WASHINGTON ? One trip, two money pitches. President Barack Obama wants more money in the pockets of U.S. workers ? and in his campaign treasury.
With both goals in mind, the president was to travel Wednesday to swing-state Pennsylvania to press his case for a bigger temporary payroll tax cut that will boost paychecks. He then will descend on donor-rich New York City to raise money for his already flush re-election bid.
The one-day trip to Scranton, Pa., and New York illustrates the dual policy and political demands on Obama as the 2012 campaign season nears. It also draws attention to the different audiences that politicians must court, particularly in a weak economy.
Obama is pushing Congress to extend and expand this year's payroll tax cut, a move designed to increase consumer demand and boost the economy. If Congress does not act by year's end, the full payroll tax of 6.2 percent would be restored, increasing taxes on 160 million Americans.
To make Obama's case, the Treasury Department on Wednesday released a report listing state-by-state estimates of how many taxpayers received tax breaks under this year's 2 percentage point reduction in the payroll tax. For example, the report states that 6.7 million Pennsylvanians will have received $4.7 billion in tax cuts this year. The figures reflect state populations, with California at the top with 16.7 million workers getting $12.6 billion in tax cuts; Wyoming finished the list with 300,000 workers getting $200 million in tax breaks.
As the deadline approaches, bipartisan political support is building for at least continuing the tax cut ? heading off a politically bruising tax hike. But Obama wants the cost of the payroll tax cut to be made up by an increase in taxes on taxpayers who earn more than $1 million, a trade-off that Republicans reject.
White House adviser David Plouffe on Wednesday described Obama's plan as "a tax cut for 160 million Americans paid for by asking a little over 300,000 millionaires to pay a little bit more."
Appearing on NBC's "Today," Plouffe said: "If we don't extend this working tax, every American would see their taxes go up. In this economy we can't afford it."
In selecting Scranton to make his appeal, Obama is venturing into the birthplace of Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bob Casey, the Pennsylvania Democrat who is the author of the payroll tax cut plan in the Senate.
The White House said Obama would meet with a Scranton family in their home before delivering a speech at Scranton High School.
Obama won Pennsylvania with 54 percent of the vote in 2008, but the state of the economy could put it in play in 2012. Its proximity to Washington and its political importance have made it a favorite stopping place for Obama and Biden. The trip comes as Obama steps up his re-election campaign, rolling out two ads that call on supporters to begin to mobilize.
White House spokesman Jay Carney, while conceding that the re-election effort is under way, played down politics as a factor in Obama's Scranton visit.
"It's part of his responsibility, serving the American people, to get out and be among them and to speak with them about his agenda or her agenda," he said.
In New York, Obama will attend three fundraisers: one at a private residence where tickets begin at $10,000; one at the Greenwich Village restaurant Gotham Bar and Grill at $35,800 per ticket; and a reception at the Sheraton Hotel, where tickets begin at $1,000. The money will be split between the Democratic National Committee and the Obama re-election campaign.
Obama also is scheduled to attend a reception celebrating progress on gay rights and the six-month anniversary of New York's approval of gay marriage. Obama has been supportive of gay and lesbian causes but has yet to declare his support for gay marriage.
If you?ve survived cancer, every second of every day is cherished. Even the most dull moments in life are wonderful.
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Contact: Nancy Ambrosiano nwa@lanl.gov 505-667-0471 DOE/Los Alamos National Laboratory
Old model, new data: A match made in the heavens
LOS ALAMOS, New Mexico -- A strangely powerful, long-lasting gamma-ray burst on Christmas Day, 2010 has finally been analyzed to the satisfaction of a multinational research team. Called the Christmas Burst, GRB 101225A was freakishly lengthy and it produced radiation at unusually varying wavelengths. But by matching the data with a model developed in 1998, the team was able to characterize the star explosion as a neutron star spiraling into the heart of its companion star.
The paper, "The unusual gamma-ray burst GRB 101225A from a helium star/neutron star merger at redshift 0.33," appears in tomorrow's issue of the journal Nature. Christina Thne of Spain's Instituto de Astrofsica de Andaluca is the lead author, and Los Alamos computational scientist Chris Fryer is a contributor.
Fryer, of the Lab's Computer, Computational, and Statistical Sciences Division, realized that the peculiar evolution of the thermal emission (first showing X-rays with a characteristic radius of ~1011 cm followed by optical and infra-red emission at ~1014 cm) could be naturally explained by a model he and Stan Woosley of the University of California at Santa Cruz had developed in 1998.
