After two failed attempts to prevent the sequester on Thursday, Congress gave up efforts to stop the austerity measures, and head out of town for the weekend. Yesterday, one day before the deadline, two rival bills to prevent the $85 billion in spending cuts failed to get Senate approval. The Republicans only got 38 votes on a bill that would have forced President Obama to manage the spending cuts, and Democrats got 51 votes for a bill that would have replaced the sequester with $55 billion in spending cuts and $55 billion in new revenues. And the Progressive Caucus' Balancing Act approach wasn't even considered, despite a recent Business Insider poll that showed bipartisan voter support for the plan.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said no agreement can be reached without additional tax revenues, and he believes the Republicans want the Sequester to happen. He said, “we cannot solve the problems of this country with cuts, cuts, cuts. We've cut $2.6 trillion. We need to do more, but we're going to do it in a balanced approach.” But Republicans refuse to accept any plan that includes new revenues. So for now, our country must brace for the drastic cuts about to kick in, which will wreak havoc on our economy.

Democrats will attempt to undo the sequester in the upcoming budget resolution at the end of the month, but by then many of the Republican austerity measures will have already begun. And if Republicans don't back down on tax increases, there's little chance a replacement plan will be accepted. Now it's up to us to let Congress know that we won't stand by while Republicans use our economy to play political blame games with the President.

Call Congress today and tell them to stop these insane austerity measures now!

-Thom

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Thursday's Daily Stack

Hour One: Isn't the Sequester proof that Government creates jobs?
- Lance Roberts, StreetTalk Advisers

Article: "Productivity and Compensation" by Matthew Yglesias.

Article: "Supreme Court Hears Voting Rights Act Challenge Brought By Shelby County, Alabama" by Janell Ross.

Article: "Scalia: Voting Rights Act Is ‘Perpetuation Of Racial Entitlement’" by Nicole Flatow and Ian Millhiser.

The Big Picture
- Sam Sacks, The Big Picture producer, progressive commentator

Article: "Despite Warning for Women, WHO Report on Fukushima Slammed as 'PR Spin'" by Jon Queally.

Article: "Washington Governor: Hanford Reservation May Be Leaking 1000 Gallons Of Nuclear Waste Per Year" by Mike Baker.

Article: "Jim Miller relies on religion to justify intolerance of homosexuals" by Mike Florio.

Article: "Our Debt Ourselves" by Robert M. Solow.

Book: "Unequal Protection: How Corporations Became "People" - And How You Can Fight Back" by Thom Hartmann - new updated version out now!

Site: Governor Free Don Siegelman.

Quote: "Reagan taught us deficits don't matter." - Dick Cheney.

Article: "The Balancing Act" by Congressional Professice Caucus.

Article: "In Blind Poll, Republicans Choose Progressive Budget Solutions Over Their Own Party's" by .

Law: Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (1999).

Law: "Glass-Steagall Act", 1933.

Hour Two: Should Scalia take off his black robe & put on his white hood?
- Mike Papantonio, Attorney & Host-Ring of Fire Radio

Audio: "President Obama speaks with Joe Madison about Section 5 of The Voting Rights Act.".

Case: "Marbury v. Madison", 1803.

Letter: "Thomas Jefferson to Spencer Roane", 6 Sept. 1819 "The constitution, on this hypothesis, is a mere thing of wax in the hands of the judiciary, which they may twist, and shape into any form they please."

Article: "Constitution of the United States", article 3.

Case: "Dred Scott v. Sandford", 1857.

Article: "15th Amendment".
Section 1. he right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude--
Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

TV: "Ring of Fire" on Free Speech TV.

Geeky Science- Did monkeys invent margaritas?

Article: "Origins of alcohol consumption traced to ape ancestor" by Erin Wayman.

Article: "Blue-chip index Dow fluctuates near all-time high" by Bloomberg News.

Speech: "President Truman's Acceptance Speech", 1948 Democratic Convention, July 15th, 1948.

Article: "Republican Party Platform of 1956", August 20, 1956.

Article: "'Collusion With Austerity' Will Sink Obama, say Progressives" by Jon Queally.

Talk Radio News Segment:
- Ellen Ratner, Bureau Chief

Site: Governor Free Don Siegelman.

Site: "Goats for the old Goat".

Article: "Sequester Bills Fail In The Senate" by Justin Duckham.

Article: "Risk Is the Sequester's Only Certainty" by Jill Lawrence.

Article: "Bradley Manning pleads guilty to 10 charges but denies 'aiding the enemy'" by Ed Pilkington.

Article: "House Passes Dem Version Of Violence Against Women Act" by TRNS.

Article: "John Kerry in Rome: Will US aid, arm Syrian rebels?" by Howard LaFranchi.

Article: "Pope Benedict XVI leaves the Vatican" by Henry Chu and Tom Kington.

Article: "IRS will not furlough until after tax filing season" by Steve Vogel.

Article: "White House Filing Amicus Brief In Gay Marriage Case" by TRNS.

Article: "It’s 1948 Again - Wake Up!" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Civil Rights Cases" by eNotes.

Article: "Supreme Court of the United States. The United States v. Murray Stanley. Same v. Michael Ryan. Same v. Samuel Nichols. Same v. Samuel D. Singleton. Robinson v. Memphis and Charleston Railroad Co.".

Article: "On This Day: The Civil Rights Cases".

Article: "On This Day: The Civil Rights Act of 1875".

Article: "13th Amendment "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

Article: "14th Amendment - Citizenship, Due Process Clause, Equal Protection.

Article: "15th Amendment".

Case: "Santa Clara County vs. Southern Pacific Railroad", 1886.

Article: "Civil Rights Cases: Dissent" by J. Harlan.

Article: "Civil Rights Cases: Opinion of the Court" by J. Bradley.

The good: "Dennis Rodman holds court in North Korea" by Calum MacLeod.

The bad: State Senator Jim Rice.: "Idaho lawmaker: Force all adults into militias to protect gun rights" by David Edwards.

The very, very ugly: Congressman Louie Gohmert: "GOP Congressman: The Debt Is As ‘Immoral’ As Slavery" by Annie-Rose Strasser.

Law: "The National Labor Relations Act (The Wagner Act)", 1935.

Law: "Taft-Hartley Labor Act", 1947.

Book: "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen R. Covey.

Site: "Progressive Democrats of America".

Site: Move to Amend

Article: "African American Ministers Leadership Council Responds to Scalia’s ‘Racial Entitlement’ Comment" by PFAW.

Article: "Bernanke's testimony to House Financial Services panel" by Reuters.

Article: "Shell says it will not drill in Alaska Arctic in 2013" by Kim Murphy.

Article: "Closing gun show loophole is right way to go" by Mark Kelly.

Article: "Dennis Tito: We will send a married couple to Mars in 2018" by Jessica Lear.

Hour One: March for Civil Rights and Justice for Don Siegelman
- Dana Siegelman, Daughter of former AL Governor Don Siegelman / Activist.

Hour Two: "Brunch With Bernie"
- Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) takes your calls

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We'll have all the latest news and information from the weekend...has the sequester had an impact on you yet? I'll talk with Elliot Richardson, President of Illinois' Small Business Advocacy Council, about the effects he's seeing...

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