MicCheck Radio

Your Taxpayer Dollars

As Texas continues to face a budget shortfall of at least $11 billion, Gov. Rick Perry has spent almost $600,000 in public money during the past two years to live in a luxurious rental home in Austin. According to reports, it costs more than $10,000 a month in rent, utilities and upkeep to house Perry in a five-bedroom, seven-bath mansion (which includes three dining rooms). Perry has also "spent $130,000 in campaign donations to throw parties, buy food and drink, and pay for cable TV and a host of other services since he moved in, the records show." [AP]

Posted 10:54 AM | Monday, May 17th, 2010 | Permalink

Tags: states, taxpayer

Political Junkie

Source: flickr/a-barth

Add Another Star to That Flag

Because Congress doesn't have enough controversial debates on their hands right now, the House voted Thursday to allow Puerto Ricans to change the island’s commonwealth status, in what some conservatives are saying is a backdoor attempt to force Puerto Ricans into choosing U.S. statehood -- something Puerto Rican voters already have rejected three times.

The bill would introduce a two-step ballot measure for Puerto Rico to decide if its residents want to change their current relationship with the United States. If they vote to change their status, they can then choose to become a state, pursue independence, or seek some other "political association between sovereign nations." [Fox News]

Posted 3:03 PM | Friday, April 30th, 2010 | Permalink

Tags: states

Health & Wellness

Suing Is The New Black

Arizona and Nevada have now joined 14 other states that are suing the federal government over health care reform. Many states are arguing that the bill signed by President Obama is unconstitutional in part because it requires people to buy private health insurance. The 14 states include Virginia, Florida, Louisiana , Pennsylvania, Idaho, South Carolina, Nebraska, Washington, Alabama, Texas, Michigan, South Dakota and Colorado. [Huff Post]

Posted 12:46 PM | Wednesday, April 7th, 2010 | Permalink

Tags: reform, states, health insurance

Political Junkie

Source: flickr/95901165@N00

Pot at the Polls

It will be a historic day... wait, what was I writing about?

Oh yes, in November, voters in California will vote on whether or not to legalize marijuana. Proponents of the measure turned in 694,248 signatures yesterday, far more than were necessary to get legalization on the ballot. The initiative would make it legal for adults, 21 and over, to have an ounce of marijuana for personal use. [LA Times]

Posted 3:36 PM | Thursday, March 25th, 2010 | Permalink

Tags: states

Health & Wellness

Source: flickr/dnnya

Bad News in South Carolina

An influx of state cash to South Carolina's AIDS Drug Assistance Program, which has help over 2,000 South Carolinians, may end soon if the 2010-2011 budget has anything to do with it. According to reports, the current version of the state's budget for the 2010-11 fiscal year, which starts July 1, would eliminate all money for the Drug Assistance Program, which provides life-saving HIV/AIDS drugs to the state's low-income, uninsured and underinsured residents. The budget also eliminates all money for the state's HIV/AIDS prevention programs. [The State]

Posted 1:34 PM | Thursday, March 18th, 2010 | Permalink

Tags: reform, states, coverage

Political Junkie

Source: flickr/tuaussi

Why, #*$&#!!

And here we thought the California legislature was busy with things like a crippling budget, overcrowded prisons, skyrocketing health care costs and unemployment. That still seems to leave plenty of time for this: The state assembly is voting tomorrow on a statewide resolution to declare the first week of March "Cuss Free Week." [Fox News]

Posted 10:19 PM | Thursday, February 25th, 2010 | Permalink

Tags: states

Right Wing Wackiness

Why-oming

Having obviously solved health care, unemployment, climate change and war, the Wyoming legislature has turned its attention to another top priority, writing "cowboy ethics" into state law. The legislation's sponsor, Republican state Senator Jim Anderson, has introduced a bill to institute a state code which would stress the importance of keeping promises and saying more by talking less. It carries no penalties for those who break the code and, after passing the Senate last week, heads this week to their state House. [WTOP]

Posted 5:49 PM | Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 | Permalink

Tags: states, senate