Winter 2009 (Part 2) - President Huntsman's First 71 Days
Jon Huntsman, Jr., the 44th President of the United States, was sworn into office at noon on January 20, 2009. He was immediately confronted with one of the worst economic crises the country had faced in over a century, and it was now his job, and the job of the overwhelming Republican majority Congress, to right the ship. Huntsman, of course, wouldn't be doing things alone. His vice president, former entertainer and California congressman Sonny Bono, agreed with Huntsman on a number of key issues, and would be an important partner to him over the next four years. Huntsman would begin appointing his cabinet as soon as he took office, and wouldn't have trouble getting his choices confirmed. Colin Powell, a former four star general, would be picked as Huntsman's Secretary of State, while Rob Portman of Ohio would serve as Huntsman's Treasury Secretary. Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney would be tapped to head the Department of Commerce, while New Hampshire's Kelly Ayotte would be picked to serve as the new Attorney General. Perhaps Huntsman's most popular pick would be his choice for Secretary of Defense: former presidential candidate John McCain, who remained one of the most beloved members of the Senate. While his sometimes hawkish views might have seemed out of place for a non-interventionist like Huntsman, Huntsman and McCain were both strongly against the use of torture on terrorism suspects, and Huntsman said that he needed a fighter like McCain to counter his more passive personality. The Democratic response to Huntsman's election was more quiet resignation than anger: clearly, the country wasn't very excited about Democrats at the moment, and Gore's failure to correct the economic problems facing America had depressed turnout on the left. While many Democrats promised to oppose Huntsman's agenda in any way that they could, a sizable number of them were resigned to the fact that Huntsman would be able to carry out his agenda pretty much unopposed, save for the Democrats' filibuster power in the Senate, which too would be limited by the fact that Penn Jillette was the swing vote on a number of issues. Democrats did have a flicker of hope due to Huntsman appointing a number of Republican senators to his Cabinet, and would be rallying themselves as best they could to support Democratic candidates in the special elections that would be taking place over the next couple of years.
Huntsman's plan to turn around the economy was, at first, to continue his promised policy of non-intervention: let failing companies fail and let the economy correct itself. Huntsman made his case to the American people that 16 years of Democratic control of the White House had created too many regulations, too much taxation, and too many obstacle for business owners to overcome. He planned to lower taxes and cut regulations and encourage hiring and investment, which would restore consumer confidence and bring back the lost jobs. At first, Huntsman's election did stimulate the markets, with the Dow Jones increasing by 15% in the weeks after his election. Wall Street was excited: with Huntsman in office, many investors expected corporate and capital gains taxes to be slashed dramatically, putting more money in their portfolios and encouraging more investment in general. However, as the holiday season saw a major downturn in consumer spending, more companies went bankrupt, and more people lost their jobs, the stock indices underwent a correction, and much of that 15% gain was lost. The Dow Jones was hovering around 7,500 when Huntsman took the oath of office, and over the next few weeks, it went up and down fairly wildly, but trended downward. GM and Chrysler both announced bankruptcies, and Ford was on the brink of doing so, threatening millions of American blue collar jobs. Even companies like Amazon and Walmart saw their stock prices drop, though their companies would clearly weather the storm. Still, Huntsman's first month in office saw little confidence restored in the economy, and the country seemed on the verge of panic.
