Lets think for a second: Thinkin' Dem

Disheartening

2007-03-23T10:03:00.000-05:00

Out here in the heartland, it is really disheartening to see so many ignorant people who are zombies in the sputum of Fox News. The Iraq War, rampant inequality, christian extremism, environmental genocide, it's everywhere. There are 201 Republicans in the House. Who is voting for these people?! If they're not explicitly evil, then they're retarded. Stop voting for them! Republicans, what are you trying to do to this country?!

Rudy Giuliani, Candidate

2007-02-06T16:37:00.000-06:00

Oliver Willis was noting that many of the Regressive factions within the Republican party believe that if Rudy Giuliani becomes the Republican't nominee, that the Democrats will win the election. I couldn't disagree more. Rudy Giuliani has a hard, crunchy, traditional Republican (fiscal responsibility) center, with a Progressive coating (nice social agenda). If Rudy were to win the Republican nomination he would win by a landslide. The only voters would refuse to vote for him would be the far reaches of either side. Moderates from both sides would vote for him in droves, no matter who he's up against.

With McCain, I think it would be a fight for the election. But I think that we would ultimately prevail, because he's shown his true colors via pandering to the religious right. Best scenario I can see, would be if another Bushite Regressive like Brownback took the nomination.

A 2008 Ticket Idea

2007-01-23T17:34:00.000-06:00

I was thinking about this the other day. I've never really supported John Edwards. Ever. At all. But I thought, suppose we have an Edwards\Obama ticket. I really think that John Edwards and Barack Obama would be an unstoppable force. Traditionally, no non-southern Democrat has been elected President in fifty years. Edwards does the southern gentleman thing, and everyone else loves Barack. Then, after Edwards two terms, Barack is set up to take a run. I think it's a really powerful combination.

Hillary Clinton

2007-01-22T20:04:00.000-06:00

I don't really want to say this, but I'm going to. It hinged on whether or not Hillary was going to run. I don't think bad of Hillary at all. I think she'd perform just fine as a President. That said, we, the heart of the party, can not allow Hillary to win this primary. I can promise you this right now, Hillary Clinton cannot win the general election. It doesn't matter who the Republican nominee is. Hillary is not electable. I'm not saying this because I think Barack would do a better job. I'm saying this, because it's true. I really don't want to lose another election. Lewis Black said it best in that, the fact that we couldn't find anyone to defeat George W. Bush, is beyond belief. Not to criticize Kerry, he was always my first pick. Hillary cannot win this election. I would love to see the first woman president, I really would. But it's just not possible in this case. I'm sorry, thats just the way it is.

You Can't Stop Me

2007-01-16T21:16:00.000-06:00

The President is pretty much walking around telling Congress, "You can't stop me." It's really giving me hope. I'm hoping that he does something with this troop surge, disregarding any laws that Congress passes to stop him. Even Arlen Specter wouldn't let that fly. Maybe, just maybe, if this does happen, then Congress would realize that they have a duty to impeach. I know that Speaker Pelosi and Leader Reid are trying to play to the center, but they do have a duty to impeach.

110th Congress

2007-01-04T23:47:00.000-06:00

The first day, of the first session, of the 110th Congress has concluded. I sincerely hope, that the Democrats use these next two years very wisely, in order to preserve, and improve upon their majority in both houses.

My hopes include (but are not limited to):
Ending unchecked corporate power
Aiding the middle class
Raising the minimum wage
Impeachment
Repealing upper class tax cuts
Repealing the Patriot Act
Removing unchecked executive power
Impeachment
Repealing the suspension of habeus corpus for POW's
Designating specifically, that Iraq is unrelated to the war on terror
Making petroleum obsolete in at least 10 years
Seriously working to end global warming
Implement instant-runoff voting and vote-by-mail systems, and repeal of the electoral college
Full disarmament of all nuclear warheads
Total renunciation and withdrawal of aid to Israel and the Palestinian state until they can act civilized
Impeachment
Enlarging the House membership for a smaller representative proportion of the people
Strengthening the separation of church and state
A renunciationg of involvement in foreign executives overthrow (Leave the Middle East alone, and Central America)
Ending corporate personhood
Applying public funding of all elections
Creating a solid, sustainable program to help those adversely affected by outsourcing, while not hurting the global economy
Ensuring that social security always has monthly benefits
Impeachment

Those are the most important things I can think of at the moment. If Congress could be ambitious enough to get this all taken care of, that'd be great. Keep me informed.

Enviro-friendly President

2006-12-30T23:54:00.000-06:00

I was thinking about this. Our next President, (I mean "our" as in, the Democrats) needs to refuse to go anywhere in motorcade procession or via Air Force One or Marine One, until they run on something besides fossil fuels. I think that the President driving around in a biomass fueled car would change the entire country very quickly.

Saddam's Trial

2006-12-26T11:07:00.000-06:00

I don't like Saddam Hussein. I'm glad he's out of power. That said, this trial of his, has been a total sham. He, like all the terrorists in Guantanamo, should be tried at the Hague.

Military Expansion

2006-12-22T18:47:00.000-06:00

Bush and his cronies love to blame Clinton for everything, such as, letting the military lose some weight. The way I see it, if Bush and his cronies had performed their jobs as they should have, they wouldn't need any more troops. Oh, and just to reiterate... Iraq has nothing to do with the War on Terror. Deal.

Ahmadinejad Supporters Suffer n Elections

2006-12-18T15:32:00.000-06:00

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's supporters have supposedly suffered a blow in Iran's elections. I have no idea what that means for our country while Bush is still at the helm.

Rumsfeld is gone

2006-12-16T00:48:00.000-06:00

He's finally gone. It disgusts me that he was praised at that ceremony. I hope he realizes that he is hated by millions of people. To be honest, being retired is to good for him. He needs to be stuck in the middle of something, ripping his hair out.

