Whitehouse Briefing: Auto Industry To Adhere To MPG Standards

SUBJECT: The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

In 2007, the Congress passed the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA). This law mandates that, as part of the Nation’s efforts to achieve energy independence, the Secretary of Transportation prescribe annual fuel economy increases for automobiles, beginning with model year 2011, resulting in a combined fuel economy fleet average of at least 35 miles per gallon by model year 2020. On May 2, 2008, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking entitled Average Fuel Economy Standards, Passenger Cars and Light Trucks; Model Years 2011-2015, 73 Fed. Reg. 24352. In the notice and comment period, the NHTSA received numerous comments, some of them contending that certain aspects of the proposed rule, including appendices providing for preemption of State laws, were inconsistent with provisions of EISA and the Supreme Court’s decision in Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency, 549 U.S. 497 (2007).

Federal law requires that the final rule regarding fuel economy standards be adopted at least 18 months before the beginning of the model year (49 U.S.C. 32902(g)(2)). In order for the model year 2011 standards to meet this requirement, the NHTSA must publish the final rule in the Federal Register by March 30, 2009. To date, the NHTSA has not published a final rule.

Therefore, I request that:

(a) in order to comply with the EISA requirement that fuel economy increases begin with model year 2011, you take all measures consistent with law, and in coordination with the Environmental Protection Agency, to publish in the Federal Register by March 30, 2009, a final rule prescribing increased fuel economy for model year 2011;

(b) before promulgating a final rule concerning model years after model year 2011, you consider the appropriate legal factors under the EISA, the comments filed in response to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the relevant technological and scientific considerations, and to the extent feasible, the forthcoming report by the National Academy of Sciences mandated under section 107 of EISA; and

(c) in adopting the final rules in paragraphs (a) and (b) above, you consider whether any provisions regarding preemption are consistent with the EISA, the Supreme Court’s decision in Massachusetts v. EPA and other relevant provisions of law and the policies underlying them.

This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

The Secretary of Transportation is hereby authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.

BARACK OBAMA
THE WHITE HOUSE, January 26, 2009

Texas Straight Talk – A weekly column
Congressman Ron Paul, TX – 14 (Jan 26, 2009)

This week the House is expected to pass an $825 billion economic stimulus package. In reality, this bill is just an escalation of a government-created economic mess. As before, a sense of urgency and impending doom is being used to extract mountains of money from Congress with minimal debate. So much for change. This is déjà vu. We are again being promised that its passage will help employment, help homeowners, help the environment, etc. These promises are worthless. This time around especially, Congress should know better than to pass anything of this magnitude without first reading the fine print. There a many red flags that I have found in this bill.

At least $4 billion is allocated to expanding the police state and the war on drugs through Byrne grants, which even the Bush administration opposed, and the COPS program, both of which are corrupt and largely ineffective programs.

To help Big Brother keep a better eye on us and our children, $20 billion would go towards health information technology, which would create a national system of electronic medical records without adequate privacy protection. These records would instead be subject to the misnamed federal “medical privacy” rule, which allows government and state-favored special interests to see medical records at will. An additional $250 million is allocated for states to nationalize individual student data, expanding Federal control of education and eroding privacy.

$79 billion bails out states that haphazardly expanded their budgets during the bubble years, but refuse to retrench and cut back, as their taxpayers have had to, during recession years.

$200 million expands Americorps. $100 million goes to “faith-and-community” based organizations for social services, which will further insinuate the government into charity and community service. Private charities are much more efficient and effective because they are directly accountable to donors, while public programs tend to get rewarded for failure. With its money, the Federal Government brings its incompetence and its whims, while creating foolish dependence. This is sad to see.

Of course the bill is rife with central planning projects. $4 billion for job training, much of which will be used to direct workers into “green jobs”. $200 million to “encourage” electric cars, $2 billion to support US manufacturers of advanced batteries and battery systems, which is yet another function of government I can’t find in the Constitution. Not to mention $500 million for energy efficient manufacturing demonstration projects, $70 million for a Technology Innovation Program for “research in potentially revolutionary technologies” in which government, not supply and demand, will pick winners and losers. $746 million for afterschool snacks, $6.75 billion for the Department of Commerce, including $1 billion for a census.

