Chew on this:

http://tpzoo.wordpress.com/2008/07/31 ... s-senate-accomplishments/


Senator Obama has sponsored or co-sponsored 570 bills in the 109th and 110th Congress.

Senator Obama has sponsored or co-sponsored 15 bills that have become LAW since he joined the Senate in 2005.

Senator Obama has also introduced amendments to 50 bills, of which 16 were adopted by the Senate.

His record is in fact quite impressive for a junior Senator from Illinois.

Most of his legislative effort has been in the areas of:

Energy Efficiency and Climate Change (25 bills)
Health care (21 bills) and public health (20 bills)
Consumer protection/labor (14 bills)
The needs of Veterans and the Armed Forces (13 bills)
Congressional Ethics and Accountability (12 bills)
Foreign Policy (10 bills)
Voting and Elections (9 bills)
Education (7 bills)
Hurricane Katrina Relief (6)
The Environment (5 bills)
Homeland Security (4 bills)
Discrimination (4 bills)
And the full details including bill numbers? Keep reading. I promise you will be impressed!


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Below I summarize Senator Obama?s legislative record in the US Senate. First I list the bills he sponsored that have become law. Next I summarize the bills that he has sponsored or cosponsored since he became a US Senator in 2005.

I have only included major pieces of legislation and have not summarized continuing resolutions or naming post offices, for example.

His record suggests several priorities and the bills he supports address many of our most pressing problems.

Of the 15 bills Senator Obama sponsored or co-sponsored in 2005-7 that became law:

Two addressed foreign policy:

Promote relief, security and democracy in the Congo (2125)
Develop democratic institutions in areas under Palestinian control (2370).
Three addressed public health:

Improve mine safety (2803)
Increased breast cancer funding (597)
Reduce preterm delivery and complications, reduce infant mortality (707).
Two addressed openness and accountability in government:

Strengthening the Freedom of Information Act (2488 )
Full disclosure of all entities receiving federal funds (2590)
Two addressed national security

Extend Terrorist Risk Insurance (467)
Amend the Patriot Act (2167)
One addressed the needs of the Armed Forces

Wave passport fees to visit graves, attend memorials/funerals of veterans abroad (1184).
Of the 570 bills Senator Obama introduced into the Senate during the 109th and 110th Congress (Senate Bill numbers are in parentheses), they can be summarized as follows:

25 addressed Energy Efficiency and Climate Change

Suspend royalty relief for oil and gas (115)
Reduce dependence on oil; use of alternative energy sources (133)
Increase fuel economy standards for cars (767, 768 )
Auto industry incentives for fuel efficient vehicles (1151)
Reduce green house gas emissions (1324)
Establish at NSF a climate change education program (1389)
Increase renewable content of gasoline (2202)
Energy emergency relief for small businesses and farms (269)
Strategic gasoline and fuel reserves (1794)
Alternative diesel standards (3554)
Coal to liquid fuel promotion (3623)
Renewable diesel standards (1920)
Reducing global warming pollution from vehicles (2555)
Fuel security and consumer choice (1994, 2025)
Alternative energy refueling system (2614)
Climate change education (1389)
Low income energy assistance (2405)
Oil savings targets (339)
Fuel economy reform (3694)
Plug-in electric drive vehicles (1617)
Nuclear release notice (2348 )
Passenger rail investment (294)
Energy relief for low income families (2405)
21 addressed Health Care

Drug re-importation (334)
Health information technology (1262, 1418 )
Discount drug prices (2347)
Health care associated infections (2278 )
Hospital quality report cards (692, 1824)
Medical error disclosure and compensation (1784)
Emergency medical care and response (1873)
Stem cell research (5)
Medical Malpractice insurance (1525)
Health centers renewal (901, 3771)
Children?s health insurance (401)
Home health care (2061)
Medicare independent living (2103)
Microbicides for HIV/AIDS (823)
Ovarian cancer biomarker research (2569)
Gynological cancers (1172)
Access to personalized medicine through use of human genome (976)
Paralysis research and care (1183)
20 addressed Public Health:

Violence against women (1197)
Biodefense and pandemic preparedness and response (1821, 1880)
Viral influenza control (969)
End homelessness (1518 )
Reduce STDs/unintended pregnancy (1790)
Smoking prevention and tobacco control (625)
Minority health improvement and disparity elimination (4024)
Nutrition and physical education in schools (2066)
Health impact assessments (1067, 2506)
Healthy communities (1068 )
Combat methamphetamines (2071)
Paid sick leave (910)
Prohibit mercury sales (833, 1818 )
Prohibit sale of lead products (1306, 2132)
Lead exposure in children (1811, 2132)
14 address Consumer Protection/Labor

