Guest Blogged by Steven D of Booman Tribune
I don’t mean to be rude, but what the hell is going on?
No impeachment proceedings, despite the Kucinich Impeachment Articles languishing in the House? A refusal to make the Republican Senators filibuster the Webb amendment that would have required a mandatory year’s rest between deployments to Iraq or Afghanistan (which wasn’t even an antiwar bill, but one crafted specifically to support the troops)? Twenty two Democratic Senators voting to condemn Moveon.org for exercising their right to free speech? No strategy for ending this war other than a vain hope to “peel away” a few “moderate” Republicans? Mealy-mouthed explanations for why nothing gets done?
I’d like to support the Democratic leadership in the Senate and the House, I really would, but so far I see nothing that I can, in all honesty, point to as a significant action by our leadership in support of a progressive agenda…
Indeed, I see the tacit acquiescence by Democrats in the suppression of voices of dissent. For example, we watched the other day as a nonviolent black peace activist (Rev. Yearwood) was brutalized by Capitol Hill Police and arrested (and other peace activists arrested with him) merely for trying to attend an open hearing on General Petraeus’s testimony, without any cause or justification. I find it hard to believe that the Dem leadership could not have done something to prevent that abuse of law enforcement.
We have the spectacle of House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer calling out Rep. Moran and demanding he apologize for merely stating, in an interview granted to a the Jewish publication Tikkun Magazine, that AIPAC has far to much influence and power over Democratic Congressional members, influence it exercises through raw intimidation.
We have a line item in a supplemental defense appropriations bill in the House removed back in April of this year because it demanded that the President fulfill his constitutional duty and seek authorization from Congress before attacking Iran unilaterally.
We have rollover after rollover by our Democratic Leaders in the House and Senate on restoring Habeas Corpus, amending the FISA law to make wireless surveillance of American citizens even more likely, the reinstitution of the Patriot Act, etc.
And then 22 Democratic Senators, more afraid of being condemned on Fox News than doing the people’s business, abandon us on votes like the Moveon.org fiasco, and the vote on the Lieberman amendment condemning Iran (did that really have to be passed by a vote of 97-0?), which frankly gives cover to everyone in the Bush administration (Dick Cheney come to mind?) who would like to start another “preventive” war with Iran over spurious and unproven allegations.
What the hell did we elect Democrats for if this is what we are getting in return for our votes?
Every day on numerous blogs I see the frustration of those of us who supported Democrats to the hilt in the last 3 election cycles with our activism, money, blogging, and volunteering for Democratic campaigns around the country. Without us, it’s safe to say the Democratic victories last Fall would have been much less substantial in the House, and likely would not have happened at all in the Senate.
So what gives? Why are our voices and concerns being dismissed and ridiculed by the very people we worked so hard to bring to power?
As one of the people who has dedicated myself to helping Democrats win elections, running interference for them on all the blogs to which I post regularly, contributing money I don’t have, and working to ensure that every vote gets counted (I was in Cleveland with Election Protection in 2004), I feel entitled to some answers that aren’t the same old tired line of “we’re doing the best we can, be patient, blah, blah, blah…” Because frankly I and much of the progressive blogosphere’s readership don’t buy the excuses we are being offered — as the extremely low approval ratings for Congress (primarily among Democrats if you break out the numbers) make clear.
You may interpret this as a rant if you wish, but it expresses a very real and common sentiment among millions of loyal Democrats and Democratic voters who feel it wasn’t Moveon who “betrayed us” with their ad, but our Dem leaders who failed to stand up to the right wing bullies in the media, at the White House, and on Capitol Hill. Indeed, I still keep hearing about Democratic strategies by Harry Reid and others to work with Republicans and Bush to craft a “bipartisan approach” to Iraq. What the hell is that?
Republicans don’t do bipartisanship (something only a deaf, dumb, and blind person wouldn’t have noticed by now), so why are Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi still acting like dupes and useful idiots for an administration that continues to shaft them every chance it gets?