Detainees Can Not Challenge Imprisonment

2006-12-14T10:07:00.000-06:00

A U.S. District Court Judge has ruled that the new law restricting detainee's right to challenge their imprisonment, removed the federal courts jurisdiction. What a place this has become. George W. Bush can detain any non-U.S. citizen in the world, call him a terrorist, and keep him forever. What the hell is wrong with people? Why aren't more people outraged about this?

UCS Protest Statement

2006-12-14T09:59:00.000-06:00

The Union of Concerned Scientists has sponsored a statement signed by some 10000 United States researchers, protesting the governments intrusion into the scientific process.

Iraqis Worse Off

2006-12-14T09:44:00.000-06:00

More than 90% of Iraqi's believe they are worse off now, than they were before the war began in 2003. Anyone surprised?

Warmest Wishes for Freedom, from the ACLU

2006-12-11T21:18:00.000-06:00

This is absolutely brilliant! I received this Seussish\The Night Before Christmas-ey poem in a holiday email from the ACLU. I saw that it was another holiday email and I almost deleted it without reading. I am so glad I did. Fantastic.

An Overdue Visit

'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the nation
Friends of Freedom knew it was a special occasion.
Lady Liberty stood taller just off the shore
Her torch shining brighter than a few weeks before

But it wasn't the flame turning her cheeks all rosy
It was thoughts of Snowe, Feingold and Nancy Pelosi
And leaders from every side of the aisle
Who would soon bring the Bill of Rights back into style.

The Amendments had all hurried out of their beds -
Which was no easy task, they were nearly in shreds -
And they rushed to the window on papery feet
As a jolly old man flew right over their street.

"Could it be!?" they inquired as the roof shook and trembled
And they crept toward the mantle, peaceably assembled,
Just as someone emerged from the chimney with flair
In a shiny red suit, with a shock of white hair

And a top hat, and pants all in red, white and blue -
"Wait a minute," the Amendments exclaimed, "Who are you?"
"Don't be frightened my children," he said, "it's no scam.
"You can't have forgotten your old Uncle Sam!"

"Holy crap!" said Free Speech. "Stop right there!" yelled Bear Arms
And Privacy cried "Who shut off the alarms?!"
The Fifth remained silent, but Uncle Sam said
"We've been having some trouble, but Freedom's not dead."

The Amendments were cautious. "It's just been so long
"We've seen Liberty lost, we've seen so much go wrong.
"The President's trying to mangle and warp us,
"The Fourth is in tatters, so's Habeas Corpus!"

The old man sat down - he had had quite a ride -
But he told them "Don't worry, the Law's on our side,
"'Cause the nation's fed up and more people are crying
"For Justice and an end to illegal spying,

"And secret abductions by the CIA,
"And laws that would take women's choices away,
"And Gitmo tribunals and secret detention,
"And other intrusions too numerous to mention - "

"Not so fast," said a grinchity voice from above
And Don Rumsfeld pushed past the Fourteenth with a shove.
He was covered in soot and he looked kind of scary.
It seemed like his Christmas had not been so merry.

The Amendments said they weren't happy to see him:
"You tried to throw all of us in the museum!
"You've done so much the Constitution forbids!"
"And I would have gone on, but for you meddling kids!"

Uncle Sam told him "Rummy, your plans just won't do,
"So we've got a brand new timetable for you!"
And as Rumsfeld retired and crept into the night
The Amendments cried out "Have a good secret flight!"

From the distance they heard him reply with a snort.
"Bye-bye, Rummy!" they answered, "we'll see you in court!"
Uncle Sam rode the chimney up out of the room
And, like Frosty, he said "I'll be back again soon."

But they heard him exclaim "Oh, and just one more thing!
"This year, when the holiday bells start to ring,
"Try to honor religion. Honest faith can't be wrong.
"It's America, can't we all just get along?

"So, on Christian," he cried, "Muslim, Hindu, and Jew!
"On Quaker! On Shaker! And Atheist too!
"On Buddhist! On Taoist! And to show we're not chickens
"We'll file a few lawsuits defending the Wiccans!

"Your belief is your right, so get out there and savor it.
"Uncle Sam's not a preacher, and he doesn't play favorites!"
So this holiday season, whatever you do,
Warmest wishes for Freedom, from the ACLU.

New Guantanamo

2006-12-10T12:31:00.000-06:00

I forgot to post the article URL.

New Guantanamo

2006-12-10T12:23:00.000-06:00

A new maximum security prison has been opened at Guantanamo Bay. Just what we needed... Am I the only person who firmly believes that all the prisoners we've taken, for being suspected terrorists, should be at the Hague, being tried by the International Criminal Court? That is the only sensible things to do. These people, terrorists or not, are not American citizens, as such, they are should be placed in the custody of the International Court of Justice.

Progress

2006-12-09T19:27:00.000-06:00

The battle between the opposing political factions is one for all time. The elections in 2008 will be a nervous time for us. I know that the Left will win the battle over the hearts and minds of Americans, as I demostrate clearly in this GoogleFight.

The War on Christmas

2006-12-09T16:41:00.000-06:00

I've struggled before in justifying my observance of Christmas to believers. I really enjoyed this article on AlterNet. The tagline is: "Let's face it: Christmas is not the exclusive property of those who think God came to earth 2000 years ago as a baby in Bethlehem." Myself, I am a secular humanist. I explored a handful of different faiths before I realized the ridiculousness of it all. Here's that article.

Darfur

2006-12-09T02:24:00.000-06:00

I'm going to do some research on Darfur, and throw something out here in the next few days.

Israel

2006-12-09T02:18:00.000-06:00

We should cut off Israel, completely. No contact whatsoever. This is all totally make-believe in my head, but this is what I think we should do. Send Condi. She goes in and says, "Until you can be civil, and mostly peaceful, we want nothing to do with you." I guarantee, they would straighten up.

Baker Asks Congress: Adopt ISG Report En Masse

2006-12-09T02:12:00.000-06:00

... and the White House chuckled to themselves. James Baker, former Secretary of State asked Congress and the White House each, to adopt the all the resolutions of the Iraq Study Group Report. Or at least, the majority of them. The President is debating several different ideas. I have this huge feeling of deja vu right now. Here is the story.

