Don't get too close to Emperor ObamaOnly government planes are allowed within 12 miles of Emperor Obama. Private pilots are forbidden from loitering within 30 miles of Emperor Obama. Parachuting, hang gliders, hot-air balloons, model aircraft and rockets and unmanned aircraft systems are forbidden within the 30-mile radius of Emperor Obama. I'm sorry I said Emperor Obama instead of President Obama, but it sure sounds like he is an Emperor! But of course this doesn't sound much different then when Emperor Bush came to Phoenix and effectivelly shut down all civilian aircraft in the Phoenix metro area for his visits.Obama visit may snarl roads, private flights Mike Branom, Tribune February 16, 2009 - 3:04PM , updated: February 17, 2009 - 4:50PM A presidential motorcade is a sure thing to muck up traffic, but the departure of Air Force One is not expected to affect operations at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. However, private pilots and others, including news helicopters, will have their activities severely curtailed. President Barack Obama, in the East Valley to discuss the housing crisis, leaves shortly before 1 p.m. today. Before that, he'll speak at Dobson High School, 1501 W. Guadalupe Road in Mesa. Officials at Sky Harbor said that travelers shouldn't notice anything different at the airport, aside from the distinctive white-and-blue Boeing 747-200B parked on the tarmac. "We have hosted Air Force One many times in recent years and have never had flight delays as a result of a presidential visit," airport spokeswoman Julie Rodriguez told the Tribune. But it will be a different story on the roads and highways. When the motorcade departs from the Paradise Valley hotel where Obama is staying overnight en route to Dobson and then to the airport, authorities will create "rolling closures." During these, police will block off intersections in advance of the motorcade's arrival, and reopen them once the caravan passes. Mesa police said Guadalupe Road, in front of the high school, will be closed between Alma School and Dobson roads, from 9 a.m. until about noon. Although details have yet to be announced, it is expected that the motorcade's travels throughout the Valley will create delays. Also, the area around Dobson High most likely will be blocked off to traffic. Also, flight restrictions over the Valley, which went into effect Tuesday morning, will end this afternoon, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Within 12 nautical miles of Sky Harbor, from the ground to 18,000 feet above sea level, the only air traffic will be federal, military and police activity, approved air ambulance flights, plus regularly scheduled commercial passenger and cargo carriers. Between 12 and 30 nautical miles, private pilots are permitted to land and depart from local airports, but aircraft are forbidden from loitering in the area. Forbidden within the 30-mile radius is: flight training, practice instrument approaches, aerobatic flights, parachuting, ultralight aircraft, gliders, hang gliders, hot-air balloons, crop dusters, animal population control flight operations, banner towing, model aircraft and rockets and unmanned aircraft systems.
When the rich big 3 car company executives flew in their private jets to Washington asking for billion dollar handouts of corporate welfare Obama mocked them for their wasteful use of gas at the expense of their share holders. Well now Obamas doing the same thing. Flying around the country for political reason on his big private airplane Airforce One with a huge crew of helpers and guards to protect him from us serfs. - "By coincidence or political convenience, those stops, including today's visit to Arizona, have come in what are commonly viewed as presidential swing states." Wow only 400 people will be allowed to attend the avent! So Obama flys all the way to Phoenix, Arizona and he is only going to let 400 people into the event! Sounds political to me. The bill is 1,100 pages long! I wonder how many Congressmen and Senators read the entire bill! Probably zero. I bet the way they do deals is say "I will vote for your pork if you vote for my pork". I am sure that is the way they do deals. Wow! Last year 40,000 Phoenix area homes were foreclosed on. That has nothing to do with Obama, but the number sure is high!
A translation from the eloquent double speak Obama talks in If you screwed up and made an investment that lost money you deserve to have your neighbor pay for your loses! http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/02/18/20090218prez-plan.html Obama unveils $75 billion mortgage relief plan by Dan Nowicki - Feb. 18, 2009 11:03 AM The Arizona Republic MESA - President Barack Obama confronted head-on a key source of economic anxiety for millions of Americans - the foreclosure crisis - promising mortgage refinancing options for those struggling to keep up with payments and relief for unemployed workers worried about losing their homes. In a 22-minute speech Wednesday in Mesa, Obama detailed how the housing industry woes bedevil everyday Americans and Arizonans - even those who are not among the approximately 150,000 in the state in foreclosure or facing it. Even homeowners who can weather the mortgage meltdown suffer because their home's value is diminished as neighbors are uprooted and their street is lined with empty houses and neglected yards. ¡§You can't afford to leave, you can't afford to stay. So you cut back on luxuries,¡¨ Obama told the more than 1,000 people crowded into Dobson High School's gymnasium. ¡§Then you cut back on necessities. You spend down your savings to keep up with your payments. Then you open the retirement fund. Then you use the credit cards. And when you've gone through everything you have, and done everything you can, you have no choice but to default on your loan.¡¨ Unlike other tough times, families today can't just sell their house and move into a more-affordable one. Phoenix area home prices have fallen 43 percent since 2006 and many homeowners now own houses valued far below their mortgages, Obama said. The dire situation, Obama said, ¡§is unraveling homeownership, the middle class and the American Dream itself.¡¨ The Obama plan, estimated to cost $75 billion, would: ƒÞ Give up to 5 million of Americans access to low-cost mortgage refinancing. ƒÞ Get rid of a restriction that stops mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from refinancing mortgages they already own or guarantee. ƒÞ Create a $75 billion ¡§Homeowner Stability Initiative¡¨ to keep sinking homeowners in their houses and protect neighborhoods. ƒÞ Let the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve continue buying securities backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgages to provide ¡§stability and liquidity in the marketplace.