News, News, and yes, More News

First and foremost, I'd like to offer my condolences to State Rep. Ted Edmonds (D) on the loss of his father. Gov. Fletcher did release a statement:

"Glenna and I want to express our deepest sympathies to Representative Ted Edmonds and his family today, following the death of Ted’s father, Theodore Edmonds of Jackson, last night. Mr. Edmonds was a retired merchant, a veteran of World War II and a member of the Presbyterian Church for more than 50 years. He was an outstanding Kentuckian and will be missed by his family and community."

Jenna Fischer, who plays Pam on The Office with Steve Carell, will soon be seen in Blades of Glory.

The movie stars Ferrell and Jon Heder as a pair of skaters who take on a rival duo, played by Saturday Night Live veterans Will Arnett and Amy Poehler. Fischer is playing Arnett and Poehler's little sister and Heder's romantic interest. Production is set to start in March.

The AP predicts their Grammy winners. What do they have Sir Paul McCartney winning next Wednesday? Nekasa Mumbi Moody argues that Best Album should go to Paul for Chaos and Creation in the Backyard. Both believe that Male Pop Vocal Performance should go to McCartney for "Fine Line." For Pop Vocal Album, Moody prefers McCartney.

Like myself, it appears that Senator Tom Daschle has endorsed Secretary of State Chet Culver for Governor of Iowa.

"Chet is in the strongest position to be the next governor," Daschle said in a news conference Wednesday. "There is no question Chet is the strongest political candidate running for governor."

Daschle, of South Dakota, has long been a leading advocate for the development of alternative fuels such as ethanol and Culver has made that a key part of his campaign.

"Reducing America's dependence on foreign oil is one of the most pressing issues of our time, and Chet Culver has shown he has the vision to lead Iowa in fueling the world," said Daschle.

ABC announced the midseason lineup.

Dane Cook's hard work has paid off.

Malcolm Cherry is running for the 21st district of the State House.

UK is having email problems. What's up with that?

Congressman Ben Cardin is looking fine to join the United States Senate.

Aides to Cardin said the Baltimore area lawmaker's campaign finance report, which was due yesterday, would show he had raised more than $2.8 million in 2005 and finished the year with more than $2.1 million on hand.

A House divided over lobbying reforms. What's next? In light of too many scandals this year, lobbying needs reforming.

Kudos to State Rep. Mike Weaver.

To prevent delayed action on future complaints, Rep. Mike Weaver, D-Elizabethtown, said he will file legislation that would require the PSC to respond to similar complaints within 60 days.

"If the same energy company had asked for a rate increase, the PSC would have acted within 10 months or less," Weaver said. "There's something wrong with that picture."

This cannot be good. The St. Louis Cardinals were sued by an insurance company.

The St. Louis Cardinals were sued by an insurance company yesterday over claims that the baseball team hid studies that showed the site of their new stadium was contaminated by petroleum and heavy metals.

It looks like Second City and the Steppenwolf Theatre are going to embark on a joint venture.

In New Hampshire yesterday, lobbyist reform was passed by one vote. This is definitely good news. I don't have the link to the article as it was emailed to me but here's an excerpt.

But that measure isn't enough, said Rep. Peter Sullivan, a Manchester Democrat, yesterday. He sponsored a bill that would make candidates spell out the gifts they receive from lobbyists on a separate list. Currently, gifts are included with all other campaign contributions. That and the fact that many lobbyists are listed as lawyers or consultants makes it difficult for ordinary citizens to identify the contributions lobbyists make to their elected officials, Sullivan said.

A 9-5 majority on the House Election Law Committee recommended killing Sullivan's bill, but that recommendation was defeated, 168-169. House members then voted, 183-158, to add an amendment that would apply the same reporting rules to political action committees. The amended bill then passed, 198-144.

"It casts some sunshine and some fresh air back into the process," Sullivan said.

Will we finally have energy independence?

U.S. Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN), Sam Brownback (R-KS), Joe Lieberman (D-CT), Norm Coleman (R-MN), and Ken Salazar (D-CO), along with Congressmen Jack Kingston (R-GA) and Eliot Engel (D-NY), today called on President Bush to follow up on his remarks in last night’s State of the Union address by supporting their bipartisan legislation to increase America’s energy independence.

Last November, the bipartisan coalition introduced the Vehicle and Fuel Choices for American Security Act, which would mandate 2.5 million barrels in oil-savings in 10 years and would also encourage the mass-production of cars that can burn any combination of gasoline and alternative fuels or, alternatively, cars powered by efficient hybrid engines.

In a letter that will be sent to the President today, the members expressed their support for the President’s call for energy independence and urged him to support their bipartisan legislation as the solution to America’s dependence on foreign oil.

"Achieving energy independence is one of the greatest challenges of our generation, one that will impact everything from our national security to our economy," Senator Bayh said. "Our bipartisan approach would achieve greater oil savings than the President called for last night in half the time and provides us with a real plan to begin reducing our dependence on foreign oil today. We can't afford to rely on countries like Saudi Arabia and Venezuela for our energy needs any longer."

It should be noted that Saudi Arabia is going to fund Hamas so how about hitting Saudi Arabia financially with that news?

Jerry Lee Lewis, the Killer himself, is making a comeback. I hope The Pilgrim brings in some money because from what I read, it should be a great album. Maybe he'll get some Grammy nominations next year!

That's all for now. Back to listening to Buddy Holly and then lunch time.