go_guy123
06-18 10:52 PM
I met a US citizen of Indian origin who came to US in 1991 on a tourist visa and in those days, they managed to get green cards - dunno how. He never visited India. Got married here and still visualizes India as how it was in 80s.
By the way, even today if one marries a USC, one can get GC right away. Actually you get EAD till the GC gets processed.
Besides this, I have come across people coming to US in 1990 on B1, then overstay and convert to H1B.
Thats because 10 year ban and other tough rules etc for illegal stay was passed in 1996. Over the years immigration rules have been tightened.
1986: 2 year conditional GC for marriage to USC was passed. Before that one could marry get GC and divorce the next day. Employers need to do paper checking before they hire people.
1996: Beginning of tightening screws on immigrants.
First harsh anti- immigration was passed. affidavit of support for family based GC.
Massive increase in discretion powers for immigration officers at POE etc.
10 year ban etc on overstay
In fact 1996 rules were so harsh that basically the sheer strict enforcement of these rules on H1Bs makes life miserable.
Plus major difference between 1996 and 1986
In 86 tough rules was a price extracted for amnesty for illegals.
In 1996 not even one clause was pro immigrants.
By the way, even today if one marries a USC, one can get GC right away. Actually you get EAD till the GC gets processed.
Besides this, I have come across people coming to US in 1990 on B1, then overstay and convert to H1B.
Thats because 10 year ban and other tough rules etc for illegal stay was passed in 1996. Over the years immigration rules have been tightened.
1986: 2 year conditional GC for marriage to USC was passed. Before that one could marry get GC and divorce the next day. Employers need to do paper checking before they hire people.
1996: Beginning of tightening screws on immigrants.
First harsh anti- immigration was passed. affidavit of support for family based GC.
Massive increase in discretion powers for immigration officers at POE etc.
10 year ban etc on overstay
In fact 1996 rules were so harsh that basically the sheer strict enforcement of these rules on H1Bs makes life miserable.
Plus major difference between 1996 and 1986
In 86 tough rules was a price extracted for amnesty for illegals.
In 1996 not even one clause was pro immigrants.
wallpaper 100 dollar bill secrets.
gc_on_demand
02-03 01:41 PM
Hi
I hold a H1b Visa but did not work after coming to US.
Can anybody guide me regarding my current status.
My H1 was approved in 2007 quota and i entered US in march 2008..but was not successful in getting a job and my employer is not running any payroll..
can anybody help me with this??
thankyou
Dont stay here .. People like you causing problem for people who work hard. If you cannot find job.. why the hell you stay here. You should pack bag.. If you are rich enough to spend money while not working in USA come on B1 visa and stay for 180 days in 5 star hotel.
Go back...
I hold a H1b Visa but did not work after coming to US.
Can anybody guide me regarding my current status.
My H1 was approved in 2007 quota and i entered US in march 2008..but was not successful in getting a job and my employer is not running any payroll..
can anybody help me with this??
thankyou
Dont stay here .. People like you causing problem for people who work hard. If you cannot find job.. why the hell you stay here. You should pack bag.. If you are rich enough to spend money while not working in USA come on B1 visa and stay for 180 days in 5 star hotel.
Go back...
talash
10-15 11:48 PM
Again always track ur al aplications and DONT depend on lawyer .
2011 10 dollar bill secrets.
Dhundhun
04-24 12:31 PM
Hey god_bless_you,
God gave me a RED DOT.
Anyway, congrats again.
Enjoy.
God gave me a RED DOT.
Anyway, congrats again.
Enjoy.
more...
voldemar
03-09 10:07 PM
I am planning to visit India next week. I have the I-94 which was given to me when I entered USA last time. In the mean time, I also have I-94 attached on the approved I-797 due to 6,7 and 8th year extension. My question is
When I check in at the airlines counter do I have to only submit the I-94 that was given to me at the port entry ?
or
all the I-94 that is attached to my I-797 approval notices.
ThanksSubmit all I-94. My lawyer told me that.
When I check in at the airlines counter do I have to only submit the I-94 that was given to me at the port entry ?
or
all the I-94 that is attached to my I-797 approval notices.
ThanksSubmit all I-94. My lawyer told me that.
nayekal
02-16 03:01 PM
I don't understand ur reply. I haven't asked question of maintaining legal status. I am maintaining legal status. My question is very simple.
