Senate Democrats Attack GOP Over Tax Cuts

A pair of Senate Democrats, Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.) and Jeff Merkley (Ore.), continued their party’s assault on Republicans over the GOP’s desire to extend tax cuts for Americans making over $250,000 per year.

“George Bush racked up trillions of dollars in debt cutting taxes for the wealthy, and now Senate Republicans want to extend those cuts and pass the bill along to our children,” said Whitehouse. “We need to keep taxes low for the struggling middle-class, but it’s not wise to add to our debt to subsidize low taxes for multi-millionaires.”
 
“The Democratic tax plan is straightforward: it cuts taxes for all Americans on the first $250,000 of their income,” added Merkley. “The Republican plan, however, seeks budget busting bonus benefits for millionaires and billionaires. This Republican plan — which costs over $700 billion over 10 years — is bad for our debt and bad for our economy.”

Udall Encourages Troops To Claim Stop-Loss Pay

New Mexico Senator Tom Udall (D) released the following statement urging American troops who have been asked to continue their tours of service under stop-loss rules, to apply for special compensation granted under this year’s war funding bill:

“I want to encourage the servicemen and women whose service was extended by ‘Stop Loss’ to apply for retroactive pay benefits now,” Udall said. “Our Active Duty, Reserve and Guard troops have shown great dedication by continuing to defend America during its time of need and they have earned this compensation.”

Alleged Terror Plot Targeting Pope Foiled, Five Arrested

According to London authorities an alleged threat to Pope Benedict XVI led to the pre-dawn arrests of five men in London on Friday on the second day of the pontiff’s trip to Britain. The Vatican said the pope was calm and so far planned no changes to his schedule.

The men, between the ages of 26 and 50, were detained under the Terrorism Act at a business in central London. They are being questioned at a London police station and have not been charged. Police said an initial search of the business and other properties did not uncover any hazardous items.

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Gunman Shot On Capitol Hill

An unknown gunman was shot this morning on Capitol Hill by Capitol Police officers.

U.S. Capitol Police spokeswoman Sgt. Kimberly Schneider says a lookout went out around 5 a.m. for a man with a gun. Officers later saw the man, who pointed the gun at them. Schneider says the officers opened fire after the man refused to drop his weapon and that officers fired because they were in “fear for their lives.” 

The unknown gunman was transported to a nearby hospital. His condition remains unknown as more details on the story are forthcoming.

START Treaty Scores Key Victory

A Senate panel voted today to pass the New START Treaty. The 14-4 vote by the Senate Foreign Relations Commttee means the treaty will go to the Senate floor for ratification sometime this session. President Obama is hoping that vote takes place sooner than later.

“Today, I urge the full Senate to move forward quickly with a vote to approve this Treaty,” Obama said. “I encourage members on both sides of the aisle to give this agreement the fair hearing and bipartisan support that it deserves, and that has been given to past agreements of its kind.”