February 28, 2007

From the Home Office....

John McCain is missing votes on the implementation of the 9/11 Commission's findings to appear on David Letterman tonight. In honor of his appearance, we present....

The Top 10 Reasons John McCain Doesn't Really Want to be President

10. Harder to sleep during the State of the Union if you're at the podium.

9. Won't get to miss votes that are politically inconvenient.

8. Harder to keep Jerry Falwell on his side while aiding in "satan's attempt" to curb global warming.

7. His plan for Iraq was already implemented...by Bush.

6. Couldn't blame Iraq war failures on Rumsfeld anymore

5. Would have to turn his back on campaign finance reform he championed. (Oh wait, he already did.)

4. Would have to duck calls from Charles Keating for pardons.

3. Would hate to lash out angrily at White House correspondents dinner.

2. Enjoying his new job as Mayor of Crazy Base Land.

And the #1 Reason John McCain Doesn't Really Want to Be President:

1. It would be too tough to turn around the Double Talk Express in the White House driveway.

Posted by Mike Gehrke at 5:09 PM | Comments (5)

This Is What Oversight Looks Like

This morning The Army Times reported that patients at Walter Reed were being ordered not to speak to the media. There's more:

A report today that soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center are being told not to speak with the press is apparently just the latest move in a recent effort to tighten restrictions on journalists' access to many military facilities, according to the president of Military Reporters and Editors.
James Crawley, a military reporter with MediaGeneral and MRE president, said today's revelation by Army Times that Walter Reed patients had been barred from speaking with reporters is not the first case of tightened restrictions. In recent months, he says several MRE members have reported similar crackdowns. What's worse, many of the denials are apparently in reaction to the potential negativity of a planned story.

"It is starting to look like it is becoming a policy in some areas where they are not allowing reporters on the base unless it is an absolutely positively good news story," said Crawley. "The military is making it harder and harder to do stories on bases, as far as doing man on the street interviews."

This may have been acceptable in the past, to just clamp down on stories when the news doesn't seem cheery enough for the Administration, but it's not going to fly with a Democratic Congress that takes seriously its oversight responsibilities. In fact, Speaker Pelosi's office is already reported on field hearings scheduled to address the issue of Walter Reed.

In addition, Congresswoman Slaughter blasted back at reports that the Pentagon was trying to silence its critics:

"Last Friday, Secretary of Defense Gates publicly stated that the situation at Walter Reed was, in his words, unacceptable," Rep. Slaughter said. "The accountability he seemed to embrace was demanded by common decency and welcomed by the public."
"The only acceptable course of action for our military and civilian leaders to take is to fully and openly address any and all concerns regarding veterans' facilities nation-wide," Congresswoman Slaughter continued. "Any attempt to silence the very soldiers who brought their own mistreatment to light, or to hide ongoing abuses from the public eye - if such attempts are occurring - would be morally reprehensible. It would be an abdication of one of the most fundamental responsibilities of our government: the protection of those who have fought to protect us."

"Secretary Gates should act on the same principals of accountability and responsibility he so recently advocated and address these reports immediately. As a nation, we need to be honest about the care our veterans are receiving. Their enormous sacrifice demands nothing less."

Amen.

Posted by at 4:49 PM | Comments (3)

Service Members Ask Congress to End Iraq War

Via NYT:

In a small but growing sign of dissent, a group of active-duty military personnel and reservists, including many who have served in Iraq, is denouncing the war and asking Congress for the prompt withdrawal of troops.
The service members, who number more than 1,600, have sent an Appeal for Redress to their Congressional representatives, a form of protest permitted by military rules. Most of those who signed the appeal, at www.appealforredress.org, are enlisted soldiers in the Army, from the lowest to the highest ranks.

“There is a sense of betrayal,” said Specialist Linsay Burnett, 26, who recently returned from Iraq with the First Brigade combat team of the 101st Airborne Division, based at Fort Campbell, on the border of Kentucky and Tennessee. The division is readying for its third deployment.

“These soldiers stand up to fight, to protect their country, but we are now on the fifth reason as to why it is we are in Iraq,” added Specialist Burnett, who has served as a public affairs specialist and as a military journalist focusing primarily on the infantry. “How many reasons are we going to come up with for keeping us over there?”

The Appeal for Redress reads: “As a patriotic American proud to serve the nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to support the prompt withdrawal of all American military forces and bases from Iraq. Staying in Iraq will not work and is not worth the price. It is time for U.S. troops to come home.”

The protest, which was started in October by two active-duty service members and is sponsored by three antiwar groups, initially drew 65 signatures, growing to more than 1,300 by February. This week, after the CBS News program “60 Minutes” reported on the appeal, about 300 more active-duty soldiers joined the campaign, said Petty Officer Third Class Jonathan Hutto of the Navy, a co-founder of the group behind the appeal.

While the 1,600 make up a tiny part of the armed services, the appeal is one of the first official signs of protest from people within the military. An estimated 70 percent of those who have signed it are on active duty; the rest are members of the Reserves or the National Guard, and about 100 officers have signed it.

(emphasis added)

CBS News reported on the Appeal last Sunday's edition of 60 Minutes. (watch the video.) Lara Logan, (whose report on the "Battle for Haifa Street" made news when she sent an e-mail to colleagues asking them to help get the report on the air instead of just on the web, saying "“not too gruesome to air, but rather too important to ignore") interviews a number of men and women who have signed the appeal. These are courageous men and women, not just because of their extraordinary service to our nation, but also because they have dared to speak out when few in their position would.

Posted by at 3:56 PM | Comments (2)

Oddball

What's stranger - being quoted anonymously as a "Senior Administration Official" and then talking about yourself in the third person or being quoted anonymously as a "Senior Administration Official" and than talking about yourself in the first person?

Why do I ask, you ask? Check out Chicago Tribune reporter, Mark Silva's blogging. He got the honor of following around the Vice President on his week-long international excursion, and it definitely wasn't an episode of The West Wing.

Posted by at 2:46 PM | Comments (1)

Congress Honors Governor Ann Richards

Yesterday the House of Representatives passed a resolution in honor of the late Governor of Texas, Mrs. Ann Richards. The bill was introduced by Rep. Solomon Ortiz to recognize Governor Richards, "extraordinary contributions to Texas and American public life.":

"Growing up as a son of migrant workers in segregated South Texas, I was painfully aware of the power dynamic in place that placed those of privilege high above the working poor.
Ann Richards sought to turn that tide. During her service as Governor of Texas, she appointed more females and minorities than any other governor by far. It was Ann's spunk and her dedication to the people of our beloved state-all the people-that earned her the love and admiration of millions of Americans."

You can read the full text of the resolution, here.

Posted by at 2:14 PM | Comments (2)

A Linky Thread

Kagro X kindly offers the NRCC some advice on what to do with the thousands of dollars they took from the guy who was also giving loads of money to terrorists!

Wow. More Than 1 in 4 U.S. Women Aged 14-59 is infected with HPV, an STD and the virus that causes cervical cancer..

Over at MyDD, a helpful Iowan offers up a great diary on how the Iowa Caucuses work. It's part of a series, so keep your eyes peeled for more.

UN Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie has an op-ed in the Washington Post on the Darfur crisis.

Governor Dean e-mailed you today about the importance of The Employee Free Choice Act, learn more about it from the good folks over at the AFL-CIO Blog.

This is an open thread...