¡¨ The proposal's goal is ¡§rescuing families who have played by the rules and acted responsibly,¡¨ Obama said. No help will go to the irresponsible housing-market speculators whose gambles helped drive up home prices during the boom or dishonest lenders. ¡§In short, this plan will not save every home, but it will give millions of families resigned to financial ruin a chance to rebuild,¡¨ Obama said. ¡§It will prevent the worst consequences of this crisis from wreaking even greater havoc on the economy. And by bringing down the foreclosure rate, it will help to shore up housing prices for everyone Undoing the housing mess will require a new level of responsibility on the part of everybody, the president said. ¡§Government has to take responsibility for setting rules of the road that are fair and fairly enforced,¡¨ Obama said. ¡§Banks and lenders must be held accountable for ending the practices that got us into this crisis in the first place. And each of as individuals must take responsibility for their own actions. And all of us must learn to live within our means again and not assume that housing prices are going to up 20, 30, 40 percent every year.¡¨ Although the gym event had the appearance and feel of a campaign rally, the crowd was for the most part subdued. Only a few minutes before Obama appeared did part of the crowd start chanting Obama's name. When he entered the room, though, the crowd went wild with cheers, foot-stomps and camera flashes. Obama was interrupted several times by applause as he ticked off various parts of his plan. As he left, someone cried, ¡§Mister President, we love you!¡¨ Obama's anti-foreclosure prescription earned kudos from members of the crowd. Jerry Blake, 44, is an Air Force master sergeant stationed at Luke Air Force Base. He has orders to leave, but can't sell his Surprise house. ¡§There's hope. There's hope,¡¨ Blake said. ¡§I'm the same as everybody else, upside-down on my house payments.¡¨ Nina Stewart, a 46-year-old Phoenix resident, was ecstatic that she got to shake the president's hand. She praised his plan for extending to homeowners who haven't defaulted yet. ¡§I have a job and I'm paying my mortgage, but I think my interest rate is higher than it needs to be,¡¨ said Stewart, an IT manager at Honeywell who ¡§absolutely¡¨ supported Obama in the last election. ¡§And, of course, my house value is lower, so how do I refinance at a lower interest rate? I'd hate to have to go into foreclosure to benefit (from government relief.) Obama delivered his remarks from a lectern in front of eight U.S. flags. He was accompanied on the trip to Arizona by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairwoman Sheila Bair. Local dignitaries in attendance included Republican Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer; Democratic Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard; U.S. Democratic Reps. Ed Pastor, Raul Grijalva, Ann Kirkpatrick and Harry Mitchell (in whose district the president appeared); GOP Maricopa County Supervisors Don Stapley and Max Wilson and Democratic Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox, Mesa Mayor Scott Smith and a litany of mostly Democratic state lawmakers. The Mesa audience also included high-profile Arizona Democrats such as Jim Pederson, a former state Democratic Party chairman and unsuccessful 2006 U.S. Senate candidate, and Carolyn Warner, a former state superintendent of public instruction and the 1986 Democratic nominee for governor. John Goodie, the longtime Mesa activist who was instrumental in the city's adoption of a Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, led some of the chanting. U.S. Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., did not attend, citing previous obligations.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2009/02/18/20090218prez-advanceplan0218.html Obama in Valley to unveil foreclosure plan President to outline foreclosure strategy during stop at Mesa's Dobson High School by Catherine Reagor and Dan Nowicki - Feb. 18, 2009 12:00 AM The Arizona Republic President Barack Obama will unveil a plan today to combat the nation's foreclosure crisis, a plan expected to offer assistance to struggling homeowners and push lenders to restructure loans and lower mortgage rates. The plan will be announced at 10 a.m. in a nationally televised speech from Mesa's Dobson High School. Metro Phoenix is the backdrop as an area with one of the nation's highest foreclosure rates. And Arizona's economy as a whole is heavily dependent on the housing industry. Little is known about the plan to help homeowners. Early reports speculate that at least $50 billion from the bank bailout, or Troubled Asset Relief Program, will be used. The plan also may include legislation to help homeowners in bankruptcy. Obama has been traveling the country during the past few weeks, rolling out different parts of his economic-stimulus plan in areas hardest hit by the recession. By coincidence or political convenience, those stops, including today's visit to Arizona, have come in what are commonly viewed as presidential swing states. Obama rallied supporters for his $787 billion stimulus package in Indiana and Florida and signed the landmark legislation Tuesday in Colorado, a key Western state. Obama strategists view Arizona, which voted for its Sen. John McCain in the 2008 election, as a top priority in 2012. Last year, a record 40,000 Valley homes were foreclosed on. Foreclosures and foreclosure sales drag down home values, which is part of the overall collapse of the area housing market. Home building has slowed to a crawl. More than half of metro Phoenix's home sales are foreclosure homes being resold for bargain prices. The median sales price of an existing home fell to $136,000 in January, down 49 percent from the peak in 2006. What many Valley residents want to hear from Obama today is how long it will take to get the new programs up and running, and which homeowners can expect to receive help. Homeowners and industry leaders will also be listening for what the government plans to do to make more lenders modify the loans of homeowners facing foreclosure. Speculation about the plan so far includes: • Legislation to allow judges to restructure mortgages for people in bankruptcy. Known as a mortgage "cramdown," this