'Get A Loan,' Commerce Chief Tells Unpaid Federal Workers

[rainman + 263]

U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Thursday urged furloughed federal workers facing a second missed paycheck to seek loans to pay their bills while adding that he could not understand why they were having trouble getting by. In a CNBC interview, Ross, who made a fortune buying distressed companies, said it was disappointing that some federal workers affected by the government shutdown were not showing up to work. “So the 30 days of pay that some people will be out – there’s no real reason why they shouldn’t be able to get a loan against it and we’ve seen a number of ads from the financial institutions doing that,” Ross said. “So there really is not a good excuse why there really should be a liquidity crisis,” he said. “True the people might have to pay a little bit of interest.”

[Pavel + 384]

Right. Why not just get the Treasury to print a bunch of "shutdown dollars"?

[50 shades of black + 254]

Ross is "full of empathy".  How does he think he has any right to express his ignorant opinion about people who work for a living... Sad. No wonder so many people are barely surviving week to week..

[pinto + 293]

Out of touch with reality

[ThunderBlade + 231]

Get a soul... What planet does he live on?

[rainman + 263]

Somehow, he does not need one...

[ronwagn + 6,290]

All the Democrats need to do is approve the wall funding. Then the workers will all get paid. 

[Janet Alderton + 124]

28 minutes ago, ronwagn said:

All the Democrats need to do is approve the wall funding. Then the workers will all get paid. 

The Republicans did not fund a Trump wall during the two years when they controlled both the House and Senate and the Presidency. The reason is fiscal. Border walls have been built where and when they made sense. Let's listen to the experts about what measures are most effective for border security with today's technologies.

[Tom Kirkman + 8,860]

1 hour ago, ronwagn said:

All the Democrats need to do is approve the wall funding. Then the workers will all get paid. 

 

1 hour ago, Janet Alderton said:

The Republicans did not fund a Trump wall during the two years when they controlled both the House and Senate and the Presidency. The reason is fiscal. Border walls have been built where and when they made sense. Let's listen to the experts about what measures are most effective for border security with today's technologies.

 

[Tom Kirkman + 8,860]

Speaking of "border security" ... here is the related law:

8 U.S. Code § 1325 - Improper entry by alien

 

(a) Improper time or place; avoidance of examination or inspection; misrepresentation and concealment of facts

Any alien who (1) enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, or (2) eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers, or (3) attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact, shall, for the first commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both, and, for a subsequent commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both.

(b) Improper time or place; civil penalties 

Any alien who is apprehended while entering (or attempting to enter) the United States at a time or place other than as designated by immigration officers shall be subject to a civil penalty of—

(1)

at least $50 and not more than $250 for each such entry (or attempted entry); or

(2)

twice the amount specified in paragraph (1) in the case of an alien who has been previously subject to a civil penalty under this subsection.

Civil penalties under this subsection are in addition to, and not in lieu of, any criminal or other civil penalties that may be imposed.  ...

[Rasmus Jorgensen + 1,169]

9 hours ago, Tom Kirkman said:

 

 

I have seen some suggestion on the this forum for the how to end illegal employment once and for all.... It would likely be a lot cheaper than the wall too... why not cheer for that???? Would free up a lot of jobs too... 

[ronwagn + 6,290]

Rasmus, that is a good idea to go along with the wall as is enforcing visa overstays and baby trips etc. Ending ILLEGAL immigration will save far more than what we spend on supporting illegal aliens here in the USA. 

[cbrasher1 + 272]

this is my response to the public outcry of federal workers out of work for a month....

[Tom Kirkman + 8,860]

15 hours ago, ronwagn said:

Rasmus, that is a good idea to go along with the wall as is enforcing visa overstays and baby trips etc. Ending ILLEGAL immigration will save far more than what we spend on supporting illegal aliens here in the USA. 

Oddly enough, I have seen zero reporting about this new EO in the media today:

Executive Order: Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements

If you are a U.S. citizen, whether you like or loathe Trump, it would probably be a good idea to actually read this  ^  brand new EO issued today.  Educate yourself as a citizen and as a voter.

