Counter-Protesters Clash With Tea Party Activists At Tax Day Rally

By Sofia Sanchez and Monique Cala University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Conservative activists clashed with counter-protesters Thursday during a Tea Party rally in Washington, D.C.'s Freedom Square.

While the vast majority of attendants were there to represent the Tea Party movement, a handful from the progressive organization The Other 95% showed up as well to publicly tout the tax cuts received by most Americans this tax season.

Tea Party member Laurell Fee, from Las Vegas, Nevada, took issue with the message of the counter-protest.

“What tax cuts are we talking about? Who got a tax cut, and how much? $7 bucks every two weeks? What are you going to do with that?" Fee told Talk Radio News.

Fee added that the counter-protesters should “Get a job, support themselves.”

Alex Lawson, a member of The Other 95%,, brushed off the "get a job" comment.

“They continually yell at us to ‘get a job,'" said Lawson. "I have a job, I am out on my lunch hour."

Added Lawson, “These people come out here continuously ... so I am wondering if the people yelling at me to ‘get a job’ actually have a job.”

Bachmann: Tax Day? More Like 'April Fools' Day

By Sofia Sanchez
University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

On the eve of Tax Day, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) called then-candidate Barack Obama's campaign pledge to not raise taxes on Americans an 'April Fools' joke.

“One piece of legislation we may want to be considering is combining April Fools Day with April 15th,” said Bachmann during a meeting with a handful of House Republicans and tax reform advocates on Capitol Hill Wednesday.

According to the much-maligned conservative, the American people were "fooled" by the Obama administration and House Democrats with their promises of no tax increases for families making under $250,000 a year.

The group Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) put out a statement saying that “Obamacare” is taxing American families that make under the set income of exclusion from tax hikes with seven violations.

Some of these tax increases include the medicine cabinet tax, which exempts Americans from using health savings accounts (HSA), as well as health reimbursement (HRA) and flexible spending accounts (FSA). Also, the group claims taxing Americans who use indoor tanning salons is also in violation of the earlier pledge.

“We were told that if we passed health care reform we’re going to save boat loads of money...how ironic in saving trillions of dollars we have to increase taxes trillions of dollars in order to quote ‘save that money’,” said Bachmann.

House Democrats, County Reps Push Jobs Growth At The Local Level

By Sofia Sanchez University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

A collection of House Democrats and the National Association of Counties urged Congress and the Obama administration Wednesday to support the Local Jobs For America Act, a piece of legislation intended to spur job growth at the local level.

“This critical piece of legislation will help put people to work by allocating funds directly to local communities to stimulate job creation in the public and private sector,” said the association's President-elect Glen Whitley.

If passed, the bill will provide communities $100 billion over the next two years to prevent businesses and local governments from being forced to cut jobs.

"We need more than just Wall Street improving, we need the jobs on main street,” said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.).

In March, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), who chairs the Education and Labor Committee, said that the legislation would create or preserve nearly 1 million jobs.

Data released earlier this month shows that 167,000 jobs were added to the labor force last month, marking the strongest job growth since the recession began in December of 2007.

Hoyer Defends Fellow Democrat Over Racial Slur Incident

By Sofia Sanchez
University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

On Tuesday, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) rebuked remarks made by Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) during the congressional recess regarding allegations that an African-American member of Congress, Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), was called the "N" word by tea party activists hours before the first vote on health care took place roughly three weeks ago.

When asked to discuss Bachmann's claim that the racial epithets may not have taken place, Hoyer responded.

"First of all, I think it undermines the credibility of someone who's a denier," he said. "People deny a lot of things happen, that are bad things that happen, and I don't think that is particularly useful."

Hoyer defended Lewis, regarded by many as being a Civil Rights pioneer, by saying, "I don't think there is any doubt that what John Lewis said happened and what others saw happened, and heard happen, did in fact happen."

House Majority Leader Denies Stupak Was Muscled Out By Conservatives

By Sofia Sanchez-University of New Mexico, Talk Radio News Service

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) denied Tuesday that pro-life Congressman Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) was pushed into retirement by Tea Party or Pro-life organizations.


"Bart Stupak is a very courageous member. He wasn't forced out by anybody and he was substantially ahead in the polls," said Hoyer.

Added the Majority Leader, "Do I think that the negative atmosphere that has been created by the tea party and by others certainly goes into the thinking of the members? I think it does," said Hoyer. "I don't think that was the determining factor with respect to Mr. Stupak."

Stupak, who served in Congress for 18 years, announced he would not seek re-election last Friday after becoming a lightning-rod for criticism in the health care debate. Pro-choice advocates charged that an amendment Stupak attempted to include in the legislation to specifically prohibit public funding for abortion restricted women's reproductive rights. Conservatives claimed that a White House executive order sought by Stupak offering a similar guarantee was not strong enough to warrant his eventual support.

Hoyer went on to say that Stupak's retirement is a result of the time spent away from his family and the toll it has taken on them after losing a son to suicide in May, 2000. Hoyer also confirmed that Stupak has been looking at retirement for the past two years.

Hoyer acknowledged the difficult elections facing many House Democrats, but said "I would urge all the members that are here to run and seek re-election."