Free Republic

Bush immigration plan offers shaky promises New arrivals may like idea, but longtime workers lose By Icess Fernandez Caller-Times January 18, 2004 He had been deported before, but this time it was different. This deportation was in front of Elivd Arguellos' children, who were U.S. citizens. "I told them, 'That's OK, before they know it, I'll be back.' " Advertisement Arguellos, who at the time was an undocumented worker, was being sent back to Mexico after his wife's family reported him to immigration officials. His wife and her family are U.S. citizens. His three children, Elizette, Elivd Jr., and Elisa,...

<p>Reports about a new U.S. agenda for manned space travel sent aerospace stocks climbing Friday and brought back a wave of nostalgia for the '60s and '70s, when everything from rockets to space capsules were built in Southern California and even the cars were styled like spaceships.</p>

SACRAMENTO, CA (Talon News) -- California State Sen. Tom McClintock, a Republican candidate for governor in the upcoming recall election, blasted Democrat Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante's plan to eliminate California's budget deficit by raising taxes up to $10 billion. "I was hoping for more of a message of hope and optimism from our Lt. Governor," McClintock said. "What California received was more of the failed Gray Davis type leadership from the second most powerful person in the state." "When the Lt. Governor says we have to 'sacrifice' he is not kidding. Unfortunately, it is the hard-working, taxpaying families of California...

<p>Kevin Iwai is excited about starting kindergarten at Frank Huff School in Mountain View this fall.</p> <p>But the state budget crisis might spoil his plans.</p> <p>Right now, any child in California who turns 5 by Dec. 2 is entitled to attend kindergarten in the fall. But to help deal with the state's financial crisis, lawmakers are considering changing the cutoff date to Sept. 1, a move that would force Kevin and about 100,000 children to wait another year before entering school.</p>

SACRAMENTO -- In what could be the foundation of a possible budget agreement, Senate Republicans offered Wednesday ideas for trimming about $2.7 billion in spending -- at least some of which have already been proposed by Gov. Gray Davis. Ranging from the elimination of $1 million in funding to help counties pay for special elections to the reduction of nearly $1 billion in assistance for local government, Senate Republicans are in agreement with the Democratic governor on a wide variety of issues, according to an analysis. Expectations are that the list of more than 100 budget amendments proposed by Senate...

<p>The state's budget standoff showed little sign of lifting Sunday as the Assembly rejected a Republican plan to balance the budget without new taxes.</p> <p>The 3 1/2-hour Sunday session was extraordinary, but the rhetoric on both sides was much the same as in recent months leading up to the impasse.</p>

<p>Assembly Republicans, whose support will be crucial to a state budget deal, offered a plan Tuesday that they say would avoid taxes and pay off the state's debt over five years.</p> <p>Democrats for more than a year have accused Assembly Republicans of failing to compromise or come up with a detailed plan of their own for addressing a shortfall estimated as high as $34.6 billion through June 2004.</p>

Treasury officials portrayed the proposal as a streamlining move, but a wide range of analysts said it could represent a significant retreat from a central tenet of the nation's tax system: that the rich should pay a greater share of their income in taxes than those who make less. But even some conservative analysts said that, together with President Bush's recent call for a dividend tax cut and the administration's already-enacted income tax rate cuts, the new proposal would undermine the progressiveness of the tax system by placing a substantial share of the money made on savings and investment --...

<p>A scaled-back but still ambitious plan to launch the world's largest fleet of ferries would add seven routes on San Francisco Bay and use state-of- the-art boats to reduce air pollution.</p> <p>The draft plan, to be released by the San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority today, also proposes expanding service on the existing Golden Gate, Alameda/Oakland, Vallejo Baylink and Harbor Bay Island ferries.</p>

Draft: Essential Norms for Diocesan/Eparchial PoliciesDealing with Allegations of Sexual Abuse of Minorsby Clergy or Other Church Personnel PreambleOn DATE, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops approved a "Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People." The charter addresses the Church's commitment to deal appropriately and effectively with cases of sexual abuse of minors by clergy and other Church personnel. The Bishops of the United States have promised to reach out to those who have been sexually abused as minors by anyone serving the Church in ministry, employment, or a volunteer position, whether the abuse was recent...