House Dems unveil new gun bill

This article is about a new bill introduced by Democrats that would restrict the gun-purchasing rights of people who have been involuntarily committed mental patients and deemed dangerous by a court, and also people who have been convicted of stalking or domestic abuse. This comes very soon after a deadly shooting at UC Santa Barbara by a mentally ill student who had been in therapy since he was young but bought guns legally anyway.

Severe Report Finds V.A. Hid Waiting Lists

This article has to do with the current Veteran Affairs scandal. A Phoenix veteran medical center is accused of neglecting to place 1,700 patients on the official waiting list and potentially restricting them from receiving care at all. VA officials in Phoenix have also been accused by whistleblowers of hiding from the public the long waiting times veterans experience when they try to get care. According to Richard J. Griffin, the department's inspector general, the manipulation and corruption in Phoenix are representative of systemic problems in the VA healthcare system.

Some Latino groups express frustration with administration delay on immigration review

Delay seems to be a common theme in Congress these days. This article bashes on the Republican party quite a bit, stating that it is the major impediment of immigration reform. The major discussion for immigration reform is changes in deportation policy, with the goal being to keep families as intact as possible. Latino groups are using their voting power as a means of persuading the Republicans to address immigration reform.

Competing mental health bills set up partisan showdown

Mental health is again a topic of debate after the UCSB shooting. The debate is largely a partisan one, with Republicans like Representative Tim Murphy advocating for "committing the severely mentally ill deemed in need of treatments to hospitals." Democrats, on the other hand, like Ron Barber believe that increasing access to mental health help is the better path. After the recent shooting, many are pointing fingers at the government, citing that Elliot Rodger's murderous rampage is a result of legislative failure. A surge of new gun control bills and mental health reform took place after the Sandy Hook shooting but they were never put in place. Senator Dianne Feinstein states "'Shame on us for allowing this to continue'" and I agree. A person like Elliot Rodger should have never been allowed to purchase a firearm in the first place. In this case, I don't think mental health reform would have prevented the shooting but stronger gun control laws would have.  

A Cool Interactive Map Showing Youth Voting Trends

Army Ousts Commander of Hospital After Deaths

This article discusses the scandal which erupted over Memorial Day Weekend surrounding the Department of Veterans Affairs. It came to light that 40 veterans had died while waiting for care at a VA hospital. Some officials have already been fired and there have been calls for more top officials to step down. The White House is very concerned over what is happening since improving Veteran affairs was one of Obama's campaign promises.

First Lady Rebuts Effort to Weaken School-Lunch Rules

This is an interesting article about Michelle Obama's recent efforts to push against the House Republicans' efforts to bypass the school lunch standards that were set back in 2010. The article cites evidence of the positive health trend in children after the decision, but also includes information about a drop in school-lunch participation. To me, these new standards seem to have introduced more benefits than drawbacks #TeamMichelle

Court Rules Against Florida I.Q Rule in Death Cases

So lately the Supreme Court has been focusing some of its efforts on limiting capital punishment. In this ruling, that extends past Florida, the court said that the I.Q cutoff for death row is too strict.

The argument has been made that this cutoff, that is defined only by a number, does not incorporate all of the factors involved. As Justice Kennedy wrote, “Intellectual disability is a condition, not a number.” Do you guys agree with the ruling?

Limits to Law and Information Sharing, Despite Gunman’s Danger Signs

This article discusses the flaws in the system which allowed the UCSB shooter to buy three handguns despite previous violence and mental instability. Rodger had been reported by his parents who were worried about his violent behavior, had been investigated by the police after trying to push a woman of a ledge at a local bar, and posted disturbing videos on the internet. Yet he was able to, without any trouble, but three guns and ammunition. Even if people think that we should have the right to own guns, I can't imagine why so many citizens and legislators also argue against safeguards to stop mentally ill people from buying guns. With every one of these attacks the need for a better mental health care system becomes more and more apparent.

I.R.S. Delays New Rules on Taxation for Activists

The IRS has recently decided to postpone their public hearings on the new rule to limit non-profit groups ability to spend money on political activities. This delay seems somewhat necessary, especially with the Supreme Court seeming to land on the side against restrictions in campaign finance laws, but also the large number of comments they have been receiving in regards to the rule change. Simply put, the IRS does need to wait to put out a rule change until after the next election to avoid creating a very messy confusion.

House Passes Restraints on Bulk Data Collection

      For once it seems that the White House and Congress are on the same page. Today the House voted on the USA Freedom Act. The goal of this bill was to restrict the NSA bulk data collection surveillance program. This bill is clearly a step in the right direction. The bulk data collection conducted by the NSA is highly questionable as to both its legality but also effectiveness. This bill, though, will not totally curb government surveillance programs but will definitely limit them.

Obama encountering growing election-year dissent from Democrats

Obama encountering growing election-year dissent from Democrats

As the midterm elections approach, Democrats are starting to break from the president on issues such as the Keystone pipeline. While this is anything but unprecedented (when the President, who no longer has to worry about re-election, pushes an agenda while Congress does need to worry about re-election), it is a serious problem for the continuation of Obama’s agenda (at least until after the election).

Unfortunately much of this opposition largely stems from a political decision. I would love to see Democrats opposing the radical Obama agenda. For example: a study has shown that there are no severe environmental concerns associated with the Keystone XL Pipeline. Thus, no reasonable environmentalist ought to oppose construction on those grounds. The most likely reason for the opposition is nothing more than politics. Someone who would sacrifice the good of the nation for politics is radical to the point of absurdity.

DOJ brings cyber-espionage case against Chinese officials

DOJ brings cyber-espionage case against Chinese officials

Attorney General Holder announced the indictment of Chinese government officials for their attempts to hack into US businesses. The Chinese government has, for quite some time, been accused of attempting to hack into American websites (for both companies and governments). This is the first time, however, that the US government has responded in a manner of this sort.

In my mind, the threat of Chinese cyber attacks is a serious threat to our national security and it is imperative that we treat it as such. Clearly I am not alone in this feeling, as Defense Secretary Hagel also believes this, noting that “Our nation's reliance on cyberspace outpaces our cybersecurity.”

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/09/opinion/gingrich-hillary-clinton-boko-haram-terrorist/index.html?hpt=hp_t4

Putin Announces Pullback From Ukraine Border

GOP-led House votes to hold former IRS official in contempt

This article is about the refusal of a former IRS official to testify about the action of her agency, and the issue that has caused, especially the partisanship it has invoked.

Climate change is here, action needed now, says new White Horse report

Climate change has always been an issue that was pushed away in order to worry about in the future. This article talks about how the White House is going against that idea by explaining that the effects of climate change are already here and are just going to get worse. It states that while "most Americans believe human activities cause climate change, the issue is less important to the public than the economy and other topics." It's scary to think about what will happen if we continue to not make climate change a larger concern. Hopefully it doesn't take more disasters all over the United States to change the attitudes of the people that continuously think of the issue as not important enough to work on.

Nigeria's Government Defends its Actions as More Girls are Abducted

This article talks about the recent abduction of eight girls from the village of Warabe in Nigeria. This report comes after the April abduction of more than 200 girls, who were taken from school and forced into trucks. Nigeria's president has accepted United States military help after accusations that he and the government had "ignored and then later downplayed the abduction of the girls." Although he denies this, there is a global outrage over what's going to happen to the girls, and it's even transferring into social media campaigns. These acts of the group Boko Haram are actually really terrifying and hopefully all of the girls will be brought home safely as soon as possible.