Lost in the shuffle of the economic turmoil were the other components of the Huntsman agenda. Jon Huntsman knew that illegal immigration was a subject of increasing concern. Under the Gore administration, deportations had increased, though this was less a product of Gore's own personal political philosophy and more a symbol of the post-9/11 world and the birth of the Department of Homeland Security. Gore himself had supported a path to citizenship for those immigrants who had come to the United States illegally but who had made reasonable contributions to the country during their time there, though he also supported increased scrutiny for undocumented immigrants and more deportation sweeps, particularly targeting those who had overstayed their visas (which some of the 9/11 hijackers had done). In general, illegal immigration levels remained steady throughout the 90s and 2000s, and had actually tapered off a bit during the previous two years, likely due to America's growing economic instability. As for Huntsman, while he promised to increase immigration enforcement (a promise he had made numerous times to his Republican base during the campaign), he also had a grand vision for an America that would be far more accepting of immigrants in general. He began to draft, with the help of some of his political advisers, a sweeping immigration reform bill that would ramp up immigration enforcement and deportations but would also gradually but significantly increase the number of immigrants the United States would be willing to accept, including so-called “low skilled” immigrants. However, Huntsman also recognized that the ongoing economic turmoil would make working class voters reluctant to support any bill that would increase the number of immigrants coming into the country, and put his plan on the backburner until he could get the economic situation under control.
In general, despite the ongoing economic situation, Huntsman remained quite popular during his first 30 days in office. In fact, his approval ratings increased a few percentage points during that time, as a sign of the continued optimism that Americans had toward Huntsman during his initial “honeymoon” period.
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Katie Couric: Now onto a topic from international news, and this is something that many people have wondered for a long time: what if there were a bridge between Spain and Morocco? The so-called “Gibraltar Bridge” project has long remained a subject of fiction, but now, despite a worldwide economic downturn, the two countries are having the first truly serious talks about such a crossing, though it may not take the form of a bridge, but instead a tunnel, like the Channel Tunnel connecting France with Great Britain. Our Lester Holt reports from Spain tonight with some of the details, possibly coming to a strait near you.
*A video is shown of the Strait of Gibraltar.*
Lester Holt (narration): It's barely nine miles across, so narrow you can easily stand at the end of one continent...
*Holt is shown now in Gibraltar, looking across the strait toward Morocco.*
Holt: And see another. And that tantalizing view has led visionaries and dreamers alike to consider the idea of a way to bridge the two continents together. Now, officials from Spain and Morocco are having discussions about the idea, and, if they agree, a span across the continents could become a reality as early as 2021.
*Holt is seen walking with a Spanish government official in Madrid, discussing the Gibraltar crossing.*
Holt (narration): Edgardo Galvez is a member of the Cortes Generales, who says that a Gibraltar tunnel similar to the one spanning the English Channel is not only possible, it would be beneficial to both Spain and Morocco.
Galvez: The traffic that could be brought across the bridge, the freight, the commerce, it would be a major economic benefit to Spain.
Holt: And one that you think would overcome the billions of dollars in potential costs?
Galvez: It would pay for itself in due time, I think.
Holt: Right now, it's just in the discussion phase. No deals have been made, but plans have been drawn up, and you're exploring engineering possibilities as we speak?
Galvez: That is correct.
Holt: And you're in direct contact with officials from the Moroccan government?
Galvez: At this point, we meet to discuss this at least once a week. We are in the serious discussion phase at this point.
Holt (narration): The idea of a Gibraltar crossing has been the subject of centuries of discussion. Philosophers, authors, and government leaders for generations have mused about the idea of a great bridge spanning the two continents. Recently, the construction of the Chunnel in Europe stimulated brief discussion concerning a similar tunnel crossing the Gibraltar, but talks largely stalled until 2004, when the new majority party of Spain began to seriously consider the idea again. When Moroccan officials seemed receptive as well, the talks gradually became more serious, until in late 2007, a series of concepts for both a bridge and a tunnel were released to the public as part of Spain's “21st Century Development Initiative”. Despite the worldwide economic downturn, many in Spain remained supportive of the plan, and now talks appear to be entering a more serious phase.
Galvez: It is possible that we could see a concrete agreement by the end of the year.
Holt: And in that case, construction might begin as early as 2010?
Galvez: It's important, of course, not to get ahead of ourselves. There are many here in Spain who want to see this tunnel built. But there are many who do not, and there is the economic situation to consider. Right now, it's still in the discussion phase. But it's probably closer now to being a reality than it's ever been.
