February 27, 2014

GOP's New Plan Hikes Taxes On Americans In Blue States

Source: TPM DC

SAHIL KAPUR – FEBRUARY 27, 2014, 6:00 AM EST4347

A central feature of the House Republicans' ambitious new tax reform bill would raise taxes disproportionately on residents of blue states -- especially middle-to-upper income people who live in New York and California.

The sweeping proposal released Wednesday by Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI), the House's top tax writer, eliminates the deduction for state and local taxes, which lets taxpayers who itemize deductions subtract general state and local taxes when calculating their federal taxable income. It's currently the seventh most expensive tax break in code, costing the federal government about $1.1 trillion in revenue over a decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Camp's plan wipes out this break for individuals in tax years beginning after December 31, 2014. "The provision would eliminate a tax benefit that effectively subsidizes higher State and local taxes and increased spending at the State and local level," reads a summary of the House Ways & Means Committee chairman's proposal. It pairs the elimination of the tax break with an increase in the standard deduction, which somewhat cushions the financial blow.

The two states that benefit most from the tax break are high-income, high-tax California (whose residents use up 17.2 percent of the cost of the deduction) and New York (13.3 percent). The contrast with low-tax, red states is stark: New Jersey, despite having a third of the population of Texas, eats up more of the deduction than the Lone Star State.

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/gop-tax-plan-state-local-deduction-liberal-states

February 27, 2014

John Kerry: U.S. 'Beginning To Behave Like A Poor Nation'

Source: Reuters

By Arshad Mohammed and Lesley Wroughton

WASHINGTON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry decried what he called a "new isolationism" in the United States on Wednesday and suggested that the country was beginning to behave like a poor nation.

Speaking to reporters, Kerry inveighed against what he sees as a tendency within the United States to retreat from the world even as he defended the Obama administration's diplomatic efforts from Syria to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In comments tied to the budget that U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to present on Tuesday, Kerry suggested that tighter spending, in part at the behest of congressional Republicans, may limit U.S. clout around the world.

"There's a new isolationism," Kerry said during a nearly one-hour discussion with a small group of reporters.

Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/26/john-kerry-us_n_4863250.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

February 27, 2014

Hillary Clinton Defends Obamacare While Backing Changes

CATHERINE THOMPSON – FEBRUARY 27, 2014, 6:45 AM EST

Hillary Clinton defended Obamacare on Wednesday while voicing her support for changes to the health care law, CNN reported.

“I think we are on the right track in many respects but I would be the first to say if things aren’t working then we need people of good faith to come together and make evidence-based changes,” Clinton said at a meeting of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society in Florida, as quoted by CNN.

The former secretary of state said that while provisions of the law like the rule allowing children under 26 to remain on their parents' health insurance have been successful, other issues still need to be addressed. She pointed to problems with small businesses trying to provide health care coverage to more than 50 employees and businesses dropping employees from full-time to part-time work to avoid making health care contributions as areas that need work.

“Part of the challenge is to clear away all the smoke and try to figure out what is working and what isn’t,” she said, as quoted by CNN. “What do we need to do to try to fix this? Because it would be a great tragedy, in my opinion, to take away what has now been provided.”

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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/hillary_clinton_defends_obamacare_backs_changes

February 27, 2014

Hillary Clinton Praises Arizona Guv For Vetoing 'Discriminatory' Bill

CATHERINE THOMPSON – FEBRUARY 27, 2014, 7:10 AM EST

Hillary Clinton on Wednesday praised Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) for vetoing "discriminatory" legislation that would have allowed businesses to deny service to LGBT individuals.

“Thankfully the governor of Arizona has vetoed the discriminatory legislation that was passed, recognizing that inclusive leadership is really what the 21st century is all about,” Clinton said in the first minutes of her speech at the University of Miami, as quoted by CNN.

Brewer vetoed the disputed legislation Wednesday night. The bill, SB 1062, had drawn intense backlash from state and national politicians on both sides of the aisle as well as prominent business groups.

The former secretary of state used the veto of the Arizona bill as a launching pad to make the case for equal rights, from LGBT individuals to those with disabilities, to the young voters gathered to hear her speak.

more
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/hillary_clinton_praises_veto_discriminatory_arizona_bill

February 27, 2014

Supreme Court Could Soon Open The Floodgates For More Anti-Gay Laws

DYLAN SCOTT – FEBRUARY 26, 2014, 12:15 PM EST

In an upcoming decision, the U.S. Supreme Court could either open the floodgates for a new outpouring of anti-gay discrimination laws -- or constrict the "religious freedom" movement just as it's getting started.

Whether Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer will veto Senate Bill 1062 has dominated headlines for the last week, and similar legislation has been introduced this year in Mississippi, Georgia, Tennessee, Kansas, South Dakota, and Idaho. The proposed laws would greenlight the refusal by businesses and individuals to provide services to LGBT people by requiring the government to have a compelling reason to interfere with someone's religious belief.

A closely watched case currently before the Supreme Court, Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores Inc., has nothing to do with LGBT rights, but everything to do with religious freedom. At issue is whether the federal government can require private businesses to cover birth control for their employees under Obamacare if the employer objects to contraception on religious grounds.

