March 2006 Archives
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Rep. Miller to Address meeting on the Crisis in Darfur
WALNUT CREEK, CA – On Saturday, April 1, Congressman George Miller will speak at the Mt. Diablo Peace Center in Walnut Creek to discuss the ongoing crisis in Darfur, Sudan with constituents. The event is open to the public and to the news media. Congressman Miller visited Darfur in late February of this year on a Congressional Delegation trip. Miller was able to meet with refugees who were displaced from their homes because of targeted political violence.
Miller later joined House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and several other members of Congress to meet with United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan in New York City to express urgency about the need for more forces and humanitarian assistance in the Darfur region of the Sudan to address the serious crisis there.
According to the Congressional Research Service, an estimated 1.9 million people have been displaced because of the political crises and more that 213,000 people have been forced away from their homes and into neighboring Chad. While there are no reliable estimates of the number of people killed as a result of the conflict, some observers project that up to 300,000 people have been killed over the past 24 months. In July 2004, the House and Senate declared the atrocities in Darfur “genocide,” and the Bush Administration reached the same conclusion in September 2004.
Posted by Intern, CA07 at 06:06PM | Comments ()
House Democratic Leaders Press Republicans to pass much Delayed Minimum wage Increase After Bush Officials Signal Openess to Wage Increase
WASHINGTON, D.C. – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, and Democratic Policy Committee Chairman George Miller (D-CA) issued the following statement today in response to recent comments by U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow and U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez that the Bush administration may be open to an increase in the federal minimum wage:
“Two Bush Cabinet officials have indicated that the administration would finally be open to an increase in the national minimum wage, stuck at $5.15 per hour for the past 7 years. This is unexpected, but welcome, news from an administration that has repeatedly rewarded the wealthy special interests at the expense of hard-working Americans. Democrats have legislation to increase the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25, but House and Senate Republicans have blocked action on the measures. The refusal of Congressional Republicans to even allow a debate or vote on raising the minimum wage reflects a fundamental lack of respect for American workers who are playing by the rules and trying to make ends meet.
“At $5.15 per hour, an American working full-time, all year, earns less than $11,000, which is not enough to meet even the most basic needs. This is immoral. It stands in stark contrast to the average $9.9 million in compensation earned by top executives at the nation’s largest companies. A CEO paid $9.9 million per year makes in just over two hours what a minimum wage worker earns in a whole year.
“The Democratic legislation would also extend the minimum wage to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana islands, a U.S. territory where workers toil in sweatshop conditions to produce goods bearing the ‘Made in the USA’ label. The garment industry in the Marianas hired Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff to help preserve this outrageous and immoral system. And just as Abramoff wanted, the House Republican leadership buried the reform legislation.
“Republican leaders in the House should allow an honest debate and a clean vote on the Democratic legislation to raise the minimum wage. Last week we distributed a House discharge petition – already signed by 185 Democrats -- to force the Republican leadership to act on the minimum wage increase. We call on those Republicans who claim they support a minimum wage increase to sign the discharge petition so immediate action on the legislation can be taken.”
Posted by Intern, CA07 at 06:08PM | Comments ()
Rep. Miller to hold town hall meeting on Medicare Prescription Drugs
PITTSBURG, CA – On Saturday, March 18, Rep. George Miller will hold a town meeting in Pittsburg to discuss the controversial new Medicare prescription drug program. The event is open to the public and to the news media. Miller is holding the meeting to collect personal stories about the experience that seniors or their families and caregivers are having trying to enroll in the program and pay for prescription drugs. He will also discuss his efforts in Congress to make the program simpler and more helpful to seniors.
Since Congress approved President Bush’s plan to provide prescription drug coverage through Medicare in 2003, the program has been plagued by enormously confusing deadlines and enrollment requirements, delays, and overcharging. In addition, the program has been criticized because it does not require drug and insurance companies to negotiate down the cost of prescriptions that many seniors use.
Seniors are not the only ones complaining about the program. Pharmacists have registered their complaints with the Bush Administration too because they say that the program is causing them to lose money and that they have had to turn away some seniors who are not enrolled. Meanwhile, the major drug manufacturers are getting paid top dollar by federal taxpayers.
Miller supports providing prescription drug coverage through Medicare, but he strongly opposed the bill that President Bush pushed through the Republican controlled Congress because it was primarily written to benefit drug and insurance companies. For example, the law fails to require drug companies to negotiate prices with Medicare, even though they are required to negotiate prices with Veterans Administration another large purchaser of prescriptions drugs.
Posted by Intern, CA07 at 06:21PM | Comments ()