Posted by at 12:53 PM | Comments (104)

Changes at Walter Reed

When The Washington Post unveiled a multi-part investigative report into the disturbing conditions at Walter Reed, the premiere medical post for the U.S. Army, it caused a flurry of activity as calls for change echoed on throughout Washington.

Yet, I don't think this is exactly what most people had in mind:

Walter Reed patients told to keep quiet
Soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center’s Medical Hold Unit say they have been told they will wake up at 6 a.m. every morning and have their rooms ready for inspection at 7 a.m., and that they must not speak to the media.

“Some soldiers believe this is a form of punishment for the trouble soldiers caused by talking to the media,” one Medical Hold Unit soldier said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

It is unusual for soldiers to have daily inspections after Basic Training.

Soldiers say their sergeant major gathered troops at 6 p.m. Monday to tell them they must follow their chain of command when asking for help with their medical evaluation paperwork, or when they spot mold, mice or other problems in their quarters.

Read the full article from The Army Times.

Posted by at 12:39 PM | Comments (2)

Smooth Talking Mitt - The PowerPoint!

This week, the leak of a secret PowerPoint presentation outlining Mitt Romney's strategy for smooth talking the voters into ignoring his real record sent shockwaves through Camp Romney. Since PowerPoint presentations are all the rage at the Romney headquarters, we thought we'd show you the real smooth talking Mitt slide show.

(Click on the presentation to advance)

To download the entire PowerPoint presentation (with nifty animation included!) click here.

Posted by Michael Link at 12:13 PM | Comments (2)

DAILY FLIPPER ... INAUGURAL EDITION

TOP HEADLINE: Romney Advisor Castellanos Loses Track of His PowerPoint

Former Jesse Helms advisor summarizes Romney strategy: “"You need that job and are the best qualified, but they want to give it to the French." (Then insults *others* intelligence…)
[In case you don’t get that joke … link ]

John McCain condemns religious attacks on Romney, then has his surrogates do his dirty work.

Days before presidential candidate John McCain visits Utah, his campaign says the Arizona senator condemns any attack against his opponent, Mitt Romney, over his Mormon faith.

South Carolina state Rep. Gloria Haskins, who backs McCain, has raised concerns about the Mormon faith in media interviews. And The State newspaper in Columbia, S.C., reported last month that the McCain camp once circulated comments from evangelical leader James Dobson questioning any presidential candidate who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

And in September, Cyndi Mosteller, the GOP chairwoman of Charleston County, S.C., and a member of McCain's steering committee in 2000, "bombarded" Romney with questions about blacks and polygamy after a party meeting, according to a report in the National Review. The LDS Church did not allow black men to hold its priesthood until 1978.

Keep reading "DAILY FLIPPER ... INAUGURAL EDITION"

Posted by Mike Gehrke at 12:11 PM

Rev. Otis Moss Speaks at a Black History Month Event

Yesterday, Dr. Rev. Otis Moss, III spoke in Washington, DC in honor of Black History Month. The event, a joint production of the Democratic National Committee's American Majority Partnership and Faith In Action team was entitled "Engaging a New Generation of Prophetic Leadership." It was a truly a remarkable speech that discussed the intergenerational dynamics of political activism within the Black Church Community. Reverend Moss spoke with great passion about the challenges facing the faith community in the years ahead as politics and time change circumstances. You can watch the video below, about 50 minutes in its entirety, and completely engaging.

Flash Player 8 is required to view this presentation. You can download it here.

Posted by Christy McConville at 11:32 AM | Comments (2)

Beyond Yellow Ribbons

USA Today:

Rushed by President Bush's decision to reinforce Baghdad with thousands more U.S. troops, two Army combat brigades are skipping their usual session at the Army's premier training range in California and instead are making final preparations at their home bases.
Some in Congress and others outside the Army are beginning to question the switch, which is not widely known. They wonder whether it means the Army is cutting corners in preparing soldiers for combat, since they are forgoing training in a desert setting that was designed specially to prepare them for the challenges of Iraq.

Army officials say the two brigades will be as ready as any others that deploy to Iraq, even though they will not have the benefit of training in counterinsurgency tactics at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif., which has been outfitted to simulate conditions in Iraq for units that are heading there on year-long tours...

...A spokesman for the brigade, Lt. Col. Randy Martin, said the soldiers lose nothing by the switch, while shaving about two weeks off their pre-deployment training schedule.

"It's realistic training," he said. "I don't think that anyone would say readiness is affected" negatively. He noted that another brigade from his division underwent similar home-station training before it deployed in January.

What I find hard to believe, and it seems others do as well, is that anyone believes what Lt. Col. Martin is saying could possibly be true. It's not as if the army is known for its whimsical decision making. Surely training in the Georgia mountains instead of the California desert is going to put those soldiers at a disadvantage? I don't believe the Iraq landscape is dotted with live oaks - I'm pretty sure it's lots of sand, a blistering hot sun and vicious wind storms, which would mean that training at Ft. Stewart is radically different than training at Ft. Irwin, and that the Army likely had a reason why they wanted to simulate conditions before sending soldiers to Iraq.

Republicans love to parade their "support the troops" rhetoric, but I'm reminded of something my 5th grade teacher would often quote, "Your actions speak so loudly I can't hear what you say." Sending soldiers into battle without the training and equipment they need is not "supporting the troops".

The President's poor planning (and I hesitate to even characterize it as such, since it implies he actually had a plan), is to blame for this. Using handpicked facts and an overly optimistic scenario (, the President failed to plan ahead for success in Iraq and our soldiers are the ones who are paying the price for his mistakes. Representatives Murtha and Obey have issued a report in which they detail the state of troop readiness, and the facts are clear - our military is stretched way too thin by this war of choice, and the men and women who serve so honorably are being asked to shoulder the burden of the President's failures.

Rep. Murtha and Obey:

As we have come to expect, the U.S. Army is imbued with a “whatever-it-takes” spirit of commitment and hard work; it has been given a mission and it will complete that mission. Yet, it is becoming increasingly apparent that that level of commitment has not been met by the civilian officials charged with overseeing and assuring the well-being of our military. The mere fact that roughly one-half of the entire U.S. Army is reported to be at the lowest level of military readiness speaks volumes in this regard. Perhaps most troubling to many of the Army’s senior uniformed leaders is the lack of national attention to the Army’s plight. To suggest that the Global War on Terror will last for years, yet fail to even acknowledge – let alone take steps to address – the Army’s readiness, equipment, and personnel shortfalls, is viewed as short-sighted at best. At worst, the future security and deterrent power of the United States is dangerously at risk.

Yesterday Tony Snow was asked about reports on the state of the military, which:

...confirmed the decline in overall military readiness. And a report that accompanied Pace's review concluded that while the Pentagon is working to improve its warfighting abilities, it "may take several years to reduce risk to acceptable levels."

Tony tried to wiggle his way out of the question by not accepting the premise that our troop readiness levels were in jeopardy (despite the cold hard facts, as presented by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, to the contrary), but he ended up making my point:

Do you send any forces into battle that are not fully ready? And the answer is no.

Posted by at 11:01 AM | Comments (3)

Wednesday Open Thread

Good Morning, Democrats! What's happening in your world?

