The US Congress was expected yesterday to pass a US$789 billion economic stimulus package that is aimed at unleashing large spending and tax cuts to help dig the economy out of a 14-month recession.
The US’ Democratic-controlled House of Representatives and Senate are expected to approve the emergency package, giving US President Barack Obama a political victory, but falling short of his goal of broad Republican backing.
The president has urged Congress to pass the stimulus bill before the end of the upcoming holiday weekend so he can sign it into law. Its goal is to create or save 3.5 million jobs in an economy that has seen massive job losses since the recession began in December 2007.
Obama, meanwhile, delivered what has become a daily call for congressional action, this time from the industrial heartland of the US at a Caterpillar Inc plant in East Peoria, Illinois. His message was blunted when the company’s chairman warned that it may be up to a year before the program has a positive impact the economy.
“It is time for Congress to act, and I hope they act in a bipartisan fashion,” Obama said, arguing his plan would unleash a wave of construction, innovation and job growth once he signed it into law.
“It’s about giving people a way to make a living, support their families and live out their dreams,” Obama said. “Americans aren’t looking for a handout. They just want to work.”
“When they finally pass our plan, I believe it will be a major step forward on our path to economic recovery,” Obama said on Thursday.
Obama said that the company’s chief executive told him that he could rehire some of the employees that have been laid off once the stimulus plan was approved.
Most Republicans opposed the stimulus plans Democrats put forward, saying they expanded government spending too much and did not include enough tax cuts.
The final package includes US$507 billion in spending and money for social programs like the Medicaid health insurance program, as well as US$282 billion in tax cuts that include small tax incentives to spur home and automobile sales as well as business tax deductions.
Senators Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe and Arlen Specter agreed to back the legislation if it was pared down to below US$800 billion. To achieve that, one cut was tens of billions of dollars from grants to help states plug growing budget gaps.
Still, the measure includes US$8.4 billion for public transportation and US$9.3 billion for Amtrak and high-speed rail services.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique