Posted on

President Trump signs the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017 Improving Veterans Healthcare

Veterans5_Day_2013_Ceremony_in_Ridgewood_theridgewoodblog

“In just a short time, we’ve already achieved transformative change at the VA—and believe me, we’re just getting started.”—President Donald J. Trump

August 15,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washington DC, GIVING VETERANS A CHOICE: President Donald J. Trump is giving veterans a choice in the healthcare they receive so they can receive the right care, at the right time, from the right provider.

President Trump signed the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017 to authorize $2.1 billion in additional funds for the Veterans Choice Program (VCP).

Veterans become eligible for care under the VCP if they live more than 40 miles from the closest eligible VA medical facility, wait times are over 30 days from the clinically indicated date, or they meet other special criteria.
The VCP has improved veterans’ access to care, and since its inception has resulted in more than 21.6 million appointments, serving over 1.8 million unique veterans.
This new funding will ensure VCP-eligible veterans continue to receive care in their communities from providers they trust.
While initially created as a temporary program in 2014, VCP has proven to be a valuable addition to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare system.

The Act empowers the VA to hire the very best people at competitive rates for senior positions so our veterans receive the best care possible.

The Act expands the VA’s direct-hiring authority, which will increase the speed at which the VA can onboard qualified people for VA jobs.

The Act authorizes 28 major medical facility leases, including some that have been on hold for over three years.

PUTTING VETERAN CARE FIRST: President Trump is making veteran healthcare a priority of his Administration and has moved quickly to improve the Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare system.

The Administration has implemented a new White House VA hotline, staffed principally by veterans, to help veterans.
Under President Trump, the VA fired 677 employees, suspended 238, and demoted 32, as part of the President’s effort to restore integrity and accountability to a department charged with supporting our Nation’s heroes.

The VA is the first agency to post information on employee disciplinary action online.

President Trump signed the Veterans Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, improving senior VA officials’ ability to fire failing employees while establishing important safeguards to protect whistleblowers.
The VA is beginning the process of adopting the same electronic health records as the Department of Defense.
The VA has acted to increase transparency and accountability by launching an online “Access and Quality Tool” to provide veterans a way to access wait time and quality of care data.
Wait times are now posted online for each of the 168 medical centers managed by the VA.
The VA plans to dispose of 430 vacant buildings in the next 24 months, and is reviewing another 784 underutilized buildings.

Posted on

Reader says the Feds want to get in the pot business for tax reasons

POT-SMOKING-KID

The Empty Suit (BOOKER)must have spent too much time in the “Choom Wagon”. To have the Feds get in the pot business for tax reasons as the country further stupifys itself is insane. The latest buzz is about an opioid crisis and the government wants to sue the drug manufacturers. If they could collect taxes on heroin, would they whistle a different tune?

Recently President Donald J. Trump Directed the Administration to Use All Appropriate Authority to Respond to Opioid Emergency. Building upon the recommendations in the interim report from the President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis, President Donald J. Trump has instructed his Administration to use all appropriate emergency and other authorities to respond to the crisis caused by the opioid epidemic.

Posted on

Trump travel ban Reinstated by Supreme Court

Trump
June 27,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washington DC, in a 9-0 decision the Supreme Court is allowing the Trump administration to go forward with its travel ban from six mostly Muslim countries, In a victory for President Donald Trump , the court said Monday that Trump’s ban on visitors from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen can be enforced if those visitors lack a “credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States.” Trump said last week that the ban would take effect 72 hours after being cleared by courts. The justices will hear full arguments in October in the case.

President Donald J. Trump issued the following statement ,”Today’s unanimous Supreme Court decision is a clear victory for our national security.  It allows the travel suspension for the six terror-prone countries and the refugee suspension to become largely effective.

As President, I cannot allow people into our country who want to do us harm.  I want people who can love the United States and all of its citizens, and who will be hardworking and productive.