Posted by at 9:07 AM | Comments (60)

February 27, 2007

In Progress - Senate Hearing on Iraq Funding

Right now the Senate Appropriations Committee is holding a hearing on $93.4 billion in supplemental funding that Bush has requested for Iraq and Afghanistan. The webcast of the hearing, while it is still going on, can be viewed here. Front and center is $100 billion President Bush requested to escalate the war in Iraq

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, testifying in front of the committee, is actually attempting to claim the escalation of the war is consistent with the Iraq Study Group. Yet as we all know, the bipartisan commission headed by Bush family adviser James Baker recommended that we begin to withdraw combat troops -- "a central recommendation Bush apparently has chosen to ignore."

Also appearing in front of the committee today is Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and General Peter Pace, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Senator Byrd, chairman of the committee, said it best in his opening remarks: "Congress is not a rubber stamp." He continued, also stating that "Congress cannot continue to fund failing policies and failing strategies... Under the president's plan, there is no end, I say, no end in sight."

Posted by Michael Link at 4:54 PM | Comments (27)

Women's Health Takes a Retaliatory Hit from Bush Politics

For over two years, women's health advocates fought to get emergency contraception available over-the-counter so that women would have access to the drug outside of business hours, in, say, an emergency. The Bush Administration and its foot soldiers in the Food and Drug Administration fought this tooth and nail. Shenanigans occurred for two full years. And, I must add, this pill is ineffective if someone is pregnant. It's not an abortion pill, it's contraception.

Eventually, the FDA succumbed to overwhelming public opinion and allowed the pill available OTC for women age 18 and over. Case closed?

Nope. Now the Bush Administration has stealthily cut the budget for women's health at the FDA for the rest of the entire year. What??? Yeah, that's right: retaliation, Bush style.

WashPost: That office, which was at the center of a politically damaging storm over the emergency contraceptive "Plan B," just had more than one-quarter of this year's $4 million operating budget quietly removed, insiders say.
The office funds research on male-female biological differences to ensure that women receive the most appropriate drug doses and treatments. It also produces heavily requested health information about menopause, pregnancy, birth control, osteoporosis and other topics.

The administration had requested -- and Congress had budgeted -- $4 million for the office in fiscal 2007, just as they have for several years running.

Last week, however, word came down that the FDA intends to withhold $1.2 million of that, apparently for use elsewhere in the agency. Because the remaining $2.8 million has already been spent or allocated for salaries and started projects, the office must effectively halt further operations for the rest of the year, according to a high-level agency official with knowledge of the budget plan, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the official is not authorized to speak publicly.

The worst part is that this may be the first step in a plan to eliminate the Office of Women's Health from the FDA altogether. Read the article. Unbelievable.

Posted by at 4:33 PM | Comments (6)

Digg It

A few notes on some changes you've probably already noticed...

1. Today we added a "Digg This" link across the site. Digg is sort of like a democratically controlled news site (small "d"), where users vote on -- or digg -- things they like. By clicking the link, you can directly submit content from our site to Digg to put it up for digging. Don't have an account? You can get one here.

2. You'll notice that our names now link to our PartyBuilder profiles. Not really a big deal, but we hope to eventually roll this out for you as well.

3. You've probably noticed Mike Gehrke's name popping up around here in the last week or so. Mike is our new research director (and a former research director, for that matter). He's the guy who is responsible most for dealing with the 2008 Republican presidential candidates, and we've handed him the keys to Kicking Ass for all things related to 2008 Republican research. We're working pretty closely with our research team and you'll notice that more and more as we get deeper into the race.

That's all for now. Tracy is out today, so sorry for the low-volume.

Posted by Josh McConaha at 4:17 PM | Comments (1)

Cali Asians Show the Country What's Up

About three years ago, I had a conversation in San Francisco with a high school friend and some of his friends from college. All except me were Asian American, and all of us were very into politics. Our conversation centered around how to get more California Asian Americans into voting, given that the Asian American and Pacific Islander population in California was extremely large.

We agreed on the basics -- with no common second language, it was hard to create materials in languages other than English and expect to reach the majority of the group. Asian Americans had very diverse views on the issues of the day, and there wasn't really a key issue that would turn out Asian Americans to vote. There weren't well-known groups that organized Asian Americans around political issues. And finally, most Asian American voters were Democrat, we all agreed, without even knowing that the Democratic Party was the party that welcomed the first Asian American and Pacific Islander Presidential Cabinet member, the first AAPI governor on the mainland, and the first AAPI member of Congress.

Well, since that time, our party organized the largest AAPI voter mobilization effort in the history of the United States in 2004, as well as an AAPI pilot project targeting key districts in 2006.

And it's having an effect, according to the New York Times:

California's 4.4 million Asians constitute the state's second-largest ethnic minority group (after Latinos) and the largest Asian population in the country, but they have been underrepresented in elected office. Now they are moving beyond fund-raising, where they have long been a force, to elect representatives of their own.

Last year for the first time, Asian candidates across the state were supported by a major political action committee, the Asian American Small Business P.A.C. In addition, the California Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus, a coalition of Democratic legislators of Asian ancestry, helped organize crews of bilingual volunteers to knock on doors and make sure Asian voters made it to the polls.

Go California. And GO BRUINS!!!

Posted by at 3:48 PM | Comments (1)

Democrats Call Out RNC's Silence on "Catch An Illegal Immigrant"

In an attempt to stun the country with its offensiveness, the Republican National Committee brushed off calls this week to put a halt to the College Republicans' "Catch an Illegal Immigrant" events across the country.

Just now, the Democratic National Committee delivered a letter to RNC Chairman Mel Martinez decrying the game. Our pictures from the delivery are below.

A key paragraph from a letter DNC Chairman Howard Dean and DNC Hispanic Caucus Chair Ramona Martinez sent to Martinez:

Mr. Chairman, we know that as an immigrant, you have a particularly personal understanding of what it means to come to a new country in search of a better life, by choice or otherwise. When you took the Chairmanship of the RNC you said there was no "question that the tone of the immigration debate was wrong" and that you expected to "be a voice...not an attack dog." Your voice is needed today. The RNC can and should speak out on this issue, but above all proactively engage the College Republicans to stop and prevent these vile activities that do nothing to create a constructive dialogue. Lastly, we call on you to join Democrats in our commitment to achieving the type of comprehensive immigration reform that's consistent with America's best traditions.

The New York Times reports the story:

College students from Michigan to Florida have found a new way to get attention, offend others and make a right-wing statement all at once. It's a game with a name that says it all: "Catch the Illegal Immigrant."

The game is a variation on hide and seek: one player poses as the immigrant, and everyone else tries to find that person. There's a prize, usually $200 or less, which is not much, but enough to celebrate the cheap exploitation of a fellow human.

"Catch the Immigrant" is the brainchild of an intern with the College Republican National Committee, who lost her post after coming up with this and other campus recruitment gimmicks. Another game, called "Fun With Guns," invited young Republicans to fire BB guns or paint balls at cardboard cutouts of Democratic leaders. Republican Party leaders have tried to distance themselves from the games, but seem to have done little to stop them.

Seriously uncool.

Posted by at 3:15 PM | Comments (18)

Tom DeLay: For earmarks before he was against them, before he was for them?

In today’s Politico, former Republican House Majority Leader/ethics violator extraordinaire Tom DeLay pens an interesting column entitled: The Power of the Purse: Banning Earmarks is Not the Right Reform. The column takes the reader through the winding road of Tom DeLay’s position on earmarks, in which he concludes, well, it’s not really clear.

