Category: Brittany Lawonn
South Coast Soldiers Killed in Iraq Among 1,300 Portraits at Arlington
ARLINGTON, VA. – Killed less than a year apart; the two men – both fathers, both husbands and both from the SouthCoast – stand among the more than 1,300 faces depicted in the “Faces of the Fallen” exhibit at Arlington National Cemetery.
Staff Sgt. Joseph Camara and Sgt. Peter Gerald Enos were both killed in action in Iraq and are now being memorialized in portraits of each man and woman killed since the war began through Nov. 11, 2004. The portraits were done by more than 200 artists from across the country and vary from brightly colored painting to black and white sketches, from actual images to flowers representing the person.
Sgt. Camara was killed on Sept. 1, 2003, near Baghdad when an explosive device ignited under his vehicle. The New Bedford Police officer and member of the Rhode Island National Guard was 40.
Army Sgt. Enos was killed on April 9, 2004, when a rocket-propelled grenade struck his patrol vehicle in Bayji, about 120 miles north of Baghdad. The 24-year-old was promoted from specialist to sergeant posthumously.
The exhibit, which opened on March 22 and will close on Nov. 11, displays portraits arranged in order of the soldiers’ deaths, surrounded by objects visitors have left behind, such as photos, dog tags, flowers, poems and messages from loved ones or comrades.
Visitors to the exhibit walk slowly along, pausing for a moment to lean forward or bend down for a closer view, commenting on the artwork and often on how young the soldier was.
Some of the portraits show the soldier in uniform, others in casual clothes. One portrayed a soldier in a James Dean pose, smoking a cigarette and leaning off to the side. Others were images of part of the soldier’s face standing out on the cream canvas.
Susan Carney and Sarah Huntington collaborated on Sgt. Enos’ portrait to create a collage with layers of words and paint and an image of Sgt. Enos’ face in the middle, tilted to the side with his name, age and hometown written below the image.
The collage includes the words “Six Nations,” which is from an old treaty between the federal government and Indian tribes, Ms. Carney said.
Ms. Carney, a painter and printmaker from Shepherdstown, W.Va., said she used the treaty to symbolize the correlation between America’s involvement in Iraq and its connection with Native American tribes, and specifically the process of bringing democracy to a country that has never had it before.
She said the idea came to mind after she first sat down to work on the portraits.
“When I started doing this project, the first thing I did was I sat down and tried to make it clear in my mind why they had died,” she said.
Each artist was given photos or images of soldiers killed in a 24-hour period, and told to create a portrait of each soldier.
“It was a very meaningful experience to portray 10 people that way that we’d never met,” Ms. Huntington, of Lincoln, Va., said, adding that she will always remember their faces. “You did feel like you sort of got to know them a little bit.”
Ms. Carney agreed, saying she felt very attached to the men whose portraits she worked on even though she had never met them.
“It certainly made the war more real for me,” she said, adding that she still had the soldiers’ photos in her journal.
Ms. Carney said she tried to show how the soldiers she portrayed were related by adding a rope in the background of the 10 she depicted
“Even though they didn’t know it, they had that kind of strange bond that they all died on the same day,” she said. “If you put them all in a line–a straight horizontal line–you can see the rope.”
Ms. Huntington said although she and Ms. Carney “don’t agree with the war, [they] tried not to put that in the artwork” out of consideration for the families.
“I just think you have to respect the family’s feelings; no matter how they felt about it they lost somebody,” the photographer said. “I tried to keep my politics out of it.”
Jenny Freestone, a printmaker from Takoma Park, Md., created Sgt. Camara’s portrait by doing a detailed pencil drawing and also making a black and white copier transfer of him wearing his New Bedford police hat.
Ms. Freestone said she would remember most the vulnerability of the soldiers, both young and old, because it was something that was very upsetting to her.
Her greatest struggle in creating the portraits, she said, was “the emotional difficulty of realizing what you are trying to draw.”
She said she focused most on the eyes. “They were very important to me because that’s where you connect with me.”
She also said she “tried to tease out personalities from faces” she worked on but found it “difficult to do them justice.”
“Obviously you start to think about the person, who were they, what were they like,” Ms. Freestone said. “It kind of helped to think about the person as a person and try and put that back into the drawing, but the bottom line was that you knew that you were drawing this son, this husband, this brother, this sister for the family left behind.”
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Frank Calling for Drug-Free Student Aid Repeal
WASHINGTON - Rep. Barney Frank (D-4 th) says he believes this will be the year Congress repeals the law restricting financial aid for students convicted of drug-related offenses, something he has been working on since the law took effect five years ago.