My number one responsibility as Commander in Chief is to keep the American people safe.  Today’s ruling allows me to use an important tool for protecting our Nation’s homeland.  I am also particularly gratified that the Supreme Court’s decision was 9-0.”

Posted on

President Donald J. Trump’s Principles for Reforming the U.S. Air Traffic Control System

newark-airport-picture

June 6,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Newark NJ,  from the Presidents desk ,the United States Air Traffic Control (ATC) system is one of the most important and vibrant elements of our Nation’s infrastructure.  Every day, the dedicated men and women of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) safely and efficiently guide thousands of aircraft to and from their destinations, collectively carrying millions of passengers and tons of cargo.  Yet, the FAA’s ATC operations are currently mired within a Federal bureaucracy that hinders innovative operations and the timely introduction of new technology.  In order to modernize our ATC system, the Administration supports moving the FAA’s ATC operations into a new non-governmental entity.  This will enable ATC to keep pace with the accelerating rate of change in the aviation industry, including the integration of new entrants such as Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Commercial Space Transports.  A more nimble ATC entity will also be able to more quickly and securely implement Next Generation (NextGen) technology, which will reduce aircraft delays and expand the availability of the National Airspace System (NAS) for all users.

ATC reform presents an exciting infrastructure improvement opportunity, and its completion will demonstrate early progress toward much needed infrastructure reform across all sectors.  The Administration’s principles for reforming ATC will drive legislation that will reduce delays, further improve aviation’s leading safety record, protect access to rural communities, and accelerate much needed capital investment.  These principles insulate one of our most important national assets from political interferences and the crippling effects of budget uncertainty, while keeping intact FAA’s critical safety oversight.  Additionally, they preserve essential working relationships and interoperable capabilities with the Department of Defense (DoD), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and law enforcement agencies that are critical to ensuring the safety and security of the Nation.

This proposal demonstrates that the Federal Government does not have to supply all of the resources required to develop and maintain our Nation’s vast infrastructure.  Often, it simply needs to remove obstacles hindering investment and innovation.  The new ATC entity envisioned in these reform principles will be self-sustaining, financed through fees paid by the users of the NAS.  These fees will be more efficient and less burdensome than the patchwork of aviation taxes that supports the system today.

The time has come to embrace a bolder vision of what our Nation’s ATC system can be and how best to move forward to achieve it.  In 2016, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster introduced the Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization (AIRR) Act to move ATC from the Government to a not-for-profit, independent entity.  The Administration supports the proposed AIRR Act as a good foundation for reforming the ATC system, and believes the legislation can be improved.  Accordingly, the Administration supports the enactment of legislation that incorporates the principles detailed in this document

The Principles

Safety: The FAA’s appropriate role is the inherently governmental function of safety regulator.  Removing ATC operations from the FAA would further this principle, and bring it in line with the recommended practice of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) and the approach used by the majority of developed aviation states around the world.  Aviation safety regulation would remain within the Department of Transportation, and the FAA would migrate to a performance-based framework responsible for providing effective oversight of the new ATC entity.

National Security: Protecting our Nation’s security is of paramount importance.  Accordingly, the new ATC entity must provide airspace access, prioritization, integration, cooperation, navigation, and information management services and support at levels of quality that ensure sustained national security and law enforcement capabilities.  This must be done at no cost to the Federal Government.  The new entity must develop interoperability plans, procedures, policies, and programs that ensure it can operate effectively, under all circumstances, with DoD.  The new entity must also be able to work under DHS control in exigent circumstances involving physical, adversarial, and technological threats and circumstances.  The Federal Government would indemnify the new entity for costs incurred in connection with operations that support Federal national security and law enforcement activities.

Cybersecurity: The new ATC system must be secure, robust, and resilient.  Components will fail, but those failures must not significantly affect the ATC system’s ability to provide safe and effective operation at peak capacity.  Additionally, as part of our Nation’s critical infrastructure, the new ATC system must be able to detect and defeat malicious cyber-based efforts to manipulate or degrade its operations.

