Urgent! Obama working behind the scenes, has already quietly cut heating assistance to the needy

[ooglymoogly]

by 70%

I was at the senior center on Thursday, where seniors living on subsistence SS were comparing letters from Community Action, Fuel Assistance, that cut their benefits by more than 70%.

That will, overall, be more than 80% by the end of the season. Many folks, including children, will freeze to death this winter... and many will lose their homes and will not be able to buy food or medicines particularly seniors, the poor and out of work, due to exorbitant heating costs.

The letter urges folks to call, in Ma.,

Senator Scott Brown ()617-565-3170 or 202-224-4543)

Senator John Kerry (617-565-8519 or 202-224-2742)

Your Senators in your state

Your Representatives in your state.

And most importantly; Barack Obama 202-456-1111 or 202-465-1414

[snagglepuss]

1. K &R

[ooglymoogly]

30. Thanx...I was hoping this would reach the front page

But as you can see the "0" brigade is out in force to keep it from the front page.

[snagglepuss]

2. K &R

[otohara]

3. Link?

[napoleon_in_rags]

4. I looked and found this:

http://www.telegram.com/article/20111112/NEWS/111129921/1003/NEWS03#

I'm interested the source of the "steep cuts in federal funding to heating programs". I see this:

http://www.telegram.com/article/20111102/COLUMN44/111029377

President Barack Obama had proposed cutting the program by 50 percent in his 2012 budget, a budget that was never approved. A stop-gap funding bill, which expires Nov. 18, provides about $3.4 billion for the program.

snip

A congressional “Supercommittee” is working to cut between $1.2 trillion and $1.5 trillion.

So it looks like the can on this got kicked to the super committee, and now its really on the table, if this source can be trusted.

[otohara]

6. There's No Mention of POTUS In Article

are you sure it's not Michele Obama who is killing kids and seniors

[napoleon_in_rags]

8. I just updated my post above. I was looking for that too.

Of course its not Obama, as the second article linked to suggests, but maybe Obama going along in a bipartisan way with the call to cut government spending, and now people really seeing what that means now that the super committee has their finger on the trigger.

[ooglymoogly]

15. See this link:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/09/obama-poor-energy-cuts-kerry-letter_n_821061.html

[napoleon_in_rags]

29. So this is about the 11/18/11 expiration of the stop gap funding?

President Barack Obama had proposed cutting the program by 50 percent in his 2012 budget, a budget that was never approved. A stop-gap funding bill, which expires Nov. 18, provides about $3.4 billion for the program.

http://www.telegram.com/article/20111102/COLUMN44/111029377

So this was basically approved and is hitting now, but it was a done deal long before? Wow, that one flew under my radar. I wonder how widespread the effects are going to be, because that will effect people I work with too, in very negative ways.

[ooglymoogly]

37. Now there it is, you have whittled it down to the lead. But the cut

is more like 70% that will turn into 80%+ by the end of season.

This will mean disaster for many.

[MADem]

9. Of course not--this is the proposal of the supercommittee.

If Congress sends a bill to the President fully funding the heating assistance program, he'll sign it.

[woo me with science]

12. And if they send him one cutting it, will he veto it?

That is the much more relevant question here.

[ooglymoogly]

Its a done deal, the cuts are now being realized. nt

[woo me with science]

22. We are being eaten alive by the rich.

I am sick of the defense of thieves because they have a (D) after their names.

[ooglymoogly]

27. This is not Congress.

No bill that I know of has been sent to the Pres. These cuts are already in place and letters sent out.

[MADem]

32. Probably not--which makes putting the FOCUS ON CONGRESS all the more important.

And you know what? He likely would not veto it no matter how many phone calls you or anyone else made.

You want to influence events? Do it at the appropriations end of things. House and Senate, that's where to focus. You can also ask the Governor to talk it up, use his bully pulpit, but the key to getting the funding restored is to hit 'em where it's appropriated.

[ooglymoogly]

11. Search of Google found this link

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/09/obama-poor-energy-cuts-kerry-letter_n_821061.html

[woo me with science]

16. Thank you. There is no evidence at all that he would resist such cuts. nt

[otohara]

21. Thanks

[madrchsod]

5. wow...i did`t know this happened..here`s a link for the skeptics

http://www.wickedlocal.com/pembroke/mobiletopstories/x1696638096/Fuel-assistance-funding-cut-more-than-58-percent-in-Mass#axzz1dXs3QcUq


the predication for the upper midwest this year is worse than last year. thanks to the republicans there`s going to be a lot of folks that are going to have to chose between being warm and eating.

[femrap]

39. heartless cuts to

people who really need assistance. Fuck the Super Committee and The Audacity of Austerity.

These Federal cuts are really going to start to kick in...makes me sick.

[MADem]

7. How was King Barack able to do this? By decree?

Last time I checked, CONGRESS did the "appropriation" thing. Barack Obama is the LEAST important person to call, here.

The actual amount of the cut is fifty eight percent. If Congress tells Obama to restore the full funding, he'll do it without any argument.

Here are the details:



The federal government authorized about $5 billion for the program last year, compared to less than $2 billion this season. Massachusetts' share is $77.6 million - down 58 percent from last year's total of roughly $183 million.