-from the February 12, 2009 episode of the NBC Nightly News
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As economic conditions worsened, numerous Republican legislators and even some of Huntsman's own advisors began to subtly encourage the president to agree to sign a bailout bill. Huntsman was initially staunchly against such a bill, but as the Dow Jones began another steady lowering trend, and began to dip closer to 6,000, even he realized that a policy of complete non-intervention would cause a major problem. Numerous banks and industries needed to be kept afloat, in order to preserve middle and working class jobs and the general purchasing power of the average American. Huntsman even started to consider the idea of a consumer stimulus, which would result in an increased tax refund in 2009. Republicans and Democrats in Congress started to work together on an omnibus bill that would be pushed to the president's desk sometime in March. Congressional Democrats found themselves wielding a bit more power than would be expected considering they comprised only a third of the House and two-fifths of the Senate, since they ended up largely being the “swing vote” between pro and anti-bailout Republicans. Democrats were the ones largely pushing for the consumer bailout, and while pro-bailout Republicans were initially against it, wanting to limit the bailout only to businesses and banks, they realized that they wouldn't have enough votes to pass the bill without limited Democratic support. Meanwhile, in the Senate, Penn Jillette started to wield his political muscle, coming out strongly against any bailout and threatening to filibuster if a bill were proposed. Huntsman, who was also against the bailout but also didn't want to antagonize half of his own party, called Jillette in for a private meeting and told him that Republicans were planning on labeling him as “the man who killed the American auto industry” if he filibustered the bailout. Jillette eventually relented, agreeing not to filibuster (but still coming out publicly against the bill) and Congress would end up passing a $500 billion bailout bill targeted at numerous businesses and banks, including the big three American auto companies and floundering banks such as Wells Fargo which were hanging on by a thread. The bill also included a tax refund stimulus component that would add a few hundred extra dollars into the tax refunds of most working Americans. The passing of the bill led to the then-largest single-day gain in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, nearly a thousand points, and would, at least for a time, bring a bit of relief to the struggling economy. Though Huntsman had initially opposed the bill, he would get most of the credit for its passing, and his approval numbers would continue to rise, topping 70 percent by April. Democrats would criticize Huntsman sharply for this, with one Democratic senator comparing Huntsman to “a magician who chains up his assistant and dangles her in a tank full of sharks until the very last moment, when suddenly he waves his magic wand and sets her free and the audience claps for him, forgetting that he's the one who put her in the shark tank to begin with!” Penn Jillette would take offense to the comparison, saying in an interview that Huntsman would be a “shitty magician”, and though it would be taken mostly in jest, with most of the controversy stemming from Jillette's language rather than the actual insult, it would be the first sign of a growing rift between the two.
Another major item on Huntsman's agenda around this time was his plan for health care, which he discussed during the campaign. He had promised to make health care cheaper and more affordable for all Americans, and now that he was in office, he planned to make good on that promise. The plan had two major components. First, Huntsman would push to allow people to purchase health insurance across state lines, which he said would “eliminate the monopolies that allow insurance companies to artificially raise prices and limit their competition”. The second component would be a mandate for all Americans to purchase health insurance or pay a fine. This plan, which had been implemented in Massachusetts by Mitt Romney, had been proposed to Huntsman by Romney during Romney's initial discussions to join Huntsman's cabinet. Huntsman was opposed at first to the idea of forcing Americans to purchase health insurance, but Romney persuaded him to adopt the plan, stating that it would ensure that all Americans “had skin in the game”, and would reduce the so-called free rider problem of healthy people opting out of health insurance and driving up prices for sick or older people. Huntsman eventually agreed to the plan, which would include a mandate for all insurance companies to offer high risk pools to people with pre-existing conditions. Huntsman knew that the idea of forcing certain people into high risk pools would be unpopular (and that many of them would simply pay the fine, which would be far less than the cost of their insurance), so he proposed a plan to expand Medicare to pay the difference between the high risk pool and the cost of a normal health insurance plan. This Medicare expansion, Huntsman said, would be paid for by shrinking other government programs to cover the cost. Huntsman and Congressional Republicans began to release the details of this health care proposal in late March, and while most Republicans would support the plan, many Democrats would oppose it, including Senator Barack Obama, who would state in the Senate that “forcing people to buy health insurance wouldn't help people save money on health care, it would just be a major handout to the already bloated health insurance industry”. The plan's detractors would start to call the plan “Romneycare”, after the man they knew to be its architect, Secretary of Commerce Mitt Romney (they would've called it “Huntsmancare”, but “Romneycare” rolled off the tongue better, and Romney was somewhat more unpopular than Huntsman). The fight over health care would begin in earnest in the spring, and would last throughout 2009.