Access: The new ATC entity must maintain open access for all users of the airspace and, specifically, those in rural communities, general aviation users, and the military.

Open Access: All users, including the general aviation industry and emerging new entrants, must have open access to our Nation’s airspace.  The FAA would continue to certify new entrants (such as Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Commercial Space Transports) as part of its responsibility to oversee safe use of the NAS.  The new ATC entity would grant FAA-certified users access to the NAS, subject to their participation in the system’s user fees, their being equipped, as necessary, to fly in controlled air space, and their compliance with other applicable rules and regulations.
Rural Access: The new entity must maintain access and services to rural communities and general aviation users.
Military Access: To ensure safe and effective execution of military missions, the new ATC entity must ensure continued military access to delegated Special Activity Airspace (e.g., Military Training Routes, Military Operating Areas, Warning Areas, and Restricted Areas); be capable of enforcing temporary airspace restrictions; and meet national security airspace requirements for DoD training, testing, and exercises.

Noise: Efficient use of the airspace requires new technology and efficient air routes.  The new ATC entity must have the authority, after seeking public comment, to adjust airspace routes.  The proposed route change would only be subject to National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review if the change exceeds the FAA-established noise threshold.  The FAA would still be responsible for ensuring—within a reasonable period of time, like 120 days—that any proposed route change does not create a safety hazard.

New Entity: America’s growing aviation system demands a new, independent, non-government organization to operate our Nation’s airspace.  The new entity should have access to capital markets in order to spur capital investment, technology adoption, and innovation faster, more effectively, and securely.  Over the last 20 years, more than 50 countries have already successfully transitioned their ATC operations.

Transition Period: The transfer of ATC operations from the FAA to the new entity should be completed within an established 3-year transition period overseen by the Secretary of Transportation.  The transition period should be marked by milestones developed and monitored by the Secretary of Transportation, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, to ensure adequate progress.  The transition period may be extended only with the approval of the President.
Not-For-Profit Entity: The new ATC entity should be a not-for-profit, non-governmental entity.
Fees: The new ATC entity should be financially self-sufficient through the collection of user fees that cover both its costs of operations and recapitalization.  The aviation taxes that currently cover these costs should be sunset, except for those necessary to continue to fund the Airport Improvement Program.  General fund revenues should fund the rest of the FAA.  Users should have input in the fees and their structure, which should be guided by ICAO principles and be consistent with the international obligations of the United States.  Except national-security users (including DoD aircraft, DoD-contracted flights, and foreign military aircraft), diplomatic users (including non-commercial United States Government and foreign sovereign State aircraft), and public safety users, all users should pay their fair share.  To ensure that rates are just and reasonable, however, users should have the ability to request review by the Secretary of Transportation, rather than the Congress.  Any determination by the Secretary of Transportation should be final.
Financial Authority: The new ATC entity should have the authority to borrow funds and enter into contracts, leases, and other arrangements during and after the transition period.  The new entity should also have the authority to procure goods and services, hire employees, and to bond or pledge future revenues to fulfill the terms of financial arrangements and other transactions.  Additionally, the new entity should have the authority to sell or transfer its assets.
Assets: All assets currently owned by the FAA and used in the operation of ATC should be transferred, at no charge, to the new ATC entity.  The users of the ATC system have already paid for those assets and should not be charged for them again.  The assets should be transferred along with any environmental liabilities associated with them.  Accordingly, sufficient funds to account for those liabilities should also be transferred to the new entity.
Governance: A professional Board of Directors should manage the new ATC.  The members of the Board should have a fiduciary responsibility solely to the new ATC entity and be free of any financial conflict of interest.  Board seats should not be reserved for any entity, except for the ATC entity’s Chief Executive Officer, who would serve as a representative of the new entity.  The new entity should represent all users impartially, and no group should have even the appearance of influence over the Board.  The Board should ensure that DoD and national-security equities are adequately represented and that the entity maintains appropriate relationships with national and international air navigation service providers and forums.  To establish the initial Board, the Secretary of Transportation should select eight members from candidate lists provided by five nominating groups.  The nominating groups should be airlines, unions, general aviation, airports, and the Department of Transportation.  Each nominating group would provide lists of six to ten qualified persons to the Secretary.
United States-based carriers with annual revenues greater than $10 billion should develop the airline list.
Unions representing at least 50 percent of FAA employees that would transfer to the new ATC entity or representing more than 10,000 United States commercial pilots should develop the union list.
The two largest trade groups representing general aviation (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) and National Business Aviation Association (NBAA)), should jointly develop the general aviation list.