"The unfairness of it seems pretty clear to people, so I think there's a chance," he said. Previously, Republicans would not allow his legislation to "come up as a freestanding bill" but because the provision is now part of the Higher Education Act - which is up for renewal this year- its repeal is likelier this year than in the past, Frank said.
Under current law, students applying for federal financial aid must state whether they have drug-related convictions. An affirmative answer could make the student ineligible for aid for a set amount of time based on their offenses.
The question was added to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form in 2000 after Congress overwhelmingly adopted the provision as an amendment to the Higher Education Act's reauthorization in 1998.
According to Frank's office, more than 160,000 students have been denied aid under the provision. But some organizations, such as Students for Sensible Drug Policy, say that estimate falls well short of the true total.
"That number doesn't account for all the students who started filling out the form, came across the drug conviction question and figured that they'd be denied aid and didn't bother wasting the postage to mail the application," said Tom Angell, the organization's communications director. "So really it's affecting an untold number of students."
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigations 1,958 people under the age of 18 were arrested in 2002 for drug abuse violations in Massachusetts. Overall there were 13,828 drug abuse arrests in the state in 2002.
About 63 percent of Massachusetts high school seniors reported in 2001 that they had used marijuana at least once in their life, compared to about 52 percent nationwide, according to the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
Data from 2000-2001 shows more than 14 percent of Massachusetts residents 12 to 17 years old and almost 26 percent of residents 18 to 25 admitted using an illegal drug in the previous month.
The process for determining whether a student is denied aid begins with an initial question asking whether a student has been convicted of a drug related charge.
Students who answer yes are directed to a worksheet asking if the convictions have been removed from their record and if they have completed an accepted drug rehabilitation program. Convictions before the age of 18 do not count unless the student was tried as an adult.
Depending upon the time and type of the conviction and the number of convictions, a student may be ineligible for federal aid for as little as one year to a maximum of life. A conviction for selling drugs carries a longer period of ineligibility than a conviction for using drugs.
Students convicted of possessing a controlled substance are ineligible for federal aid for one year for the first offense, two years for a second offense and indefinitely for a third offense.
A conviction for selling a controlled substance makes a student ineligible for two years for the first offense and indefinitely for the second offense
The FAFSA form is used by colleges and universities across the country to determine financial aid. More than 226,600 Massachusetts residents filled out a form in 2004 and more than 101,200 have done so this year, according to FAFSA records.
Nationwide, more than 14 million applications are expected for fiscal year 2005, according to the Department of Education.
This is Frank's third attempt to repeal the regulation, and while other lawmakers, including the provision's original author, Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.), want a partial repeal, the Massachusetts Democrat says that will not be enough.
"Something's better than nothing, but I think still it ought to be complete," Frank said, "but that doesn't mean that every drug addict gets scholarship aid and . every armed robber gets scholarship aid. We shouldn't single out one set of crimes and treat them differently than other crimes that are more serious."
Currently there is no restriction on financial aid for students convicted of other offenses, including felonies and violent crimes.
Martin Green, a spokesman for Souder, said in a voice-mail message that the provision "was drastically misinterpreted" when enforcement regulations were being written. He also said the Indiana Republican is working to change that interpretation to apply only to those who are convicted while receiving student aid and not to those with previous convictions.
Souder is a member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Higher Education Act's reauthorization-and over Frank's bill.
Alexa Marrero, a committee spokeswoman, said the committee has been working on partial repeal "for a couple of years." Chairman John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.) have introduced a bill calling for a partial repeal.
"The intention when it was enacted in 1998 was to serve as a disincentive for students to commit drug-related offenses while in school and receiving federal student aid," Marrero said. "And so the appropriate application of the provision would be only applied to students who are in school and receiving federal aid."
But Yakov Kronrad says partial repeal is not good enough even if it would encourage more students with previous convictions to apply for college.
Kronrad said he was a graduate student and teaching assistant at Worcester Polytechnic Institute when he was arrested and convicted in 2002 and sentenced to one year of probation for possession of marijuana and hallucinogenic mushrooms with intent to distribute.
The 24-year-old said the arrest "didn't even happen anywhere around the university," but he believes the institute "wanted to set an example" for other students by suspending him for two years.
Kronrad, who still lives in Worcester working for a software company, said a "faulty decision" on his part should not have had an influence on his education because "it in no way conflicted to what I did as a student."
In an effort to inform students about the issue and work to change the provision, Students for Sensible Drug Policy is working with its chapters on college campuses and high schools across the country, including in Amherst and Northampton, rallying students to contact their legislators.