move is unpopular with the lending industry. • Government incentives for lenders to lower interest rates or even cut principal on loans for borrowers facing foreclosure. Voluntary loan modification programs, favored by the Bush administration, haven't worked. Recent statistics show more than 50 percent of the U.S. mortgages modified by lenders during the first half of 2008 are back in foreclosure. McCain, Obama's defeated Republican rival, and Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., on Tuesday staged what might be termed a "pre-buttal" to Obama's visit. Both GOP senators vigorously opposed the president's economic-recovery plan. They said it is too much wasteful Washington spending and contains the wrong kinds of tax breaks. But they acknowledged Arizona is hurting from the housing crisis and suggested that Obama's trip to the state is not only appropriate but also overdue. "Of course, the first question that needs to be asked is why didn't the stimulus package address the housing crisis when home values are at historical lows and foreclosures at historical highs?" McCain asked during a news conference with Kyl at Arizona State University's New College campus in the West Valley. "It was the housing crisis that started this conflagration. It will be . . . the leveling of home values that brings about the end of it." McCain and Kyl decried the lack of GOP input into the stimulus bill and likewise said they weren't privy to the details of Obama's housing plan. But Kyl said he hoped the provisions don't provide a "perverse incentive" for homeowners to stop making payments and go into foreclosure. Kyl, who as minority whip is the No. 2 Senate Republican, called for relief for homeowners who have played by the rules but are nonetheless struggling with "declining home values, sometimes even going below where the mortgage amount is." The government could help those homeowners refinance their mortgages, Kyl said. McCain also said he hopes Obama addresses the "toxic assets" and called for the president to bring back a $15,000 tax credit for homebuyers. Senate Republicans successfully added the measure to the stimulus bill, but House and Senate negotiators subsequently removed it. In a surprising turn of events, the two 2008 White House combatants were expected to have a close encounter Tuesday evening. McCain, who will seek re-election a fifth Senate term next year, had scheduled a fundraiser at the InterContinental Montelucia Resort and Spa in Paradise Valley. Not only did Obama decide to stay in the same resort, but the presidential motorcade and McCain's entourage both were scheduled to arrive at 5:30 p.m. The White House confirmed that McCain and Kyl were invited to Obama's Mesa event today, but neither is expected to attend. Kyl told reporters at ASU's West campus that he found out Tuesday morning about the invitation, and it was too late for him to reschedule long-planned constituent meetings. McCain is expected in northern Arizona. "In any event, I wouldn't be speaking to him (Obama), I'd be standing there while he's announcing something that I know nothing about," Kyl said. "As Senator McCain said, the time to talk about these things is before the fact, not after the fact." http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2009/02/18/20090218prez-denver0218.html
http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/president/articles/2009/02/17/20090217prez-advanceplan0218.html Obama to outline foreclosure strategy Doing so at Mesa's Dobson High School by Catherine Reagor and Dan Nowicki - Feb. 17, 2009 10:45 PM The Arizona Republic President Barack Obama will unveil a plan today to combat the nation's foreclosure crisis, a plan expected to offer assistance to struggling homeowners and push lenders to restructure loans and lower mortgage rates. The plan will be announced at 10 a.m. in a nationally televised speech from Mesa's Dobson High School. Metro Phoenix is the backdrop as an area with one of the nation's highest foreclosure rates. And Arizona's economy as a whole is heavily dependent on the housing industry. Little is known about the plan to help homeowners. Early reports speculate that at least $50 billion from the bank bailout, or Troubled Asset Relief Program, will be used. The plan also may include legislation to help homeowners in bankruptcy. Obama has been traveling the country during the past few weeks, rolling out different parts of his economic-stimulus plan in areas hardest hit by the recession. By coincidence or political convenience, those stops, including today's visit to Arizona, have come in what are commonly viewed as presidential swing states. Obama rallied supporters for his $787 billion stimulus package in Indiana and Florida and signed the landmark legislation Tuesday in Colorado, a key Western state. Obama strategists view Arizona, which voted for its Sen. John McCain in the 2008 election, as a top priority in 2012. Last year, a record 40,000 Valley homes were foreclosed on. Foreclosures and foreclosure sales drag down home values, which is part of the overall collapse of the area housing market. Home building has slowed to a crawl. More than half of metro Phoenix's home sales are foreclosure homes being resold for bargain prices. The median sales price of an existing home fell to $136,000 in January, down 49 percent from the peak in 2006. What many Valley residents want to hear from Obama today is how long it will take to get the new programs up and running, and which homeowners can expect to receive help. Homeowners and industry leaders will also be listening for what the government plans to do to make more lenders modify the loans of homeowners facing foreclosure. Speculation about the plan so far includes: • Legislation to allow judges to restructure mortgages for people in bankruptcy. Known as a mortgage "cramdown," this move is unpopular with the lending industry. • Government incentives for lenders to lower interest rates or even cut principal on loans for borrowers facing foreclosure. Voluntary loan modification programs, favored by the Bush administration, haven't worked. Recent statistics show more than 50 percent of the U.S. mortgages modified by lenders during the first half of 2008 are back in foreclosure. McCain, Obama's defeated Republican rival, and Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., on Tuesday staged what might be termed a "pre-buttal" to Obama's visit. Both GOP senators vigorously opposed the president's economic-recovery plan. They said it is too much wasteful Washington