Geneva Conventions

2006-12-09T00:30:00.000-06:00

I feel ashamed sometimes, that my country, America, wants to restrict the Geneva Conventions. They might prevent us from being mean enough to prisoners. Talk about evil... That's just wrong. It's despicable. It's revolting.

Iraq, Iraq, Iraq, Iraq...

2006-12-08T15:51:00.000-06:00

All this talk about Iraq. Endless chatter. What are we going to do? The "way forward." When we finally leave Iraq, we'll be saying, "we should have pulled out years ago in 2006 when the study groups report came out."

Barack

2006-12-07T18:28:00.000-06:00

Is Barack really electable? I know they say Hilary isn't, and I really hope they're right. This election is far too important to be risking it, on a social experiment. That is, testing to see if we would elect a woman. This is not the time to be taking that risk, what with the neo-cons waiting in the wings like vultures.

Populism

2006-12-05T22:00:00.000-06:00

This is the definition of populism from Wikipedia.

Populism is a political philosophy or rhetorical style that holds that the common person's interests are oppressed or hindered by the elite in society, and that the instruments of the state need to be grasped from this self-serving elite and used for the benefit and advancement of the people as a whole.

How can anyone not be a populist? Wouldn't that feel inherently wrong? Saying to oneself, I'm not a populist, therefore, I don't feel that the middle and lower class should advance?

Just A Fleeting Thought

2006-12-05T13:30:00.000-06:00

We should have instant-runoff voting. As much as I would vote for Democrats, it would be nice to have some third parties.

News

2006-05-25T14:48:00.000-05:00

The Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill is very nearly ready to move to the house to be slashed apart.

Dennis Hastert is "under investigation" by the Justice Department in relation to Jack Abramoff, but he is not a "target" or a "subject" of the investigation. I take that to mean... he's a person of interest. Link

Patrick Fitzgerald indicated in court documents filed in the Libby case that the VP would be a witness. Fitzgerald is not saying whether he intends to call Cheney. Link

A bill sent to the White House would prevent zealous morons like Fred Phelps from protesting at national cemeteries. Link

Here's a great bit from Molly Ivins regarding impeachment. Link

"Desperate Republicans" Amazing...

Carville on CNN

2006-05-22T21:01:00.000-05:00

James Carville just said something great on CNN. He was quoting someone, but I don't recall who. He said, "The President doing something about Iran's nuclear weapons, is scarier than Iran having nuclear weapons."

News

2006-05-22T16:39:00.000-05:00

With this theft of so many veterans information, I can't in good concience, blame the administration. However, the rocket scientist who took his work home with him, what a moron. If you are going to take your work home with you, don't take vital information.

In other news, Madeleine Albright is worried, because W governs with his faith. Albright says Bush has made U.S. foreign policy "more rigid and more difficult for other countries to accept." - CNN

Today's news

2006-05-20T00:19:00.000-05:00

Those two posts, "Today's Events," refer to the prior days events. I screwed that all up. Ok, lets see whats happening...

The full senate convened at 1, to further go over the Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill. Amendment 4064 passed making English the true national language of the United States (insert applause here). The Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act passed. All it really does is increase the penalties on broadcasters for violating the "prohibitions against transmission of obscene, indecent, and profane language." Nothing happened on the house floor that'll make you go "wow!" The House Committee of International Relations held a hear on the prospects for peace in Darfur.

In other news, McCain was "booed and heckled" during his comencement speech at liberal New School in New York. Craziness in Guantanamo Bay.

The Case For Impeachment

2006-05-18T23:29:00.000-05:00

Ah, I love that word. Say it with me, impeachment. Doesn't it make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. It's great.

The link above will take you to an essay titled, "The Case For Impeachment," by Lewis H. Lapham for Harper's. It's pretty good, and I thought I'd throw it out here.

Today's events

2006-05-18T14:35:00.000-05:00

Most importantly, today, are the nomination hearings for General Michael Hayden to be Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He said, "the American intelligence business has too much become the football in American political discourse." Anyways...

Today the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs debated S.2784. A bill that would "award a congressional gold medal to Tenzin Gyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, in recognition of his many enduring and outstanding contributions to peace, non-violence, human rights, and religious understanding."

Senator Specter and (this Lonely Kansas Dem's Presidential favorite) Senator Feingold, got into it over a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. The committee is sending the resolution to the Senate floor for a vote on June 5. Feingold, professing his opposition to the resolution, and his affinity for the Constitution, was cut down by Senator Specter, who didn't "need to be lectured by you. You are no more a protector of the Constitution than am I." Senator Feingold walked out. Feingold rocks.

Today's events

2006-05-17T14:12:00.000-05:00

Oh, man. I don't post near enough. So, what's going on these days? The media hasn't been reporting anything particulary huge over the last few weeks, and yet several propositions could irrefutable harm the American ideal, as it stands today. Freakin' Republican'ts.

Sensenbrenner is proposing legislation that would require ISP's to store information about our online activities to aid law enforcement in conducting their investigations. James Sensenbrenner in a Repub from Wisconsin's fifth, by the way. Invading everyone's privacy is not the correct way to fight online predators. A solid monitoring system, and enforced registration are among the things that are needed.

A whole lot of bickering regarding the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act has been taking place. I was reading the text of the legislation on the Library of Congress site. The bill still contains a guest-worker program, and a earned citizenship section. All good things.

The bill also contains backlog reduction provisions.

"Our pro-growth policies stand in stark contrast to those in Washington who believe you grow your economy by raising taxes and centralizing power," W said today. That sounds good. But the fact is, his tax cuts are for the rich, and he's done more centralizing of power than any other modern President.