Other organizations are tackling the issue in a different way, offering scholarships to those who have been affected by the current law.
The John W. Perry Scholarship Fund, named for a New York City police officer killed in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, has given out 14 scholarships to 10 students, ranging from $600 to $2,000, since it began in 2003.
None of the recipients has been from Massachusetts, but David Borden, the fund's executive director, said the group has raised $5,000 for next semester's scholarships and expects to have more as it continues hosting fundraisers around the country, such as an event in Boston last December.
Borden, executive director for the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which runs the fund, said he would support partial repeal of the provision although he believes it will continue to discriminate against those who cannot afford to attend school without financial assistance.
"These people have already been punished through the criminal justice system and this is a second punishment that no judge has any control over," Borden said.
The Coalition for Higher Education Reform is working to have legislation similar to Frank's introduced in the Senate that calls for full repeal, is limited to that subject and can be part of a bipartisan effort to use the legislation "as leverage," said Chris Mulligan, the campaign's director.
Other organizations such as the American Council on Education are calling for the drug question to be removed from the financial aid form because it has no relation to the student's financial needs.
"The FAFSA form is essentially a document to determine a student's financial need, and if that's what it's going to be used for that should be all it's used for," said Chris Simmons, the council's assistant director of government relations.
"You can be convicted of a drug crime but if you're not in financial need it's not going to affect your college plans," he continued. "You can be convicted of lots of other kinds [of crimes] and still get a Pell Grant, but if you get caught with a joint you lose financial aid funding."
Six Massachusetts House Democrats are among the Frank bill's 63 co-sponsors, and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) proposed legislation on Feb. 14 that includes striking the provision from the Higher Education Act. The bill has seven co-sponsors, including Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass).
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Bush Congratulates Patriots on Super Bowl Victory
WASHINGTON, April 13 - The New England Patriots were feeling a bit of déjà vu Wednesday afternoon as President George W. Bush congratulated them on winning the Super Bowl.
The Patriots visited the White House last year after winning and have now dropped by three times in the last four years.
The team, which defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21 in February to win its second consecutive championship, gave Bush a locker room jersey with the number one, a football from the Super Bowl and an embroidered sweatshirt with the Patriots' logo that the president had jokingly called one of Coach Bill Belichick's "designer sweatshirts" in his introduction.
Belichick attended the ceremony in a suit and tie.
Just after Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), who recently had knee surgery, hobbled in on crutches to his front-row seat next to Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), Bush darted out from the Oval Office and into the Rose Garden to introduce the team with a quick joke.
"Well, back again," he said to laughter, later adding that he was happy to honor "a team that showed a lot of heart."
Bush said he was happy to have hosted the team three times, joking that while he was almost certain the Patriots would return this year, he had been a bit skeptical that he would again be host.
"You know, I think I said last time there's a chance you'll be back; I wasn't sure about me," he said. "I'm confident I'll be back next year, and the way you've been playing, there's a good chance you will be, too."
Team owner Robert Kraft said he was happy the team returned for its third visit, adding "I hope we keep this reunion going and next year, if we're blessed to be here, we'll follow Sen. Kennedy's advice and bring the cheerleaders."
The p resident congratulated the team for its work both on and off the field, specifically mentioning records the team both broke and tied this season and its work with Boys and Girls Clubs of Massachusetts.
The team won a record-setting 34 games during its back-to-back championship seasons and tied a record-nine--for the most consecutive playoff game wins.
After the ceremony, Kerry said he was proud of the team, which he called "an extraordinary group of individuals."
"They're just a good bunch of guys," he said. "They're down to earth with a terrific work ethic and a great team spirit."
The Patriots also visited wounded soldiers from Iraq at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Kraft said eight team members visited the soldiers for about four hours and were inspired by what they saw.
"It just gives us such a good sense of how lucky we are in this country," Kraft said after the ceremony.
Quarterback Tom Brady agreed, saying "it makes what we do seem so unimportant" and calling the visits the highlights of the trip to Washington.
"I think you saw firsthand the definition of courage when you saw those young soldiers who had been wounded that are working hard to overcome their injuries," the president said.
Brady also said he was happy to see linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who suffered a stroke in February, attending the ceremony.
"He's the same ol' Tedy, he hasn't changed a bit," Brady said. "I think everyone was a little scared when it initially happened."
Bruschi threw the ceremonial first pitch at Fenway Park Monday and whether he will play next season remains uncertain.