DeLay begins the article, “Earmarks are a bigger and smaller problem than people make them out to be.” He goes on to say that earmarks that those really big earmarks are bad, “The ones that cost hundreds of millions of dollars are worse than the ones that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars; but they're all bad just the same.” He must have been a math major.

There’s something distinctly ironic about the man of the billon dollar earmark arguing that mere million dollar earmarks are “undeniably bad.” DeLay also notes that Republicans will have to closely monitor the earmarks that Democrats attempt to insert into legislation, given that they know control both houses of Congress. Perhaps he has forgotten that under Republican control, Congress increased earmarks more than 850% in one decade. [Washington Post, 1/26/06] No, don’t worry, he touches on this, but blames it on the political atmosphere created by the Clinton administration. “Earmarks grew so much in the 1990s because of divided government. The Republican Congress was given a mandate to fund certain priorities -- missile defense, for instance -- that the Clinton administration had no intention of following.”

The most interesting thing about this article is that it does nothing; it puts forth no policy proposals, no theories, and comes to conclusions. Just a collection of random rantings from the former beloved leader of the ethics circus.

Posted by Mike Gehrke at 2:38 PM

Tuesday Open Thread

How's your morning?

Posted by Michael Link at 9:21 AM | Comments (247)

February 26, 2007

A MEMO FOR MITT

This weekend, a polling memo from Romney campaign strategist Alex Gage seeking to lower expectations was "leaked" to the media. With Romney not getting much traction with the voters, DNC Research Director, Mike Gehrke, has prepared his own memo to help out Mr. Smooth Talking Mitt Romney and give him some much-needed insight into his polling problems. The memo is below. Consider it "leaked".

TO: ROMNEY FOR PRESIDENT LEADERSHIP

FROM: MIKE GEHRKE, DNC RESEARCH

DATE: FEBRUARY 26, 2007

RE: GOV. ROMNEY IN THE POLLS

At first I thought that you might all be very upset that your internal strategy memorandum “leaked.” But after reading it carefully, I realized that it must be a careful strategic misdirection. Gov. Romney’s standing in the polls among Republicans may have edged up as his identification goes from zero to slightly above that, but his standing among the rest of Americans is bound to drop as they see him abandon mainstream positions under the pressure of political ambition.

People who want to be President normally wouldn’t run AGAINST the well-established mainstream opinions of American voters – especially where it meant repeatedly changing positions from right to wrong in the eyes of most of the voters. If Gov. Romney had not been taking that exact approach, most observers would be left to conclude that your memo was a cruel hoax.

Take for example Gov. Romney’s position on stem cell research. Fifty-six percent of Americans favor government funding of embryonic stem cell research. [Associated Press, 1/3/2006] So, apparently, did Gov. Romney until he began running for President. Running for Governor in 2002, Romney backed embryonic stem cell research and said that he would lobby the president to embrace it. [Boston Globe, 2/11/2007] But last week, running for President, Romney told a gathering in Utah that he opposed embryonic stem cell research.[KSL-TV, 2/21/2007]

More bad news is ahead for Romney when it comes to Social Security. Even though the Bush Administration’s efforts to enact Social Security cuts and privatization have been roundly rejected, here is what Romney said prior to his speech to the Detroit Economic Club:

He is weighing a cut in the top individual tax rate from the current 35 percent; a reduction in the corporate income tax; and deep cuts in automatic-benefit programs such as Medicare and Social Security.[Bloomberg, 2/7/2007]

So our first preview of the Romney economic plan is big tax cuts for the wealthy and deep cuts in Medicare and Social Security for everybody else. A real strategist probably doesn’t need a poll to tell you that deep cuts to Social Security are a bad idea, but here’s one anyway: A survey released last week by AARP found that efforts to raise the retirement age, change the longevity index, cut benefits for new retirees and implement modified price indexing were opposed by large margins. [Politico, 2/7/2007] In fact, only 2 percent of respondents favored reforms that would solely cut benefits. [Palm Beach Post, 2/22/2007]

The old Mitt Romney, incidentally, stood firmly on the 98-percent side of the issue, promising he would not cut Social Security when he was running for U.S. Senate in 1994.

In other comments yesterday, Romney said he would not cut Social Security to meet his goal of balancing the federal budget. "I don't think you go back and rewrite the contract the government has with people who've retired." [Boston Globe, 10/17/1994]

Finally, there’s the issue of health care, and that’s not good news for the Governor either. Eighty-five percent of Americans regard it an important issue for politicians to address. [Associated Press, 1/22/2007] However, Americans aren’t buying whatever it is Republicans have to offer on the issue. Democrats currently have a stunning 22-point advantage on the issue. And when asked about Gov. Romney specifically, Americans say they don’t trust him to reform the health care system by a two-to-one margin. [Wall Street Journal Online, 2/21/2007 ]

Romney, ironically enough, "has begun to distance himself" from his own health care plan – one he recently called "a conservative victory.”[Boston Globe, 2/3/2007; Business Week, 4/4/2006]

Folks, smooth talk only gets you so far. It is only a matter of time before Republicans – and the rest of America – notice the cynical way that Gov. Romney is changing his positions to square with his personal ambition rather than their best interests. Your pollster might be telling you that is what will work in the Republican primary. It won’t work in November 2008.

Posted by at 5:42 PM | Comments (8)

When the President Fails to Lead...

Tired of waiting, a handful of Governor's take action into their own hands:

Governors from five Western states agreed Monday to work together to reduce greenhouse gases, saying their region has suffered some of the worst of global warming with recent droughts and bad fire seasons.
The governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington state agreed that they would develop a regional target to lower greenhouse gases and create a program aimed at helping businesses reach the still-undecided goals.

"In the absence of meaningful federal action, it is up to the states to take action to address climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in this country," said Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, a Democrat. "Western states are being particularly hard-hit by the effects of climate change."

The agreement is being called The Western Regional Climate Action Initiative.

During the next 18 months, the governors will devise a market-based program, such as a load-based cap and trade program to reach the target. The five states also have agreed to participate in a multi-state registry to track and manage greenhouse gas emissions in their region.

As Al Gore said last night when An Inconvenient Truth won the Oscar for Best Documentary, we have the tools we need to confront the climate crisis, we just need the will to act. If the President can't or won't find will, other won't wait. A group of eastern states has already entered into a similar arrangement.

Posted by at 5:20 PM | Comments (2)

"A Political Purge"

The New York Times chimes in on the U.S. Attorney purge:

Three theories are emerging for why these well-qualified U.S. attorney were fired — all political, and all disturbing.
1. Helping friends. Ms. Lam had already put one powerful Republican congressman in jail and was investigating other powerful politicians. The Justice Department, unpersuasively, claims that it was unhappy about Ms. Lam’s failure to bring more immigration cases. Meanwhile, Ms. Lam has been replaced with an interim prosecutor whose résumé shows almost no criminal law experience, but includes her membership in the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group.

2. Candidate recruitment. U.S. attorney is a position that can make headlines and launch political careers. Congressional Democrats suspect that the Bush administration has been pushing out long-serving U.S. attorneys to replace them with promising Republican lawyers who can then be run for Congress and top state offices.

3. Presidential politics. The Justice Department concedes that Mr. Cummins was doing a good job in Little Rock. An obvious question is whether the administration was more interested in his successor’s skills in opposition political research — let’s not forget that Arkansas has been lucrative fodder for Republicans in the past — in time for the 2008 elections.