"The Helium Merger Model explained all the properties we were seeing," Fryer said, although he noted that proving this required a series of additional computational models by the international theory team studying this "Christmas burst" and the work still under way. Fryer is working with Wesley Even of the Los Alamos X Theoretical Design Division, using the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Simulation and Computing codes to study the emission of this burst in more detail.
"What we think happened is that a primary neutron star was orbiting in a close binary relationship with a companion star, and the companion expanded into a gas giant phase and enveloped the neutron star," Fryer said. "The neutron star spiraled into the core of the helium companion, with the friction of that passage ejecting the helium star's envelope and creating a shell that produced the conditions needed to explain the different characteristic radii that we were seeing."
When the neutron star transformed into a black hole and the jet of gamma rays blasted outward, it struck the shell of the old star's gas envelope at 1014 centimeters, which produced anomalous results and made this GRB look very different from previously seen events. Normally GRBs are incredibly brief, powerful, and pretty much invisible astronomical events that are almost gone before they're detected.
Since the 2004 launch of the NASA satellite Swift, which carries a device called a Burst Alert Telescope, with triggering software developed at Los Alamos, GRBs have been identified and documented on a regular basis. And when Swift tagged this Christmas Burst, the international teams jumped to their telescopes and computers to capture it. Identifying it, however, has taken nearly a year.
Having the existing model on hand, one that seemed unlikely to ever be tested in the real world, was a happy coincidence, Fryer said. "We really thought it was unlikely that the field would produce data sufficient to prove this neutron/helium star collision scenario, and yet, here it has done it."
This burst may be one of a class of bursts (including XRF060218) that is explained by this model. "This is the game we're in right now with astronomical transients," Fryer said. "Weird objects can teach us a lot about the physics and we are no longer throwing them out as being too weird to explain. Now we can compare our unusual models to some of these unusual GRBs and they're starting to match up."
###
About Los Alamos National Laboratory (http://www.lanl.gov)
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and URS for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Contact: Nancy Ambrosiano nwa@lanl.gov 505-667-0471 DOE/Los Alamos National Laboratory
Old model, new data: A match made in the heavens
LOS ALAMOS, New Mexico -- A strangely powerful, long-lasting gamma-ray burst on Christmas Day, 2010 has finally been analyzed to the satisfaction of a multinational research team. Called the Christmas Burst, GRB 101225A was freakishly lengthy and it produced radiation at unusually varying wavelengths. But by matching the data with a model developed in 1998, the team was able to characterize the star explosion as a neutron star spiraling into the heart of its companion star.
The paper, "The unusual gamma-ray burst GRB 101225A from a helium star/neutron star merger at redshift 0.33," appears in tomorrow's issue of the journal Nature. Christina Thne of Spain's Instituto de Astrofsica de Andaluca is the lead author, and Los Alamos computational scientist Chris Fryer is a contributor.
Fryer, of the Lab's Computer, Computational, and Statistical Sciences Division, realized that the peculiar evolution of the thermal emission (first showing X-rays with a characteristic radius of ~1011 cm followed by optical and infra-red emission at ~1014 cm) could be naturally explained by a model he and Stan Woosley of the University of California at Santa Cruz had developed in 1998.
"The Helium Merger Model explained all the properties we were seeing," Fryer said, although he noted that proving this required a series of additional computational models by the international theory team studying this "Christmas burst" and the work still under way. Fryer is working with Wesley Even of the Los Alamos X Theoretical Design Division, using the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Simulation and Computing codes to study the emission of this burst in more detail.
"What we think happened is that a primary neutron star was orbiting in a close binary relationship with a companion star, and the companion expanded into a gas giant phase and enveloped the neutron star," Fryer said. "The neutron star spiraled into the core of the helium companion, with the friction of that passage ejecting the helium star's envelope and creating a shell that produced the conditions needed to explain the different characteristic radii that we were seeing."
When the neutron star transformed into a black hole and the jet of gamma rays blasted outward, it struck the shell of the old star's gas envelope at 1014 centimeters, which produced anomalous results and made this GRB look very different from previously seen events. Normally GRBs are incredibly brief, powerful, and pretty much invisible astronomical events that are almost gone before they're detected.