Stop unfair labor practices (842)
Fair minimum wage (2, 1062, 2725, 3829)
Internet freedom (2917)
Credit card safety (2411)
Media ownership (2332)
Protecting taxpayer privacy (2484)
Working family child assistance (218 )
Habeus Corpus Restoration (185)
Bankruptcy protection for employees and retirees (2092)
FAA fair labor management dispute resolution (2201)
Working families flexibility (2419).
13 addressed the Needs of Veterans and the Armed Forces:

Improve Benefits (117)
Suicide prevention (479)
Needs of homeless veterans (1180)
Homes for veterans (1084)
GI Bill enhancement (43)
Military job protection
Dignity in care for wounded vets (713)
Housing assistance for low income veterans (1084)
Military children in public schools (2151)
Military eye injury research and care (1999)
Research physical/mental health needs from Iraq War (1271)
Proper administration of discharge for personality disorder (1817, 1885)
Security of personal data of veterans (3592)
12 addressed Congressional Ethics and Accountability

Lobbying and ethics reform (230)
Stop fraud (2280)
Legislative transparency and accountability (525)
Open government (2180, 2488 )
Restoring fiscal discipline (10)
Transparency and integrity in earmarks (2261)
Accountability of conference committee deliberations and reports (2179)
Federal funding accountability and transparency (2590)
Accountability and oversight for private security functions under Federal
contract (674)
Accountability for contractors and personnel under federal contracts
(2147) Restrictions awarding government contracts (2519)
10 addressed Foreign Policy:

Iraq war de-escalation (313)
US policy for Iraq (433),
Divestiture from Iran (1430)
Sudan divestment authorization (831)
Millennium Development Goals (2433)
Multilateral debt relief (1320)
Development bank reform (1129)
Nuclear nonproliferation (3131,977,2224).
9 address Voting/Elections

Prohibit deceptive practices in Federal elections (453)
Voter access to polls and services in Federal elections (737)
Voter intimidation and deceptive practices (1975)
Senate campaign disclosure parity (185)
Require reporting for bundled campaign contributions (2030)
Election jamming prevention (4102)
Campaign disclosure parity (223)
Presidential funding (2412)
Integrity of electronic voting systems (1487)
11 addressed Education

Increase access of low income African Americans to higher education (1513)
Establish teaching residency programs (1574)
Increase early intervention services (2111)
Middle school curriculum improvements (2227)
Public database of scholarships, fellowships and financial aid (2428 )
Summer learning programs (116)
TANF financial education promotion (924)
Higher education (1642)
Build capacity at community colleges (379)
Campus law enforcement in emergencies (1228 )
Support for teachers (2060).
6 addressed Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina recovery (2319)
Emergency relief (1637)
Bankruptcy relief and community protection (1647)
Working family tax relief (2257)
Fair wages for recovery workers (1749)
Gulf coast infrastructure redevelopment (1836)
5 addressed the Environment

Drinking water security (218, 1426)
Water resources development (728 )
Waste water treatment (1995)
Combat illegal logging (1930)
Spent nuclear fuel tracking and accountability (1194)
Asian Carp Prevention and Control Act (Introduced in Senate)[S.726.IS ]
4 addressed Discrimination

Claims for civil class action based on discrimination (1989)
Domestic partnership benefits (2521)
Unresolved civil rights crimes (535)
Equality or two parent families (2286)
4 addressed Homeland Security

Judicial review of FISA orders (2369)
National emergency family locator (1630)
Amend US Patriot Act (2167)
Chemical security and safety (2486)

How weird. I was just thinking about this because the other day I had something to mail and I had to wait until I had a block of time in which to get over there. It's too far to walk unless you have lots of time, and there's no parking. So my sister drove me and circled the block. I went in and of course there were about 15 people in line and two windows open. It took about 15 minutes to reach the head of the line, partly because the people who work there move pretty slowly. I don't mean that they're older. They just move slowly. Finally I got a call from my sister wondering, I guess, if I'd been kidnapped.

What a pain! It would be nice to have another post office or two.