Why?  Preparation...

 

[Tom Kirkman + 8,860]

6 hours ago, cbrasher1 said:

this is my response to the public outcry of federal workers out of work for a month....

 

How the Shutdown Shows Us Exactly Where to Start Cutting Government

[Meredith Poor + 895]

Hadrian's Wall: Outer limit of the Roman Empire. From that point forward Roman civilization shrank.

Great Wall(s) of China: The plural indicates that this was done several times, by different emperors in different dynasties. Represented futile efforts to keep foreign invaders out. China has built a lot of walls, and has collapsed in on itself at least that many times if not more. Note: current version of this is '9 dashed line'. Current economic situation in China: getting cloudy.

Berlin wall and Iron Curtian: Erected in early 1960's. Soviet Union doesn't survive another 30 years.

Using these examples (more are easily found) shows construction of physical barriers is evidence of social and political rot. People want to be 'comfortable' living among their own kind. In short, new ideas and immigrant workers willing to climb the economic ladder remind the native born that they have (to spend real effort) to compete.

Edited January 26, 2019 by Meredith Poor

[specinho + 467]

On 1/25/2019 at 9:02 AM, Pavel said:

Right. Why not just get the Treasury to print a bunch of "shutdown dollars"?

 

[specinho + 467]

On 1/26/2019 at 9:36 PM, Meredith Poor said:

Hadrian's Wall: Outer limit of the Roman Empire. From that point forward Roman civilization shrank.

Great Wall(s) of China: The plural indicates that this was done several times, by different emperors in different dynasties. Represented futile efforts to keep foreign invaders out. China has built a lot of walls, and has collapsed in on itself at least that many times if not more. Note: current version of this is '9 dashed line'. Current economic situation in China: getting cloudy.

Berlin wall and Iron Curtian: Erected in early 1960's. Soviet Union doesn't survive another 30 years.

Using these examples (more are easily found) shows construction of physical barriers is evidence of social and political rot. People want to be 'comfortable' living among their own kind. In short, new ideas and immigrant workers willing to climb the economic ladder remind the native born that they have (to spend real effort) to compete.

This is not trying to support nor against the motion but ........ find the cartoon funny............

[Meredith Poor + 895]

42 minutes ago, specinho said:

Something got messed up here. If you're quoting me, this isn't something I posted.

[ronwagn + 6,290]

On 1/24/2019 at 8:33 PM, Janet Alderton said:

The Republicans did not fund a Trump wall during the two years when they controlled both the House and Senate and the Presidency. The reason is fiscal. Border walls have been built where and when they made sense. Let's listen to the experts about what measures are most effective for border security with today's technologies.

True, but we have gotten rid of some RINOS. More Rinos and Democrats need to go!

On 1/26/2019 at 5:36 AM, Meredith Poor said:

Hadrian's Wall: Outer limit of the Roman Empire. From that point forward Roman civilization shrank.

Great Wall(s) of China: The plural indicates that this was done several times, by different emperors in different dynasties. Represented futile efforts to keep foreign invaders out. China has built a lot of walls, and has collapsed in on itself at least that many times if not more. Note: current version of this is '9 dashed line'. Current economic situation in China: getting cloudy.

Berlin wall and Iron Curtian: Erected in early 1960's. Soviet Union doesn't survive another 30 years.

Using these examples (more are easily found) shows construction of physical barriers is evidence of social and political rot. People want to be 'comfortable' living among their own kind. In short, new ideas and immigrant workers willing to climb the economic ladder remind the native born that they have (to spend real effort) to compete.

China's wall obviously worked. The Soviet Unions wall was to keep Germans IN. The wall didn't fail, the Communists failed. We need to up the opposition to China to provide freedoms for the Chinese people. 

1

 

[Meredith Poor + 895]

2 hours ago, ronwagn said:

China's wall obviously worked. The Soviet Unions wall was to keep Germans IN. The wall didn't fail, the Communists failed. We need to up the opposition to China to provide freedoms for the Chinese people. 