The slogan last year was “We can do better,” right? Well, why isn’t anyone trying to “do better” now that we control Congress? All I see is an avalanche of failures with few, if any, successes, and most of those have been of the pyrrhic variety.
Yes, Gonzales is out as Attorney General, but the investigations into corruption in the Department of Justice have stalled. In like manner, investigations into the Valerie Plame affair have died, and I see no movement on any investigations relating to the illegal political activity (can anyone say Hatch Act violations?) of Karl Rove and his minions. Worst of all, no one is investigating what the President and Vice President knew about the lies that were told to take us to war, lies which by my reckoning deserve impeachment proceedings as soon as possible.
Instead, we are watching as too many Democrats in Congress opt to play defense, hoping that by not doing anything to change the status quo now, they will reap the electoral benefits next year of the public’s dissatisfaction with the Bush regime. A more cynical and reprehensible strategy I cannot imagine while our troops are dying in Iraq, Osama Bin Laden is threatening to overturn the government of the one Islamic nation with nuclear weapons, and Vice President Cheney and his neoconservative allies are chomping at the bit to widen the war in the Middle East by attacking Iran and possibly Syria as well.
Billions of dollars are being funneled into the pockets of hundreds of corrupt GOP connected corporations like Halliburton, Blackwater, Bechtel Corporation, etc., while at home our critical infrastructure is literally crumbling, people are being denied critical health care (whether they have insurance or not) and the poor of New Orleans are still living in toxic FEMA trailer camps while their damaged homes and communities remain unlivable with no plans to ever reconstruct them.
I’m sorry, but I don’t have any more patience for the grand and glorious Democratic revolution which will allegedly come into being magically on Inauguration Day in January of 2009. That’s a long way off, and a lot can change before the Democratic ponies arrive, particularly if the Democrats in Congress continue to act as if they are powerless to confront the most unpopular president in a generation. I’m tired of the excuses and political calculations by the people we elected in 2006 to change the course. Aren’t you?
You’ve probably been reading the mainstream news too much. In fact, the Democrats have been fighitng the administration’s agenda to a history-making degree:
“President Bush’s success rating in the Democratic-controlled House has fallen this year to a half-century low, and he prevailed on only 14 percent of the 76 roll call votes on which he took a clear position.
“So far this year, Democrats have backed the majority position of their caucus 91 percent of the time on average on such votes. That marks the highest Democratic unity score in 51 years.”
http://www.democraticundergroun...esg_id=1728952
http://public.cq.com/docs/cqt/n...002576765.html
Maybe you didn;t get everything you wanted, but that’s an outstanding job–especially given their bare majority in both houses, and an obstructionist Republican minority.
Sing it, Steven D! Thanks.
“Close” only counts in horseshoes! Dems don’t want to look like “girly men”, so American young people continue to die along with innocent Iraqi’s. What would happen if Iraqi’s don’t want our “help” any longer – especially in light of Blackwater?? gw is a Loser in business as well as prez, the only difference, in business the Saudi’s bailed him out and paid more than they were worth! Makes me wonder who he is selling us out to now??? People are dying, is anyone talking???? I can only think of a couple legislator’s worthy of my vote.
How about a leading Democratic presidential contender who is a Republican-in-disguise, voting for the war as a Senator, refusing to cut off funding, advocating a residual force to be left in Iraq forever, and, the greatest indignity of all, a “health-care” program modeled after Mitt Romney’s? It’s at best a regressive corporate tax on Americans (like the mandatory seat belt laws); at worst, it offers tax breaks to people so poor they don’t pay taxes anyway, but eventually some single mothers will have to choose between paying their health care premiums or putting food on the table for their kids. Naturally, they will choose the latter, in which case they will face late fees and penalties and, what? What if they are forced to let the health premium lapse? Will we fine them? And put even greater pressure on their ability to put food on the table for their kids? Just like all Republicans, Hillary can’t just give government subsidies; no, they make you have to BUY something.
Where are you now/
Mr. Albert Gore?/
A lonely nation/
Turns its eyes to you.
dems seem to think they won the houses au contraire. . . The peeps booted the gop!