Two members should be selected from the airline list, two members should be selected from the union list, one member should be selected from the general aviation list, one member should be selected from the airport list, and two members should be selected from the Department of Transportation list.  Those eight initial Board members would then select a Chief Executive Officer.  Those nine Board members would then select four independent Board members.  The 13-member Board would be constituted for at least the transition period, plus the first year of operation.  After this time, decisions about Board constitution and members’ terms should be left to the discretion of the Board.  Once the initial Board members are nominated, no group should have an exclusive right to name successor Board members.

Labor: The new ATC entity should honor existing labor agreements.  Employees who transition to the new entity will no longer be Federal employees, but they should be held harmless and have similar rights to those they had as Federal employees at the FAA.  Consistent with those rights, employees of the new entity should not be permitted to strike.
Spectrum: The new ATC entity should not be charged for its use of spectrum, as the FAA is not charged for spectrum use today.  The new entity will occupy spectrum shared with Federal entities.  The new entity, however, could be required to vacate existing spectrum band (at some point) and move to another frequency along with other Federal entities.  In any future spectrum reallocation, the new entity should be treated as a Federal entity, including with respect to the use of any reallocation auction proceeds to finance relocation expenses.  Relocation expenses could include those associated with the development, procurement, and installation of new radar systems that are interoperable with government systems on a different spectrum band.

Posted on

Trump Rolls Out His first 100 Days of Historic Accomplishments

Donald J Trump 45th President
April 27,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washington DC, GETTING GOVERNMENT OUT OF THE WAY: President Donald J. Trump has done more to stop the Government from interfering in the lives of Americans in his first 100 days than any other President in history.

President Trump has signed 13 Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions in his first 100 days, more than any other President. These resolutions nullified unnecessary regulations and block agencies from reissuing them.

Since CRA resolutions were introduced under President Clinton, they’ve been used only once, under President George W. Bush.

The Wall Street Journal editorial: “So far the Trump Administration is a welcome improvement, rolling back more regulations than any President in history.”

TAKING EXECUTIVE ACTION: In office, President Trump has accomplished more in his first 100 days than any other President since Franklin Roosevelt.

President Trump will have signed 30 executive orders during his first 100 days.

President Obama signed 19 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President George W. Bush signed 11 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Clinton signed 13 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President George H.W. Bush signed 11 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Reagan signed 18 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Carter signed 16 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Nixon signed 15 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Johnson signed 26 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Kennedy signed 23 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Eisenhower signed 20 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Truman signed 25 executive orders during his first 100 days.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed 9 executive orders during his first 100 days.

A SLEW OF LEGISLATION SIGNED: Despite historic Democrat obstructionism, President Trump has worked with Congress to pass more legislation in his first 100 days than any President since Truman.

President Trump has worked with Congress to enact 28 laws during the first 100 days of his Administration.

President Obama enacted 11 laws during his first 100 days.
President George W. Bush enacted 7 laws during his first 100 days.
President Clinton enacted 24 laws during his first 100 days.
President George H.W. Bush enacted 18 laws during his first 100 days.
President Reagan enacted 9 laws during his first 100 days.
President Carter enacted 22 laws during his first 100 days.
President Nixon enacted 9 laws during his first 100 days.
President Johnson enacted 10 laws during his first 100 days.
President Kennedy enacted 26 laws during his first 100 days.
President Eisenhower enacted 22 laws during his first 100 days.
President Truman enacted 55 bills laws during his first 100 days.