spending and contains the wrong kinds of tax breaks. But they acknowledged Arizona is hurting from the housing crisis and suggested that Obama's trip to the state is not only appropriate but also overdue. "Of course, the first question that needs to be asked is why didn't the stimulus package address the housing crisis when home values are at historical lows and foreclosures at historical highs?" McCain asked during a news conference with Kyl at Arizona State University's New College campus in the West Valley. "It was the housing crisis that started this conflagration. It will be . . . the leveling of home values that brings about the end of it." McCain and Kyl decried the lack of GOP input into the stimulus bill and likewise said they weren't privy to the details of Obama's housing plan. But Kyl said he hoped the provisions don't provide a "perverse incentive" for homeowners to stop making payments and go into foreclosure. Kyl, who as minority whip is the No. 2 Senate Republican, called for relief for homeowners who have played by the rules but are nonetheless struggling with "declining home values, sometimes even going below where the mortgage amount is." The government could help those homeowners refinance their mortgages, Kyl said. McCain also said he hopes Obama addresses the "toxic assets" and called for the president to bring back a $15,000 tax credit for homebuyers. Senate Republicans successfully added the measure to the stimulus bill, but House and Senate negotiators subsequently removed it. In a surprising turn of events, the two 2008 White House combatants were expected to have a close encounter Tuesday evening. McCain, who will seek re-election a fifth Senate term next year, had scheduled a fundraiser at the InterContinental Montelucia Resort and Spa in Paradise Valley. Not only did Obama decide to stay in the same resort, but the presidential motorcade and McCain's entourage both were scheduled to arrive at 5:30 p.m. The White House confirmed that McCain and Kyl were invited to Obama's Mesa event today, but neither is expected to attend. Kyl told reporters at ASU's West campus that he found out Tuesday morning about the invitation, and it was too late for him to reschedule long-planned constituent meetings. McCain is expected in northern Arizona. "In any event, I wouldn't be speaking to him (Obama), I'd be standing there while he's announcing something that I know nothing about," Kyl said. "As Senator McCain said, the time to talk about these things is before the fact, not after the fact." Sounds like the way an Emperor travels. Block off all the roads so only the royal President can use them.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/02/17/20090217prez-traffic0218.html President's motorcade to create road delays 'Rolling roadblocks' to be set as Obama travels across Valley 23 commentsby Glen Creno - Feb. 17, 2009 10:45 PM The Arizona Republic President Barack Obama's motorcade will cause delays in three of the Phoenix area's big freeways as he heads from Paradise Valley to a speech in Mesa. But it's unclear exactly when. Obama speaks at 10 a.m. today at Dobson High School. Officials have not released specific times he'll be on the road. He will take Arizona 51 to the eastbound Interstate 10, then onto U.S. 60 for the trip to the East Valley. After the speech, he'll take the 60 to Interstate 10 to Sky Harbor International Airport. His plane leaves at 12:45 p.m. The Arizona Department of Public Safety said there will be "rolling roadblocks" as the motorcade passes - with roadways closing briefly and reopening after the cars pass. The DPS said there were no unusual delays when Obama went from the airport to his Paradise Valley hotel Tuesday afternoon. His plane arrived at 4:40 p.m., about a half-hour ahead of schedule. Wow! The President is treated like a king. Maybe we should change the office name to the King of the USA or the Emperor of the USA
http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/2009/02/17/20090217prez-dobson0218.html Obama visit has Dobson High in spotlight by Ray Parker - Feb. 17, 2009 03:42 PM The Arizona Republic President Obama creates excitement. That's what Martin Reyes said and what Sheden Mezenghie said and what Dylan Cortez said. And in fact, it's what most people said at Dobson High School in Mesa, where the new president will speak tomorrow morning to 400 people who were lucky enough to get tickets. The rest of the 2,200-student school will watch over closed-circuit TV. "This is the first presidential visit to a Mesa school and it's great," said Reyes, the school's facilities manager who's worked at the district for 25 years. Obama will speak inside the school gym Wednesday at 10:15 a.m. He'll be greeted by dignitaries from the school, including Superintendent Debra Duvall, associate superintendent Mike Cowen and school board president Mike Hughes. Mesa Mayor Scott Smith and members of the city council will also be on hand for the event, where Obama is expected to discuss a federal bailout plan of $50 billion to slow home foreclosures. He'll probably mention the separate $787 billion economic-stimulus package. Mesa Public Schools are expected to receive about $31 million for low-income and special education programs from the stimulus package. At Dobson High, more than 60 workers rolled out new sod on Tuesday morning onto the school's lawns in preparation for the visit. By 8:30 a.m., the front office had already taken more than 65 calls asking about the 400 tickets, which had already been released to the public. A hand-written sign hung on the office door: "No more tickets are available, sorry." The tickets were open to anybody willing to stand in line, and a few resourceful Dobson students camped out overnight and managed to snag a seat. Not all the students agree with Obama's politics, but they did agree his visit to their school would make history - at least in their lives. "Being in the same area with him will be an honor," said 17-year-old Mezenghie, who camped out for 10 hours to get tickets. "This is history and I will never forget." Seventeen-year-old Cortez agreed. "It's my senior year, and he's coming to our school and this is never really going to happen again at Dobson," Cortez said. On Tuesday morning, however, Reyes held a walkie-talkie in one hand and cell phone in the other, each ringing at the same time. "We've never had a president visit a Mesa school before, so it's been busy, busy," said Reyes before jumping into a golf cart and whisking away to oversee preparations on another part of the campus.