What documents are required for COS from H1 to H4?
Where is this question of maintaining legal status coming from?
I may not be able to answer your question directly, but I faced the same dilemma about wife's H1. I got her H1 changed to H4 by applying I-539. This process is very easy and it too my wife 2 months to get the approval.
If you are going out of country and try to re-enter US, with COS, it may not be an easy thing right now. It is getting tough these days, since it involves Visa stamp as well and they might ask too many documents from you and your husband. Even though you guys are legal and have got all documents, still it might be a trouble.
My opinion would be to apply for I-539 and after that reciept, you don't have to work. You will get approval much easier (H1 to H4) compared to H1 to H1 transfer.
What documents are required for COS from H1 to H4?
Where is this question of maintaining legal status coming from?
I may not be able to answer your question directly, but I faced the same dilemma about wife's H1. I got her H1 changed to H4 by applying I-539. This process is very easy and it too my wife 2 months to get the approval.
If you are going out of country and try to re-enter US, with COS, it may not be an easy thing right now. It is getting tough these days, since it involves Visa stamp as well and they might ask too many documents from you and your husband. Even though you guys are legal and have got all documents, still it might be a trouble.
My opinion would be to apply for I-539 and after that reciept, you don't have to work. You will get approval much easier (H1 to H4) compared to H1 to H1 transfer.
more...
logiclife
07-11 11:18 AM
This is from Rajiv Khanna's Immigration.com (http://www.immigration.com/common/synergybackpay.html), found today.
Employer to be barred for two years from H-1 and green card filing for willful failure to pay benched employees.
In a decision entitled "Administrator WHD v. Synergy Systems, Inc." on June 30, 2006, the employer was ordered to pay back wages to two benched (Indian) employees and was directed to be barred from the H-1 AND green card programs for two years. The employer tried to argue that the employees were on unpaid leave of absence. This argument was rejected. It was found that employer had willfully violated H-1B regulations, hence it must be barred from the H-1 and green card filing for at least two years.
What this tell us is:
1. Its really not a joke to go around benching people without pay.
2. All it takes its an official complaint to be filed with Department of labor. And although it takes time, the department of labor would go after such employers and do the neccesary "Treatment" and "therapy" needed to teach such employers a lesson.
3. It is not the employee's fault if they are not paid wages for the time they spend when they are non-productive, aka, illegal benching-without-pay. Employee's responsibility to find a gainful employment starts ONLY AFTER the employer officially terminates the employee and send USCIS the notice to revoke H1. After that, its the employee's responsibility to maintain status and legality.
Employers like Synergy are not only a menace to their own employees, they are also a menace to the entire system. The anti-immigrants cite such employers to make their case for their own cause by saying that "H1Bs are exploited and H1Bs are slaves and H1Bs and immigrants are driving down wages". When in reality, H1B employees most earn the same amount or more amount than any other employee on greencard or citizenship. Such few bad apples really provide examples for our opponents on other side to create new sound bites. These are the guys who put us in trouble and provide fodder to Lou Dobbs and programmer's guild(organization against hi-tech immigration).
I am disappointed that they are barred only for 2 years. Coz after 2 years, I can guarantee that they will be probably back to their old tricks. There is such a thing called RECIDIVISM. A tendency to revert back to previous pattern of bahavior. Pretty much like a dog's tail. No matter how long you keep a dog's tail in a straight tube, as soon as you take it out, it regains its original shape.
However, 2 years is still 2 years. And I am going to toast to that. CHEERS !!!!!!!!!! :):)
If anyone here has been an employee of Synergy or is still an employee, you may want to take appropriate steps to change your employer and check the consequence to your immigration status and GC status.
Employer to be barred for two years from H-1 and green card filing for willful failure to pay benched employees.
In a decision entitled "Administrator WHD v. Synergy Systems, Inc." on June 30, 2006, the employer was ordered to pay back wages to two benched (Indian) employees and was directed to be barred from the H-1 AND green card programs for two years. The employer tried to argue that the employees were on unpaid leave of absence. This argument was rejected. It was found that employer had willfully violated H-1B regulations, hence it must be barred from the H-1 and green card filing for at least two years.
