Obama and Marijuana

http://www.americablog.com/2009/03/obama-and-marijuana.html

An online campaign was organized to ask President Obama about legalizing marijuana on the WH Web Site.  This commentary shows the top questions that were asked to the President about pot.   Majority of the questions asked in this campaign were about how the legalization of pot will help the economy and make millions of tax money.  No question was really based on a medical point of view or really worth the effort to answer.  Questions were based on how marijuana is less harmful then cigarettes and alcohol so why not legalize it.  The President in return to the questions just laughed and said no.  This had upset many people but as the author wrote it is not the Presidents fault since the campaign was a flop to start with.  No President in his right mind would think about legalizing pot fully.  If questions and concerns in the medical field for marijuana were brought up maybe this could have led to something, but making pot legal 100% is political suicide for anyone.  The author’s intended audience is the people who are upset with Obama for rejecting the legalization of marijuana.  I agree with him that it should not be the President at fault but the campaign that was not well organized with the right questions to ask.  It is good to think about the economy at this certain point, but thinking of only the economy is not enough.  People need to think about the other consequences that can occur with legalizing marijuana and not only about making a few bucks right now.

http://www.americablog.com/2009/03/obama-and-marijuana.html 

President Obama’s Budget: Some Honesty About Taxes — Finally

The intended audience of the author in this editorial is the general U.S. public.  His argument is based on the article from TIMES TOPICS: U.S. Federal Budget.  I feel it is more toward the middle class more then other social classes in the public.   The author talks about the government finally being truthful about how tax is going to work.  After George W. Bush’s reckless economic policy which but the government in a $1.75 trillion budget deficit, Barrack Obama’s budget plan intends to increase taxes and blindly admits that taxes must go up for the economy to recover.  The author states that if actions are not taken to control the deficit then the foreign lenders who have been financing government plans like the bailout will loose faith in the nation to repay them with the rapidly depreciating dollar.  As the author believes as well as I, that President Obama is not just talking the talk with his well planned blueprint with what actions to take to get out of this recession.  The proposed tax increase includes couples with an annual earning of $250,000 or more and singles with $200,000 or more.  Obama will let Bush’s high-end tax cuts expire in 2011 and raise it from 35% to as high as 39.6.   The author feels like this is the right move because with no tax money coming in to spend government will just put us into a higher budget deficit and he strongly believes a fiscal policy will help and believes only people who understand fiscal policy will fully agree with the tax raise.  I strongly agree with the step to increase taxes since without the public contributing we can not expect the government to get money.  The only step they would have left is to borrow from other countries which would just give us a higher national debt then we already have. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/opinion/27fri1.html?scp=6&sq=editorial&st=cse

Deal Reached in Congress on $789 Billion Stimulus Plan

This article talks about the $789 billion economic stimulus bill that is being negotiated by House and Senate leaders.  The bill which declares spending increase and tax relief which will put money back into consumers and companies pockets was smaller then the House or Senate had proposed but compromises were made with Democratic and Republican parties.  The final outline of the bill includes $507 billion in spending programs and $282 billion in tax relief.  The tax cut includes $400 for individuals and $800 for family with certain income limits.  $150 billion will go to public works projects for transportation, energy and technology.  Also to help the rising Medicaid costs $87 billion was put aside.  I believe you should read this article because it is informing us on what is our government doing during the economic crisis. It will also provide information on how our government will use this money to recover us from the economic turndown which we are facing.  Also it tells how the final deal was made and how many officials still believe why the bill should be changed or why more money should go to certain parts of the economy. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/us/politics/12stimulus.html?_r=1&ref=politics&pagewanted=print