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@kurtcobain: Oh shit no
-a tweet posted by Kurt Cobain on his feed at 9:15 AM on February 27, 2009
@kurtcobain: Billie Joe, you will be missed, buddy. You were too damn young to die. 1972-2009 RIP
-a tweet posted by Kurt Cobain on his feed at 9:17 AM on February 27, 2009
@kurtcobain: Also if any of you guys following me want to judge him because he used, then unfollow me because you don't know what the fuck you're talking about
-a tweet posted by Kurt Cobain on his feed at 9:18 AM on February 27, 2009
Green Day Frontman Billie Joe Armstrong Found Dead In His Home
Billie Joe Armstrong, lead singer for the band Green Day, was found dead this morning at his Los Angeles home. He was discovered by his bandmate Tre Cool at 7:59 AM local time, and though paramedics were called, he had been dead for several hours by the time they arrived. Police believed that Armstrong died from a combination of alcohol and prescription drugs, and that the overdose was likely unintentional, though a toxicology report to confirm the cause of death will be performed in the next few days. Green Day had seen success in the 1990s due to the success of albums such as Dookie and Nimrod, creating a major splash in the growing alternative rock scene. However, the band struggled to replicate their success in the 2000s, and numerous rehab stints for Armstrong contributed to the band's failure to produce any new studio albums. A few new songs were produced since 2003, and production on a new studio album was underway at the time of Armstrong's death.
Armstrong's death has already generated an outpouring of grief from fellow musicians and entertainers. Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was one of the first to comment publicly on Armstrong's death following the announcement, and expressed his grief in a series of tweets, while also decrying those who criticized Armstrong due to his history of drug abuse. Former Nirvana members and Foo Fighters founders Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic also expressed their grief over Armstrong's death, and other modern rock luminaries such as Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder gave their well wishes to Armstrong's friends and family. Even musicians from outside the rock genre, such as Latin pop superstar Selena, expressed their own sympathy toward Armstrong and his loved ones. Selena stated in a post on her official Friendster account that: “Billie Joe Armstrong was a beautiful, sensitive soul and an innovator in modern rock music. My husband and I both enjoyed listening to him perform, and we would like to express our deepest sympathies to his loved ones during this time of immense heartbreak.”