Rove

2006-04-27T15:00:00.000-05:00

Rove is the 'subject' of an investigation but not the 'target' of an investigation. I know we're all hoping that Fitzgerald nails him with something. I think everyone knows he isn't squeaky clean

Top Dem on House Ethics Board Steps Down

2006-04-21T15:50:00.000-05:00

Great, a scandal on the blue side. That's going to hurt us. I can understand Republicans doing illegal things, but the Dem's are supposed to know the different between right and wrong. Of course, I'm jumping to conclusions. It could be (and hopefully is) blown totally out of proportion

Enemy Combatant

2006-04-12T14:47:00.000-05:00

Oh, this is beyond unbelievable.

Martin Mubanga can date the low point of his 33 months at Guantánamo Bay: 15 June, 2004. That sweltering Cuban morning, he was taken from the cellblock he was sharing with speakers of the Afghan language Pashto, none of whom knew English, for what had become his almost daily interrogation. As usual, his hands were shackled in rigid, metal cuffs attached to a body belt; another set of chains ran to his ankles, severely restricting his ability to move his legs. Trussed in this fashion, he was lying on the interrogation booth floor.

This is an abomination. You cannot keep someone indefinitely without charging them. United States citizen or not, it's just wrong.

Iraq, 3 years In

2006-03-20T15:09:00.000-06:00

Well, here we are, three years into it, and nothing has changed. Gas prices have gone up, insurgents in Iraq are killing soldiers (didn't we go to Iraq to stop the terrorists from killing the people of the United States?), and Iraq is still under the control of a cruel, evil dictator.

Fred Phelps Is A Worthless Pile

2006-03-07T20:08:00.000-06:00

The man is protesting at soldier funerals, not just a the funerals of gay soldiers, but at all soldiers, because they fought for a country that "supports" homosexuality. That is wrong. If I believed in hell, I'd say Fred Phelps is going there. Can anyone let him know that he's a freakin' moron, and to go live out the rest of his life in peace, and solitude. Away from normal people...

The Patriot Guard is the group of motorcyclists that are protecting the grieving families from Phelps. Support them please.

Condition of the Federation Report

2006-02-14T08:14:00.000-06:00

UPDATE: Perfect companion tool for the plan
Every vote in Congress from 1991 to the present

We've been trained to sit back and watch. It's all about who wants to run. It's never about whom we would like to run. Why's that? We are inundated with narrowly defined debates and hysterical reactions from the press over lying authors while those endowed with the public's trust conveniently get no coverage. We need to be the primary motivators, not just merely react to disasters.
Anyhow, here's a plan I have in mind:
1) Come up with a list of concerns, short term, long term, and fundamentally necessary.
2) Organize them into personal, city, county, state, and national levels.
3) Without coloring anyone red, blue, green, etc. see where people stand on these issues:
We should be concerned with:
Government - house members, senators, governors, mayors
Legal - judges, attorney generals, lawyers
Media - activists, journalists, publications, organizations, think tanks
Public - educators, police, economists, social sevice leaders
4) Seek out political candidates, outspoken leaders, potential candidates and introduce them to the public
5) Promoting this and other blogs

Illegal Wiretaps Pt. 2

2006-02-10T12:57:00.000-06:00

I'm not doing to well. I also forgot to mention that Arlen Specter said that the President violated that law with the wiretaps. For Arlen to say that, it means something.

Illegal Wiretaps

2006-02-10T12:55:00.000-06:00

Bah, I totally forgot... Scooter Libby told a grand jury that he was authorized by his superiors to release classified information. As Cheney's chief of staff, how many superiors does he actually have?

Michael Brown

2006-02-10T12:49:00.000-06:00

The administration hung Mike Brown out to dry. Made him a scapegoat for the Katrina response. Now he's repaying the favor.

Crooks and Liars has the video.

SotU Strangeness

2006-02-07T15:45:00.000-06:00

This is just weird. Cindy Sheehan was ejected, ok? ok. One of the President's welcomed guests, who sat with the First Lady in the special people box, was the Saudi Ambassador to the U.S., Turki al-Faisal. He is widely believed to be a supported of al Qaeda, and has admitted to meeting with bin Laden and his lieutenants on at least five occasions. He spent a great deal of his career as the head of the Saudi Intelligence Services, and his role as the head of said agency came to an abrupt end, just 10 days before September 11th.

Interesting, eh?

Bush = Terrorist (Yes, We All Already Know That)

2006-02-07T14:51:00.000-06:00

Harry Belafonte:

I call President Bush a terrorist. I call those around him terrorists, as well: Condoleeza Rice, Rumsfeld, Gonzales in the Justice Department, and certainly Cheney. I think all of these men sit -- and women -- sit in the midst of an enormous conspiracy that has been unraveling America for the last six years. It is tragic that the dubious way in which this president acquired power should have begun to unravel the Constitution and the peoples of this country.

Nice.

Got A Grievance With The Insurance Industry?

2006-02-07T14:47:00.000-06:00

Michael Moore is looking for you. And he wants you to be in his new movie.

Some Rebuttal Trivia Bits From AlterNet

2006-02-07T14:41:00.000-06:00

I don't post enough...

McCain Rips Obama

2006-02-07T09:35:00.000-06:00

McCain is not happy.

MisState of the DisUnion: Part V

2006-01-31T21:51:00.000-06:00

AlterNet has the full text of the speech.

MisState of the DisUnion: Part IV

2006-01-31T21:49:00.000-06:00

In recent years, America has become a more hopeful Nation. Violent crime rates have fallen to their lowest levels since the 1970s. Welfare cases have dropped by more than half over the past decade. Drug use among youth is down 19 percent since 2001. There are fewer abortions in America than at any point in the last three decades, and the number of children born to teenage mothers has been falling for a dozen years in a row.

All those things he claimed as his own, don't really belong to him. They aren't his victories. Those belong to Bill Clinton.

MisState of the DisUnion: Part III

2006-01-31T21:36:00.000-06:00

Most of the critics seem to be pointing out that, thought the nation isn't satisfied with W's plans, the Dem's don't have a good alternative. All of us in the blogosphere have known that for awhile now. Gov. Kaine's speech still didn't bring any specifics, but hopefully we are at a turning point shown by the strength of the Democratic response.