What this tell us is:
1. Its really not a joke to go around benching people without pay.
2. All it takes its an official complaint to be filed with Department of labor. And although it takes time, the department of labor would go after such employers and do the neccesary "Treatment" and "therapy" needed to teach such employers a lesson.
3. It is not the employee's fault if they are not paid wages for the time they spend when they are non-productive, aka, illegal benching-without-pay. Employee's responsibility to find a gainful employment starts ONLY AFTER the employer officially terminates the employee and send USCIS the notice to revoke H1. After that, its the employee's responsibility to maintain status and legality.
Employers like Synergy are not only a menace to their own employees, they are also a menace to the entire system. The anti-immigrants cite such employers to make their case for their own cause by saying that "H1Bs are exploited and H1Bs are slaves and H1Bs and immigrants are driving down wages". When in reality, H1B employees most earn the same amount or more amount than any other employee on greencard or citizenship. Such few bad apples really provide examples for our opponents on other side to create new sound bites. These are the guys who put us in trouble and provide fodder to Lou Dobbs and programmer's guild(organization against hi-tech immigration).
I am disappointed that they are barred only for 2 years. Coz after 2 years, I can guarantee that they will be probably back to their old tricks. There is such a thing called RECIDIVISM. A tendency to revert back to previous pattern of bahavior. Pretty much like a dog's tail. No matter how long you keep a dog's tail in a straight tube, as soon as you take it out, it regains its original shape.
However, 2 years is still 2 years. And I am going to toast to that. CHEERS !!!!!!!!!! :):)
If anyone here has been an employee of Synergy or is still an employee, you may want to take appropriate steps to change your employer and check the consequence to your immigration status and GC status.
2010 1 dollar bill secrets.
roseball
03-08 09:21 AM
looks like employer failed to file updated LCA,i am not sure if an updated lca WILL HELP.
Since its not the beneficiary's mistake, your brother could either try to apply for a H1 through a new employer (preferred) or could try to apply for H1 again with the existing employer and then have her wife attend H4 interview again once its approved. Chances are that your brother might get the H1 approval without an attached I-94 so he will have to attend a H1 visa interview in the home country before starting work again. So they might end up attending H1/H4 interviews together.
Since its not the beneficiary's mistake, your brother could either try to apply for a H1 through a new employer (preferred) or could try to apply for H1 again with the existing employer and then have her wife attend H4 interview again once its approved. Chances are that your brother might get the H1 approval without an attached I-94 so he will have to attend a H1 visa interview in the home country before starting work again. So they might end up attending H1/H4 interviews together.
more...
snathan
08-20 03:33 PM
Hi ,
I got deported from Chicago when I was travelling back from India because I worked at a gas station with out authorization . I had to admit that I worked and I was deported back by flight same evening . They gave me the ticket .
My visa is cancelled and I was told to go back to consulate and get a new visa .
I want to come back and complete my studies as I have only 1 semester left . Please help what what should I do now .
thanks in advance.
RD
Since you are deported and the ticker was paid by the US Govt, you are most likely banned to enter the country for 5 years. Even if you are going to the consulate, you wont get the visa. As you admitted guilty, I dont think you can fix this.
I got deported from Chicago when I was travelling back from India because I worked at a gas station with out authorization . I had to admit that I worked and I was deported back by flight same evening . They gave me the ticket .
My visa is cancelled and I was told to go back to consulate and get a new visa .
I want to come back and complete my studies as I have only 1 semester left . Please help what what should I do now .
thanks in advance.
RD
Since you are deported and the ticker was paid by the US Govt, you are most likely banned to enter the country for 5 years. Even if you are going to the consulate, you wont get the visa. As you admitted guilty, I dont think you can fix this.
hair 50 dollar bill secrets.
prioritydate
08-19 05:40 PM
Hi Friends,
My PD is Mar, 2005 filed under EB2. Me & My wife got an RFE asking status for a particular period [like May 01, xxxx to Feb xxxx]. These dates exactly fall under just one month before graduation to OPT expiration.
For my case �.. no issues providing evidence and everything is straight forward.
But for my wife �.we have some issue (I think)
USCIS wants her status from May 01, 2003 to Mar 01 2006.
She graduated on May 23, 2003. She used 60 days grace period before applying for EAD.