99 – what did you pull this time ?
{Nothing… nothing… 😉 –99}
So how, are all those rules so lost as to be this ineffective ?
I swear, our country hasn’t been this far off its center, since, …
kid you not…
Nixon.
But, do we have at least the sound of our dissatisfaction in those hallowed halls heard at this point?
Hey Hillary where the f are you?
I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK.
Thats COUNTRY,
deario.
{I fixed it for you. You even misspelled yer screen name too! Good wine? 😛 –99}
I want my DEMOCRACY back. Where did it go?
As well as the rest of these f ing candidates.
Thanks 99, but I guess when this pissed, I could care less about the spelling.
I didn’t think I’d see the the day when they played this fast and loose with life, for all their clamor about protecting life. And, I just wish there was someone in one of these offices that comes close to having your sense of being and humor.
See, we gotta watch the way we parse this stuff. They said we can do better, but they did not say we will do better. And, obviously, “better” for these pusillanimous creeps means “more power”… and not to do anything worthwhile with it, but simply to have it, enjoy their importance and the multifarious perquisites of office. Don’t you know that doing your job means risking the loss of it? Far better to be your job and let the work sort itself out, no matter how many people and species are dying on this account. Only bricklayers actually have to do their jobs.
Thank you Steve for bringing up the subject of the inability of the democrats to fulfill the wishes of the people who elected them. Now maybe we should discuss the reasons.
We are in this war to provide cheap oil for nations in need (i.e. China). China needs cheap oil for its rapidly expanding economy. China in turns finances our humongous budget deficit so that we will fight its war. And China does so by buying our bonds. Our oil companies, Haliburton, Betchel and Co. get rich in the process as do our president and vice president and their friends, not to mention the new mercenaries of so called security companies.
If the Democrats ended this imperialist war, they would face the collapse of the US economy and being incompetent and all out of ideas, they can’t see a solution to the problem. What we are facing is complete incompetence on the part of the Democrats. What we need is a new Roosevelt.
Vote Independent! Let’s throw the bums out.
Perry #1
This post is typical of “righty propergander” posing as progressive enlightenment, but the motive is not so clear, if there is one.
Brad seems to be allowing way right positions on some issues, and thus he allows attack articles and battle axe moderators on some issues.
I am very disappointed in the direction this blog is taking, and I have raised eyebrows in the way there have been concerted smear campaigns against me on this blog which has been sanctioned by ahem.
I predicted the republicans would stay the rabid neoCon course instead of rejecting them out of their party. Others said they would moderate and reject the neoCons. What has happened instead is they are getting rid of the moderate war critics like Hagel and Warner.
If there was accuracy in these democratic attack ads I could abide them, but alas, they are beginning to be junk mail quality. It used to be that there had to be facts mixed with awareness on the blog, but not so much anymore.
Perry #1
Back to the subject …
In the 110th Congress (the current one) there have been over 50 filibusters, most of them involving the Iraq war. Anytime you hear “filibuster” it refers to the Senate, because the House does not have the filibuster mechanism.
Up until recently the democrats had 48 voting members, one who could not vote who had a stroke, which gave them 49 seats. The republicans had 49 voting members and 49 seats.
During that time (Jan-August) there was a tie in seats, but the republicans had a one vote majority in voting members.
And one battle axe here called this republican voting majority a democrat “controlling majority”, parroting the right wing pundits.
However, it was not then and still is not now “control of congress”. The truth of the matter, for those who still care, is that there is neither a “controlling majority” for republicans or for democrats. It is not that kind of congress.
In the Senate there are three levels of control, and a party must have voting majority at all three levels before it can be honestly said that they have “control of congress”.
The first control level is the committee chair majority, which requires a simple party seat majority. This control level, the lowest, gives chairmanship of committees and majority vote on committees. This gives no control to get any bill to the floor for “an up or down vote”.
The next control level is filibuster control, which takes 60 votes. Without 60 votes no legislation can get to the floor for a vote, because before every floor vote there must be “cloture”, and for a cloture motion to prevail it takes 60 votes.