http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2009/02/17/20090217obamavisit0217-ON.html Obama arrives at Paradise Valley resort by Scott Wong, Alex Bloom and John Faherty - Feb. 17, 2009 07:25 PM The Arizona Republic By the looks of things, you wouldn't think the leader of the free world is staying the night at Paradise Valley's InterContinental Montelucia Resort and Spa. Aside from a few police officers and secret service wandering around the sprawling property, things were pretty quiet for President Barack Obama, who made the stop to announce his multi-billion dollar plan to help homeowners facing foreclosure. A handful of couples and groups were dining at the resort's Spanish restaurant, Prado. A few, like Scottsdale resident Margy Tolson, 64, were having a cup of coffee, recounting seeing the president's motorcade pull into the resort. “He inspires me. I'm giving him all my positive energy. I have five grandchildren and I hope he can fix things that are so broken right now,” said Tolson, who waited three hours with her husband to get a glimpse of the president. “What I love about Obama is his intellectual vigor and his curiosity.” A group of about 15 supporters greeted the president's motorcade when it first arrived at the resort just before 5:30 p.m., but it dissipated after the cars disappeared from view. Guests then began arriving at the hotel for Arizona Sen. John McCain's fundraiser kicking off his bid for a fifth Senate term. Unlike the man who had defeated him in last November's presidential contest, McCain and his wife, Cindy, arrived at the hotel around 6 p.m. in a single vehicle and with little fanfare. Obama's choice for his overnight stay was fitting; the hotel, open just three months, is already in foreclosure. The Phoenix area has been struck hard by the housing slump. Air Force One touched down shortly after 4 p.m. Tuesday. Obama was flanked by a number of dignitaries including Gov. Jan Brewer, Democratic congressmen Harry Mitchell and Ed Pastor, as well as Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon. Gordon's son, 9-year-old Jake, presented the president with a size 22 shoe from Phoenix's Sun star Shaquille O'Neal. Augustine Salinas, 32 of Avondale, didn't vote for Obama but brought his 4-year daughter Andrea to the airport anyway. “I'm a Republican but I remember that 2004 Democratic Convention and I saw him. It was such an incredible speech,'' he said of Obama. “I want my daughter to see what is all about.'' Remo Ferraro, of Paradise Valley, watched with his cousin, William Capparelli, and relatives along Lincoln Drive near the resort. “I heard he was giving out money tonight. I'm staying here to collect my stimulus,” Ferraro joked. Around 10 a.m. tomorrow, Obama will speak to several hundred people at Mesa's Dobson High School, where he plans to outline his strategy to aid borrowers at risk of losing their home to foreclosure. The median home price in Mesa fell to $140,000 in January, down 35 percent from a year ago, according to an analysis by Arizona State University. More than 300 families in Arizona's third-largest city lost their homes to foreclosure last month. Mesa's housing crunch represents a microcosm of what's happening in the residential market in Arizona and nationwide. Arizona had the third highest rate of foreclosures in January, only trailing Nevada and California. And lenders this year are expected to foreclose on more than 118,000 homes in Arizona, according to a recent analysis by the Center for Responsible Lending. Earlier today in Denver, Obama signed the $787 billion stimulus legislation that the Democratic-led Congress passed last week. The economic package, the largest in history, is a mixture of tax cuts and spending aimed at saving and creating jobs. The Democratic president's visit to the Valley is his first since defeating Arizona's own Sen. John McCain, a Republican, in the November presidential election. It comes on the heels of campaign like trips to other cities hammered by the recession: Elkhart, Ind.; Fort Myers, Fla.; Springfield, Va.; and East Peoria, Ill. His last public trip to Arizona was more than a year ago, when he spoke to thousands of supporters at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.
Follow us at twitter.com/azcentral as our team of Arizona Republic reporters tracks the president. Reporter Jahna Berry contributed to this report Reach the reporter at scott.wong@arizonarepublic.com. The Emperor must be real safe during his visit. This article seems to say military helicoptors perform scouting missions over all the locations Emperor Obama will visit. And they will surely tell us it is for OUR safety, not the saftey of Emperor Obama.