OPT from July 31, 2003 to July 30, 2004 [exactly one year and was looking for job�didn't find one]
We filed H1B in April, 2004 so that she can start working from Oct, 2004 [H1B approved for Oct 2004 to Sep 2007 ..extension approved too�]
But No status from July 31, 2004 to Sep 30, 2004 [USCIS issued a gap relief for all the F1 students like this]�.
What are odds that her case might we rejected�any opinions here.
Thanks,
Jingi
Di you submit all F1, H1, EAD documents to the USCIS with your original I0485 submission? Did you send any W2 forms?
My PD is Mar, 2005 filed under EB2. Me & My wife got an RFE asking status for a particular period [like May 01, xxxx to Feb xxxx]. These dates exactly fall under just one month before graduation to OPT expiration.
For my case �.. no issues providing evidence and everything is straight forward.
But for my wife �.we have some issue (I think)
USCIS wants her status from May 01, 2003 to Mar 01 2006.
She graduated on May 23, 2003. She used 60 days grace period before applying for EAD.
OPT from July 31, 2003 to July 30, 2004 [exactly one year and was looking for job�didn't find one]
We filed H1B in April, 2004 so that she can start working from Oct, 2004 [H1B approved for Oct 2004 to Sep 2007 ..extension approved too�]
But No status from July 31, 2004 to Sep 30, 2004 [USCIS issued a gap relief for all the F1 students like this]�.
What are odds that her case might we rejected�any opinions here.
Thanks,
Jingi
Di you submit all F1, H1, EAD documents to the USCIS with your original I0485 submission? Did you send any W2 forms?
more...
tabletpc
08-02 09:01 AM
Not to scare you...from u r details on GC...i will be surprised if you get 485 approved in 3-4 years as the PD is 2006 and its EB3.
As of changing the job dilemma, i am alos in same boat. Being single we can't even use 485 benifits nor we can think of moving to another job. Mine is eb2 and 2006, but still can't think of waiting any longer. I ask myself this question of changing job/not 1000 times a day. Its jsut a matter of time before i get firm on my decsion.
As of changing the job dilemma, i am alos in same boat. Being single we can't even use 485 benifits nor we can think of moving to another job. Mine is eb2 and 2006, but still can't think of waiting any longer. I ask myself this question of changing job/not 1000 times a day. Its jsut a matter of time before i get firm on my decsion.
hot Secrets of the Dollar Bill
fromnaija
08-03 12:12 PM
With a priority date of July 2006, you are looking at another four to five years before you get your GC barring any changes in current laws and available visa. Many people advise that you maintain your H1 during the wait just to have a fallback position in case your 485 is denied.
So my status doesnt change until my I 485 is approved- any idea how long that will take? My H 1B expires in Nov of 2007 should I get an extension? Thank you for your replies- Lisa
So my status doesnt change until my I 485 is approved- any idea how long that will take? My H 1B expires in Nov of 2007 should I get an extension? Thank you for your replies- Lisa
more...
house dollar bill secrets.
bindas74
10-30 08:28 PM
Most of the kids of H1B people are attending public schools.
Public school education also public charge according to this.
Read it.
Educational assistance (such as attending public school)
It is "not considered" for public charge
Public school education also public charge according to this.
Read it.
Educational assistance (such as attending public school)
It is "not considered" for public charge
tattoo dollar bill secrets
Madhuri
03-19 02:17 PM
Your signature says I 140 was approved, when was it approved and does that mean the USCIS website never updated the status of your I 140?
or was it showing I140 approved before and now it's showing pending?
No, I140 is not denied, its pending as per USCIS website. However, reason for I485 denial is that I140 is denied. Is this something to do with the RFE on I140? I dont see any logic in this...
or was it showing I140 approved before and now it's showing pending?
No, I140 is not denied, its pending as per USCIS website. However, reason for I485 denial is that I140 is denied. Is this something to do with the RFE on I140? I dont see any logic in this...
more...
pictures 1 dollar bill secrets.
mk26
05-14 10:10 AM
Howard County
dresses +dollar+ill+secrets
jliechty
May 19th, 2005, 05:16 AM
Could you post a similar crop of a problem image?
First idea: put the lens to manual focus, and try that on a tripod. Perhaps the focus point got moved, and the camera is attempting to focus on black sky? This test would attempt to eliminate that.