The dems have 49 voting members and the two indies vote with the dems or against them, depending on the subject matter. On tie votes (50-50, 49-49, etc.) Dick Cheney casts the tie breaker.
The final control level is veto override, which takes 67 votes. If the president vetos a bill it takes 60 votes in the Senate to override the veto and make the bill become law anyway no matter the presidential veto.
No party has control of congress, and so the dems have been pointing out that the republicans are filibustering the stop-the-war bills.
The filibuster puts an end to the bill, because it can’t go to the floor for “an up or down vote”. The republicans will not stop the filibustering because if they did it would stop the war. They think the war is good, and they have the right to vote that way. It is as simple as that.
The people have a right to vote too, and guess what is going to happen to the republicans in November of ’08 if the people stay in their current frame of mind? The next level, filibuster control!
And guess why the righties want to blame the dems for what they themselves are doing? They think they can lie to the people because polls don’t matter. We shall see about that.
The republicans have been able to continue the war because they have filibuster power, and have used it 50 some odd times to stop the beginning of ending the war in Iraq.
There are 2 independents in the Senate. One of those independents, based on guilt, and who had done the Judas trip to the dems, said he would caucus with them. The other indy leaned that way too.
So with that they had a majority of seats sufficient to give them chairs in committees (except the one that Judas was given for 30 pieces of silver). And with that came a majority of democratic members in each committee. And with that subpoena powers.
And so, in six months we have found out what has been hidden for six years. And dorks give them no credit for that major move.
Conyers, Waxman, and Leahy have been revealing so much incredible corruption the republican regime has been doing, that it is difficult to keep track of it anymore.
I expect the gadfly in the ointment party to start a slogan “Throw the dems out because they let Bush pardon Scooter”.
We gotta bring education in the form of civics 101 back to amurka.
Steven D,
You said:
That is hilarious. Better get someone to taser your text so it makes sense or is accurate. Your choice.
BTW did you know that this blog condemned moveon.org on a position they took?
CF, I haven’t heard your amazing point of view! Where did you get your facts? Thanks!
are the Democrats fooling ANYBODY anymore? I mean anyone with a room temp IQ has to know by now that the Democrats could have stopped this war dead about 10 months ago and several times since by simply DOING NOTHING.
The Democrats have the control of what bill gets put up for vote..All they ever have had to do was simply not put the war funding bill up for vote and the war is defunded completely no votes needed and its veto proof. All they had to do WAS NOTHING!
Kucinich has stated this a few times.
They clearly have no intentions of stopping the war because they are being paid by the same crooks the Rethuglicans are.
The only way shit like this will ever stop is to vote ALL of these bastards OUT as soon as possible.
Agent 99,
Here is what a leading republican? has to say about authoritarianim, such as being tazer crazy:
(John Dean, emphasis mine). BIG BROTHER is a republican.
Erata in post #15
I said:
But should have said:
Dredd: What really angers me about the Democrats, is their complacency about e-vote machines and vote fraud. Are they SCREAMING about it? NO! And for YEARS they haven’t been…and even though they do vote against Bush and the GOP, they vote WITH them way too often for MY tastes.
I’m from Pa., and I’m ASHAMED that blue-dog Democrat Casey voted FOR chastizing MoveOn.org ad, as well as 21 other “Democrats”…
Feingold amendment to redeploy troops from Iraq:
http://www.senate.gov/legislati...038;vote=00345
This is NOT the BetrayUs vote, but a vote to redeploy troops from Iraq. Here’s the DEMOCRATS who are AGAINST redeploying troops from Iraq:
Baucus (D-MT)
Bayh (D-IN)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Carper (D-DE)
Casey (D-PA)
What is WEBB saying?
“I want to give them more rest…because I want them to be there forever!!!”
(comment #23 got cut off)
Baucus (D-MT)
Bayh (D-IN)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Carper (D-DE)
Casey (D-PA)
Conrad (D-ND)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Ensign (R-NV)
Johnson (D-SD)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (ID-CT)
Lincoln (D-AR)
McCaskill (D-MO)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Salazar (D-CO)
Tester (D-MT)
Webb (D-VA)
I have NO inclination to vote for ANY of the incumbents – not any of the Democrats and definitely none of the republicans.