MisState of the DisUnion: Part II

2006-01-31T21:16:00.000-06:00

Most of the things he said about terrorism, I apply to his administration, and agree.

Secondly, the biggest opponent of civil rights since Strom Thurmond, invoking the name of Coretta Scott King, is just wrong.

MisState of the DisUnion: Part I

2006-01-31T16:25:00.000-06:00

So, the President is going to call on Congress to break the nations dependence on petroleum. This should be frickin' hilarious.

DailyKos: NSA Surveillance: How It Puts You in Danger

2006-01-31T13:53:00.000-06:00

SusanG has figured out how to frame the wiretap issue for those citizens who don't think it's that big of a deal.

Senators Who Voted To Invoke Cloture

2006-01-31T11:17:00.000-06:00

For those of you who don't know, to invoke cloture means to call a vote to override a filibuster. Calling for filibuster means that the motion or nomiation still needs to be discussed. Anyone can do this. Cloture requires 60 votes and means that, no more discussions can be made.

Following are the Democratic Senators who voted to end debate on Alito, and kill the filibuster on Jan. 30th:
Senator Daniel K. Akaka of Hawaii
Senator Max Baucus of Montana
Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico
Senator Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia
Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington
Senator Thomas R. Carper of Delaware
Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota
Senator Byron L. Dorgan of North Dakota
Senator Daniel K. Inouye of Hawaii
Senator Tim Johnson of South Dakota
Senator Herb Kohl of Wisconsin
Senator Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana
Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut
Senator Blanche L. Lincoln of Arkansas
Senator Bill Nelson of Florida
Senator Benjamin E. Nelson of Nebraska
Senator Mark L. Pryor of Arkansas
Senator John D. Rockefeller, IV of West Virginia
Senator Ken Salazar of Colorado

That's 19 Senators. 72 Senators voted to invoke cloture. Had this group of 19 done the right thing, and supported the filibuster, there would have only been 53 votes for cloture and Alito never would have gotten to a vote. For today's vote: Senators Byrd, Conrad, Johnson, and Nelson (Nebraska) voted to confirm Alito. Had these four Senators voted for cloture and the rest voted against, that still would have enough for a filibuster.

So in conclusion, 15 Senators felt that Samuel Alito should not be confirmed, but they did not vote for a filibuster. Amazing...

Alito

2006-01-31T10:35:00.000-06:00

Well, the filibuster failed and Alito is confirmed, to lifetime appointment on the Supreme Court of the Unites States, turning back the clock, undoing the Bill of Rights, expanding already unchecked Presidential power, and reversal of many pro-choice victories. Coming soon... list of Dems that voted to invoke cloture (ending the filibuster)

Just A Thought

2006-01-27T10:26:00.000-06:00

I Stumbled onto a page that had Ben Franklin's quotation that was used the other day at the wiretap protests. I found this one, and it seemed to fit todays current events as well.

"The evils of tyranny are rarely seen but by him who resists it." – John Hay

It makes me think of the RINOs, and the other people of the nation who don't really pay attention to current events, or don't bother with it because they don't understand it. It leaves us Blues on the shallow side on voting day, and yet we all know that there aren't enough evil, and wrongminded people in this country, to support the Republicans, if everyone really knew what they were all about.

Alito

2006-01-26T15:38:00.000-06:00

Good ole' John "The Senator From Massachusetts" Kerry called for a filibuster. w00t

Google

2006-01-19T23:26:00.000-06:00

Go Google! Tell W to stick his subpeona where the sun don't shine.

Response from Senator Roberts on Alito

2006-01-19T14:33:00.000-06:00

Dear #####

Thank you for contacting me regarding the vacancy on the Supreme Court of the United States. I appreciate knowing of your views on this matter.

President Bush nominated Judge Samuel Alito to fill the vacancy created by the planned retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, soon after Harriet Miers withdrew her name from consideration for the Supreme Court. Judge Alito's background and judicial experience is both extensive and impressive. The Senate Judiciary Committee is currently holding hearings to consider Judge Alito's nomination and review his record. As a United States Senator, I take my constitutional responsibility seriously and look forward to learning more about Judge Alito's qualifications through these hearings.

The appointment of a Supreme Court nomination is a significant event due to the infrequent nature of openings and the lifetime tenure of the position. In fact, previous to the appointment of Chief Justice John Roberts, the Supreme Court justices had served together for eleven years, the longest period in history. I understand that changes to the highest judicial bench in the land will have a profound and long term impact on our nation.

As we continue to move forward in the confirmation process, I am hopeful we can proceed in a manner that is fair, dignified, and respectful of Judge Alito. More harm can be done if we neglect our responsibility to the people we represent and our nation by becoming embroiled in a partisan political battle. I look forward to ensuring a full Supreme Court judicial bench as quickly as possible. Consistent with my record on other judicial nominations, I support an up-or-down vote on Judge Alito's nomination and would question the motives of blocking consideration of his nomination.

Again, thank you for making me aware of your opinions. Please keep in touch.

With every best wish,

Sincerely,

Pat Robert

What a great line

2006-01-19T12:49:00.000-06:00

Minority Leader Reid said at a news conference that Santorum and DeLay being in charge of correcting the corruption in Congress is "like putting Brownie back in charge of FEMA."

Hillary

2006-01-18T00:36:00.000-06:00

Hopefully Hillary ruined her 2008 chances with the "plantation" remarks. We don't need a chaotic primary.

Well, well... Bob Ney

2006-01-16T11:01:00.000-06:00

stepped down from the chairmanship of the House Administration Committee because he was implicated in the Abramoff scandal. Damn Republicans. What's really worrying me, is that as the Minority Whip is blasting the "culture of corruption," I'm terrified that a Democrat fell into the fold too. In the media, one corrupt Dem would be worth 20 corrupt Republican'ts.

