Yes they did. I am still excited by Obama's victory. I hope that the mess he has inherited does not overwhelm his biggest achievement to date - getting people to care about the issues and then converting that into democratic participation. I look forward to a greener, more conciliatory, more humane US.

This week in parliament has been dominated by the mini-budget. I have included the media releases (below).

Check out KEVINPM. Taking over from Kevin07 this site gives everyone the chance to have ongoing input into the work of our federal government.

Regards

Penny

The Treasurer has just delivered his speech for the mini budget. The Government has had to find $3.3 billion in savings and has raised revenues by another $3.6 billion (including congestion tolls, fee rises and potential privatisations). The payroll tax cuts remain. Also announced is $850million of spending. The aim of all of this has been to maintain infrastructure spending, quarantine front line services, introduce an alternative electricity plan and maintain NSW's AAA credit rating.

There will be plenty of media attention given to the significant downsides to the budget. Today I want to draw your attention to some of the positives:

 75 days until inauguration starts Obama's website. It is the first evidence of Obama's determination to involve all who want to be involved in his administration.

The first blog says "Change.gov provides resources to better understand the transition process and the decisions being made as part of it. It also offers an opportunity to be heard about the challenges our country faces and your ideas for tackling them. The Obama Administration will reflect an essential lesson from the success of the Obama campaign: that people united around a common purpose can achieve great things

On the weekend I attended the annual Labor Party Country Conference. Held this year in Port Macquarie, it is one of the largest grassroots political conferences held in NSW.

Premier Nathan Rees made a speech that if you are interested in how Labor understands and works with it's own history and traditions this one is worth a look.You can check it out here.

The Premier also announced funding for infrastructure in the bush, broadband development, country libraries, country halls and local tourism projects.

As the clock ticks down to the US election, I find myself checking out every report, blog and you tube video to find out the latest - yes I have viewed the entire Obama video. This is the first time I have paid so much attention. Why?