On the other hand, with the changing size of the moon, the camera could be overexposing more than it did in your first example (if that turns out to be the case, I'll explain why, so you can avoid it in the future). :)
First idea: put the lens to manual focus, and try that on a tripod. Perhaps the focus point got moved, and the camera is attempting to focus on black sky? This test would attempt to eliminate that.
On the other hand, with the changing size of the moon, the camera could be overexposing more than it did in your first example (if that turns out to be the case, I'll explain why, so you can avoid it in the future). :)
more...
makeup Secrets of the Dollar Bill
Siboo
07-09 10:41 PM
DOS issued one more bulletine today on 9th July 2007 !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Everybody is seriously waiting for some update, you are just making fun of us. :mad:
When you write something in the forum, write with proof. Otherwise keep it with your own family...
Thanks
Everybody is seriously waiting for some update, you are just making fun of us. :mad:
When you write something in the forum, write with proof. Otherwise keep it with your own family...
Thanks
girlfriend 100 dollar bill secrets.
Kapils573
12-07 11:17 AM
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=644678d8a15e0110VgnVCM1000000ecd190aRCR D
Scheduled USCIS.gov site outages
Our Case Status Online system, Change of Address Online system, processing times, and field office/Application Support Center/Civil Surgeon locator will be unavailable due to server upgrades from 9:30 PM on Friday December 7 until about 8:00 PM on Monday December 10.
In addition, our search engine and naturalization self-test will be unavailable due to scheduled server maintenance on Sunday Dec. 9, 2007, from midnight to 6 AM Eastern Time.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Scheduled USCIS.gov site outages
Our Case Status Online system, Change of Address Online system, processing times, and field office/Application Support Center/Civil Surgeon locator will be unavailable due to server upgrades from 9:30 PM on Friday December 7 until about 8:00 PM on Monday December 10.
In addition, our search engine and naturalization self-test will be unavailable due to scheduled server maintenance on Sunday Dec. 9, 2007, from midnight to 6 AM Eastern Time.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
hairstyles aweama: 5 dollar bill secrets
pbojja
10-20 02:10 PM
4th grader at USCIS decides the future of highly educated people! What a "JOKE".
4 th grader is born in the country where as all the highly educated people are not ..
4 th grader is born in the country where as all the highly educated people are not ..
johnmcdonald98
08-16 06:04 PM
all the best with your wife's SSN application. My wife got her EAD 2 months ago and next day only we applied for SSN. Still waiting to get one. We called them after 4 weeks of application and they say they are waiting from USCIS to respond with the legal status (confirming EAD) to issue this number. So after 2 months still status is same.
I asked them if there is anything we could do, answer is none.
Can i speak with your supervisor to get more info, answer is same.
According to the EAD, she can work. She has TIN number, but I am not sure if she can use that...
I asked them if there is anything we could do, answer is none.
Can i speak with your supervisor to get more info, answer is same.
According to the EAD, she can work. She has TIN number, but I am not sure if she can use that...
Sakthisagar
12-01 02:44 PM
Issues facing the 2010 lame-duck session of Congress - The Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/lameduck/index.html)
1. Tax cuts
The most pressing issue in the lame-duck Congress sounds, at first glance, like a typo.
The federal government spends more money than it takes in. The two parties both agree that this is bad. Here�s what they can�t agree on: How much less should the government take in, in the years to come?
The debate is about income tax cuts, passed under President George W. Bush, which are due to expire Dec. 31. If that happens, a single person earning $46,000 a year might see his or her taxes jump $400, according to the nonprofit Tax Policy Center. A married couple earning a total of $440,000, on the other hand, might see an increase of $20,000.
Most Democrats want to extend tax cuts covering up to the first $250,000 that a family earns in a year. Republican leaders want to keep all the tax cuts, including those on income above $250,000. In a recession, they say, it doesn�t make sense to cut anyone�s taxes.
Congress and the president could agree to a temporary truce, extending all the tax cuts for a few years only. Or, as some Democrats have suggested recently, they could agree to keep tax cuts on incomes less than $1 million.
2. The New START treaty
The point of this U.S.-Russia treaty, signed but not yet ratified, is to continue the slow nuclear stand-down that has followed the Cold War. The two nations would agree to cut deployed long-range nuclear weapons by up to 30 percent and to allow each other to inspect the remaining stockpiles.
The prevention of nuclear armageddon still enjoys wide support on Capitol Hill.
