Sunday, May 12, 2013
The Marketplace Fairness Act was approved in the U.S. Senate, and is headed for the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives. The bill would require merchants to collect sales taxes on online purchases.
It's called the "Marketplace Fairness Act" and supporters say it levels the playing field between online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores by requiring online merchants to pay sales taxes to the states, counties and localities where they have done business. Opponents include anti-tax activists and retailers who say it will be overly burdensome—in fact, nearly impossible, they say, to keep track of the tax rates and tax requirements for the myriad of taxing agencies where they may be doing business. The Marketplace Fairness Act passed the U.S. Senate 69-27 on Monday. Next up, the legislation goes to the GOP-led House. President Barack Obama has previously said he supports the bill. Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Democrat, voted for …
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
The U.S. House went along with a Senate plan Tuesday to address expiring Bush-era tax cuts while delaying spending cuts.
The U.S. House of Representatives voted late Tuesday night 257-167 to endorse a Senate vote early Tuesday morning on a bill to avert the so-called "Fiscal Cliff", as tax cuts passed when George W. Bush was President expired January 1, in addition to automatic spending cuts which were delayed. A complete list of the yeas and nays can be found on the website for the House of Representatives. Of those who represent the greater St. Louis region, Democrats William Lacy Clay and Russ Carnahan, along with Republicans Blaine Luetkemeyer and Jo Ann Emerson voted yes, while Todd Akin voted no. Kansas City area Congressman Sam Graves was one of six House members who did not vote. The Senate legislation passed early Tuesday 89-8. U.S. Senator Roy …
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Missouri's Republican U.S. Senate nominee picks up support from Rick Santorum and a Tea Party favorite in the Senate.
He says he's in it to win it. With an official deadline having passed Tuesday night for candidates on the November ballot to petition via a court order for removal, U.S. Rep. Todd Akin's U.S. Senate bid is moving forward. Akin, the Widwood Republican who had been cast out by party leaders at the national level as well as five current or former Missouri U.S. Senators who called for him to drop out of the race following his controversial remarks about rape and pregnancy last month, has recouped some of that support. Tuesday night, Politico reported the following statement from U.S. Senator Roy Blunt, one of the five who urged Akin to get out of the race: "Congressman Akin and I don’t agree on everything, but he and I agree the Senate …
Thursday, April 26, 2012
U.S. Senators Claire McCaskill and Roy Blunt each won passage of amendments to slow the down the process of closing post office branches.
Patch recently reported on efforts by Missouri's U.S. senators aimed at forestalling closures at rural post offices. This week, versions of both amendments made it onto a broader bill aimed at restructuring the United States Postal Service. That broader piece of legislation passed Wednesday by a 62-37 margin, and puts off the potential for ending Saturday delivery for another two years. The bill now goes back to the U.S. House. Sen. Claire McCaskill's (D-MO) amendment, modified from the original version, would essentially place a yearlong moratorium on closing rural post offices, unless there is not “significant opposition” from a particular community. Once that moratorium expires, the USPS will have to follow a specific criterion before …
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Congressional lawmakers hope to put up legislative barriers to postal closings while the agency seeks ways to compete in the digital age.
This week, lawmakers from across the country have introduced measures to prevent the shuttering of various United States Postal Service offices. Last summer, the agency announced it would evaluate the operations at more than 3,000 offices nationwide, including a handful in St. Louis County and the city of St. Louis. Click here for a list of all Missouri branches of the U.S. Postal Service under evaluation. Maplewood-Brentwood Patch recently reported that any decision on closures under the current round of "rightsizing" would not come until next month at the earliest. But both of Missouri's U.S. senators have introduced measures to prevent post office closings. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) introduced a plan that would place a moratorium on …
Sunday, April 15, 2012
The National Rifle Association is hosting a convention in St. Louis this weekend with speakers like Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, U.S. Senator Roy Blunt and Glenn Beck.
There will be a wide array of guns and knives for people to "ooh" and "ahh" about as the National Rifle Association (NRA) brings its annual meeting and exhibits to town Friday and through the weekend at America's Center. St. Louis is hosting the NRA convention for the second time in five years. In 2007, the city was the beneficiary of an NRA decision to abandon its original host city of Columbus, OH, a retaliation that followed the Columbus City Council's passage of a law banning assault-type weapons. The NRA moved its big confab to St. Louis and liked it so much it came back this year. So, what restrictions on firearms are acceptable? By its actions, the NRA obviously doesn't like bans on assault weapons, but are there any restrictions …
Saturday, January 21, 2012
SOPA and PIPA legislation causes a stir in Missouri political circles.
For procrastinators, Wednesday was especially difficult. That’s because seemingly essential websites, such as Wikipedia, were blacked out to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act. The House bill, commonly known as SOPA, and the Senate legislation, known as PIPA, are attempts at curbing piracy of popular media, such as movies and music. But many opponents say the bills could have a much farther-reaching impact that could shut down sites, such as the aforementioned free online encyclopedia. Thus, Wednesday became the day where many sites opposed to the measures spoke out and urged people to contact lawmakers. For this writer, Wednesday’s protest meant a pause in searching for factoids about Pakistani independence or the …
PaulRevere's Mom
11:46 pm on Saturday, May 18, 2013
Oh MY! Even I am having a "TOUGH TIME" making any sense of YOUR RAMBLINGS. It's a leap to " Illegal Imigrants" and not "PUBLIC EDUCATION" this time. I'm confused. MAYBE IF I had another PINA COLADA! THIS WOULD MAKE MORE SENSE. more ›