The Times also digs up the following factoid:

The Congressional Research Service has confirmed how unprecedented these firings are. It found that of 486 U.S. attorneys confirmed since 1981, perhaps no more than three were forced out in similar ways — three in 25 years, compared with seven in recent months.

Read the full article, here.

Posted by at 1:32 PM | Comments (4)

Trust

Americans trust congressional Democrats over Bush to handle the situation in Iraq by a margin of 54 percent to 34 percent.
- The Washington Post, Feb. 22 and 25, (MoE +/-3)

Posted by at 11:37 AM | Comments (10)

Monday Open Thread

Let's chat...

Posted by at 8:00 AM | Comments (228)

February 25, 2007

Oscar Sunday Open Thread

Who's your favorite Oscar nom? More importantly, who will Al Gore be wearing?

Posted by at 8:00 AM | Comments (228)

February 24, 2007

Saturday Open Thread

We're open for Saturday business...

Posted by at 8:00 AM | Comments (349)

February 23, 2007

John McCain Voted Against Walter Reed Vets

Recently, an investigation by the Washington Post found deteriorating conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, including a “dilapidated” and roach-infested outpatient facility, and complaints that “a nightmarish bureaucracy has left wounded veterans in need.” Defense Secretary Robert Gates called the conditions “unacceptable” and called for an immediate investigation. [ABC News, 2/23/2007]

2008 Presidential contender Senator John McCain, one of the most outspoken supporters of Bush’s plan to send more American troops to Iraq, was equally outspoken about Walter Reed. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, McCain repeated harsh criticism of Donald Rumsfeld and told Georgia Legislators that "the fruits of Rumsfeld's policy were on display at Walter Reed military hospital in Washington... It's well chronicled that the war was mismanaged" [Atlanta Journal Constitution, 2/22/2007]

Why then, did McCain vote last year against providing more money for military and veterans hospitals? In February 2006, McCain voted against a Senate amendment that would have provided for at least $19 billion for these facilities, paid for by eliminating tax cuts for the wealthiest earners. [Senate Roll Call Vote 7, 2/2/06].

Another example of John McCain caring more about jumping on the bandwagon than the tune hes been carrying all along.

Posted by Mike Gehrke at 5:41 PM

For the Vice President

For our Vice President...

con·sen·sus [kuhn-sen-suhs] –noun, plural -sus·es
1. majority of opinion: The consensus of the group was that they should meet twice a month.
2. general agreement or concord; harmony.

So, even though you "aren't a scientist", you should know that when you make statements this this...

JONATHAN KARL: Where is the science on this? Is global warming a fact? And is it human activity that is causing global warming?

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Those are the two key questions. I think there’s an emerging consensus that we do have global warming. You can look at the data on that, and I think clearly we’re in a period of warming. Where there does not appear to be a consensus, where it begins to break down, is the extent to which that’s part of a normal cycle versus the extent to which it’s caused by man, greenhouse gases, et cetera.

...You are just plain wrong. Ask a scientist, like those at the IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change):

In its most recent assessment, IPCC states unequivocally that the consensus of scientific opinion is that Earth's climate is being affected by human activities: "Human activities ... are modifying the concentration of atmospheric constituents ... that absorb or scatter radiant energy. ... [M]ost of the observed warming over the last 50 years is likely to have been due to the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations" [p. 21 in (4)].

And others agree, including the National Academy of Sciences Report, The American Meteorological Society, the American Geophysical Union, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Politicians, economists, journalists, and others may have the impression of confusion, disagreement, or discord among climate scientists, but that impression is incorrect.

Any questions?

Posted by at 2:36 PM | Comments (10)

Pelosi Walks the Walks

So says the Philadelphia Inquirer:

In her first month as House speaker, Nancy Pelosi is demonstrating the spine and skill that prove she is no female lummox of the left.
Sorry, GOP, she's not just another nothingburger Dennis Hastert in a skirt.

Based on her performance, she is much smarter than her undistinguished Republican predecessor, who was little more than a superficially amiable front-man for the narrow-minded right-wingers who really ran the party.

She is more collegial, focused on getting serious things done. And heaven knows, she has far more in the way of personality, energy and collegial instincts to keep her diverse caucus moving...

Not only has she kept the Democratic Caucus moving, but she's kept the House moving. The first 100 Hours delivered on 6 smart campaign promises that Democrats made to the American people.

Speaker Pelosi then moved on to tackle the Iraq issue, giving the American people a chance to see every Member of the House speak their piece before voting on the legislation that expressed the House's support for our troops and opposition to the President's proposed escalation.

In addition, she has been working to reform the way the House does business - with a series commitment to the fact that it is indeed, "The People's House" - ethics reform was just the beginning. Now her office has moved on to aggressively pursue making the process of governing open, honest and transparent via the Open House Project.

It's very impressive, and just another reason I'm proud to see Nancy Pelosi in the Speaker's chair.

As the Inquirer said:

It takes a tough politician to be a great speaker, and so far she's got the goods. Hastert never came close.

For more from Speaker Pelosi, check out her site and her new blog, The Gavel.

Posted by at 12:02 PM | Comments (13)

Senate Democrats Move On Iraq

Via AP:

Determined to challenge President Bush, Senate Democrats are drafting legislation to limit the mission of U.S. troops in Iraq, effectively revoking the broad authority Congress granted in 2002, officials said Thursday.
While these officials said the precise wording of the measure remains unsettled, one draft would restrict American troops in Iraq to combating al-Qaida, training Iraqi army and police forces, maintaining Iraq’s territorial integrity and otherwise proceeding with the withdrawal of combat forces.

The officials, Democratic aides and others familiar with private discussions, spoke only on condition of anonymity, saying rank-and-file senators had not yet been briefed on the effort. They added, though, the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is expected to present the proposal to fellow Democrats early next week for their consideration.

The plan is to attempt to add the measure to anti-terrorism legislation that scheduled to be on the Senate floor next week and the week following.

Jim Manley, a spokesman for Reid, declined to discuss the deliberations, saying only, ”No final decisions have been made on how to proceed.”

Any attempt to limit Bush’s powers as commander in chief would likely face strong opposition from Republican allies of the administration in the Senate and could also face a veto threat.

The decision to try to limit the military mission marks the next move in what Reid and other Senate war critics have said will be a multistep effort to force a change in Bush’s strategy and eventually force an end to U.S. participation in the nearly four-year-old war.

Read the full article, here.

Posted by at 11:01 AM | Comments (15)

TGIF Open Thread

Let's have some fun today...

A friend sent me this, which reminded me that I found Planet of the Apes very disturbing.

This Sunday, the wait is over!

My favorite non-political blog? The Grey's Writers Blog. Simply fantastic. And the fact that last night's episode was penned by one of my favorite Buffy alums. Even better.

And with those fun tidbits, dive on in. The water is fine...

Posted by at 9:35 AM | Comments (239)

February 22, 2007

Answer: Nothing

Hotline's Blog asks:

Overlooked: What's The Matter With NC?
NC is the only southern state which holds its GOV elections during presidential election years. This would presumably be a boost for most GOP GOV nominees, yet NC hasn't elected one since '88, while every other southern state has had a GOP governor at some point over the past 6 years.

As it happens, Democrats in NC are rockin' the 50-State Strategy! Way to go North Carolina! Keep up the good work!