-from a Yahoo! News article posted on February 27, 2009
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Colombia, Venezuela Agree To Ceasefire Before Upcoming Meeting With President Huntsman
Leaders of Colombia and Venezuela have agreed to a ceasefire in their ongoing conflict as they enter into tentative peace talks moderated by American Secretary of State Colin Powell and President Jon Huntsman. Huntsman and Powell have orchestrated the summit amidst continued border skirmishing between the two countries that has so far led to more than a thousand military deaths on both sides. Though no aerial bombing has taken place, and so far no civilians have been targeted, the war between the two Latin American countries has grown increasingly violent in the past few months, with pitched battles on both sides of the border. The conflict has also caused significant economic turmoil due to the disruption of Venezuelan oil exports to Western countries. Huntsman began negotiations with both countries in February, and despite initial sharp rhetoric directed at Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, his tone toward the leader has softened in recent days. Chavez, who previously publicly referred to the American president as a “capitalist pig” and “imperial warlord” in public statements, has also softened his tone considerably, recently referring to Huntsman as a “potential partner in the peace process with whom I disagree considerably on economic matters but who I see as someone who shares my desire for peace in the region”. Huntsman has also expressed his disagreement with Chavez on economic philosophy but has referred to him in recent days as “reasonable” and “a potential future friend to the United States”. The peace talks will take place next month in Miami, Florida, and until then, both countries have agreed to a complete ceasefire, withdrawing their troops from each other's borders and releasing all captured prisoners. It's a major step toward peace, but forging an agreement between the two nations will still be tricky, with bad blood still boiling on both sides. If Huntsman can successfully forge a peace agreement, it will be the first major foreign policy victory of his presidency and will likely lead to further progress at solving the current economic crisis, which has been driven in part by high consumer prices caused by steep oil prices.
-from a Yahoo! News article posted on March 14, 2009
Huntsman's plan to turn around the economy was, at first, to continue his promised policy of non-intervention: let failing companies fail and let the economy correct itself. Huntsman made his case to the American people that 16 years of Democratic control of the White House had created too many regulations, too much taxation, and too many obstacle for business owners to overcome. He planned to lower taxes and cut regulations and encourage hiring and investment, which would restore consumer confidence and bring back the lost jobs. At first, Huntsman's election did stimulate the markets, with the Dow Jones increasing by 15% in the weeks after his election. Wall Street was excited: with Huntsman in office, many investors expected corporate and capital gains taxes to be slashed dramatically, putting more money in their portfolios and encouraging more investment in general. However, as the holiday season saw a major downturn in consumer spending, more companies went bankrupt, and more people lost their jobs, the stock indices underwent a correction, and much of that 15% gain was lost. The Dow Jones was hovering around 7,500 when Huntsman took the oath of office, and over the next few weeks, it went up and down fairly wildly, but trended downward. GM and Chrysler both announced bankruptcies, and Ford was on the brink of doing so, threatening millions of American blue collar jobs. Even companies like Amazon and Walmart saw their stock prices drop, though their companies would clearly weather the storm. Still, Huntsman's first month in office saw little confidence restored in the economy, and the country seemed on the verge of panic.
Lost in the shuffle of the economic turmoil were the other components of the Huntsman agenda. Jon Huntsman knew that illegal immigration was a subject of increasing concern. Under the Gore administration, deportations had increased, though this was less a product of Gore's own personal political philosophy and more a symbol of the post-9/11 world and the birth of the Department of Homeland Security. Gore himself had supported a path to citizenship for those immigrants who had come to the United States illegally but who had made reasonable contributions to the country during their time there, though he also supported increased scrutiny for undocumented immigrants and more deportation sweeps, particularly targeting those who had overstayed their visas (which some of the 9/11 hijackers had done). In general, illegal immigration levels remained steady throughout the 90s and 2000s, and had actually tapered off a bit during the previous two years, likely due to America's growing economic instability. As for Huntsman, while he promised to increase immigration enforcement (a promise he had made numerous times to his Republican base during the campaign), he also had a grand vision for an America that would be far more accepting of immigrants in general. He began to draft, with the help of some of his political advisers, a sweeping immigration reform bill that would ramp up immigration enforcement and deportations but would also gradually but significantly increase the number of immigrants the United States would be willing to accept, including so-called “low skilled” immigrants. However, Huntsman also recognized that the ongoing economic turmoil would make working class voters reluctant to support any bill that would increase the number of immigrants coming into the country, and put his plan on the backburner until he could get the economic situation under control.
In general, despite the ongoing economic situation, Huntsman remained quite popular during his first 30 days in office. In fact, his approval ratings increased a few percentage points during that time, as a sign of the continued optimism that Americans had toward Huntsman during his initial “honeymoon” period.