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Shining Sea Bikeway May Be Extended
WASHINGTON, March 24 - Cape Cod bike paths, including the Shining Sea Bikeway's winding path that dips down along the coastline, may receive $4 million for extensions totaling 8.6 miles..
The bikeway, which was named after the line in Falmouth native Katharine Lee Bates's "America The Beautiful," currently winds four miles from Falmouth to Woods Hole along the Vineyard Sound shoreline.
Legislation to extend the bike paths and connect the lower Cape to Wellfleet and the Cape Cod National Seashore passed the House of Representatives as part of the Transportation Equity Act on March 10 by a vote of 417 to 9. The Senate must now pass it before funds can be distributed and changes can be made.
The six-year, $284 billion measure would provide federal funds for highways, highway safety programs and mass transit.
The bill calls for $4 million to link "outer Cape communities and heavily visited national sites" by extending the bike trails.
"This legislation shows again that creativity and perseverance can help make southeastern Massachusetts an even better place in which to live, work and visit," Rep. William Delahunt said in a statement.
The Massachusetts Democrat secured $1.2 million last year to extend the Cape Cod Rail Trail from Dennis to the National Seashore. That money is being appropriated this fiscal year.
The Shining Sea Bikeway also was extended in 1998 when 0.7 miles were added to the 3.3 miles at the time, stretching the path to Skating Lane.
According to a survey conducted in August 2004 by Falmouth's Bikeway Committee, the Shining Sea Bikeway is used by about 80 to 100 people per hour in the summer, with cyclists accounting for two-thirds of the users.
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Kennedy, Democrats Threaten to Shut Down Senate If ‘Nuclear Option’ is Imposed
WASHINGTON, March 16 - Sen. Edward Kennedy joined seven other Democratic senators Wednesday in promising to try to stop Republicans from changing Senate rules to eliminate filibustering on federal judicial nominees.
"This administration, they control the executive, they control the House of Representatives, they control the Senate and they want to control the judiciary, and I say, 'No way,' " Kennedy said while pounding his fist on the podium in front of about 500 people at a rally sponsored by the political action committee Move On.
The Senate Republican leadership threat, becoming commonly known as the "nuclear option," would involve a parliamentary procedural move to prevent filibustering of judicial nominees. Filibustering still would be allowed on legislation.
The leadership has accused Democrats of abusing the filibuster by using it to block confirmation votes on 10 appellate court nominations in the last session of Congress. President George W. Bush has renominated in this session seven of the ten nominees who were blocked by filibuster.
Senate rules require 60 votes to end a filibuster. If the Republicans change the rules to stop the filibuster on judicial nominees, 51 votes of the 100 members would be needed for approval rather than the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster. Republicans hold 55 seats.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid and other Democrats have threatened to slow the Senate's work by filibustering legislation should the Republicans employ the nuclear option. In an interview before the rally, Reid called the majority party's threat an act of "arrogance of power in changing the basic rules of this country" and said the Democrats "are not looking for a fight."
"We don't want to shut down the Senate, we want the rules of this country which have been in effect for more than 200 years to stay in effect," the Nevada Democrat said.
Reid sent a two-page letter to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) Tuesday formally threatening to "not be as cooperative" on the Senate's work. In the interview before rally he said he believes the nuclear option is "not about judges" and if used once will be used again.
"Whatever the issue of debate is they'll just change it to a simple majority and we will just be a unicameral legislature, just like the House of Representatives," Reid said.
Frist issued a statement Tuesday saying the potential Senate shutdown would be "irresponsible and partisan."
"Never before in the history of the Senate has a nominee with clear majority support been denied an up or down vote on the Senate floor because of a filibuster," he said. "The solution is simple: return to 200 years of tradition and allow up or down votes on judges."
But Reid said before giving his speech that it would take a bipartisan effort to stop the nuclear option and that Democrats were "begging for Republicans of goodwill to step forward and help us on this."
Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W. Va.) also said in an interview before the rally began that he did not believe the issue was "a partisan matter" and that Senate rules "should be changed in accordance with the rules that provide for the changing of the rules, they should not be rammed down the throats" of the Senate members.
Before giving the keynote speech, Byrd brushed his hand across his American flag tie to pull out from his breast pocket a tattered copy of the U.S. Constitution complete with post-it notes, thrusting it into the air amid cheers during one of the rally's many standing ovations.
The senior member of the Senate he shouted, "We must kill this dangerous effort to rewrite our precious Constitution," later declaring that the effort to impose the nuclear option would be a "gag rule for the United States Senate."
As the 87-year-old finished his speech, he pulled his pocket-sized Constitution out again with a smile, saying, "All you need is the Constitution."
