First, Obama signed into law the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act on Thursday, January 29, 2009. This law helps American workers to be compensated fairly regardless of race, gender, age, etc. "Ultimately, equal pay isn't just an economic issue for millions of Americans and their families, it's a question of who we are -- and whether we're truly living up to our fundamental ideals," President Obama said. "Whether we'll do our part, as generations before us, to ensure those words put on paper some 200 years ago really mean something -- to breathe new life into them with a more enlightened understanding that is appropriate for our time." So where did the Republicans stand on this issue? They tried to block it. Of course. They said that "...this kind of legislation, as is typical of what's being proposed by my friends on the other side of the aisle, opens us up to lawsuits for all kinds of problems," Sen. McCain told reporters. "This is government playing a much, much greater role in the business of a private enterprise system." Unfortunately, they didn't offer up anything new or try to work with their Democrat colleagues - no, instead, they blocked as best as they could.
Next, we have Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act that was signed by Obama on Tuesday, April 21, 2009. This encourages community involvement and volunteerism across America! This bill was written by Kennedy and cowritten by Republican Orrin Hatch during Kennedy's fight with brain cancer. This bill received a majority vote from across the aisle! However, the Republicans wanted to make one thing clear: they had grave reservations about this, and they expressed their views in a statement to the White House which, in part states, "Republicans do not support paying individuals for volunteering their time, including grants to make their higher education more affordable...Republicans are concerned about the expansion of the federal government at a time of national economic crisis. Volunteerism plays a critical role in meeting many of the needs of our society; however, the federal government should not be paying individuals to volunteer their time, especially when American families – and governments at the local, state and federal level – are already facing budget constraints from all the demands they face. Congress should focus its legislative agenda on policies that stimulate the economy, create jobs and allow Americans to direct their own resources – skills, time and money – toward causes and community needs that they personally care about." But it passed anyway!
What's next? There are lots more that Obama has signed into law! In doing research for this topic, I was amazed at the number of wonderful pieces of legislation that Obama has signed into law, so I will post this one and will continue this tomorrow! I have lots more to share on this! It is truly amazing!
Here are some great sources you might want to look at if you want further information! I will post all the legislation that has passed thus far and what the republican stance on them has been!
http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/
http://repcloakroom.house.gov/news/DocumentPrint.aspx?DocumentID=116382
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/grossman/20090213.html
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ReplyDeleteThank-you for doing the research on this issue. We need to keep informed on what our government is doing and unfortunately the media is too biased to be a reliable source. Thank-you for including links so we can look things up for ourselves.
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