now three more US House members that have been warned by the ethics committee that they remain under investigation for their fundraising activities during a vote on financial reform.  The Office of Congressional Ethics has now notifed Reps. John Campbell, R-Calif., Joseph Crowley, D-N.Y. and Tom Price, R-Ga., that it was recommending that the ethics committee should further review their fundraising activities, from December 11, 2009, and the concerns over how the three voted on the Wall Street reform bill.

It seems that while in a debate over amendments to the legislation,on December 10,  Crowley left to attend a fundraiser at the home office of a financial industry lobbyist.  Later in the evening, he then returned, and voted against amendments that would have strengthened the bill.

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Not many people are aware, that the Department of Veterans Affairs, is spending tens of millions of your taxpayer dollars, to maintain hundreds of buildings, most of which are vacant, that are so dilapidated, and are considered health hazards.  And the dispute is over the exact amount spent to maintain these buildings.  The GAO, estimates that the VA has spent $175 million every year since 2007.  But the VA denies those figures, saying only $85 million has been spent on those buildings in 2007, and last year, only $37 million….more taxpayer money wasted, as with thousands of vets returning from the wars, that money could be used for their medical care.

The buildings are from Augusta, Ga., to Menlo Park, Calif., from Milwaukee, Wis., to Perry Point, Md., the VA maintains 5,507 buildings across the country.  And 314 of them are now vacant and it costs, just to keep them standing.  

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Gov Tim Pawlenty said that he would do everything he possibly could, to make sure Minnesota doesn’t take part in the federal health care overhaul during his final four months in office.  In his words, the health care law, signed by President Obama, is a misguided piece of legislation that puts states on the wrong path and will drive up costs. Pawlenty is taking steps to reject some dollars tied to the law.

“Anything that I can do to slow down, limit or negate Obamacare, I’m going to try to do it within reason,” Pawlenty said after a veterans event in St. Paul.

Fox News

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The most wealthiest members of congress got even wealthier last year, even though economy wise for the rest of us, it was the worse since the Great Depression.  Each year, members of congress must file financial disclosure forms, and often report finances in broad ranges.

In 2009, the 50 wealthiest lawmakers were worth an estimated $1.4 billion which is about $85 million more than the previous year.  The growth is due, in part, to the fact that the stock market actually rebounded last year, helping lawmakers who had large investments.
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Civil liberties groups have filed a lawsuit against the Obama Administration over a plan they say illegally tries to kill U.S. citizens believed to be militants living abroad, like the anti-American cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.  The ACLU and the Center for Constitutional Rights filed a lawsuit on behalf of Nasser al-Awlaki, the father of the Muslim cleric, in which they argue it violates the Constitution and international law.

Authorities have tied the cleric to the failed Christmas Day bombing of a commercial jet, and to the Fort Hood shooter, where 13 people were killed last year.  Charges have not yet been filed against al-Awlaki, who was born in the US, but left the country in 2001.  It is believed he is in Yemen, where al Qaeda is continually growing.

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