During other senators' speeches, Byrd pumped his fist in the air, shouting encouragement. Before Kennedy spoke, Byrd got up from his chair to shake hands with the Massachusetts Democrat, reaching across the podium with one hand, cane in the other.
The eight senators offered similar messages to the audience and some, including Kennedy, listed by name the 10 judicial nominees who did not get through the Senate last year. One nominee mentioned was William G. Myers, who has been renominated and is scheduled to appear Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9 th Circuit.
Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) told the audience that "no single person, no single judge, no single senator is more important than our duty to preserve the values of the Senate and the strength of our constitutional democracy."
Sen. Patrick Leahy (Vt.), the senior Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said he would continue to oppose certain judicial nominees, saying he believes the Democrats "have a duty to stop these people" from becoming federal judges.
Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said it would be "a doomsday for democracy" if the nuclear option allows some nominees to get through the Senate, adding that some of the nominated judges "are off the deep end."
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said Republicans are "throwing a temper tantrum" to try to get their judicial appointees confirmed, and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) said the nuclear option would "basically end minority rights" in the Senate.
"As bad as this is about judges and about the potential loss of an independent judiciary, one of the hallmarks of American democracy, it will not end there," Clinton said, adding that it could influence the Social Security debate. "If you can end debate with majority vote in order to get to a judicial nomination then you can end debate when the majority is trying to run you over on anything."
Clinton said she believed Republicans could be swayed to stop the potential nuclear option saying, "We have to persuade a handful of Republican senators that this is not what they signed on for."
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Kennedy Proposes Increase in Minimum Wage
WASHINGTON, March 3 - Sen. Edward Kennedy proposed Thursday to increase the minimum wage from $5.15 an hour to $7.25.
The Massachusetts Democrat offered his proposal as an amendment to the bankruptcy bill, which would make it more difficult for consumers to file for bankruptcy to wipe out debt. The amendment was discussed on the Senate floor Thursday and will be voted on Monday.
The amendment would raise the minimum wage in three 70-cent increments, raising the wage to $5.85 two months after enactment; to $6.55 one year later; and to $7.25 one year after that.
The $5.15 minimum wage went into effect on Sept. 1, 1997, after a two-step process that raised it from $4.25 an hour in 1996.
A two-step process was also approved in 1989 to raise the minimum wage from $3.35 an hour to $4.25, which was fully implemented on April 1, 1991.
Based on inflation rates, today's $5.15 wage would be worth only about $4.40 in 1997 dollars.
Sen. Kennedy called the amendment "critical to preventing the economic free fall that often leads to bankruptcy," saying that for some people "the minimum wage is the American nightmare, not the American dream."
"If the Senate is serious about an anti-poverty agenda we will end the hypocrisy of easy rhetoric and take the long overdue actions that are so obviously needed as part of a genuine anti-poverty agenda," he said on the Senate floor. "Let's start by raising the minimum wage."
Sen. Kennedy also made attempts to add minimum wage amendments to bills last session.
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Massachusetts Receiving Emergency Heating Aid for Low-Income Households
WASHINGTON, March 3 - Additional money to help poor people meet their rising heating bills is flowing into the Bay State and more is being requested by the state's Senate delegation after harsh winter weather pummeled the area with record-setting snowfalls and energy costs nationwide on the rise.
Nationwide, more than $1.6 billion has been distributed to the states since fiscal year 2005 began in October through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), with an additional $250 million in emergency aid released since December.
LIHEAP helps eligible households meet home energy costs - either heating or cooling - based on standards set by the state for household size and income.
Massachusetts has received about $14 million in federal emergency aid since December, most recently receiving $2.8 million Tuesday.
Gov. Mitt Romney allocated $7.4 million in state aid last Friday, which is "very uncommon" for a state to do, said Phil Hailer, the communications director at the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development.
Massachusetts received about $80.39 million for LIHEAP last year and has received "close to $97 million" so far this year, including three rounds of emergency allocations, Hailer said.
A bipartisan group of 39 senators, including Sens. Edward Kennedy and John Kerry, asked the Senate Budget Committee in a letter Tuesday to designate $3 billion to LIHEAP for the 2006 fiscal year, roughly a 50 percent increase over what President Bush is seeking.
The senators asked Senate Budget Committee chairman Sen. Judd Gregg, R-NH for a $1 billion increase in President George W. Bush's $2 billion LIHEAP budget proposal. The letter says the program "provides a vital safety net for our nation's low-income households" that are often faced with "the impossible choice between paying their home energy bills or affording other basic necessities."