-
Katie Couric: Now onto a topic from international news, and this is something that many people have wondered for a long time: what if there were a bridge between Spain and Morocco? The so-called “Gibraltar Bridge” project has long remained a subject of fiction, but now, despite a worldwide economic downturn, the two countries are having the first truly serious talks about such a crossing, though it may not take the form of a bridge, but instead a tunnel, like the Channel Tunnel connecting France with Great Britain. Our Lester Holt reports from Spain tonight with some of the details, possibly coming to a strait near you.
*A video is shown of the Strait of Gibraltar.*
Lester Holt (narration): It's barely nine miles across, so narrow you can easily stand at the end of one continent...
*Holt is shown now in Gibraltar, looking across the strait toward Morocco.*
Holt: And see another. And that tantalizing view has led visionaries and dreamers alike to consider the idea of a way to bridge the two continents together. Now, officials from Spain and Morocco are having discussions about the idea, and, if they agree, a span across the continents could become a reality as early as 2021.
*Holt is seen walking with a Spanish government official in Madrid, discussing the Gibraltar crossing.*
Holt (narration): Edgardo Galvez is a member of the Cortes Generales, who says that a Gibraltar tunnel similar to the one spanning the English Channel is not only possible, it would be beneficial to both Spain and Morocco.
Galvez: The traffic that could be brought across the bridge, the freight, the commerce, it would be a major economic benefit to Spain.
Holt: And one that you think would overcome the billions of dollars in potential costs?
Galvez: It would pay for itself in due time, I think.
Holt: Right now, it's just in the discussion phase. No deals have been made, but plans have been drawn up, and you're exploring engineering possibilities as we speak?
Galvez: That is correct.
Holt: And you're in direct contact with officials from the Moroccan government?
Galvez: At this point, we meet to discuss this at least once a week. We are in the serious discussion phase at this point.
Holt (narration): The idea of a Gibraltar crossing has been the subject of centuries of discussion. Philosophers, authors, and government leaders for generations have mused about the idea of a great bridge spanning the two continents. Recently, the construction of the Chunnel in Europe stimulated brief discussion concerning a similar tunnel crossing the Gibraltar, but talks largely stalled until 2004, when the new majority party of Spain began to seriously consider the idea again. When Moroccan officials seemed receptive as well, the talks gradually became more serious, until in late 2007, a series of concepts for both a bridge and a tunnel were released to the public as part of Spain's “21st Century Development Initiative”. Despite the worldwide economic downturn, many in Spain remained supportive of the plan, and now talks appear to be entering a more serious phase.
Galvez: It is possible that we could see a concrete agreement by the end of the year.
Holt: And in that case, construction might begin as early as 2010?
Galvez: It's important, of course, not to get ahead of ourselves. There are many here in Spain who want to see this tunnel built. But there are many who do not, and there is the economic situation to consider. Right now, it's still in the discussion phase. But it's probably closer now to being a reality than it's ever been.