"the majority of the existing wall is from the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644)." from Wikipedia.

"Towards the end of the Ming, the Great Wall helped defend the empire against the Manchu invasions that began around 1600. Even after the loss of all of Liaodong, the Ming army held the heavily fortified Shanhai Pass, preventing the Manchus from conquering the Chinese heartland. The Manchus were finally able to cross the Great Wall in 1644, after Beijing had already fallen to Li Zicheng's rebels. Before this time, the Manchus had crossed the Great Wall multiple times to raid, but this time it was for conquest." Another quote from the same article.

From the 1600's onwards China was having to deal with European powers and Japan. Walls did little to preserve Chinese sovereignty under the circumstances. The phrase "with Chinese characteristics", as uttered by various Great Leaders, is a signal that 'foreigners' are a corrupting influence which must be managed and contained. In short, China continues to chart it's own path, for better or worse, often ignoring expensive lessons learned by Westerners within the last few centuries.

Whatever is 'obvious' to me is that China's wall faced the wrong direction.

The point of the Soviet Iron Curtain was to keep foreign influences out - particularly the ideas around democracy. Had the Soviet economy been as beneficial to its citizens as the West's, no one would have had any incentive to leave.

[John Foote + 1,135]

The easy way into the USA is through the gates, visitor VISA, and overstay. With folks sneaking across the border and recent historical lows, the notion of declaring a national emergency is a bit of an obscenity. The geography of the border is a great barrier. Walls in some areas, absolutely.

But the fundamental issue is the estimated 12 million already here. Address real penalties to employers for hiring them, have national ID system, enforce it, and this will correct. Neither party is the least interested in this. Easy to rail against the outlier problems, and best to ignore the major one.

[ronwagn + 6,290]

4 hours ago, John Foote said:

The easy way into the USA is through the gates, visitor VISA, and overstay. With folks sneaking across the border and recent historical lows, the notion of declaring a national emergency is a bit of an obscenity. The geography of the border is a great barrier. Walls in some areas, absolutely.

But the fundamental issue is the estimated 12 million already here. Address real penalties to employers for hiring them, have national ID system, enforce it, and this will correct. Neither party is the least interested in this. Easy to rail against the outlier problems, and best to ignore the major one.

Maybe declaring a national emergency is just what we need to wake people up and get the wall built. President Trump cannot seem to get the help of the remaining RINOS or all but one or two Democrats. 

[John Foote + 1,135]

10 hours ago, ronwagn said:

Maybe declaring a national emergency is just what we need to wake people up and get the wall built. President Trump cannot seem to get the help of the remaining RINOS or all but one or two Democrats. 

Declaring an emergency is asking for the shit storm of all shit storms. It will be thrown into the judicial branch, IMHO declaring it a national emergency, when at worst it's business as usual, is grounds for impeachment. And I don't want to see that. Should have forced this issue when the house was Republican but did not.

The constitution is very flexible, but very clear on funding. This would be an ill-advised workaround. IMHO. 

Great interview on NPR this morning by the Republican mayor of El Paso. The folks on the border in Texas, there is no crises expect the political mess. Reform for immigration is 30 years overdue. 

[ronwagn + 6,290]

13 hours ago, John Foote said:

Declaring an emergency is asking for the shit storm of all shit storms. It will be thrown into the judicial branch, IMHO declaring it a national emergency, when at worst it's business as usual, is grounds for impeachment. And I don't want to see that. Should have forced this issue when the house was Republican but did not.

The constitution is very flexible, but very clear on funding. This would be an ill-advised workaround. IMHO. 

Great interview on NPR this morning by the Republican mayor of El Paso. The folks on the border in Texas, there is no crises expect the political mess. Reform for immigration is 30 years overdue. 

It has been going on for decades. It benefits crony capitalists RINOS and Democrats. The middle class suffers and declines. Our voting system is corrupted and only the wealthy control government. The cost of illegal aliens to our budget which is already set to implode is not acceptable. We have a crisis of trust in a crooked and self aggrandizing government. Trump needs to test his powers, let the Supreme Court decide.