South Shore residents who are eligible for LIHEAP can receive assistance through the South Shore Community Action Council Inc. (SSCAC) in Plymouth and Hyannis or through the Housing Assistance Corporation (HAC) in Hyannis.
SSCAC covers 39 towns, from Hull to Wareham and including the Cape islands, said Lisa Spencer, the agency's energy program director.
Spencer said the agency provided fuel assistance to 8,149 households during the winter of 2003-04, serving 16,656 individuals and spending more than $3.75 million in federal funds. The average annual income of these households was $14,633.
The agency has received 9,032 applications since Nov.1 and has $4.8 million available, which does not include the additional state funds or Tuesday's federal emergency allocation.
The additional money could be used to increase the maximum available for households, which now ranges from $445 to$655 per household, depending on income, she said.
This year, HAC can serve 99 people with the $224,522 available for its weatherization program, which provides thermal updates to properties such as adding insulation, said Michael Berry, HAC's energy director. Clients are eligible for up to $4,600 in service and are ranked according to income. For example, a family of four cannot make more than $37,700 to be eligible.
The agency has an additional $141,000 to use for heating systems, such as making repairs and replacements. Berry said HAC does an average of 200 to 300 repairs and 40 replacements each year.
"Right now being in the dead of winter all we are doing is we're doing heating systems that have died beyond repair," he said, adding that "we don't help them pay their bills; we help them conserve and make their house warmer and safer."
He said HAC is serving more households than it has in the past and is trying to "make the money stretch out longer."
Berry said that work on the islands is more expensive than on the mainland and that the organization could use additional funds each year, although weather is also always a factor.
Sen. Gregg did not specifically comment on the letter requesting more LIHEAP funding, instead saying in a statement Wednesday "it would be premature for me to say what specifics may or may not be in the Senate product." The committee, he added, is expected to vote next week of the budget proposal.
Hailer said that he did not have "the slightest idea on how it would break out" for Massachusetts if total spending on the program increased to $3 billion, but that "it would obviously mean more money for Massachusetts, I would guess, but I have no idea on the details."
Bush proposed $2 billion for next year, or $182 million less than this year, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. That sum includes $200 million that would be set aside for the program's emergency contingency fund, $97 million less than was made available for this year.
The emergency fund is made available "because some winters are worse than others," according to the LIHEAP Web site.
Kennedy applauded Tuesday's release of emergency funds, saying in a statement it "will help needy families in Massachusetts., especially as Massachusetts faces such a severe winter."
Kerry said the additional money could be used to "alleviate the burden" of heating costs to families who need it most.
"Massachusetts continues to be hit by powerful storms this season, but that does not mean people should live in continual financial crisis to get through the winter," he said in a statement Thursday.
According to Bush's budget proposal, LIHEAP assists about 4.5 million households each year, and "of the households receiving heating assistance, about one-third include a member 60 years or older, about half include a person with a disability, half include a child under age 18 and about one-third do not receive any other public assistance."
Bush's LIHEAP budget proposal would allocate $74.29 million to Massachusetts next year, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors' Association. That does not include additional emergency funds.
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President Bush Honors Red Sox at White House
WASHINGTON, March 2 - Most spring training workout sessions are followed by a shower, not by shaking hands with the President of the United States.
But after a two-hour workout at Fort Myers, Fla., members of the 2004 World Series championship team who are still with the Red Sox donned designer suits rather than baseball uniforms to stand on the White House South Lawn Wednesday and do just that.
President George W. Bush welcomed "the mighty Boston Red Sox" to the White House in a speech filled with jokes.
He opened by referring to the 86 years it took for the Red Sox to win a World Series, saying, "So, like, what took you so long?" and later adding, "You know, the last time the Red Sox were here, Woodrow Wilson lived here."
President Bush was about 30 minutes late to the event because he was participating in a ceremony at the Capitol honoring the late Jackie Robinson with the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest award Congress can present to a civilian.
The Red Sox swept the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to none. The team also was the first in baseball playoff history to overcome a 3-0 deficit by winning four straight games against the New York Yankees to win the American League Championship Series.
At the time, Sox owner John W. Henry, who was not present Wednesday - President Bush said he was sick - called the win "an alternate reality," and one that ended the storied curse of the Bambino.
Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry's late entrance to the White House event was greeted with cheers from the crowd and a special mention by President Bush.
"Senator, welcome. Good to see you. . I like to see Senator Kerry, except when we're fixing to debate," he said to his 2004 presidential opponent. "If you know what I mean," he said to laughter.