As for using the building for other purposes-- I prefer it as a public building. Its architectural integrity has been somewhat compromised by "improvements" that were apparently done in the 60s. But it's still a nice building, and everyone should get to see it-- not just condo residents or restaurant patrons.

I see those women in HP every day. The brunette first caught my attention because she is often on one of the payphones, yelling at someone. Now I see the two ladies together all the time, never speaking to each other but just sort of being in each other's presence. Sometimes the blonde is sitting on the bench while the brunette is on the pay phone. I wonder if the person on the line is a relative or social services. I also saw the blonde sleeping on the grass in HP early one morning. I wasn't sure if she had spent the night there-- often people lie on the grass during the day. But I got scared for her if she was sleeping in the park. It's pretty dark and desolate there late at night. I kind of get the sense that she had a good job and then something happened and she became homeless. She seems fairly well dressed, as if whatever happened was recent.

Once I was walking my dog across West Hamilton and the two women were crossing too. The blonde didn't seem to see me and nearly walked right into me. I apologized (habit) and tried to make eye contact, but she was having none of it and seemed a bit freaked out by my close presence, or maybe it was my dog. I got a mental health issue "vibe," although I'm no expert. I hope someone is helping them.

I wonder if there should be a thread with shelters and other resources-- So people on this board can volunteer if they wish or maybe someone who is homeless (and there are many educated homeless who might be in a library looking online) might see.

There used to be a bookstore on Grove or Newark. I think it was a used bookstore. This was 8 years ago now.

It would be nice to have another small, independent bookstore, but for those, you need a community of readers. Sorry, maybe I'm too judgmental, but I think the yuppie tower people are more like Barnes & Noble customers-- they want to be told what to read. I used to work at a B&N-- very little respect for the books, among people of all classes.

Not sure where a Barnes & Noble could go. Ideally somewhere where low-income people (without cars) could walk to.

In Maine, where I once lived, there were many small bookstores, and only one B&N-- an hour away, in Augusta. I miss that.

The knitting cafe near where I used to live (in Maine) was mostly a knitting supply shop, with yarn, needles, etc. But there was a big table in the middle where knitting groups would sit, and another little seating area. Then in the back there was a counter where they sold coffee and pastries.

It was a nice place to hang out on a cold winter's day, and the staff (a married couple, both accomplished knitters) would give you pointers if you wanted, as would the more accomplished customers.

There's a sign saying there's a new knitting cafe coming to that empty storefront on Jersey, near C-Town, next to the realtor, where there used to be a deli.

Does anyone here knit? I did for a few months, but I was so bad that it was a source of frustration and I gave it up.

I also advocate asking around. If you're walking around a neighborhood you like and you see friendly looking people (maybe doing yardwork or having a stoop sale or whatever), ask if they know of anything for rent. I did that in 1999, when I first moved to JC, and heard about a situation where the owner's dad had lived there and died several months before, and the owner just hadn't gotten around to cleaning it out but planned to advertise for a tenant.
I ended up with a nice (unrenovated, but still very nice) duplex on 8th St. with a back yard, eat-in kitchen, 2 huge bedrooms, washer/dryer, basement for storage, etc., for $1200 incl. utilities, which I split with a roommate. I lived there for 1.5 years, and it was great. There was a 1-bedroom in the same building which I believe went for about $800 at the time. Yes, it was 9 years ago, but you can still find good deals.

I've eaten at the Ale House twice. Once was at lunch, and we ate outside. I thought my sandwich was great and enjoyed sitting outside, even though 10th is kind of boring. The second time, we ate inside. The food was pretty good, but the atmosphere is horrible. Those TVs make me feel like I'm eating in Times Square. Even the banner outside advertising beer is a turn-off. It's kind of a last resort place when I'm tired of Simple.

I ate in White Star once. The atmosphere is much more neighborhood-y. I shared a pizza and a turkey burger. Turkey burger was okay. Pizza...I've had better. Simple's pizza is better. And my dessert, which was something like brownie a la mode, was bad. I don't know why they couldn't make/buy brownies that taste at least as good as the Duncan Hines that I can whip together myself, but these barely had any taste. Luckily I wasn't paying for my own dessert, but I felt bad that I left 90 percent of it untouched.

I do like Simple. Some of their food tastes like they heat it up from frozen (like Costco or something), but then, that doesn't mean it tastes bad. It's a bar, not a gourmet restaurant. It's my choice for the neighborhood, esp. since the people in Basic are...a little rude sometimes.