http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/2009/02/18/20090218prez-neighborhoods0218.html Crowds converging on Mesa may hurt business, some say by Kristena Hansen - Feb. 18, 2009 12:00 AM The Arizona Republic Some businesses around Mesa's Dobson High School would like to be excited about President Barack Obama's speech today, and while they're trying to stay positive, they're also busy biting their nails over the uncertainty of the whole affair. Since Friday's announcement that Obama would be coming to the west-central Mesa high school, none of the neighboring businesses had received any phone calls, letters or e-mails from the school or other agency about road restrictions, security or any other aspect that could affect their businesses. The only thing for certain is they're going to have a hard time finding parking places when coming to work. "Dobson High School is telling everyone to park here and across the street," said Rick Cortez, assistant manager at Safeway at Guadalupe and Alma School roads. "It's going to hurt us." Cortez said that even though they haven't heard anything from the school itself, Safeway's corporate office hired a security team to reserve half the parking lot for customers and to regulate traffic. At Firestone Complete Auto Care, manager Christopher Peck said that while he has seen military helicopters hovering over the area over the weekend, he hasn't heard whether his business, which has been "really quiet lately," will be affected. He said he's expecting a slow business day, but will maintain a normal schedule. Other businesses, meanwhile, welcome the frenzy and are hopeful that the people who are flocking to the school to see the president will also spill through their doors. "It could either impact us in a bad way or totally kill us," said David Mata, assistant manager at Taco Bell at Guadalupe and Alma School, who is prepared for a busy day. "But we're hoping it'll be busy." David Luna, owner of Luna's Hair Barbershop next to Safeway, said he's almost certain things will be slow, but he isn't fazed either way. "The economy is what affects my business, so it'll be like any other day," he said. "Maybe he'll stop by and give me my stimulus check." When it comes to piling the BS higher and deeper Obama can do it a thousand times better then Bush. Although I have to give Obama credit and admit he hasn't invaded any countries in the short time he has been in office.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2009/02/18/20090218prez-denver0218.html In Denver, Obama signs $787 billion stimulus package by Michael A. Fletcher - Feb. 18, 2009 12:00 AM Washington Post DENVER - Warning that its passage into law "does not mark the end of our economic troubles," President Barack Obama on Tuesday signed the massive $787 billion stimulus package, a measure he called the most sweeping financial legislation enacted in the nation's history. Obama used the occasion to step away from Washington, choosing not to sign the landmark bill in a White House ceremony surrounded by proud supporters in Congress. Instead, he ventured 1,700 miles away from the capital and its partisan wrangling to the sunny atrium of the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, where he called the legislation crucial to injecting new life into the nation's moribund economy. As 250 business leaders, Vice President Joe Biden and a few members of Congress looked on, Obama sat at a wooden desk and signed the nearly 1,100-page bill, which arrived here with him on Air Force One. "We have begun the essential work of keeping the American dream alive in our time," Obama said, calling the legislation "the beginning of the end" of what is needed to fix the economy. Even before the signing, administration officials refused to rule out the idea that Obama might return to Congress to seek another infusion of cash. As Obama flew here, press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters on Air Force One that "the president is going to do what's necessary to grow this economy, but there are no particular plans at this point for a second stimulus package." Obama said the bill will fund record investments in education, new energy research and new infrastructure that he says will lay the foundation for the nation's economic future. The bill includes a $400 tax break for most individual workers and $800 for married couples and will extend to those who do not earn enough to pay income taxes. At the same time, the two-year bill expands social-safety nets, including food-stamp and child-nutrition programs. There are also increased unemployment benefits and health-care access for those thrown out of work. "We have done more in 30 days to advance the cause of health-care reform than this country has done in an entire decade," Obama said, prompting a standing ovation. The stimulus plan is part of a three-pronged effort by the administration to arrest the nation's severe economic downturn. Last week, the administration outlined a plan to repair the nation's teetering financial system. Today in Arizona, one of the states hardest hit by the nation's housing downturn, Obama is scheduled to announce plans to stem the rise in foreclosures. Before he signed the bill, Obama and Biden were given a tour of the solar panels atop the Denver museum by Blake Jones, chief executive of Namaste Solar, a Boulder-based firm that has installed more than 500 solar systems in Colorado since 2006. In that time, the company has grown from three to 55 employees, but the economic downturn raised the prospect of layoffs. With the stimulus plan in place, Jones said, he expects to add more than 20 jobs in the next two years. Similar enthusiasm was evident among the businesspeople who witnessed the bill's signing. "I think the stimulus bill would generate a lot of opportunity for us downstream," said Ashutosh Misra, senior vice president of Ascent Solar, a company that has developed a lightweight, flexible solar panel that can be incorporated into construction materials, eliminating the need for separate solar panels. Misra said it was good karma for Obama to sign the bill in Denver. "He accepted his nomination here, so he should launch his major economic stimulus here," Misra said. "I believe that is good luck." Touting provisions in the plan that will bolster the nation's renewable-energy industry was one reason the White House scheduled the signing ceremony in Denver, aides said. With more than 300 days a year of sunshine and a major national laboratory focused on renewable energy in nearby Golden, Denver is considered a national hub for the burgeoning clean-energy industry. In an effort to make the stimulus plan more tangible to taxpayers, the Obama administration has released a state-by-state breakdown of where the money is going. The White House has also launched a Web site, recovery.gov, which includes a short video of Obama talking about the plan, and has promised to track how the stimulus funds are spent.