By Colin Campbell 4/12 10:06am

Bullet Points

Mayor Bloomberg. (Photo: Getty)

Bloomberg Says Senate’s Gun Deal Is ‘90 Percent’ Perfect

Although gun control advocates–including the New York Daily News editorial board–have sharply criticized the U.S. Senate for moving forward with gun legislation that mostly just focuses on expanding background checks, Mayor Michael Bloomberg is just fine with it.

“I think this is not perfect but it takes you 90 percent of the way–maybe 95 percent of the way–towards more rational gun laws,” Mr. Bloomberg said during his weekly WOR radio show this morning. “And the public is overwhelmingly in favor of background checks. A couple of the editorial boards thinks it’s not enough, but the public does and I do.” Read More

By Colin Campbell 12/18/12 10:24am

Plan B

(Photo: Getty)

Republicans Announce ‘Backup Plan’ in Fiscal Cliff Negotiations

Earlier this morning, Speaker John Boehner and the U.S. House Republican leadership held a press conference to announce a new proposal to raise taxes on the wealthy and avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff,” or the steep set of spending cuts and tax increases that will arrive by the end of the year if a deficit deal is not reached. Specifically, Mr. Boehner’s plan would extend the current tax rates on everyone making less than $1 million a year, a sharp jump from President Barack Obama’s own counteroffer yesterday, which conceded a $400,000 ceiling. Mr. Obama had previously stood firm on allowing the tax cuts to expire for everyone making more than $250,000, a number that GOP lawmakers apparently found unacceptable.

“Our hope continues to be to reach an agreement with the president on a balanced approach that averts the fiscal cliff. What we’ve offered meets the definition of balance, but the President is not there yet,” Mr. Boehner began. “What the White House offered yesterday was essentially $1.3 million in new revenues, for only $850 billion in net spending reductions. That’s not balanced in my opinion. So, at the same time that we’re going to talk to the President, we’re going to also move ‘plan B.’” Read More

By Colin Campbell 11/16/12 12:27pm

dealmaking

(Photo: Getty)

Obama and Congressional Leaders Powwow in Attempt to Avoid Fiscal Cliff

Earlier today, President Barack Obama gathered with the majority and minority leaders of both houses of Congress to move forward in avoiding automatic spending cuts and tax hikes set to occur at the end of the year. Although Democrats and Republicans have, at times, seemed to have irreconcilable differences in the process, the various elected officials walked out of the Roosevelt Room with an optimistic outlook that a compromise would be reached.

“I can only echo the observations of the other leaders that it was a constructive meeting. We all understand where we are….We are prepared to put revenue on the table provided we fix the real problem,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters, according to a White House pool report. “Most of my members, I think without exception, believe that we’re in the dilemma we’re in not because we taxed too little but because we spent too much.” Read More