-from the February 12, 2009 episode of the NBC Nightly News
-
As economic conditions worsened, numerous Republican legislators and even some of Huntsman's own advisors began to subtly encourage the president to agree to sign a bailout bill. Huntsman was initially staunchly against such a bill, but as the Dow Jones began another steady lowering trend, and began to dip closer to 6,000, even he realized that a policy of complete non-intervention would cause a major problem. Numerous banks and industries needed to be kept afloat, in order to preserve middle and working class jobs and the general purchasing power of the average American. Huntsman even started to consider the idea of a consumer stimulus, which would result in an increased tax refund in 2009. Republicans and Democrats in Congress started to work together on an omnibus bill that would be pushed to the president's desk sometime in March. Congressional Democrats found themselves wielding a bit more power than would be expected considering they comprised only a third of the House and two-fifths of the Senate, since they ended up largely being the “swing vote” between pro and anti-bailout Republicans. Democrats were the ones largely pushing for the consumer bailout, and while pro-bailout Republicans were initially against it, wanting to limit the bailout only to businesses and banks, they realized that they wouldn't have enough votes to pass the bill without limited Democratic support. Meanwhile, in the Senate, Penn Jillette started to wield his political muscle, coming out strongly against any bailout and threatening to filibuster if a bill were proposed. Huntsman, who was also against the bailout but also didn't want to antagonize half of his own party, called Jillette in for a private meeting and told him that Republicans were planning on labeling him as “the man who killed the American auto industry” if he filibustered the bailout. Jillette eventually relented, agreeing not to filibuster (but still coming out publicly against the bill) and Congress would end up passing a $500 billion bailout bill targeted at numerous businesses and banks, including the big three American auto companies and floundering banks such as Wells Fargo which were hanging on by a thread. The bill also included a tax refund stimulus component that would add a few hundred extra dollars into the tax refunds of most working Americans. The passing of the bill led to the then-largest single-day gain in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, nearly a thousand points, and would, at least for a time, bring a bit of relief to the struggling economy. Though Huntsman had initially opposed the bill, he would get most of the credit for its passing, and his approval numbers would continue to rise, topping 70 percent by April. Democrats would criticize Huntsman sharply for this, with one Democratic senator comparing Huntsman to “a magician who chains up his assistant and dangles her in a tank full of sharks until the very last moment, when suddenly he waves his magic wand and sets her free and the audience claps for him, forgetting that he's the one who put her in the shark tank to begin with!” Penn Jillette would take offense to the comparison, saying in an interview that Huntsman would be a “shitty magician”, and though it would be taken mostly in jest, with most of the controversy stemming from Jillette's language rather than the actual insult, it would be the first sign of a growing rift between the two.
Another major item on Huntsman's agenda around this time was his plan for health care, which he discussed during the campaign. He had promised to make health care cheaper and more affordable for all Americans, and now that he was in office, he planned to make good on that promise. The plan had two major components. First, Huntsman would push to allow people to purchase health insurance across state lines, which he said would “eliminate the monopolies that allow insurance companies to artificially raise prices and limit their competition”. The second component would be a mandate for all Americans to purchase health insurance or pay a fine. This plan, which had been implemented in Massachusetts by Mitt Romney, had been proposed to Huntsman by Romney during Romney's initial discussions to join Huntsman's cabinet. Huntsman was opposed at first to the idea of forcing Americans to purchase health insurance, but Romney persuaded him to adopt the plan, stating that it would ensure that all Americans “had skin in the game”, and would reduce the so-called free rider problem of healthy people opting out of health insurance and driving up prices for sick or older people. Huntsman eventually agreed to the plan, which would include a mandate for all insurance companies to offer high risk pools to people with pre-existing conditions. Huntsman knew that the idea of forcing certain people into high risk pools would be unpopular (and that many of them would simply pay the fine, which would be far less than the cost of their insurance), so he proposed a plan to expand Medicare to pay the difference between the high risk pool and the cost of a normal health insurance plan. This Medicare expansion, Huntsman said, would be paid for by shrinking other government programs to cover the cost. Huntsman and Congressional Republicans began to release the details of this health care proposal in late March, and while most Republicans would support the plan, many Democrats would oppose it, including Senator Barack Obama, who would state in the Senate that “forcing people to buy health insurance wouldn't help people save money on health care, it would just be a major handout to the already bloated health insurance industry”. The plan's detractors would start to call the plan “Romneycare”, after the man they knew to be its architect, Secretary of Commerce Mitt Romney (they would've called it “Huntsmancare”, but “Romneycare” rolled off the tongue better, and Romney was somewhat more unpopular than Huntsman). The fight over health care would begin in earnest in the spring, and would last throughout 2009.