Those “democrats” voted with THIS ILK:
Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Barrasso (R-WY)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Coleman (R-MN)
Collins (R-ME)
Corker (R-TN)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Lieberman (ID-CT)
Lott (R-MS)
Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Roberts (R-KS)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME)
Specter (R-PA)
Stevens (R-AK)
Sununu (R-NH)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)
…AND WE SHOULD GET THOSE DEMOCRATS OUT IN THE PRIMARIES WITH MORE PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATS!!!!!!!!!!!
Christophe Fournier #13
Thanks for your cogent comment. I think you did a pretty good job of boiling it down, which is refreshing in this age of partisan hatreds and endless sweaty picking of nits. All I think you should change is the emphasis on doing it for China… more like for the profits to be made off the markets like China’s. We do indeed need a new FDR, someone competent and humane and using power for the good of democracy and humanity.
…and with a titanium backbone!
You are either with BIG BROTHER or you are against him. I am against him and his republican party.
Not that a your vote counts for squat based on the fact that the last 3 Federal elections were rigged and the system HAS NOT BEEN PROPERLY REPAIRED, the real question is how long will the American voting public remain under the false pretense that the Fascist (corporate-interests) 2 party system is now OBVIOUSLY 1 in the same?
The majority of republidems in congress are criminal treasonous 1%er sellout enablers to the destructive cheney administration and have completely gone along with the post 9/11 fearmongering campaign to shred the constitution and perpetuate war.
Outstanding evidence and eye witness accounts now support FEDERAL World Trade Tower building #7 that was never hit by any airplanes or arabs was the 3rd World Trade tower to fall 10 1/2 hours after the Twin Towers in 6 seconds after a 20 second countdown. Although this building was barely mentioned in the official congressional record, this is and will not be a concern of the US congress of who do not want to expose the real terrorists in the White House who did 9/11 and blamed arabs not even listed on commercial jet passenger manifests as the patsies.
This event provided the pretext for the cheney adminstration war games in Afganistan and Iraq, a despicable anti-environmental path of destruction that REVERSED over 250 environmental laws, and their bushit constitution shredding policies.
Comment one: Can you define “propagandist slug?”
Nevermind i just reread your post.
Let’s not be fooled any more. Ralph Nader was right. It isn’t a two party system, but a one party system. The corporate party. Now they MASQUERADE as two different parties and play us off one another in the electorate on issues that are divisive and meaningless to them (aka abortion, gay marriage, etc.) to keep us distracted while each day they are putting more and more extreme measures through their people in BOTH parties to solidify their power. When they push too hard with one party, as they’ve done with Bush and his cronies and the GOP, then the power flips to the other party, and then THEY push hard to advance the corporate agenda. Then once the public becomes fed up with them, they will find a way to flip the public back to their cronies in the GOP.
Now, I think there are a significant number of Dems that AREN’T playing this game, but feel like their up against a mountain at this point and are trying to play games to get anything they can. They know if they call out their fellow corporate dems too much, they will lose ALL power to get anything done with both the corporate dems and the corporate Republican Party aligned against them (even though they are playing along with the meme that tries to make the Dems look like they are accomplishing something).
Trouble is, the public (at least us more progressive Dems are seeing through this mess and are getting more ticked off by the day, as evidenced by the Moveon.org ad and other things). But we still are in an uphill battle when the media is also aligned with them and so many other parts of society are blind to this game they are playing. We need to find some way to break through this!
Now, though I feel issues around abortion and gay marriage and other similar social divisive issues ARE important to me and others around me, I’m willing to put those aside for the time being if I can join forces with TRUE moderate and centrist independents and Republicans (not those so-called “centrist” corporate shills trying to hijack that label) and focus on the issues that the corporate party is afraid of us “fixing”.