The president teased Johnny Damon by saying, "You know, it took a lot of guts and it took a lot of hair," as the Red Sox centerfielder tucked his shoulder-length hair behind his ears.
President Bush mocked himself as he listed the Red Sox players' home towns, saying of relief pitcher Mike Timlin, who shares the president's Texas hometown, "Finally, somebody from Midland amounted to something."
Pitcher Curt Schilling, who campaigned for President Bush during the 2004 election, presented the 43 rd president with a white jersey bearing the number 43 and "Bush." Catcher Jason Varitek presented Vice President Dick Cheney with a red jersey bearing the number 2 and "Cheney."
President Bush has a history with baseball. He was once co-owner of the Texas Rangers after he and a group of partners purchased the franchise in 1989.
Audience members, who had been invited by the White House to the ceremony, braved the chilly weather to witness the event, including Bristol County Sheriff Tom M. Hudgson, who was in town for the National Sheriffs' Association's midyear conference and said he happened to stumble across a ticket.
"I thought the president's remarks were actually great," he said after the event. "I thought it was great for him to recognize really what was a huge achievement for Boston, and I think he put it into perspective in a funny way . which sometimes people don't get to see about him."
Following the president's speech, Red Sox players said they enjoyed their time at the White House, something that first-basemen Kevin Millar said was "truly an honor."
Mr.Varitek said the team owed a lot to Red Sox Nation, thanking the fans for their support.
"In Boston, things are different," he said. "Everywhere else people would say 'congratulations;' [there] they'd say 'thank you.' "
Mr. Damon said he believed the team "wouldn't lose spirit" and would focus on the new season.
Mr. Millar agreed, saying, "Last year was great, but the guys that weren't here last year don't want to hear about last year."
"We're going to try and get back here next year," Mr. Damon said, adding that the 2005 team, "might even be a better team.. We don't have to live with the curse anymore."
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Delahunt, Kennedy Propose Legislation to Help Ease Visa Shortage
WASHINGTON, March 1 - Rep. William Delahunt and Sen. Edward Kennedy have proposed legislation to reserve half of the visas for temporary workers each year for summer employees.
For the state's summer tourism industry, Kennedy said in a statement, the bill "provides an immediate solution" to a serious problem.
In the past two years, the annual cap of 66,000 H-2B visas for temporary nonfarm workers has been met relatively early in the federal fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1. This year the cap was met on Jan. 3; last year, all 66,000 visas were issued by March.
The Save Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act proposes to reserve 33,000 of the 66,000 visas for employers needing summer workers. Federal regulations do not permit employers to apply for visas more than 120 days before they need them.
The proposed legislation also would allow employees who have received H-2B visas in the past three years to be exempt from the total number in the visa cap.
"For the second year in a row, we have reached the H-2B cap before Massachusetts's summer tourism industry is eligible to apply," Kennedy said in his statement. "This bill provides an immediate solution to this problem."
Kennedy's bill has been sent to the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Citizenship and Delahunt's bill has been sent to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Claims. Neither panel has scheduled hearings.
Last year Delahunt and Kennedy proposed legislation that would have added 40,000 workers to the visa cap. Those bills never got out of committee.
"Closing the door on H-2B visas creates enormous and urgent hardship for small businesses throughout the country," Delahunt said in a statement. "Congress must act this year."
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Frank Spent Almost $1.3 Million in Re-Election Bid
WASHINGTON, Feb. 23 - Rep. Barney Frank spent almost $1.3 million in his 2004 reelection campaign, more than nine times as much as his opponent spent, according to filings with the Federal Election Commission.
He also donated about a fifth of what he raised to other Democratic candidates for Congress.
Rep. Frank defeated Charles A. Morse, a conservative Brookline entrepreneur who ran as an independent, winning 78 percent of the vote.
Mr. Morse said he was unaware what Rep. Frank spent on his campaign and that he believed it was uncommon for the congressman to spend a lot on a campaign.
"I didn't realize that he spent more than a million dollars, my goodness," he said.
Mr. Morse said he was not "sure if that was a result of [his] candidacy or if it might have been more likely the result of [Rep. Frank's] senatorial ambitions."
Steven Weiss, spokesman for the Center for Responsive Politics, said Rep. Frank's expenditures "would correlate with aspirations to be senator depending on how he was spending it."
"It's certainly possible that he spent more prior to the 2004 election in anticipation that Senate seat might be open and certainly he and other members of the Massachusetts delegation had that possible vacancy on their minds," Weiss added.
Had Sen. John Kerry won the presidential race in November, Massachusetts voters would have filled his Senate seat in a special election early this year.