Posted by at 4:43 PM | Comments (2)

Watch It!: The 2007 DNC Winter Meeting Video

The 2007 Democratic Winter Meeting brought together Democrats from all across America and featured presentations from the Democratic Presidential contenders on their ideas for America's future. Check out our video recap!

Also available via YouTube.

Posted by at 2:34 PM | Comments (5)

Pelosi: Cheney's Latest Attack is Beneath the Office of the Vice President

Earlier this month, it was the President who said:

"I welcome debate in a time of war and I hope you know that."

Well, it seems that Dick Cheney didn't get that memo. Yesterday he attacked Speaker Pelosi, Congressman Murtha and the Members of Congress who have voted against the President's plan to escalate the war.

Via ABC:

"I think if we were to do what Speaker Pelosi and Congressman Murtha are suggesting, all we'll do is validate the al Qaeda strategy," Cheney told ABC News.

In a news conference later in the day, Pelosi said:

"You cannot say as the president of the United States, 'I welcome disagreement in a time of war,' and then have the vice president of the United States go out of the country and mischaracterize a position of the speaker of the House and in a manner that says that person ... is acting against the national security of our country,'' Pelosi said in a news conference at the San Francisco Labor Council offices.

Speaker Pelosi later released a statement:

Vice President Cheney continues to question the patriotism of those of us in Congress who challenge the Bush Administration's misguided policies in Iraq, but his latest attack is beneath the office of the Vice President, especially at a time of war.

Mischaracterizations by the Vice President will not dissuade Congress from developing, on a bipartisan basis, a responsible new direction for U.S. policy in Iraq that brings our troops home safely and soon. I hope the President will repudiate and distance himself from the Vice President's remarks.

Today, when asked if the Vice President was out of line the White House responded:

Absolutely not.

It would seem the President has no intention to follow through on his previous calls for bipartisanship and debate. What a surprise.

Congressman Tim Ryan gave a great speech during the Iraq debate that seems appropriate to reference right now. Check out the video and you'll see what I mean.

Posted by at 12:07 PM | Comments (13)

Open Thread

Come on in, the water is fine...

Posted by at 8:58 AM | Comments (288)

February 21, 2007

Live from Carson City...

The AFSCME Democratic candidates’ forum is just wrapping up. While the Republicans spent the day squabbling and dumping dirt, the Democratic candidates addressed problems facing the country like health care, workers rights and the war in Iraq. The forum confirmed that Democrats have fielded a strong team ready to take on Republicans in 2008, and more importantly ready to lead.

Republicans are missing Nevada and they're missing out. They keep running to the right, flip-flopping and trimming their records, while Democrats broaden their base and campaign aggressively throughout the country.

You’ll be able to watch the forum online on ABCNews Now or CSPAN. In the meantime, you could also watch what the other side has been up to:

Recently for example:

The New Smooth Talking Mitt Romney has been working to “evolve” his position on abortion, but continues to be dogged by the positions of the Old Smooth Talking Mitt Romney … like this video from his 2002 Gubernatorial campaign...

John McCain was caught trying to explain why he supported Dick Cheney before he opposed Dick Cheney. Or maybe it was the other way around. In McCain’s eyes, Cheney went from “the most capable, experienced, intelligent and steady vice presidents this country has ever had.” In July 2004 to badly serving the president in January 2007. Dick Cheney says that McCain’s apologized though… “John said some nasty things about me the other day and then next time he saw me ran over to me and apologized.”

And meanwhile, with Health Care becoming the dominant domestic issue, Americans showed that they have practically no confidence in Republicans to deal with that issue. A Wall Street Journal Poll showed that Americans favor Democrats over Republicans on the issue by a 22 point margin -- 50-28.

Michael Gehrke is in Carson City, Nevada for the Democratic Presidential Forum, he is the DNC's Director of Research and is currently coordinating the Democratic Victory 2008 Project.

Posted by Michael Gehrke at 5:31 PM | Comments (6)

Governor Dean: The Bush Administration is Still Out of Touch On Iraq

Today British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that Great Britain will begin to redeploy its troops out of Iraq - a major blow to the Bush White House as it faces mounting criticism to its plan to escalate the Iraq War.

The White House is trying to spin this as good news. Today Vice President Cheney called the decision an "affirmation that there are parts of Iraq where things are going pretty well." But the American people disagree. According to a recent Newsweek poll, only 24 percent of Americans approve of how Bush is handling the war.

Governor Dean:

"Today's announcement is a clear setback for an Administration that is just simply out of step with our allies who are clearly moving in a very different direction in Iraq," said Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean. "After ignoring the lessons of history, the American people, military leaders and bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate, they are now trying to ignore the question as to why thousands of additional troops are being sent to Iraq at the same time that our allies are planning to leave. More troops should not be sent to police a civil war in Iraq, and they certainly shouldn't be sent without the proper lifesaving equipment and training. Like our allies, the Bush White House needs to acknowledge the facts on the ground and provide for a new direction in Iraq."

Posted by at 3:43 PM | Comments (54)

Democrats on TV

C-Span has live coverage of the 2008 Democratic Presidential Forum that is taking place today in Nevada. Tune in.

Feel free to use this as an open thread to talk about Forum specific stuff...

Posted by at 3:00 PM | Comments (93)

On Walter Reed

This weekend, The Washington Post blew the whistle on the "Other Walter Reed" - the one that you don't see when the President is in need of a photo op - the one where soldiers are left to fend for themselves under piles of paperwork, where they are housed in rooms contaminated with mold, mice and roaches, where their families are left out in the cold, without guidance or assistance from the military bureaucracy that has been overwhelmed and understaffed.

It was a shockingly sad report on the conditions that our soldiers face when they return home, especially given the huge sacrifices they have made while serving.

Many members of Congress have commented on the reports of neglect at the post, but it was Congresswoman Slaughter'sand Congressman Murtha's words that seemed to most closely echo my own sentiments.

Louise Slaughter:

"Supporting our troops begins with giving them a mission that makes sense and that doesn't needlessly jeopardize their lives," the Congresswoman continued. "It ends with an unconditional commitment to men and women who have made sacrifices few of us can fully appreciate. If this Administration is going to order soldiers into battle, then it has no right to stand on the sidelines when they come home. We need a serious evaluation of the care being given to our veterans, and must immediately address holes and gaps in a system that can't afford either."
"Critics of the President's escalation of the war are told that they can't both support the troops and oppose their mission," Rep. Slaughter added. "I think that you can't support the troops if you send them into battle without proper armor, or deny them critical medical care and counseling after they are injured. That is the definition of hypocrisy, and our wounded soldiers are paying the price."

Congressman Murtha (via The Gavel):

“It is a disservice to those who have bravely sacrificed and it is a dishonor to their brave service to expose them to these conditions,” Murtha said. “Those who are responsible must be held accountable and immediate rectification must be aggressively pursued.”...
“We owe our men and women in uniform a debt of gratitude and the best care possible. They have more than held up their end and have sacrificed so much. Our government must hold up its end. The troops deserve to know that if they come home wounded that they will get the care and the best possible facilities that they deserve.”

Today, the Washington Post reports on developments at the Walter Reed:

Walter Reed Army Medical Center began repairs yesterday on Building 18, a former hotel that is used to house outpatients recuperating from injuries suffered in Iraq and Afghanistan and that has been plagued with mold, leaky plumbing and a broken elevator.
The facility's commander, Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, said Army staff members inspected each of the 54 rooms at the building and discovered that outstanding repair orders for half the rooms had not been completed. He said that mold removal had begun on several rooms and that holes in ceilings, stained carpets and leaking faucets were being fixed...

