Radio America Online News Bureau

On Wednesday, President Obama unveiled his $75 billion plan to rescue troubled mortgages.  So how would it work?  Would it work at all?  Is the Senate Republican plan any better?  What will really solve this housing meltdown?  We ask David John, senior research fellow in domestic and economic policy at the Heritage Foundation.  We also get David’s reaction to the growing call to solve the financial crisis by nationalizing financial institutions.  What would nationalizing the banks mean?  What is Obama’s thinking on the issue?  And would the government ever get out once it gets in?

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Republicans and Democrats in Illinois are howling mad over the admission of Senator Roland Burris that he was asked to raise money for then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich while trying to win the senate seat vacated by Barack Obama.  So how much trouble is Burris facing?  Will he need to resign?  What process could the Senate itself begin to investigate what really happened?  And does this certainly mean the end of any hopes Burris may have to keep the seat in 2010?  We ask David Drucker of Roll Call.

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On Tuesday, General Motors and Chrysler presented their plans for viability to the Fed and the Obama administration.  Why does one industry insider believe GM is worth saving but Chrysler must be cut loose?  What suggests GM is turning the corner and can soon be solvent on its own?  What would be the impact of a Chrysler collapse?  And why should taxpayers already saddled with a Wall Street bailout, a massive stimulus plan and a huge mortgage rescue program be willing to shell out billions more for Detroit?  We ask Peter DeLorenzo, founder of autoextremist.com and author of “The United States of Toyota”.

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Most of the states are eagerly awaiting tens of billions of dollars through the recently signed economic stimulus package.  The administration has promised strict oversight for all of the money, but what should we really expect from the states?  Will the money be spent shrewdly and responsibly or will much of it go to waste and fall through the cracks?  And why exactly is California broke?  What went wrong?  And why did this happen even though Gov. Schwarzenegger promised fiscal responsibility?  We ask Michael Bowman, director of policy at the American Legislative Exchange Council.

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We have Tuesday’s top news…How many additional troops is President Obama sending to Afghanistan?  How is he defending the $787 billion stimulus bill he signed into law today?  How did the markets react to the stimulus plan?  What are the beleaguered automakers saying as they come back to Washington for more money?  How receptive is the Obama administration to additional auto industry aid?  And why is Illinois Sen. Roland Burris in hot water again in connection with the effort of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich to sell the senate seat of Barack Obama?  We have all the answers as we bring you the biggest stories for Tuesday, February 17, 2009.

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President Obama is planning to send an influx of 17,000 U.S. forces into Afghanistan.  How much of a difference can that many troops make?  What will be asked of these soldiers and Marines?  How good of a handle does Gen. Petraeus have on the situation?  What strategy makes sense in obliterating the enemy?  How do we overcome the challenging terrain?  We ask retired U.S. Air Force General Tom McInerney.

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Would the Republican version of economic stimulus really create twice the jobs at half the price?  How can we know?  How much pork is in this stimulus plan?  Is pork identified objectively or is it just in the eye of the beholder?  Are we really in danger of not having other nations from which to borrow?  What happens then?  And is there anything Congress can do to begin reversing this ocean of red ink?  We ask Peter Sepp, vice president for communications at the National Taxpayers Union.

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On his final full day in office, President Bush commuted the sentences of imprisoned Border Patrol agents Jose Compean and Ignacio Ramos.  How are border security activists reacting to this news?  How did the imprisonment of Ramos and Compean negatively impact the morale and actions of current Border Patrol agents?  What must the government do to prove it’s serious about border security?  We ask Al Garza, executive director of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps.

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What are we hearing from General Motors and Chrysler in their reports to the federal government today? What did they do with the first several billions of dollars allocated back in December? How receptive does the Obama administration appear to be to additional aid? Which automaker is more likely to receive a favorable response? Is either company poised to show long-term viability? What is the role of the United Auto Workers in this crisis? What happens if the government does not extend additional aid? And when must President Obama make a decision on all of this? We ask Marty Padgett, executive editor at thecarconnection.com.

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We have Monday’s top news…What is Kadima party leader Tzipi Livni saying about the possibility of being part of a coalition in the government of her rival?  What did she outline Monday as critical for any lasting peace with the Palestinians?  What did the Pakistani government do that many consider an appeasement for terrorists?  Why is Nancy Pelosi confident that none of the Guantanamo detainees will end up in Europe?  What is the latest in the probe of the plane crash last week outside of Buffalo?  We have all the answers as we bring you the biggest story for Presidents Day – Monday, February 16, 2009.

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