Rep. Frank said he used television ads for the fist time since 1982 because he "was trying to run up a nice big win because of the possibility of the Senate." He also said the television ads served a "dual purpose" because they would have boosted his name recognition for a Senate run. "If John Kerry had become president I would have been running for the Senate," he said. Rep. Frank said he donated more money to Democrats running for Congress than he has in the past because he was serving as the senior Democrat on a committee for the first time.
His most closely contested race came in 1982, after Massachusetts lost a House seat through reapportionment following the 1980 census. Reps. Frank and Margaret Heckler were pitted against one another for a single seat. Rep. Frank won with 60 percent of the vote, defeating the Republican congresswoman who had been in office since 1966.
"I thought getting into it that Frank was vulnerable only because he hadn't had a vigorous opponent in a quarter century," Mr. Morse said. "My ideas and aspiration resonate with more people now. I think he's really of the past. He's this old, antiquated, regressive, big-government Democrat idea."
Rep . Frank, who has been in office since 1980, spent $471,381 in 2000, winning 75 percent of the vote. Republican Martin Douglas Travis garnered 21 percent and Libertarian David J. Euchner received 4 percent, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Rep. Frank was uncontested in 2002, spending $476,688 on his campaign, according to filings with the FEC.
The congressman raised more than $1.3 million for his 2004 reelection campaign and spent most of it. He received 1,901 in individual contributions totaling $745,470 and accounting for 56.5 percent of his fundraising, according to filings with the FEC and the Center for Responsive Politics
Rep . Frank, the senior Democrat on the Financial Services Committee, received more than $566,400 from political action committees (PACs), with business PACs accounting for 78.4 percent, according to the center.
Top contributions to Rep. Frank's campaign included $12,500 from JP Morgan Chase & Co., $11,500 from Wells Fargo and $10,000 from Bank of America, according to the center.
Rep. Frank collected $218,142 in out-of-state contributions for 2003-2004, the fourth- highest in the Massachusetts delegation, according to the center. He received contributions from states as far away as Alaska and California and as close as Connecticut and New York, according to filings with the FEC.
Rep. Frank contributed almost $243,000 to the campaigns of other Democrats and spent the majority of his campaign money on advertising.
His largest expenditure was $408,919 on media assistance with Yellin/McCarron Inc., a Boston-based media management company that also has worked with Reps. Michael Capuano and William Delahunt and Kerry, according to its Web site.
According to FEC filings, Rep. Frank also contributed $5,500 to the National Stonewall Democrats PAC, which "advocates within the Democratic Party on behalf of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered community," its Web site says. Rep. Frank is one of three openly gay members of Congress.
He ended his campaign with $116,273 cash on hand, according to his FEC filing.
Mr. Morse, Rep. Frank's opponent in 2004, received four failure-to-file notices from the FEC, but has since filed his post-general election report with the commission.
He received his fourth notice on Dec. 17, telling him that he had been "previously notified" of the report's due date and that "failure to timely file this report may result in civil money penalties."
Mr. Morse said he spoke with the FEC last week about the filings and said he is working to get the information online.
"It wasn't that we had a failure to file, we filed," he said. "It's just that I was handling the online aspect of the filing and I just couldn't figure out how to do it online, and so the filings have been done and I've made those documents available to everyone, including my opponent, who has a full copy of all of my filings."
According to his filings with the FEC, Mr. Morse raised $147,276 for his campaign, all but $1,000 coming from individual contributions. He received one PAC contribution, from the Massachusetts Citizens for Life.
Mr. Morse said although he is "not pro-life in the classic sense," the PAC contributed to his campaign near the race's end and he has no objection to such contributions.
Mr. Morse ended his run with $8,764 cash on hand.
He called his first run an "interesting experience," adding that he believes he would have done better had he run as a Republican.
"I wanted to offer the voters an alternative, and I believe I did that," Mr. Morse said.
Mr. Morse said Wednesday he is "exploring the possibility" of running again in 2006, although on his campaign Web site he says that, "it often takes several tries before a candidate can defeat an incumbent" and asks for assistance to "help dump Barney Frank in 2006."
In a letter to his supporters on his campaign Web site, Mr. Morse says that "rolling back liberalism in Massachusetts is daunting work" and asks for "help from now right up until November of 2006" because he has " determined not to stop campaigning against Barney Frank."
Mr. Morse, a former talk radio host, also runs a blog site with commentary on political and world events and has written a book about his 2004 campaign, entitled "A Massachusetts Conservative in the Cradle of Liberty."
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