...Walter Reed and Army officials have been "meeting continuously for three days" since the articles began appearing, Weightman said. A large roundtable meeting with Army and Defense Department officials will take place at the Pentagon early this morning to continue talks about improvements in the outpatient system, he added.

Weightman said the medical center has received an outpouring of concern about conditions and procedures since the articles appeared and has taken steps to improve what soldiers and their families describe as a messy battlefield of bureaucratic problems and mistreatment.

"We're starting to attack how we'll fix and mitigate" some of the problems, he said.

Social workers will now be stationed around the clock at Mologne House, the 200-room hotel on the post where many of the outpatients live. Plans are being developed to better train other staff members who deal with outpatient needs.

The Gavel, also has new information from the House Armed Services Committee Chairman, Congressman Ike Skelton.

Posted by at 11:40 AM | Comments (23)

Mitt Romney's Extreme Makeover

The Washington Post's Ruth Marcus looks back at Mitt Romney's positions on some hot-button issues circa 2002.

It was also hard to see how a man with deeply held convictions on abortion rights -- either for or against -- could take a position so calibrated and inconclusive. Listening to Romney that day was like watching a chameleon in the fleeting moment that its color changes to suit its environment.

It would seem that his multiple positions and political posturing is the one thing that has been consistent over the years.

Update: I had forgotten about this WaPo column from the weekend, which has an even better title, "The Talented Mr. Romney".

Posted by at 10:42 AM | Comments (5)

Wednesday Open Thread

February 20, 2007

Evening Open Thread

Prime Minister Tony Blair, according to the BBC, is expected to announce a timetable for the withdrawal of UK troops from Iraq.
Helen Thomas is losing her front-row seat after 46 years. Thomas: "I've had a good run in the front seat."
In an effort to fight global warming, Australia plans to phase out incandescent bulbs.
White House Spokesman Tony Snow says President Bush was "aware of the conditions in the wards" at Walter Reed.

Use this as an open thread.

Posted by Michael Link at 8:06 PM | Comments (106)

Pulling the Rug Out

The Democratic Policy Committee put out a new report showing the failure of the president to address issues important to the African American community. It all amounts to paying lip service by touting a desire to reach out while distracting from their actual shoddy record.

Among the findings:

The Black community, however, experienced higher rates of uninsurance, at 7.2 million, or 19.6 percent. [...] Even in the face of this reality, President Bush proposed cuts to vital health care programs that benefit low-income African American families, including children and seniors.

The President's budget proposal fails to adequately fund critical programs that provide educational opportunities for African American students. [...] The President's budget would cut Department of Education discretionary funding by $2.3 billion, or 3.9 percent.

The Bush budget would reduce funding for housing programs that assist African Americans in need.

The Bush budget would cut funding for employment and job training programs that benefit hardworking African Americans.

The Bush budget eliminates key funding for African American small businesses. [...] Supporting these businesses is not only vital to the success of the African American community, it is vital to the success of our nation.

Democratic National Committee Spokesperson Amaya Smith said it best in a statement today, pointing out that "President Bush and Republicans keep touting their desire to reach out to African Americans. Yet, whenever they get the chance they are pulling the rug out from under African American families. The President's misguided and misplaced budget priorities are no different and just offer more of the same."

Posted by Michael Link at 5:12 PM | Comments (13)

Getting Well

There appears to be more good news for Senator Tim Johnson. His office announced this afternoon that he has been discharged from the George Washington University Hospital, where he has been recovering after suffering a brain hemorrhage.

Dr. Philip Marion, the hospital's chief of rehabilitation, said in a statement released by Johnson's office that the senator has made "great progress" and a final test showed no evidence the tangled arteries that triggered the senator's hemorrhage remain.

He will continue recovering at a private rehabilitation facility, and we wish him the best. He continues working hard for the people of South Dakota. He has continued to keep working, reading memos and as the New York Times noted, co-sponsoring "a drought assistance bill."

Posted by Michael Link at 3:39 PM | Comments (4)

Oh Really?

Newt Gingrich spent his Sunday with Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday, claiming that debate in the House and Senate over the Iraq resolution was "crippling" the president, "weakening for America," and "systematically undermining American foreign policy."

He then began telling fantastic tales of make-believe like: "I consistently was supportive of what the president was doing in Bosnia and elsewhere."

But that doesn't square with the facts.

The truth is that Newt Gingrich proposed -- and voted for -- a non-binding resolution of his own rejecting President Clinton's Bosnia policy of "about 20,000 U.S. troops" being deployed. So not only does his hypocrisy on the issue know no bounds, but now he wants to cover it up and pretend it didn't happen?

Newt Gingrich distorting his record and trying to have it both ways? I'm shocked!!!

Posted by Michael Link at 3:16 PM | Comments (4)

Afternoon Open Thread

What are you reading this afternoon?

Posted by Michael Link at 1:51 PM | Comments (118)

Mitt Romney Hides Record On TV

Mitt Romney repeatedly stumbled out of the gate in his attempt to secure the Republican presidential nomination. Beyond the seemingly never-ending flip-flops, there was the leak of an email from the Romney campaign seeking donors to provide corporate jets.

As our press release at the time noted, the leak was "surely an unwanted reminder of the scandal that followed Romney's decision to fly with Pfizer execs and lobbyists on the drug company's private jet when he was considering major health care proposals as governor of Massachusetts."

But now he's on television in select markets in MI, FL, IA, NH and SC stating that he believes "the American people are overtaxed and the government is overfed."

How does that match up with his record?

TAX: The state and local tax burden increased 5.1 percent during Romney's Administration.

TAX: Romney signed a measure allowing a hike in local commercial property taxes; property taxes rose to highest level in 25 years.

TAX: National Conference of State Legislatures: "Massachusetts Imposed More Fee Hikes Than any Other State in the Nation."

FED: Romney's health insurance plan "is a Frankenstein's monster of tax penalties, expanded government-insurance programs and unfunded mandates."

The ad also claims that he "turned around a Democratic state." Maybe he can explain why the Boston Globe cites Romney's "inability to lower the nation's highest unemployment insurance rate, to secure merit pay for teachers, and to reinvigorate the Republican Party." No wonder he left office with a disapproval rating hovering around 60 percent.

UPDATE: From TPM's Election Central: "Romney's campaign spokesman is refusing to detail the size and scope of the ad buy."

Posted by Michael Link at 12:49 PM | Comments (7)

February 19, 2007

Open Thread

What's on your mind?

Chat away...

Posted by at 9:00 AM | Comments (305)

February 17, 2007

Weekend Open Thread

Senate Republicans cowardly blocked debate on the Iraq war again today. Talk about that and whatever else strikes your fancy...

This is an open thread.

Posted by at 3:47 PM | Comments (522)

February 16, 2007

Remaking the Justice Department: U.S. Prosecutor Edition

A few months ago we wrote about the disturbing trend in the Justice Department's Civil Rights division where career attorneys with strong backgrounds in civil rights law were being passed over in favor of attorneys who have less experience, but more conservative credentials.

Well it seems the Justice Department is at it again, engaged in "an effort to make room for rising political favorites of the Bush administration and to be rid of independent-minded prosecutors, all of whom had been appointed by President Bush."

