Douglas Goodman

Bio

Retired military and Quality Assurance / Warehouse Operations and Distribution Manager. Have enjoyed politics since the Kennedy/Nixon debates. Besides good political discussions, I've been involved in campaigns at all levels as well as having served on school, city, and county committees and boards. Been called weird because I enjoy reading government legislation and other government rules and regulations.
House of Non-Representatives Sees No Need to Work if No 'Crisis' Looms
By Douglas Goodman
There are about 65 days remaining in 2013. The House of Representatives is scheduled to be in session 19 of those days. According to Politico, Speaker John Boehner is considering reducing that number because there is no crisis facing lawmakers.…
Government Shutdown 2013: Why the Supreme Court Might Get Involved
By Douglas Goodman
Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution assigns the responsibility to pay the debts of the United States to the Congress. Section 4 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution states "The validity of the public debt of the United…
Hassan Rouhani Opens the Door to Peace With Iran — Israel’s Netanyahu Slams It Shut
By Douglas Goodman
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is so blinded by his contempt for Iran that he ignores the prime tenant of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, the Jewish High Holy Days. The ten days between the Jewish New Year and Day of Atonement are meant to…
2013 Debt Ceiling is Creating a Perfect Storm
By Douglas Goodman
The perfect storm, when all things come together and create a disaster. The last debt ceiling deal, sequester, Obamacare, NSA, partisanship, 2014, Syria ... Is this the perfect storm as we head into the debt ceiling debate? Members of Congress…
Why Did This Homeless Man Turn Down $100?
By Douglas Goodman
We’ve all heard the proverb about the difference between giving a man a fish or teaching him how to fish. Fast forward a few hundred years to 2013. “Give a man $100 and he can buy something. Give a man a laptop, JavaScript books, and two months of…
Congress Has Taken So Many Vacation Days, They May Have Actually Ruined the U.S. Economy
By Douglas Goodman
In 1964 the movie Seven Days In May was nominated for three Oscars. The movie was a disaster movie in the sense it revolved around a military overthrow of the president and a nuclear attack against the U.S. by the Soviet Union. Fast forward to 2013.…
Congress Might Actually Fix a Billion-Dollar Problem
By Douglas Goodman
Every year since 1997, as part of the Congressional budget debate, the subject of what to do with the cumulative decrease in Medicare and TriCare reimbursement rates to doctors is usually kicked down the road. I wrote about this problem, lovingly…
Department of Defense Could Save Billions With This Hidden Program
By Douglas Goodman
The secretary of defense and the joint chiefs of staff continue to cry wolf. The easy and most terrifying spending cuts — personnel, training, and maintenance — will have to be reduced to levels that put the ability to defend the nation at risk…
No One Seems to Care About This Major Threat to National Security
By Douglas Goodman
Because of the Edward Snowden case, government officials held a joint hearing on June 20. The purpose was to examine how Congress can improve the accountability and oversight of the the security clearance system.  Edward Snowden was granted a…
Will These 9 Bills Actually Help Make Government Work Again?
By Douglas Goodman
On July 18, the No Labels Problem Solvers took a giant step forward formally announcing a package of nine bills they will use to break the gridlock on Capitol Hill. Except for one, these bills are not controversial. They are designed to encourage…
The Mushroom Cloud Over the Senate Has Passed – Nuclear Option Avoided At the Last Minute
By Douglas Goodman
Following a four-hour, closed-door caucus of the full Senate, it appears, once again, that the legislative body has avoided a political disaster. The "nuclear option," a change to Senate filibuster rules that could have stalled Senate action on any…
Immigration Reform 2013: It's Not Dead Yet
By Douglas Goodman
On July 10, Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) met with members of his party to discuss how to proceed with immigration reform in the House of Representatives now that the Senate has passed a bipartisan, comprehensive reform bill. Their…
NSA Surveillance: Federal Employees Are Next Up On Obama's Spy List
By Douglas Goodman
The NSA spies on Americans. The IRS targets political groups. President Obama orders federal employees to tattle on their co-workers or go to jail. What? You read that correctly. Working for the federal government now requires you to spy on your…
Immigration Reform 2013: House GOP Now Control the Game, But What They Will Do Is Anybody’s Guess
By Douglas Goodman
Earlier this week, the Senate passed a bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform bill. Fourteen Republican senators joined all 32 Democrats in voting for the bill. Supporters of the bill rejoiced but the battle is far from over. It could be said…
Student Loan Debt: Why is the Government Making a Profit Off Of Suffering Students?
By Douglas Goodman
Student loan debt is more than $1 trillion. Congress is struggling to prevent rates from doubling in less than two weeks. Yet a report released this week indicates the federal government stands to make a profit of $50 billion this fiscal year. This…
Immigration Reform 2013: Boehner Just Killed It, and Shot the GOP in the Foot
By Douglas Goodman
Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) announced this past weekend that any immigration reform legislation will follow regular order, i,e. go through committee hearings before he will bring it to the floor. He added that a majority of the…
Obama Syria War: the War Powers Act Could Complicate Obama's Handling Of Syria
By Douglas Goodman
Following the Vietnam War, Americans wanted to ensure this country never again committed our military to long conflicts without either a declaration of war or other formal approval of Congress. They wanted Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution…
Midterm Elections 2014: Democrats Must Gain Control to Move Their Agenda Forward
By Douglas Goodman
In less than six months, campaigns for all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 33 seats in the Senate up for election in 2014 will start in earnest. Unless the two major parties all of a sudden decide to end the hyper-partisanship that has…
Immigration Reform 2013: How Do the House and Senate's Immigration Plans Compare?
By Douglas Goodman
The full Senate is expected to debate, amend, and most likely pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill this month. A bipartisan group of representatives drafting a House version has a similar goal for starting debate. Details of the…
Immigration Reform 2013: Is Obama's Legacy About to Be Dealt a Major Blow?
By Douglas Goodman
Since his first campaign in 2008, one of President Obama's priorities has been to reform our immigration system. Given the importance of this issue, one would expect him to present his ideas to Congress and guide the process, to control its destiny,…