That would be things like public campaign financing, election reform, a THIRD option for immigration reform, *fair* trade treaties to stop outsourcing, huge income tax reform to reverse the tax cuts given and turn around and heavily WAR tax at high marginal rates back to the 70% and 90+% before Reagan’s tax “reform”, and comprehensive media regulation.
If we can find things there we agree upon with 70-80% of the people, perhaps we can take out these corporate pols once and for all and FIX things!
Nunyabiz
“The Democrats have the control of what bill gets put up for vote..All they ever have had to do was simply not put the war funding bill up for vote and the war is defunded completely no votes needed and its veto proof. All they had to do WAS NOTHING!”
Is this not true? And if it is, do not these spineless ones stand forever condemned?
Nunyabz again: “They clearly have no intentions of stopping the war because they are being paid by the same crooks the Rethuglicans are.’
Also I have seen it argued that they want the war to drag on until November 2008 so they will win election.
Countless deaths and endless destruction so they can secure their pensions?
This is about the limit on cynical opportunism.
Dredd’s views on the legal aspects are helpful but the real problem is more fundamental.
They pass a resolution condemning Moveon for a political ad. They forgot about the First Amendment
When the Military Commission Act came up for vote 11 Democrats said “Aye.”
THEY SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN OFF THEIR OVERSTUFFED BOTTOMS AND CHAIRS AND STORMED OUT!
This is a Constitutional crisis, not a tea party debate over who can count votes better.
If Dems had any regard for their oaths of office they would leave DC, go home, and tell the people:
“We need to stand together – R’s too – for our founders. We need to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign AND DOMESTIC!”
In Germany it was brown-shirts. Here will it be Blackwater?
Why aren’t we ALL voting Green Party is what I would like to know?
If you live in a Red State you might as well because your vote wont count anyway thanks to the way outdated & pathetic electoral college.
As long as we are still using any electronic voting systems then you may as well vote Green also because your “democratic” vote will be switched.
Let’s face it the Fascist Ghouliani has already won 08′ he was guaranteed the win years ago and we the people are going sit on our collective fat asses and not do a damn thing about it just like we did in 00′ & 04′.
I don’t think we should call them leaders. Give credit where credit is due.
Here’s a message from Howard Dean:
“”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
If you can’t win, cheat.
Apparently that’s the Republicans’ answer to our work in California. If they have their way, this reliably “blue” state won’t be so blue in 2008.
Faced with a strong Democratic presence, Republicans are campaigning for a new election system instead of their own candidates.
If they get what they’re after, it could cost us the White House.
In California, Republican operatives — including some of the 2004 Swift Boaters — are working on a proposition for the June ballot that would essentially hand over 20 of the state’s electoral votes before the elections even begin next November.
Electoral reform is a good thing — but this proposition doesn’t even come close to an honest effort. It’s designed for just one thing: to make California the only big state in the country to break up its electoral votes, handing the White House back over to the Republicans. We need election reform, but let’s do it for real — and let’s not pick and choose which states we do it in.
We can’t let this proposition get on the ballot. Reject the Republican power grab in California:
http://www.democrats.org/DirtyTricks
California, like 47 other states, awards all of its electoral votes to the presidential candidate who wins the most votes. In the last four elections, all of California’s electoral votes have gone to the Democratic nominee.
Republicans want to change the rules to award one electoral vote for each Congressional district a presidential candidate wins. In 2004, that would have given George Bush 20 of John Kerry’s 55 votes.
These so-called “reformers” aren’t proposing to do this in Texas, or Florida, or Ohio, or any other large state that the Republicans won in 2004.
Only California.
This isn’t electoral reform — it’s a blatant power grab. Even Arnold Schwarzenegger is against the proposal, saying:
“I feel like, if you’re all of a sudden in the middle of the game start changing the rules, it’s kind of odd… It almost feels like a loser’s mentality, saying, ‘I cannot win with those rules. So let me change the rules.'”
Don’t let the Republicans cheat to win the election. Make your voice heard now:
http://www.democrats.org/DirtyTricks
For Republicans, it’s not Iowa or New Hampshire that matters most in 2008 — it’s California.