That's why advocates and legal experts say that if the justices rule that the health care reform law doesn't apply to those individuals and businesses, their legal reasoning could open the door for more discriminatory legislation. Or if they rule that it does, that could establish a new judicial foundation for striking down those anti-gay laws.

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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/scotus-hobby-lobby-arizona-anti-gay-law

February 27, 2014

Rick Scott Now Says He Would Veto Arizona Anti-Gay Bill

DANIEL STRAUSS – FEBRUARY 26, 2014, 4:44 PM EST

Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) is now saying he would veto a controversial Arizona bill that lets businesses discriminate against LGBT people after dodging the question this morning on MSNBC.

"I don’t want to tell Governor Brewer what to do, she can do what’s best for her state. From my understanding of that bill, I would veto it in Florida because it seems unnecessary," Scott said in a statement Wednesday afternoon.

Earlier in the day Scott refused to say whether Brewer should veto the bill. He was pressed multiple times during an interview on MSNBC but the Florida governor said he had not seen the proposal yet.

"In Florida we are focused on economic growth, and not on things that divide us. We are for freedom here in Florida. And we want everyone to come here, create jobs, and live in freedom, and that includes religious liberty," Scott continued in his statement.

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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/rick-scott-veto-arizona-sb-1062

February 27, 2014

14 Supreme Court Cases: Marriage is a Fundamental Right

July 19, 2012

It is well-established and crystal clear that the right to marry is a central aspect of the right to liberty, privacy, association, and identity.

Fourteen times since 1888, the United States Supreme Court has stated that marriage is a fundamental right of all individuals. In these cases, the Court has reaffirmed that “freedom of personal choice in matters of marriage” is “one of the liberties protected by the Due Process Clause,” “essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men,” and “sheltered by the Fourteenth Amendment against the State’s unwarranted usurpation, disregard, or disrespect.”

Here is a list of the fourteen cases, with links to the opinions and citations to the Court’s discussion of the right to marry.

Maynard v. Hill, 125 U.S. 190, 205, 211 (1888): Marriage is “the most important relation in life” and “the foundation of the family and society, without which there would be neither civilization nor progress.”

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https://www.afer.org/blog/14-supreme-court-cases-marriage-is-a-fundamental-right/

February 27, 2014

Houston's Openly Lesbian Mayor Not Surprised By TX Gay Marriage Ruling

DANIEL STRAUSS – FEBRUARY 26, 2014, 5:32 PM EST

The openly lesbian mayor of Houston isn't surprised by a federal judge's ruling that the state's gay marriage ban is unconstitutional. In a statement, Houston Mayor Annise Parker (D) said that the ruling is just another step in the direction Texas is headed.

"This is not a surprise. I have known all along that this is where we are heading in my home state and across the country," Parker said in a statement. "It is one more step in a long quest for equal rights that will end at the Supreme Court. I am pleased to see that this federal judge is following the same line of reasoning that led me to recognize same sex spouses for the purposes of city business."

Parker's statement Wednesday afternoon came U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia found the state's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. Garcia put a stay on the ruling so the ban remains in place for now.

Attorney General Greg Abbott (R) said in response to Garcia's ruling that Texas would begin taking steps to appeal the decision.

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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/annise-parker-gay-marriage-ban-ruling

February 27, 2014

EXCLUSIVE: Georgia Business Group Wants Anti-Gay Bill Scrapped

Source: TPM

DYLAN SCOTT – FEBRUARY 26, 2014, 6:43 PM EST

Like the Arizona business community, which has pressured Republican Gov. Jan Brewer to veto an anti-gay bill there, the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce wants the Georgia legislature to reject the anti-gay bill that's been introduced in that state.

"We feel strongly that the laws of our nation and state already adequately protect the concept of religious freedom that this country was founded on," the chamber said in a statement to TPM after an inquiry about its position on the bill. "We encourage the General Assembly to reject proposals that would do little to enhance this basic right yet significantly threaten our business climate.”

Bills have been introduced in both Georgia chambers. The Senate bill was introduced on Feb. 11 by Sen. Josh McKoon, a Republican. The House bill was introduced on Feb. 18 by Rep. Sam Teasley, also a Republican. Both are similar to the legislation in Arizona that sparked a national firestorm.

According to WABE, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved its bill last week and a floor vote is expected by Monday. The House bill has been held up as the national outcry over Arizona's bill has increase the pressure on other states.



Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/georgia-anti-gay-bill-atlanta-chamber

February 27, 2014

MLB On AZ Anti-Gay Bill: We Have 'Zero-Tolerance Policy' On LGBT Discrimination

Source: TPM

CAITLIN MACNEAL – FEBRUARY 26, 2014, 6:55 PM EST

Major League Baseball on Wednesday issued a statement on the controversial anti-gay bill passed by the Arizona legislature last week, condemning discrimination against gays and lesbians.

"MLB has a zero-tolerance policy for harassment or discrimination based on sexual orientation, as reflected by our collective bargaining agreement with the MLB Players Association. Accordingly, MLB will neither support nor tolerate any words, attitudes or actions that imperil the inclusive communities that we have strived to foster within our game," the statement reads.

"As the sport of Jackie Robinson, Major League Baseball and its 30 Clubs stand united behind the principles of respect, inclusion and acceptance."

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Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/mlb-zero-tolerance-arizona-bill

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