Douglas Massey Interview

2006-01-12T11:19:00.000-06:00

Very good interview and Mr. Massey has some very good ideas (in my humble opinion) on the much covered topic: what's wrong with liberals?

In the past, liberals have framed issues like health and education as issues of social welfare, and social justice, where you need to take resources from the economy and divert them into helping people. But the argument I make in my book is that in an economy where information and knowledge are the basis of the creation of wealth, people are your ultimate resource. So when you spend money on the health and the welfare and the education of your population, it's not a dead-loss transfer from growth to consumption, rather it's an investment in economic growth. So rather than abandoning the whole rhetoric of the market, let's accept the fact that markets are what we're building in the United States and we need to invest in the participants of those market to make them work better. We're not feeling sorry for anybody or offering handouts, we're investing in our own future.

Very nice. I'll be trying to post more than I have the last three weeks.

Alito

2006-01-10T00:35:00.000-06:00

Only one thing to talk about today, the nominee hearings. One Senator, I don't remember who, said something along these lines, "When you have previously made your opinions known publicly on an issue, you don't have the right to invoke the Ginsberg rule, because you have already publicly announced your views." An excellent point, but I don't think it will fly. All the Dems asked him to make his views known, and all the Republican'ts told him to stick to the rule and not say anything.

So far, it looks like this is going to go just like the Roberts hearing. The nominee isn't going to answer any question, and will sail through being voted for by many on our side of the aisle as well. Not even attempting to resist his nomination. And it's a damn shame, because this will upset the balance of the court, and big business will be sticking it to the little guy for another decade until the next round of Supreme Court nominations.

Coal Mining

2006-01-03T22:19:00.000-06:00

I don't have much to say, as I'm really very tired. Coal Mining is big business. Who's the party of big business?

Return

2006-01-02T07:14:00.000-06:00

Sorry I've been missing so much lately over the holidays. There hasn't been too much going on in that world. The houses closed for their holiday break, the President doesn't do much anyway, so just not much going on. I saw somewhere the Abramoff was close to a plea deal.

It's All Starting To Fall Into Place

2005-12-28T09:26:00.000-06:00

The race to 2006 is heating up. Charles Shumer (D-NY) is leading the charge in retaking the Senate. Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Missouri, Montana, Tennessee, and Arizona are all on his list.

Happy Holidays

2005-12-24T12:10:00.000-06:00

Like I'm really going to spend all day hunting things to put up here. Like any of you will be reading it today. The FBI is monitoring radiation levels at mosques in the States. That's illegal too. Thats all the news. Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Yule, whatever your celebrating, if your celebrating anything, Happy Holidays!

Daschle Denies Wiretap Discussion

2005-12-23T12:44:00.000-06:00

Our buddy Tom, the former Senate Majority Leader, said that wiretaps on American citizens was never discussed when Congress gave the President authority to go to war on al Qaeda.

As Senate majority leader at the time, I helped negotiate that law with the White House counsel's office over two harried days. I can state categorically that the subject of warrantless wiretaps of American citizens never came up. I did not and never would have supported giving authority to the president for such wiretaps. I am also confident that the 98 senators who voted in favor of authorization of force against al Qaeda did not believe that they were also voting for warrantless domestic surveillance.

It was all in an op-ed piece in the Washington Post today.

Bad Alito! BAD

2005-12-23T08:41:00.000-06:00

It just came across the AP that nominee Alito said in a 1985 court document that Roe v. Wade should be overturned.

FISA Court Judge

2005-12-22T19:18:00.000-06:00

I totally forgot to mention that U.S. District Judge James Robertson quit in protest of W's illegal surveillance conducted by the NSA. Judge Robertson is one of the eleven members of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. The President does not have limitless power. He broke the law. He must be impeached.

Breaking News: PATRIOT Act Extension

2005-12-22T19:12:00.000-06:00

Just saw it on CNN. The Senate approved the House's one month extension of the PATRIOT Act and sent it to the President. Hey, it's better than a four-year extension.

More PATRIOT Act

2005-12-22T19:04:00.000-06:00

The unAmerican PATRIOT Act. The House rejected the Senate's six-month extension but approved a one-month extension. The PATRIOT Act is the legacy of the administration and was meant to help law enforcement protect the American public from the 'terr-ists.' As long as our liberties and privacy are restricted by the PATRIOT Act, the terrorists are winning. There is such a thing called the progress, and society is always leaning forward. We progress, and move forward, so that the progressive and controversial ideas of the past, are our cornerstones. The PATRIOT Act is a step backwards. In order for society to move forwards, we must move past the PATRIOT Act. Giving law enforcement the proper tools they need is an acceptable plan, as long as it does not infringe on the American public's rights.

PATRIOT Act Compromise

2005-12-22T14:54:00.000-06:00

I've been slacking and have neglected to post regarding the temporary renewal of the PATRIOT Act provisions that were going to expire at the end of the month. I'm not sure why the Dems gave in to this compromise. Internal dissent perhaps. I wish they'd all get their acts together and get a unified message. More soon...

Totally Insane People

2005-12-22T09:37:00.000-06:00

Do you think these people know they are crazy? It could be that they try to be, and know that they are, crazy. Or maybe, they think they are sane, and everyone who disagree's with them is crazy. I'm better on the latter.

This crazy Christmas card, sent out by the Dean o' Gun Rights (proclaimed so by the NY Times and the Washington Post), John Michael Snyder, public affairs director of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. Here's the story, here's the card. Hat tip to Oliver Willis.

The Again Saved ANWR

2005-12-21T15:12:00.000-06:00

Thought I would put this up. It's an image I found on the ANWR site. This photo was taken in the 1002 area of the refuge, the area that is desired for drilling. Lets never allow Stevens and the rest to ever bring big oil into our wildlife areas.

No Drilling in ANWR

2005-12-21T14:09:00.000-06:00

Despite the malicious tactic of Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge drilling plan failed. The senator tacked the provision, that would have open the refuge, onto a must-pass defense spending bill. The provision was removed under threat of filibuster.

