#era

Swipe fees have increased steadily since the introduction of debit cards 20 years ago, when there were no swipe fees at all. Merchants can't negotiate or control them. They've tried, but they have no leverage against the big banks and issuers. So they get ignored. ↗

— Peter Welch

#ago #banks #big #cards #control

The Citizen's Petition reflects Vermont's spirit of pragmatism and across-the-board cooperation. I applaud the 'Campaign to Fix the Debt' for calling attention to one of the country's most pressing problems, our ballooning national debt, and for urging policymakers to find practical solutions. ↗

— Peter Welch

#attention #calling #campaign #citizen #cooperation

The potential for Home Star to create jobs is proven and real. In Vermont, our statewide energy efficiency utility, Efficiency Vermont, created more than 430 jobs in 2007 and 2008, generating more than $40 million in income. ↗

— Peter Welch

#created #efficiency #energy #energy efficiency #generating

Yes, it is long past time we get serious about tackling the nation's ever-growing deficits. But the average American family drawn into serious debt cannot just threaten to stiff its creditors. It must cut its spending in the future, but also take responsibility for the debt incurred in the past. ↗

— Peter Welch

#also #american #american family #average #average american

His impact would have been of transient memory and comparatively small importance, had not that impact occurred at a time and in a way to make it supply particulars from which momentous generalizations can properly be projected. ↗

— Robert Welch

#comparatively #generalizations #had #his #impact

The word democracy comes from the Greek and means, literally, government by the people. ↗

— Robert Welch

#comes #democracy #government #greek #literally

Liberals often don't see the problems, and conservatives don't see the promise, of government. ↗

— William Weld

#government #liberals #often #problems #promise

Much is forgiven anyone who relieves the desperate boredom of the working press. ↗

— William Weld

#boredom #desperate #forgiven #much #press

There are several such issues where I have departed radically from the Republican orthodoxy. ↗

— William Weld

#i #issues #orthodoxy #radically #republican

Able Danger was a top-secret military planning operation, established in '99 by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to identify cells of al-Qaida worldwide and to take out al Qaida terrorists. They identified five cells worldwide, one of them in Brooklyn. ↗

— Curt Weldon

#able danger #al #brooklyn #cells #chairman