Posted on

Daily Presidential Tracking Poll Shows Trump at 50% Approval Rating

Trump

Monday, April 18, 2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, in the most recent Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Monday shows that 50% of Likely U.S. Voters approve of President Trump’s job performance. Fifty percent (50%) disapprove.

This is the first time the president’s overall approval rating has been back in the 50s in nearly a month. Just after his inauguration, Trump’s job approval peaked at 59% and remained in the 50s every day until early March. It’s gone as low as 42% since then.

The latest figures for Trump include 30% who Strongly Approve of the way Trump is performing and 39% who Strongly Disapprove. This gives him a Presidential Approval Index rating of -9.

Posted on

Opposing immigration wasn’t always racist

immigration-9

Opposing immigration wasn’t always racist

By Peter Skerry   APRIL 16, 2017

T oday, the battle lines over immigration policy are sharply defined. In the last two years, Donald Trump’s rise has drawn attention to the Republican Party’s lurch toward the right. Opposition to current levels of immigration, illegal and otherwise, has taken on a tone that is stridently populist, even reactionary.

Meanwhile on the left, big-city mayors and blue-state legislatures are declaring sanctuaries for undocumented residents. Democrats have criticized not just Trump’s limitations on refugees, travelers from Muslim countries, and H-1B visas, but also his stepped-up enforcement of existing immigration laws. While liberals and progressives have stopped short of endorsing open borders, they’ve come to treat opposition to illegal immigration and constraints on illegal immigration as unacceptable, even racist.

In academia and the media, Trumpism is receiving plenty of attention. Yet the Democrats’ new default position — that opposition to illegal immigration and constraints on legal immigration are virtually unacceptable — is just as extreme, certainly by historic standards. The shift in the liberal perspective has just received far less scrutiny.

https://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2017/04/15/opposing-immigration-wasn-always-racist/ZToPxnulS41s95cP53PdHM/story.html

Posted on

Trump Silences Critics in One Decisive Action

Trump
April 8,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, So much for the Trump Putin Alliance. Several months of nonstop accusations by the media and Democrats  that our President Donald Trump is colluding with Russian Leader Vladimir Putin came to crashing halt with last nights tomahawk missile attack on a Russian ally Syria.

Trumps decisive action came on the eve of a Sino-Trump sit down in Mar-a-Lago . Leaving the Chinese leader ,many Trump allies and most trump critics in disarray. In one move Trump sent a signal to North Korea, Iran , Russia and the Democrats.

The fact that Trump campaigned so strenuously against such actions makes it that much more significant.

Students of history will remember many a new presidents ,most notable John F Kennedy who were tested in the early part of their administration .

In one decisive stroke the president silenced not only critics of his leadership ,departed from the failed policies of the Obama administration , put an end to Russian collusion accusations, and mirrored  the action of what his former opponent Hillary Clinton had suggested just hours earlier .

Will the tomahawk missile attack on Syria lead to renewed entanglements in the middle east ,given Trumps campaign rhetoric  I have my doubts . More likely it will be akin to Reagan’s firing of 13,000 air traffic controllers in early August of 1981. Like Reagan it says this president means business .

Posted on

President Donald J.Trump Signs into Law Government-wide Regulatory Reform

Trump Signs 3 Sweeping Executive Orders

February 25,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washinton DC, Friday, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order requiring every agency to establish a Regulatory Reform Task Force to eliminate red tape.

Each Regulatory Reform Task Force will evaluate existing regulations and identify candidates for repeal or modification.
Each agency’s Task Force will focus on eliminating costly and unnecessary regulations.
To hold the Task Forces accountable, agencies will measure and report progress in achieving the President’s directives.