The vote was a stinging defeat for Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, who for years has waged an intense fight to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He had thought this time he would finally get his wish.

Good. I'm wondering why the Alaskans keep re-electing this guy Stevens. He was appointed in 1968 and has won every election since 1970.

Trouble For DeLay

2005-12-21T13:40:00.000-06:00

Jack Abramoff is said to be discussing a deal with prosecutors. Abramoff is offering "testimony against former political and business associates," in exchange for a shorter sentence. It's always good to know who the bigger fish are. Let's not forget that the Supreme Court has accepted the case regarding the Hammer's Republican't friendly redistricting map. Tom DeLay is a prime example of abuse of power. You notice I didn't say, "Republican abuse of power." Dem's can abuse too, but contrary to what the Republican'ts always say, the Dems are the people of high moral fiber.

Freedom of Information Act Wiretap Request

2005-12-21T11:15:00.000-06:00

Sign the Freedom of Information Act request from the DNC for documents regarding W's illegal wiretaps. Don't let W get away with his illegal wiretaps.

Report Opposing Confirmation of Samuel A. Alito Jr.

2005-12-20T13:38:00.000-06:00

American's United has a report on nominee Alito:

Americans United opposes the nomination of Judge Alito to fill Justice O’Connor’s seat on the Supreme Court because of the substantial risk that he would abandon the sensitive approach to church-state issues that has been the defining feature of Justice O’Connor’s Establishment Clause jurisprudence, and that he would instead join Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Anthony Kennedy, and, presumably, Chief Justice John Roberts (who has not yet ruled in a church-state case since his elevation to the Supreme Court) in revamping Establishment Clause law in ways that would weaken or dismantle the constitutional wall separating church and state.

There is much at stake for the future of religious liberty as a result of Justice O’Connor’s retirement and Judge Alito’s nomination to take her place on the Supreme Court. Because Judge Alito has not extended the same protections to all Americans that he has granted to politically powerful religious majorities, the Senate should decline to confirm his appointment as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The fact of the matter is, that the separation of church and state is already weakly enforced. The religious right would have you beleive that the government is pushing God out of our lives. The truth is that the government has repeatedly push Christian beliefs on us, though many of us are not Christian. Nominee Alito, in conjunction with the associate justices already on the court, would severely unbalance what religious freedom we do have.

Poorly Designed Standards Stricken from PA Curriculum

2005-12-20T11:12:00.000-06:00

A Federal Judge has ruled that Intelligent Design cannot be mentioned in Biology classes in Pennsylvania.

We find that the secular purposes claimed by the Board amount to a pretext for the Board's real purpose, which was to promote religion in the public school classroom," U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III wrote in his 139-page opinion.

The War on Chanukah

2005-12-20T10:48:00.000-06:00

From The Reality-Based Community:

In the midst of the war in Iraq, the Katrina catastrophe, the staggering deficit, the climate change talks, the torture scandal, the Plamegate scandal, the Abramoff scandal, the Delaygate scandal, and the (fill in blank) scandal, the House of Representatives has decided that its first priority is to pass a resolution defending the symbols of Christmas.

It's about time to call the Republican Party's staged hissy-fit over Christmas for what it is: thinly-disguised anti-Semitism. Such a thesis is at least far more plausible than the original assertion that there is a War on Christmas.

Is that going overboard? Well, several Representatives asked the House leadership to amend the resolution to protect the symbols of Chanukah as well, and it refused. That means that the leadership explicitly decided to protect Christmas and not Chanukah. What else could that be but anti-semitism?

How wrong and evil is that.

Countdown to 2008

2005-12-20T10:44:00.000-06:00

Free web clocks as well as a keychain clock you can purchase. Very cool.

I Must Concur...

2005-12-19T23:13:00.000-06:00

...that after checking the pulse of the blogosphere, and seeing others opinions, that impeachment is the only right course of action. And impeach we must. I did some research on impeachment, because last time the President was impeached... I wasn't paying attention yet. Anyways, this is from Wikipedia:

Procedurally, it is a two-step process. The House of Representatives must first pass "articles of impeachment" by a simple majority. The articles of impeachment constitute the formal allegations. Upon their passage, the defendant has been "impeached."

Next, the Senate tries the accused. In the case of the impeachment of a President, the Chief Justice of the United States presides over the proceedings. Otherwise, the Vice President, in his capacity of President of the Senate, or the President pro tempore of the Senate presides. This would include the impeachment of the Vice President him- or herself. In order to convict the accused, a two-thirds majority of the Senators present is required.

Following conviction, the Senate may vote to punish the individual only by removing him from office, or by barring him from holding future office, or both. Alternatively, it may impose no punishment.

It remains to be seen whether lying to the American people about the Iraq intel is an impeachable offense. Either way, articles of impeachment will not be written until after next November when the Dems get control of the House.

Excerpt from W's Last Press Conference

2005-12-19T21:54:00.000-06:00

This is an awesome responsibility, to make decisions on behalf of the American people. And I understand that. And we'll continue to work with the Congress, as well as people within our own administration, to constantly monitor a program such as the one I described to you, to make sure that we're protecting the civil liberties of the United States.

When has the President ever given a damn about civil liberties?

Good ole' Feingold

2005-12-19T21:49:00.000-06:00

I really like this guy. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) rebuking Gozales' talking points.

This is just an outrageous power grab.Nobody, nobody, thought when we passed a resolution to invade Afghanistan and to fight the war on terror, including myself who voted for it, thought that this was an authorization to allow a wiretapping against the law of the United States.
There's two ways you can do this kind of wiretapping under our law. One is through the criminal code, Title III; the other is through the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. That's it. That's the only way you can do it. You can't make up a law and deriving it from the Afghanistan resolution. The president has, I think, made up a law that we never passed.

From Crooks and Liars.

Illegal Wiretap Discussion from Democracy Now!