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/02/18/20090218obamaspeechtext.html Text of Obama's speech in Mesa by The White House - Feb. 18, 2009 08:45 AM Office of the Press Secretary PHOENIX - I’m here today to talk about a crisis unlike any we’ve ever known – but one that you know very well here in Mesa, and throughout the Valley. In Phoenix and its surrounding suburbs, the American Dream is being tested by a home mortgage crisis that not only threatens the stability of our economy but also the stability of families and neighborhoods. It is a crisis that strikes at the heart of the middle class: the homes in which we invest our savings, build our lives, raise our families, and plant roots in our communities. So many Americans have shared with me their personal experiences of this crisis. Many have written letters or emails or shared their stories with me at rallies and along rope lines. Their hardship and heartbreak are a reminder that while this crisis is vast, it begins just one house – and one family – at a time. It begins with a young family – maybe in Mesa, or Glendale, or Tempe – or just as likely in suburban Las Vegas, Cleveland, or Miami. They save up. They search. They choose a home that feels like the perfect place to start a life. They secure a fixed-rate mortgage at a reasonable rate, make a down payment, and make their mortgage payments each month. They are as responsible as anyone could ask them to be. But then they learn that acting responsibly often isn’t enough to escape this crisis. Perhaps someone loses a job in the latest round of layoffs, one of more than three and a half million jobs lost since this recession began – or maybe a child gets sick, or a spouse has his or her hours cut. In the past, if you found yourself in a situation like this, you could have sold your home and bought a smaller one with more affordable payments. Or you could have refinanced your home at a lower rate. But today, home values have fallen so sharply that even if you made a large down payment, the current value of your mortgage may still be higher than the current value of your house. So no bank will return your calls, and no sale will return your investment. You can't afford to leave and you can't afford to stay. So you cut back on luxuries. Then you cut back on necessities. You spend down your savings to keep up with your payments. Then you open the retirement fund. Then you use the credit cards. And when you’ve gone through everything you have, and done everything you can, you have no choice but to default on your loan. And so your home joins the nearly six million others in foreclosure or at risk of foreclosure across the country, including roughly 150,000 right here in Arizona. But the foreclosures which are uprooting families and upending lives across America are only one part of this housing crisis. For while there are millions of families who face foreclosure, there are millions more who are in no danger of losing their homes, but who have still seen their dreams endangered. They are families who see “For Sale” signs lining the streets. Who see neighbors leave, and homes standing vacant, and lawns slowly turning brown. They see their own homes – their largest single assets – plummeting in value. One study in Chicago found that a foreclosed home reduces the price of nearby homes by as much as 9 percent. Home prices in cities across the country have fallen by more than 25 percent since 2006; in Phoenix, they’ve fallen by 43 percent. Even if your neighborhood hasn’t been hit by foreclosures, you’re likely feeling the effects of the crisis in other ways. Companies in your community that depend on the housing market – construction companies and home furnishing stores, painters and landscapers – they’re cutting back and laying people off. The number of residential construction jobs has fallen by more than a quarter million since mid-2006. As businesses lose revenue and people lose income, the tax base shrinks, which means less money for schools and police and fire departments. And on top of this, the costs to a local government associated with a single foreclosure can be as high as $20,000. The effects of this crisis have also reverberated across the financial markets. When the housing market collapsed, so did the availability of credit on which our economy depends. As that credit has dried up, it has been harder for families to find affordable loans to purchase a car or pay tuition and harder for businesses to secure the capital they need to expand and create jobs. In the end, all of us are paying a price for this home mortgage crisis. And all of us will pay an even steeper price if we allow this crisis to deepen – a crisis which is unraveling homeownership, the middle class, and the American Dream itself. But if we act boldly and swiftly to arrest this downward spiral, every American will benefit. And that’s what I want to talk about today. The plan I’m announcing focuses on rescuing families who have played by the rules and acted responsibly: by refinancing loans for millions of families in traditional mortgages who are underwater or close to it; by modifying loans for families stuck in sub-prime mortgages they can’t afford as a result of skyrocketing interest rates or personal misfortune; and by taking broader steps to keep mortgage rates low so that families can secure loans with affordable monthly payments. At the same time, this plan must be viewed in a larger context. A lost home often begins with a lost job. Many businesses have laid off workers for a lack of revenue and available capital. Credit has become scarce as the markets have been overwhelmed by the collapse of securities backed by failing mortgages. In the end, the home mortgage crisis, the financial crisis, and this broader economic crisis are interconnected. We cannot successfully address any one of them without addressing them all. Yesterday, in Denver, I signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which will create or save three and a half million jobs over the next two years – including 70,000 in Arizona – doing the work America needs done. We will also work to stabilize, repair, and reform our financial system to get credit flowing again to families and businesses. And we will pursue the housing plan I am outlining today. Through this plan, we will help between seven and nine million families restructure or refinance their mortgages so they can avoid foreclosure. And we are not just helping homeowners at risk of falling over the edge, we are preventing their neighbors from being pulled over that edge too – as defaults and foreclosures contribute to sinking home values, failing local businesses, and lost jobs. But I also want to be very clear about what this plan will not do: It will not rescue the unscrupulous or irresponsible by throwing good taxpayer money after bad loans. It will not help speculators who took risky bets on a rising market and bought homes not to live in but to sell. It will not help dishonest lenders who acted irresponsibility, distorting the facts and dismissing the fine print at the expense of buyers who didn’t know better. And it will not reward folks who bought homes they knew from the beginning they would never be able to afford. In short, this plan will not save every home. But it will give millions of families resigned to financial ruin a chance to rebuild. It will prevent the worst consequences of this crisis from wreaking even greater havoc on the economy. And by bringing down the foreclosure rate, it will help to shore up housing prices for everyone. According to estimates by the Treasury Department, this plan could stop the slide in home prices due to neighboring foreclosures by up to $6,000 per home. Here is how my plan works: First, we will make it possible for an estimated four to five million currently ineligible homeowners who receive their mortgages through Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to refinance their mortgages at lower rates. Today, as a result of declining home values, millions of families are “underwater,” which means they owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth. These families are unable to sell their homes, and unable to refinance them. So in the event of a job loss