But this treaty does not.
New START must be ratified by two-thirds of the Senate. That was no problem for two past treaties: the first Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, signed in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush, and the �Moscow Treaty,� signed in 2003 by President George W. Bush.
But now, Sen. John Kyl (Ariz.), the chamber�s second-ranking Republican, has held up the treaty�s passage. Kyl has said he wants more guarantees that the government will properly maintain the nuclear weapons that remain. He also thinks that the lame-duck session is too short a time to consider the issue.
The White House is now trying to work around Kyl to win over nine other Republican. If it can�t, there will be more Republicans � and perhaps more support for denying Obama a foreign policy win � in January.
3. �Don�t ask, don�t tell�
This 17-year-old rule, which bars gay men and lesbians from serving openly in the military, has been under attack all year. This fall, a federal judge ruled the ban unconstitutional and ordered it scrapped. A higher court reinstated the ban while it considers the matter on appeal.
And on Tuesday, a Pentagon report concluded that ending the ban would pose a low risk to military readiness. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said that the repeal of the rule �should be done.�
But �don�t ask, don�t tell� isn�t dead yet and could outlive the lame-duck session.
Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) could bring it up for a vote on the floor this month. But the ascendant GOP is in no mood to cooperate. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says he�s still worried about the effect on morale, and other Republican leaders say the whole issue is a distraction from their top priority � job creation.
4. The �Continuing resolution�
A continuing resolution (known in Hill jargon as a �CR�) is a bill that�s introduced when Congress can�t agree on a full budget for the federal government.
Instead, it passes a bill to temporarily �continue� funding federal agencies at their present rates.
Congress must pass a new continuing resolution before Friday. If it doesn�t, the government will shut down � as it did in 1995 during a budget showdown between President Bill Clinton and congressional Republicans.
The sticking point is Republican demands to shrink federal spending back to 2008 levels. But a shutdown still seems unlikely; while a lot of voters want smaller government, very few seem to want no government.
Signs from the Hill indicate legislators will beat Friday�s deadline and pass a resolution good for another few weeks, at least.
5. Unemployment benefits
Another looming deadline. On Tuesday, emergency unemployment insurance � he federal checks given to the jobless � expired. If nothing is done to extend the benefits, advocates say as many as 3 million people will see their checks cut off by the end of January.
Some Republicans have voiced concerns about the high cost of these benefits. In the middle of last month, the House failed to approve a plan to extend them, with all but 11 Democrats voting for it and all but 21 Republicans voting against it.
6. Childhood nutrition
On Wednesday, House Democratic leaders plan to call a vote that could be a measure of the muscle they�ve got left. At issue: a bill that would feed schoolchildren better food.
If they can�t win on that, it could be a long month.
The bill is intended to give more poor children access to subsidized meals at school. It also would improve the quality of those meals and give more federal money to school districts that comply with higher nutrition standards.
�Kids that have food insecurity learn at a slower rate than their peers,� House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters Tuesday. �Food insecurity� is Washington-speak for �hunger.�
The bill passed the Senate unanimously. But it will face some Republican opposition in the House from members who say it will impose more costs on struggling school systems.
7. The DREAM Act
This bill is aimed at illegal immigrants who came to this country as children. If they go to college or join the military as adults, it would give them a chance to obtain legal residency.
As attitudes toward illegal immigrants have hardened, support for the bill has collapsed among Republicans and many Democrats. To them, it looks like a kind of amnesty for lawbreakers.
On Tuesday, Reid could promise only a �test vote� on the issue: he would bring the issue to the Senate floor, and take his chances. The implicit message was that Reid might lose � but lose in a way that showed Hispanic voters he was trying.
1. Tax cuts
The most pressing issue in the lame-duck Congress sounds, at first glance, like a typo.
The federal government spends more money than it takes in. The two parties both agree that this is bad. Here�s what they can�t agree on: How much less should the government take in, in the years to come?
The debate is about income tax cuts, passed under President George W. Bush, which are due to expire Dec. 31. If that happens, a single person earning $46,000 a year might see his or her taxes jump $400, according to the nonprofit Tax Policy Center. A married couple earning a total of $440,000, on the other hand, might see an increase of $20,000.
Most Democrats want to extend tax cuts covering up to the first $250,000 that a family earns in a year. Republican leaders want to keep all the tax cuts, including those on income above $250,000. In a recession, they say, it doesn�t make sense to cut anyone�s taxes.