COSTLY REGULATIONS: Regulations have grown unchecked in past Administrations, imposing a steep cost on the American economy.

The regulations from the last Administration cost American taxpayers $873 billion in total.
The Obama Administration finalized more than 3,000 regulations.

BUILDING ON PRESIDENTIAL ACTION: President Trump has been steadfast in his commitment to reducing the regulatory burden on everyday Americans, their pocketbooks, and their businesses.

President Trump has required that for every new Federal regulation, two existing regulations be eliminated.
President Trump signed an Executive Order instructing Federal agencies to minimize the burden of the Affordable Care Act on Americans while he works to repeal and replace it.
President Trump signed legislation, House Joint Resolution 38, to prevent the burdensome “Stream Protection Rule” from causing further harm to the coal industry.
President Trump signed legislation, House Joint Resolution 41, to eliminate a costly regulation that threatened to put American mining and energy companies and their employees at an unfair disadvantage.
President Trump directed the Secretary of Commerce to develop a plan to streamline Federal permitting processes for domestic manufacturers.
President Trump signed an Executive Order expediting the environmental review and approval processes for domestic infrastructure projects.
President Trump directed the Secretary of the Treasury to conduct a full review of the burdensome regulations required by the Dodd-Frank Act.
President Trump ordered a re-examination of the Department of Labor’s “fiduciary rule,” to make certain that it does not harm Americans as they save for retirement.

Posted on

Trump: ObamaCare plan could take until next year

obamacare_theridgewood blog

BY PETER SULLIVAN – 02/05/17 05:07 PM EST

President Trump said Sunday that it could take “sometime into next year” until his ObamaCare replacement plan is ready, a slower timetable than he and other Republicans have put forward in the past.

Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly asked Trump in an interview before the Super Bowl if Americans can “expect a new healthcare plan rolled out by the Trump Administration this year.”

https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/317998-trump-obamacare-plan-could-take-until-next-year

Posted on

Trump Vetting Policy is similar to what President Obama did in 2011 when he banned visas for refugees from Iraq

Image: TSA security at the airport in Seattle

Media is falsely reporting Muslim ban

January 30,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood

Ridgewood NJ , White house relases statement regarding recent executive order concerning extreme vetting

“America is a proud nation of immigrants and we will continue to show compassion to those fleeing oppression, but we will do so while protecting our own citizens and border. America has always been the land of the free and home of the brave.

We will keep it free and keep it safe, as the media knows, but refuses to say. My policy is similar to what President Obama did in 2011 when he banned visas for refugees from Iraq for six months. The seven countries named in the Executive Order are the same countries previously identified by the Obama administration as sources of terror. To be clear, this is not a Muslim ban, as the media is falsely reporting.

This is not about religion – this is about terror and keeping our country safe. There are over 40 different countries worldwide that are majority Muslim that are not affected by this order. We will again be issuing visas to all countries once we are sure we have reviewed and implemented the most secure policies over the next 90 days.

I have tremendous feeling for the people involved in this horrific humanitarian crisis in Syria. My first priority will always be to protect and serve our country, but as President I will find ways to help all those who are suffering.”

Posted on

Trump Administration Releases Joint Statement on U.S.-Mexico Relations

Wall
January 28,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washington DC, The United States President Donald J. Trump and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto spoke by phone this morning for an hour.  The call was mutually arranged by their teams.

The two had a productive and constructive call regarding the bilateral relationship between the two countries, the current trade deficit the United States has with Mexico, the importance of the friendship between the two nations, and the need for the two nations to work together to stop drug cartels, drug trafficking and illegal guns and arms sales.

With respect to payment for the border wall, both presidents recognize their clear and very public differences of positions on this issue but have agreed to work these differences out as part of a comprehensive discussion on all aspects of the bilateral relationship.

Both presidents have instructed their teams to continue the dialogue to strengthen this important strategic and economic relationship in a constructive way.