Since the 2004 launch of the NASA satellite Swift, which carries a device called a Burst Alert Telescope, with triggering software developed at Los Alamos, GRBs have been identified and documented on a regular basis. And when Swift tagged this Christmas Burst, the international teams jumped to their telescopes and computers to capture it. Identifying it, however, has taken nearly a year.
Having the existing model on hand, one that seemed unlikely to ever be tested in the real world, was a happy coincidence, Fryer said. "We really thought it was unlikely that the field would produce data sufficient to prove this neutron/helium star collision scenario, and yet, here it has done it."
This burst may be one of a class of bursts (including XRF060218) that is explained by this model. "This is the game we're in right now with astronomical transients," Fryer said. "Weird objects can teach us a lot about the physics and we are no longer throwing them out as being too weird to explain. Now we can compare our unusual models to some of these unusual GRBs and they're starting to match up."
###
About Los Alamos National Laboratory (http://www.lanl.gov)
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and URS for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
One of Brooklyn's most famous Hollywood broods is getting bigger!
Maggie Gyllenhaal and husband Peter Sarsgaard are expecting their second child, her rep confirms to Us Weekly. According to one pal, the actress, 34, is about four months along. The "Crazy Heart" actress told another pal she'll "be laying low for a little bit now."
PHOTOS: Babies of the year!
The Oscar-nominee is already mom to daughter Ramona, 5. Together since 2002, she and Sarsgaard, 40, tied the knot in Italy in 2009.
The older sister to Jake Gyllenhaal, the Oscar-nominated star lives in Brooklyn's Boerum Hill neighborhood with her hubby and daughter ? and has admitted that balancing her professional and personal life isn't easy.
PHOTOS: How Jake helped Maggie during her first pregnancy
"I had been so focused on Ramona ? and she's been everything to me ? but I'm also an actress," the star told Us in January 2010. "It's not possible to do it perfectly."
PHOTOS: See Maggie on her wedding day
"Being a mom is so present in my mind and my work," she tells Us. "It's the most important thing about me, but next I'd like to play someone who's not a mother. Really!"
iOS 5.1 beta has just been released to the Apple developer community. Not particularly exciting, no—at least not until 9 to 5 Mac stumbled upon a line of code referencing the "iPad 2,4". Is this a reference to the highly anticipated iPad 3? Not likely. Does it refer to Sprint's upcoming iPad service? Hmm, could be. [9to5Mac] More »
In the days since Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh pushed the helmet of Packers guard Evan Dietrich-Smith into the ground and then stomped on his arm while walking away, a sense has emerged that Suh should receiving a suspension of two or more games, given his history and the egregious nature of his conduct.
But a multi-game suspension may not happen, given the history of suspensions for on-field conduct meted out by Commissioner Roger Goodell.? Apart from the five-game suspension received in 2006 by former Titans defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth (who coincidentally returns to Tennessee today in his third game with the Buccaneers), no player has been suspended for more than one game by Goodell, via Gene Washington.
The following year, Goodell (via Washington) suspended former Cowboys safety Roy Williams one game after his third horse-collar tackle of the season.
The next year, Goodell (via Ray Anderson) suspended Buccaneers defensive back Elbert Mack one game for launching himself and making helmet-to-helmet contact with Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan; it was Mack?s second flagrant hit in three games.? Also in 2008, Jets safety Eric Smith received a one-game suspension and a $50,000 fine for a flagrant helmet-to-helmet hit on then-Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin.
In 2009, Goodell (again via Ray Anderson) suspended Dante Wesley of the Panthers for launching at Bucs punt returner Clifton Smith while he was waiting to catch the ball.? Wesley struck Smith in the head with a shoulder and forearm.
Again, Suh?s history of fines will be a factor, and his failure to express genuine remorse won?t help him.? Balanced against that will be the fact that he already has essentially been suspended for nearly half of one game, since he was ejected early in the third quarter.
So don?t be surprised if Suh is suspended for only one game.? Though he committed a Haynesworthy stomp, there?s a huge difference between stepping on a guy?s arm, which Suh did, and ripping off a player?s helmet and shredding his bare forehead with a cleat, which Haynesworth did.
But feel free to cast your own ballot below.? It was the subject of the FRS poll question when yours truly hosted The Dan Patrick Show on Friday.? Here?s another chance to sound off on what should happen.
UPDATE 10:35 a.m. ET:? When posting this I didn?t realize that our good friend Mike Freeman of CBSSports.com has posted similar information.? Here?s the link to Freeman?s take.
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Public release date: 1-Dec-2011
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