Congress and the president could agree to a temporary truce, extending all the tax cuts for a few years only. Or, as some Democrats have suggested recently, they could agree to keep tax cuts on incomes less than $1 million.
2. The New START treaty
The point of this U.S.-Russia treaty, signed but not yet ratified, is to continue the slow nuclear stand-down that has followed the Cold War. The two nations would agree to cut deployed long-range nuclear weapons by up to 30 percent and to allow each other to inspect the remaining stockpiles.
The prevention of nuclear armageddon still enjoys wide support on Capitol Hill.
But this treaty does not.
New START must be ratified by two-thirds of the Senate. That was no problem for two past treaties: the first Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, signed in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush, and the �Moscow Treaty,� signed in 2003 by President George W. Bush.
But now, Sen. John Kyl (Ariz.), the chamber�s second-ranking Republican, has held up the treaty�s passage. Kyl has said he wants more guarantees that the government will properly maintain the nuclear weapons that remain. He also thinks that the lame-duck session is too short a time to consider the issue.
The White House is now trying to work around Kyl to win over nine other Republican. If it can�t, there will be more Republicans � and perhaps more support for denying Obama a foreign policy win � in January.
3. �Don�t ask, don�t tell�
This 17-year-old rule, which bars gay men and lesbians from serving openly in the military, has been under attack all year. This fall, a federal judge ruled the ban unconstitutional and ordered it scrapped. A higher court reinstated the ban while it considers the matter on appeal.
And on Tuesday, a Pentagon report concluded that ending the ban would pose a low risk to military readiness. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said that the repeal of the rule �should be done.�
But �don�t ask, don�t tell� isn�t dead yet and could outlive the lame-duck session.
Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) could bring it up for a vote on the floor this month. But the ascendant GOP is in no mood to cooperate. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says he�s still worried about the effect on morale, and other Republican leaders say the whole issue is a distraction from their top priority � job creation.
4. The �Continuing resolution�
A continuing resolution (known in Hill jargon as a �CR�) is a bill that�s introduced when Congress can�t agree on a full budget for the federal government.
Instead, it passes a bill to temporarily �continue� funding federal agencies at their present rates.
Congress must pass a new continuing resolution before Friday. If it doesn�t, the government will shut down � as it did in 1995 during a budget showdown between President Bill Clinton and congressional Republicans.
The sticking point is Republican demands to shrink federal spending back to 2008 levels. But a shutdown still seems unlikely; while a lot of voters want smaller government, very few seem to want no government.
Signs from the Hill indicate legislators will beat Friday�s deadline and pass a resolution good for another few weeks, at least.
5. Unemployment benefits
Another looming deadline. On Tuesday, emergency unemployment insurance � he federal checks given to the jobless � expired. If nothing is done to extend the benefits, advocates say as many as 3 million people will see their checks cut off by the end of January.
Some Republicans have voiced concerns about the high cost of these benefits. In the middle of last month, the House failed to approve a plan to extend them, with all but 11 Democrats voting for it and all but 21 Republicans voting against it.
6. Childhood nutrition
On Wednesday, House Democratic leaders plan to call a vote that could be a measure of the muscle they�ve got left. At issue: a bill that would feed schoolchildren better food.
If they can�t win on that, it could be a long month.
The bill is intended to give more poor children access to subsidized meals at school. It also would improve the quality of those meals and give more federal money to school districts that comply with higher nutrition standards.
�Kids that have food insecurity learn at a slower rate than their peers,� House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters Tuesday. �Food insecurity� is Washington-speak for �hunger.�
The bill passed the Senate unanimously. But it will face some Republican opposition in the House from members who say it will impose more costs on struggling school systems.
7. The DREAM Act
This bill is aimed at illegal immigrants who came to this country as children. If they go to college or join the military as adults, it would give them a chance to obtain legal residency.
As attitudes toward illegal immigrants have hardened, support for the bill has collapsed among Republicans and many Democrats. To them, it looks like a kind of amnesty for lawbreakers.
On Tuesday, Reid could promise only a �test vote� on the issue: he would bring the issue to the Senate floor, and take his chances. The implicit message was that Reid might lose � but lose in a way that showed Hispanic voters he was trying.