Tell them to play by the rules.
Sincerely,
Gov. Howard Dean, M.D.
“””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
Will this vote take place on GOP-donor e-vote machines in California? Or has Debra Bowen taken care of that? Notice, there is no initiative in large RED states like Ohio, Florida, and Texas! Only California! New York next?
It’s easy being the Minority Party and only having to carp and cry about every perceived injustice. It’s easy to toss out any accusation, regardless of the veracity of issue.
But, as the Democrats in Congress have now discovered, being in the majority means having to actually GOVERN. Knowing that your decisions and votes now have a genuine impact and will be judged by the voters in the next election.
All of a sudden, true reform (geting rid of earmarks) isn’t so attractive now that you get to be the ones in charge of them. Lobbyist reform sux…now that you are the ones geting the big checks. Tax cuts vs Tax hikes (what did your ECON 101/102 Prof say about them?) now matter…can’t just whine about “tax cuts for the rich” now that you are the ones making the Law.
Suffice to say; Republican? Democrat? They are all equally corruptable under the current setup where incumbancy rules and Power is brokered in back rooms away from Public scrutiny (re Cheney’s Energy task force AND Hillary’s Health Care Reform).
I couln’t have said it better. Great article. I didn’t expect this much disapointment from the dems after all of the hard work all of the bloggers have done for these people to get or keep their seats. Really it is depressing. To watch our government get free health care and deny it for us, to take away our freedoms yet give themselves absolutely no accountablity, whether sworn in or not, whether supoenaed or not. It just really is chapping my ass. Not to mentiontheir salaries and certain other perks. UGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
There’s really only one big plan that makes sense for Democrats: investigate, impeach and convict Dick Cheney before January if possible.
Sen. Chris Dodd’s legislation to help us through the mortgage industry crisis everyone is expecting should be great law, but it’s not the big picture strategy.
Perhaps the war in Iraq has tied up the Senate, but they’re capable of doing several things at once.
Of course, there is always the list of funding bills which need to be passed and that is always tedious and time-consuming, but also very very important.
I don’t complain about Nancy’s House. She’s doing as well as we could’ve ever dreamt. The senate leadership doesn’t seem as focused at times, but there are some very strong personalities over there and sometimes it’s harder to herd them than the Reps in the House. Still, I have pretty good confidence they’ll do what needs to be done.
What will Bush veto? Probably everything sent to him.
How many vetos will be overridden? Probably none.
It’s all politics and Bush will continue to sink the Republican party to everyone’s detriment.
How about the nomination of Judge Mukasey? Read the new book, Triple Cross and laugh your head off. He has soooo many problems.
How about the electronic voting machines battle? Yeah, now that’s one that is off the pages tough and behind the scenes. We’ve gotta have some trust our politicians will do the right thing and keep pressuring them whenever we see it going off the rails. Diligent oversight from the public!
“I don’t complain about Nancy’s House. She’s doing as well as we could’ve ever dreamt”
OMG, are you delusional? As far as I can tell Pelosi must be working for the Neofascist because she does everything they ask and refuses to make any of them accountable for ANYTHING, Election Fraud, Treason, Lying continuously to Congress, shredding the Constitution & Bill of Rights, breaking every known national & international law & treaty.
and I wont even touch the fact that this administration attacked us in a false flag attack on 9/11 because there is more than enough without that to put them all away for life 100X over.
Pelosi is the worst thing to happen to the Democratic party for 100 years.