This bill delivers an additional debt burden of $6,700 to every American man, woman and child.

There is a lot of stimulus and growth in this bill – that is, of government. Nothing in this bill stimulates the freedom and prosperity of the American people. Politician-directed spending is never as successful as market-driven investment. Instead of passing this bill, Congress should get out of the way by cutting taxes, cutting spending, and reining in the reckless monetary policy of the Federal Reserve.

Join Ron Paul’s Campaign For Liberty

For Immediate Release

2nd Annual Philadelphia Sports Extravaganza and Wellness Expo
Saturday Feb 14th and – Sunday Feb 15th 2009
at The Greater Philadelphia Expo Center at Oaks, on Route 422, near King of Prussia and Philadelphia PA.

Join us this year at The Greater Philadelphia Expo Center at Oaks and change your life for the better in just one weekend. The Philadelphia Sports Extravaganza and Wellness Expo will be filled with free medical screenings, health services, personal trainer certifications CEC. You can purchase sports and fitness equipment from Fundamental Fitness Products, related clothing, supplements, as well as games and competitions. The Sports Extravaganza will give audiences a taste of high caliber Arm Wresting, Model Search, Strong Man Competition, Martial Arts, and Physique Competitions. The Wellness Expo is Free with Free Parking both Days. The Sports Extravaganza is only $10.00 for adults and Kids and Seniors are free.

Read More

Visit the Health and Wellness Network

Get the latest security updates.

* Apple QuickTime Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
Attackers may be able to exploit these vulnerabilities to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service.

*Microsoft Windows Does Not Disable AutoRun Properly
Microsoft Windows includes an AutoRun feature, which can automatically run code when removable devices are connected to the computer. AutoRun (and the closely related AutoPlay) can unexpectedly cause arbitrary code execution.

*Oracle Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
The impacts of these vulnerabilities include remote execution of arbitrary code, information disclosure, and denial of service.

*Microsoft Technical Cyber Security Alerts Multiple SMB Protocol Vulnerabilities
A remote, unauthenticated attacker could gain elevated privileges, execute arbitrary code, or cause a denial of service.

Protesters from around the world have been holding demonstrations against a wide variety of American induced deaths among civilian populations including wedding parties, women and children.

Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, condemned the United States for the death of 16 civilians. Hundreds of villagers took to the streets in protest demonstrations.

Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, called for massive protests against Israel and the United States over the bombing and shelling of U.N. schools. Official figures estimate that 1,400 Palestinians were killed and 5,500 others wounded.

Entertainment News

Sony, owner of Epic, Jive, Columbia, RCA and Arista Records, announced continued troubles plague the music industry. Full Article

Full Article

RomBox.com, one of the web’s oldest music sites, announced a new news service. The RSS entertainment feed is *free for all* and allows viewers to catch a glimpse inside the music business with reviews, events, free server to peer downloads and more.

Markets around the world are falling. This could be the first time that so many countries have slid into recession at the same time. The United States has been in a recession for the past year. Great Britain announced that it, too, had fallen into recession. In Korea, Samsung posted its first ever quarterly loss. Japan’s Sony saw its first quarterly loss in fourteen years. Canada went from predicting a positive GNP to revising the projection to a recession. Even China is seeing a slowdown with growth going into the single digits for the first time in many years.

United States Geological Survey reports in an article published in Science magazine, that tree deaths have doubled in the West and Northwest US in recent decades. The climate changes, and rooted trees cannot escape.

The New York Times covers this at

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/us/23trees.html

By the Rev. LeRoy Montana

Imagine…
Maybe it’s a stretch, but, just give it a thought:
Every single person on the planet has a place to live;
clean water to drink and for their animals and to grow food and
to wash and to cook; enough good food to eat; air that wont make
us sick; education, as much as you want; medical attention;
utilities including internet; no war; all the resources of the planet
used to benefit the inhabitants of the planet; and if someone wants
more that will be possible too; the freedom to believe in anything or
everything or not believe, as long as it doesnt hurt another; and helping
when the chance comes your way.

We live on one living organism/planet together, and there isnt much
difference between you and me. We all want to be safe. We all want
love and friends and something meaningful to do.

Maybe it can start. We can start it. All the potential is here right now,
like never before.