2005-12-19T21:38:00.000-06:00

This is the transcript of a discussion with Martin Garbus, named one of the best trial lawyers in the country by Time; James Bamford, an investigative journalist who wrote the first ever book about the NSA; and Christopher Pyle, Professor of Politics at Mt. Holyoke. He was a consultant for three congressional committees and worked to end the military surveillance of civilian politics. Amy Goodman is the interviewer.

AMY GOODMAN: So, your response when you heard about what the National Security Agency has been authorized to do by the President?
CHRISTOPHER PYLE: Not terribly surprised, but the one piece of it that amazes me is that the President admitted that he personally ordered the National Security Agency to violate a federal statute. Now, he has no Constitutional authority to do that. The Constitution says he must take care that all laws be faithfully executed, not just the ones he likes. The statute says it's, as you said at the beginning of the program, that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is the exclusive law governing these international intercepts, and he violated it anyway. And the law also says that any person who violates that law is guilty of a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison. By the plain meaning of the law, the President is a criminal.

AMY GOODMAN: Martin Garbus, you say this is an impeachable offense.

MARTIN GARBUS: Yes, I agree that it is a crime, that it is an impeachable offense. The question is: What will happen? The mere fact that it’s impeachable doesn't necessarily mean that the Supreme Court will find that, and it doesn't mean that he will necessarily be impeached. He should be impeached, but he is claiming, for the first time, that he has the authority to do this, even though FISA is there, because he has relied on counsel. He has relied on John Yoo. He has relied previously on Ashcroft, and he’s now relying on Gonzales. And all of these people are telling him that it's legal. All these people are telling him that the President's powers can be expanded, even though FISA is there. And the President has come up with an excuse, which I don’t see how anybody can buy. In FISA, you can get a warrant in five minutes. You just go before the FISA court and you get your warrant, and that's all there is to it. There’s no argument --

This is a very, very good interview. It brought to light the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act for me. I didn't know what was stated in the Act, and the White House has been claiming that they relied on the Article II, Section II of the Constitution, but FISA clearly states that it is the exclusive means by which to do this. So it's clear that the President broke the law.

Don't Criticize During War-Time, It's Baaaad

2005-12-19T19:18:00.000-06:00

Someone just said on CNN that the person who leaked the information about the illegal wiretaps authorized by W, is no better than a terrorist. Because they leaked it in a time of war. That's bull. Being in war doesn't mean anything. We wouldn't even BE in war if the President hadn't lied to begin with. If it were really bad to criticize during war time then, knowing W, we would be at war all the time. Because he is a warmonger, and he has no issues with crushing the dissent.

I Just Love Watching the Would-Be Legacy of W Go Down the Toilet

2005-12-19T10:39:00.000-06:00

The expiring provisions of the Patriot act, were not renewed on Friday as planned by the neocons. Senators of both parties argued that the act infringed on civil rights. A bipartisan group of Senators wanted to craft a three month extension until a permanent solution could be found, this failed. w00t! 60 votes were needed to override the filibuster and invoke cloture. Only 52 voted in favor of cloture. W said he would veto a three month extension anyway.

And of course, we've heard all about the secret wiretaps that W authorized after September 11th. Most think they warrant an investigation. As W's skeletons are emerging from the closet, I'm beginning to feel that if he had any sense at all, he would resign, eventually, before the end of the term. Not that it matters, then we'd be stuck with Cheney. And that guy just radiates evil.

All around crazy person, Sen. John Kyl of Arizona said, "You either vote yes to reauthorize or no not to reauthorize -- there is no middle ground," he babbled. With regards to W's veto threat, Kyl spewed, "If you voted against cloture you are voting to allow the Patriot Act to expire.". You're right John, for once. We're letting it expire.

That's All Folks

2005-12-19T00:13:00.000-06:00

I'm too tired and the President is to moronic for me to continue. So, thats all for tonight. Feel free to throw me some hate mail you Republican'ts out there.

2005-12-18T23:54:00.000-06:00

Open Thread

2005-12-17T11:15:00.000-06:00

I've got lots to do today so I don't have time to rummage the news. Talk about whatever you'd like here.

Additional Team Members

2005-12-17T00:34:00.000-06:00

This thinking Dem is looking for additional bloggers to join the team to have more posts here. Anyone can toss me an email and we'll see what happens.

Left-Minded Posters

2005-12-16T06:52:00.000-06:00

Lots of great posters here. Available copyright free and in multiple sizes. Spread the word.

Torture Ban

2005-12-15T14:07:00.000-06:00

W agreed to McCain's anti-torture amendment. I'd never have imagined that a large enough percentage of the American people were oblivious enough to elect someone who thinks torture is ok.

More As Promised

2005-12-15T11:00:00.000-06:00

Anyways, the damn Patriot Act. 16 provisions will expire at the end of the year. It passed in the House already and is moving to the Senate. A bipartisan group of nine Senators are banding together to gain support for a mere three month renewal of said provisions. During that time, they would craft a new bill that does not infringe on civil rights as much as the existing Patriot Act does. Russ Feingold, my favorite, is also looking for support. He holds the title as sole nay sayer for the original Patriot Act.

Merely sunsetting bad law is not adequate," Feingold said. "We need to make substantive changes to the law, and without those changes I am confident there will be strong, bipartisan opposition here in the Senate."

Stop The Renewal of the PATRIOT Act!

2005-12-15T08:52:00.000-06:00

Legislation that would renew certain provisions of the Patriot Act, that are set to expire at the end of the year, has passed in the House 251-174. A fierce battle is expected in the Senate.

Call your senators TODAY and tell them to "Stop the Patriot Act!" Find your Senators here. More soon.

My Slow Conversion to a Reidian

2005-12-15T00:12:00.000-06:00

At first I didn't care for Harry Reid at all. After the State of the Union address, he and Nancy had their rebuttal, and it was obvious they were reading from a teleprompter. It seemed fake. A few months ago, Harry started getting pissed. Then there was the call for a closed senate session, very cool. This (from Crooks and Liars) is an interview with our friend Harry, about the Secretary of State.