Meanwhile… this little dude name Ron Paul puts all of the above to shame. Oh, yes he happens to be a Republican too. A real Republican. Name me one other candidate that calls for the complete removal of our armed forces from the Arab Peninsula, not just play chess with them. Name one other candidate that would entirely crush the IRS. Any one that would rid us of the ATF? DEA? NAFTA? CAFTA? Name one other candidate that talks about LIBERTY, and the importance of your right to remain a free human being and to decide for yourself what is best for your family. I love how these other “republicans” and “democrats” tell us it is too dangerous for a dying person to have medical marijuana (but it’s legal to drink yourselves to death) Any other talk about how our foreign policy(and support of Zionism) is the root cause of Islamic terrorists? Ron Paul has twice the size nutsack of any of these so called Americans. He has not accepted any special interest money from anyone, and he never will. He has never voted once to raise taxes. He voted not to go to war with Iraq. He voted to squash the Patriot “Acts”. And for the second time I’ve mentioned here (to the dismay and disgust of many here) This is not a democracy…this is a democratic REPUBLIC! We should be rejecting these philosophies as true Americans: statism, liberalism, tribalism, socialism, collectivism, internationalism,corruption in government, Fascism, Communism, altruism, pull politics, and the New World Order. (from a militia site) Not many of these people have even served in the military, let alone would suggest their kids sign up.(Mitt comes to mind) Ron Paul is a doctor, and it’s hard to get a doctor to kill for any other reason than to defend his or herself.
Come on and wake the fuck up! None of these others give a crap about you or your families, our sovereignty , our economy, our future. They only care about themselves and the special interests that they cater to. Please look past the labels and let your heart decide. Please read the constitution and the bill of rights again. Then ask yourself witch candidate would continue to shit on it, and you, and witch one would fight to the death to defend it.
There… all better.
Name me one other candidate that calls for the complete removal of our armed forces from the Arab Peninsula”
Kucinich
“Name one other candidate that would entirely crush the IRS.
Ron Paul wont either, not unless 60% of the Congress agrees with him which they don’t.
Any one that would rid us of the ATF? DEA? NAFTA? CAFTA
Kucinich and probably Gravel
Name one other candidate that talks about LIBERTY,
Kucinich
Ron Paul would get nothing whatsoever accomplished, you Ron Paul worshippers need to realise that one man cant do anything except probably get assassinated.
The only way this government is ever going to change is when WE THE PEOPLE stand up in the 10s of millions and forcibly change it.
It starts with our fully complicit Mainstream media which we need to take back, then we need to kick ALL of these worthless bastards OUT! and start over.
The only dem/rethug candidate I would even dream of voting for would be Kucinich or maybe Gravel.
But if possible I will be voting Green from now on.
99 – When a woman says “{Nothing… nothing… ;-)” . . . . . that means = something . . .
Name me one other candidate that calls for the complete removal of our armed forces from the Arab Peninsula”
Kucinich ….WHEN and WHERE? and he was supposed to have a 9/11 investigation, (due this September), but I don’t see it.
Any one that would rid us of the ATF? DEA? NAFTA? CAFTA
Kucinich and probably Gravel … again, when and where did they say anything like this?
“Name one other candidate that would entirely crush the IRS.
Ron Paul wont either, not unless 60% of the Congress agrees with him which they don’t. – they won’t have to as the IRS is already an illegal private institution, and a presidential signing statement (that B likes so well) would get rid of it quick.
Name one other candidate that talks about LIBERTY,
Kucinich —- he who endorses strong gun control.
Ron Paul would get nothing whatsoever accomplished, you Ron Paul worshippers need to realise that one man cant do anything except probably get assassinated.
… we don’t worship Paul, we strongly endorse his ideas. If y’all would like to martyr him, go a right ahead.
“The only way this government is ever going to change is when WE THE PEOPLE stand up in the 10s of millions and forcibly change it.” … that’s exactly what Ron Paul said.
awaiting a “non-partisan” American response.
JoJ
Or, she’s just joking with you….
Zap
OMG! Who threw the bottle into the compost bin?
THERE IS NO SENSE IN THE SENATE. 🙁
We see that AIPAC & Lieberman has their way with us again. Clinton lies once more.
Oh, and how could I forget my two favorite quotes of all time; one from a democrat, one from a republican.
Only by recapturing the spirit of independence can we ensure our government never resembles the one from which the American States declared their separation. -Ron Paul
Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable. -JFK
Pelosi should be in porn, by the way she rolls over like a trained seal . . .
Iran, from a Chilean’s point of view:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vA4I6tc6xJY