or another emergency, their options are limited. Right now, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac – the institutions that guarantee home loans for millions of middle class families – are generally not permitted to guarantee refinancing for mortgages valued at more than 80 percent of the home’s worth. So families who are underwater – or close to being underwater – cannot turn to these lending institutions for help. My plan changes that by removing this restriction on Fannie and Freddie so that they can refinance mortgages they already own or guarantee. This will allow millions of families stuck with loans at a higher rate to refinance. And the estimated cost to taxpayers would be roughly zero; while Fannie and Freddie would receive less money in payments, this would be balanced out by a reduction in defaults and foreclosures. I also want to point out that millions of other households could benefit from historically low interest rates if they refinance, though many don't know that this opportunity is available to them – an opportunity that could save families hundreds of dollars each month. And the efforts we are taking to stabilize mortgage markets will help these borrowers to secure more affordable terms, too. Second, we will create new incentives so that lenders work with borrowers to modify the terms of sub-prime loans at risk of default and foreclosure. Sub-prime loans – loans with high rates and complex terms that often conceal their costs – make up only 12 percent of all mortgages, but account for roughly half of all foreclosures. Right now, when families with these mortgages seek to modify a loan to avoid this fate, they often find themselves navigating a maze of rules and regulations but rarely finding answers. Some sub-prime lenders are willing to renegotiate; many aren’t. Your ability to restructure your loan depends on where you live, the company that owns or manages your loan, or even the agent who happens to answer the phone on the day you call. My plan establishes clear guidelines for the entire mortgage industry that will encourage lenders to modify mortgages on primary residences. Any institution that wishes to receive financial assistance from the government, and to modify home mortgages, will have to do so according to these guidelines – which will be in place two weeks from today. If lenders and homebuyers work together, and the lender agrees to offer rates that the borrower can afford, we’ll make up part of the gap between what the old payments were and what the new payments will be. And under this plan, lenders who participate will be required to reduce those payments to no more than 31 percent of a borrower’s income. This will enable as many as three to four million homeowners to modify the terms of their mortgages to avoid foreclosure. So this part of the plan will require both buyers and lenders to step up and do their part. Lenders will need to lower interest rates and share in the costs of reduced monthly payments in order to prevent another wave of foreclosures. Borrowers will be required to make payments on time in return for this opportunity to reduce those payments. I also want to be clear that there will be a cost associated with this plan. But by making these investments in foreclosure-prevention today, we will save ourselves the costs of foreclosure tomorrow – costs borne not just by families with troubled loans, but by their neighbors and communities and by our economy as a whole. Given the magnitude of these costs, it is a price well worth paying. Third, we will take major steps to keep mortgage rates low for millions of middle class families looking to secure new mortgages. Today, most new home loans are backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which guarantee loans and set standards to keep mortgage rates low and to keep mortgage financing available and predictable for middle class families. This function is profoundly important, especially now as we grapple with a crisis that would only worsen if we were to allow further disruptions in our mortgage markets. Therefore, using the funds already approved by Congress for this purpose, the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve will continue to purchase Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities so that there is stability and liquidity in the marketplace. Through its existing authority Treasury will provide up to $200 billion in capital to ensure that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can continue to stabilize markets and hold mortgage rates down. We’re also going to work with Fannie and Freddie on other strategies to bolster the mortgage markets, like working with state housing finance agencies to increase their liquidity. And as we seek to ensure that these institutions continue to perform what is a vital function on behalf of middle class families, we also need to maintain transparency and strong oversight so that they do so in responsible and effective ways. Fourth, we will pursue a wide range of reforms designed to help families stay in their homes and avoid foreclosure. My administration will continue to support reforming our bankruptcy rules so that we allow judges to reduce home mortgages on primary residences to their fair market value – as long as borrowers pay their debts under a court-ordered plan. That’s the rule for investors who own two, three, and four homes. It should be the rule for ordinary homeowners too, as an alternative to foreclosure. In addition, as part of the recovery plan I signed into law yesterday, we are going to award $2 billion in competitive grants to communities that are bringing together stakeholders and testing new and innovative ways to prevent foreclosures. Communities have shown a lot of initiative, taking responsibility for this crisis when many others have not. Supporting these neighborhood efforts is exactly what we should be doing. Taken together, the provisions of this plan will help us end this crisis and preserve for millions of families their stake in the American Dream. But we must also acknowledge the limits of this plan. Our housing crisis was born of eroding home values, but also of the erosion of our common values. It was brought about by big banks that traded in risky mortgages in return for profits that were literally too good to be true; by lenders who knowingly took advantage of homebuyers; by homebuyers who knowingly borrowed too much from lenders; by speculators who gambled on rising prices; and by leaders in our nation’s capital who failed to act amidst a deepening crisis. So solving this crisis will require more than resources – it will require all of us to take responsibility. Government must take responsibility for setting rules of the road that are fair and fairly enforced. Banks and lenders must be held accountable for ending the practices that got us into this crisis in the first place. Individuals must take responsibility for their own actions. And all of us must learn to live within our means again. These are the values that have defined this nation. These are values that have given substance to our faith in the American Dream. And these are the values that we must restore now at this defining moment. It will not be easy. But if we move forward with purpose and resolve – with a deepened appreciation for how fundamental the American Dream is and how fragile it can be when we fail in our collective responsibilities – then I am confident we will overcome this crisis and once again secure that dream for ourselves and for generations to come. Thank you, God Bless you, and God bless America. |