While President Obama has proposed no further funding for fuel assistance, the U.S. House and Senate each have discussed boosting the program to a total of $3.4 billion or $3.6 billion, respectively.

Even if approved, that would still represent a 30 percent cut from last year; Bay State program directors said they are fighting for level funding....Gov. Deval Patrick wrote a letter in July calling on Congress to provide level funding for the fuel assistance program. The state's entire delegation of elected federal officials also called for more money for LIHEAP in September. Sens. John Kerry and Scott Brown renewed those calls in early November, with Kerry citing the late October nor'easter that hit the state as an early strain on some residents' wallets this winter.


Read more: Fuel assistance funding cut more than 58 percent in Mass. - Pembroke, MA - Pembroke Mariner & Reporter http://www.wickedlocal.com/pembroke/mobiletopstories/x1696638096/Fuel-assistance-funding-cut-more-than-58-percent-in-Mass#ixzz1dXtTZgj9

[ooglymoogly]

I'd like to believe you are smarter than that. nwat

[undeterred]

35. What do you mean by that?

[Raine]

10. K&R everyone needs to be aware of this! nt

:kick: :thumbsup:

[and-justice-for-all]

13. Uh, cutting the pentagon budget seems more realistic to me..nt

[ooglymoogly]

20. This is already a done deal...the cuts are now being realized, the letters have been sent.

[and-justice-for-all]

41. Just repulsive..nt

[Cerridwen]

14. Deadlocked congress, not the President.

I'll grant you the repubs are causing the deadlock because they don't like the scary black man in the oval office, but this one is pure political bullshit.

A lot of agencies are running into problems because the repubs in congress are busy having pissing contests so they can make the President look bad and defeat him in 2012.

It's disgusting. Please place blame where due.

[ooglymoogly]

17. Self delete sorry wrong place

[Cerridwen]

19. delete so I'm not replying to a delete. It just looks freaky. n/t

[ooglymoogly]

23. These cuts are already put into action...see this link trying to stop it

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/09/obama-poor-energy-cuts-kerry-letter_n_821061.html

[Cerridwen]

31. That is for FY2012 which began on October 1, 2011. That budget has not

yet been approved/signed; the federal government is currently operating under a continuing resolution. During budget continuing resolutions, federal agencies are severely restricted in their expenditures since they have no budget.

Again, the budget for FY2012 has not yet been approved by the damned repubs in congress who are playing politics while people suffer.

Here is a bit of the story from wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_United_States_federal_budget

The actual appropriations for Fiscal Year 2012 must be authorized by the full Congress before the budget can take effect, according to the United States budget process.

<snip>

Continuing resolutions

Because the federal budget legislation was not expected to be enacted by the September 30, 2011 deadline, work began on a continuing resolution to fund the government temporarily. The resolution under consideration would provide funding through November 18, 2011 with an across-the-board reduction of 1.503% below the 2011 budget levels. However, a dispute arose between the Republican-led House and the Democrat-led Senate over the amount of additional funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency for costs associated with relief from Hurricane Irene, and whether this extra funding should be partially offset with cuts elsewhere, mainly to a program to fund development of fuel-efficient automobiles. The Senate rejection of the House bill on September 23, 2011 raised the possibility of a government shutdown on October 1.<18><19> However, the revelation that FEMA would not in fact run out of money before the end of they year allowed a pair of continuing resolutions to be passed by the Senate on September 26: one lasting until October 4, 2011 to give the then-out-of-session House of Representatives time to consider the second resolution, which funds the government through the first seven weeks of the 2012 fiscal year, until November 18, 2011.{20}] The House passed the short-term resolution on September 29, 2011 by unanimous consent in an unusual example of passing legislation during a pro forma session.{21} After the House came back into normal session, the second continuing resolution was passed by a vote of 352–66 on October 4, 2011.{22}

Federal agencies have no where to go with this. They tend to operate on the previous year's budget plus 10% curing CRs. This economy is different.

[ooglymoogly]

34. But that is what I am trying to tell you...this is not congress

No bill that I know of has been sent to the president, yet it has already happened. The Pres is the only person that I know of with the power to make that happen.

[Cerridwen]

36. No budget equals no money to send. That is why it has happened.

That is what I am trying to make clear. The monies needed are not yet there to be sent to the agencies in need of them.

[ooglymoogly]

26. This is not Congress.

No bill that I know of has been acted upon.

[Cerridwen]

33. Precisely. The budget hasn't been approved. The federal gov't is currently

operating without a budget because congress is playing games.

[woo me with science]

18. K&R nt

[nobodyspecial]

24. So Obama's working hard behind the scenes

to make sure seniors and the poor freeze this winter? And it's all his idea, doing and fault? And Congress has nothing to do with this?

Seriously, where do you come up with this?

[Downwinder]

25. Everybody go to an "Occupy" site, get arrested for your own

safety and put in a warm shelter.

[ooglymoogly]

28. +1 on that. nt

[dionysus]

38. yes, he's working behind the scenes to kill people.

jesus christ. with dems making shit like this up, who needs republicans?

[Codeine]

40. I heard he shot a man in Reno. nt