-
@kurtcobain: Oh shit no
-a tweet posted by Kurt Cobain on his feed at 9:15 AM on February 27, 2009
@kurtcobain: Billie Joe, you will be missed, buddy. You were too damn young to die. 1972-2009 RIP
-a tweet posted by Kurt Cobain on his feed at 9:17 AM on February 27, 2009
@kurtcobain: Also if any of you guys following me want to judge him because he used, then unfollow me because you don't know what the fuck you're talking about
-a tweet posted by Kurt Cobain on his feed at 9:18 AM on February 27, 2009
Green Day Frontman Billie Joe Armstrong Found Dead In His Home
Billie Joe Armstrong, lead singer for the band Green Day, was found dead this morning at his Los Angeles home. He was discovered by his bandmate Tre Cool at 7:59 AM local time, and though paramedics were called, he had been dead for several hours by the time they arrived. Police believed that Armstrong died from a combination of alcohol and prescription drugs, and that the overdose was likely unintentional, though a toxicology report to confirm the cause of death will be performed in the next few days. Green Day had seen success in the 1990s due to the success of albums such as Dookie and Nimrod, creating a major splash in the growing alternative rock scene. However, the band struggled to replicate their success in the 2000s, and numerous rehab stints for Armstrong contributed to the band's failure to produce any new studio albums. A few new songs were produced since 2003, and production on a new studio album was underway at the time of Armstrong's death.
Armstrong's death has already generated an outpouring of grief from fellow musicians and entertainers. Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was one of the first to comment publicly on Armstrong's death following the announcement, and expressed his grief in a series of tweets, while also decrying those who criticized Armstrong due to his history of drug abuse. Former Nirvana members and Foo Fighters founders Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic also expressed their grief over Armstrong's death, and other modern rock luminaries such as Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder gave their well wishes to Armstrong's friends and family. Even musicians from outside the rock genre, such as Latin pop superstar Selena, expressed their own sympathy toward Armstrong and his loved ones. Selena stated in a post on her official Friendster account that: “Billie Joe Armstrong was a beautiful, sensitive soul and an innovator in modern rock music. My husband and I both enjoyed listening to him perform, and we would like to express our deepest sympathies to his loved ones during this time of immense heartbreak.”
-from a Yahoo! News article posted on February 27, 2009
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Colombia, Venezuela Agree To Ceasefire Before Upcoming Meeting With President Huntsman
Leaders of Colombia and Venezuela have agreed to a ceasefire in their ongoing conflict as they enter into tentative peace talks moderated by American Secretary of State Colin Powell and President Jon Huntsman. Huntsman and Powell have orchestrated the summit amidst continued border skirmishing between the two countries that has so far led to more than a thousand military deaths on both sides. Though no aerial bombing has taken place, and so far no civilians have been targeted, the war between the two Latin American countries has grown increasingly violent in the past few months, with pitched battles on both sides of the border. The conflict has also caused significant economic turmoil due to the disruption of Venezuelan oil exports to Western countries. Huntsman began negotiations with both countries in February, and despite initial sharp rhetoric directed at Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, his tone toward the leader has softened in recent days. Chavez, who previously publicly referred to the American president as a “capitalist pig” and “imperial warlord” in public statements, has also softened his tone considerably, recently referring to Huntsman as a “potential partner in the peace process with whom I disagree considerably on economic matters but who I see as someone who shares my desire for peace in the region”. Huntsman has also expressed his disagreement with Chavez on economic philosophy but has referred to him in recent days as “reasonable” and “a potential future friend to the United States”. The peace talks will take place next month in Miami, Florida, and until then, both countries have agreed to a complete ceasefire, withdrawing their troops from each other's borders and releasing all captured prisoners. It's a major step toward peace, but forging an agreement between the two nations will still be tricky, with bad blood still boiling on both sides. If Huntsman can successfully forge a peace agreement, it will be the first major foreign policy victory of his presidency and will likely lead to further progress at solving the current economic crisis, which has been driven in part by high consumer prices caused by steep oil prices.
-from a Yahoo! News article posted on March 14, 2009