A United States attorney in Arkansas who was dismissed from his job last year by the Justice Department was ousted after Harriet E. Miers, the former White House counsel, intervened on behalf of the man who replaced him, according to Congressional aides briefed on the matter.
Ms. Miers, the aides said, phoned an aide to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales suggesting the appointment of J. Timothy Griffin, a former military and civilian prosecutor who was a political director for the Republican National Committee and a deputy to Karl Rove, the White House political adviser.

Later, the incumbent United States attorney, H. E. Cummins III, was removed without explanation and replaced on an interim basis by Mr. Griffin. Officials at the White House and Justice Department declined to comment on Ms. Miers’s role in the matter.

Paul J. McNulty, the deputy attorney general, said at a hearing last week that Mr. Cummins had done nothing wrong but was removed to make room for Mr. Griffin.

All in all there are at least 7 dismissals that are troubling. For instance:

Another United States attorney asked to resign was Carol C. Lam of San Diego, who departed on Thursday at the request of the Justice Department. Two days earlier, Ms. Lam announced two indictments, including one against a former high-ranking Central Intelligence Agency official, in a corruption inquiry that began with last year’s guilty plea by a former Republican representative, Randy Cunningham, who was sentenced to more than eight years in prison.

Yesterday, TPM Muckracker reported on activity in the Senate, where the Justice Department's actions have been scrutinized since becoming public:

Democrats had sought to push through a bill today that would restore the law on U.S. Attorneys back to its earlier form, before a change was slipped into the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act last year. That change effectively allowed the administration to permanently appoint U.S. Attorneys without Senate confirmation. The bill would set a 120 day deadline to those appointments, when a federal judge would appoint a permanent replacement if the president hadn't nominated one for the Senate to confirm -- which is the way the law was for twenty years before last year's change.

Senator Feinstein offered, "a prolonged tribute to U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, the prosecutor who sent Duke Cunningham to prison, and indicted the former #3 at the CIA on Tuesday...Her last day is today."

In her speech, Senator Feinstein recounted Lam's impressive record and expressed her distress at such a fine prosecutor being "fired without cause".

The Justice department briefed the Senators on the situation, but the Senators are not satisfied with what they have heard.

Senator Schumer:

“Yesterday’s briefing by the deputy attorney general did little to alleviate our concerns that politics was involved and, in fact, raised those concerns,” Mr. Schumer said. “Some may have been fired for political reasons because they may have not done what Justice Department wanted them to do.”

Senator Leahy:

In our hearing last week, Paul McNulty, the second in command at the Department of Justice, testified that Mr. Cummins’ dismissal was not related to how well he did his job. In fact, Mr. McNulty said he had no “performance problems,” but was removed merely to give an opportunity to Mr. Griffin, a person whom he admitted was not the “best person possible” for the job and who is reported to have been involved in an effort during the 2004 election to challenge voting by primarily African-American voters serving in the Armed Forces overseas. This was not a vacancy created by necessity or emergency. This was a vacancy created by choice to advance a political crony.

Senator Feinstein:

With the record I just pointed out, nothing that was said yesterday justifies asking this U.S. attorney to leave without cause -- nothing. That is why this is an issue. I believe their intent was to bring in people from the outside to give some of their bright young people an opportunity. This might not be wrong, if they weren’t also attempting to avoid confirmation. Without confirmation, the Department of Justice could bring in political operatives or anybody else. That is wrong.

I expect this story will continue to develop. The Bush administration has clearly forgotten what oversight is like, and the Democratic members of the United States Congress are going to have no trouble reminding them.

Posted by at 3:58 PM | Comments (9)

House Rejects Bush's Troop Escalation

The House has passed the non-binding resolution opposing the troop escalation in Iraq by a vote of 246-182. The resolution was essentially a vote of no confidence in the Bush Administration's policy in Iraq.

Congress disapproves of the decision of President George W. Bush announced on January 10, 2007, to deploy more than 20,000 additional United States combat troops to Iraq.

The Senate is expected to vote on a similar resolution over the weekend.

Posted by at 3:24 PM | Comments (89)

Quick Hits

The 50-State Strategy: New Jersey Special Election Edition.

A Mom takes yesterday's New York Times editorial and makes it personal over at DailyKos.

Jeffrey Feldman bravely attempts to apply rational thought to the President's speech to the American Enterprise Institution as he deconstructs the President's attempts at applying the principle of horror vacui to Iraq.

House Democrats introduce a new Katrina Recovery Bill.

Is Newt running? And if so, what's he waiting for?

I know Republicans generally like to avoid scientific fact, since it gets in their way so often, but this is just beyond ridiculous.

"Instead of a troop surge, what we need is a truth surge..." Rep. Bernie Thompson during the Iraq floor debate.

Senator Kennedy is stepping up to make sure college is affordable for every American student who wants to seek higher education with his introduction of the Student Aid Reward (STAR) Act.

Posted by at 1:54 PM | Comments (4)

New Members Speak Out

Over at The Gavel you can see clips of our new Democratic Members of Congress speaking out against the escalation on the House floor. It's a beautiful thing.

There is also a set of clips from Democratic veterans, including Congressman Patrick Murphy, who is both a new Member of Congress and a veteran of operation Iraqi Freedom.

Posted by at 11:41 AM | Comments (2)

TGIF Open Thread

Talk about what's on your mind...

Posted by at 9:51 AM | Comments (329)

February 15, 2007

Late Afternoon Linky Thread

Also on the radar this afternoon:

Wondering where the administration got the idea that they would be greeted with open hearts and bouquets of flowers? Maybe it was the prewar slide show that gave the administration their rose-colored glasses?

It's not just the war in Iraq where McCain believes in following failed courses of action and not listening to the evidence. He also supports abstinence-only education, even though these programs have not been shown to protect adolescents from sexually transmitted diseases; in addition, youth who pledge abstinence are significantly less likely to make informed choices about precautions when they do have sex.

When this story breaks, global warming doubters will seize on it as more proof that climate change is a hoax.

Bonus from Iraq Floor Debate: Watching House Republicans like Virgil Goode show the entire nation just how ignorant they are.

Conflict of interest much? Senior justice official buys a home with oil company lobbyist, shortly after ruling in the oil company's favor on a case that involved hundreds of thousands of dollars.

DCCC announces their list of "Frontline" Democrats, more proof that there is no such thing as an "off-year".

This is an open thread...

Posted by at 4:55 PM | Comments (163)

Reid: Senate Will Vote on Iraq

Reid:

“For nearly four years, the Republican-controlled Senate stood silent on the President's flawed Iraq policies and watched as the situation deteriorated into a civil war. The American people have chosen to change course. Democrats have chosen to change course. Unfortunately, Senate Republicans have chosen obstruction. Almost every Republican who expressed concern about the escalation chose to block the Senate from debating the issues.
“Today, Democrats offered Republicans another chance for compromise, suggesting the Senate debate one resolution in favor of escalation and one resolution opposed to escalation. Once again, Senate Republicans refused.

“Democrats are determined to give our troops and the American people the debate they deserve, so the Senate will have another Iraq vote this Saturday. We will move for a clear up or down vote on the House resolution which simply calls on Congress to support the troops and opposes the escalation.

“Those Republicans who have expressed their concern over the Senate’s failure to debate the war in Iraq will have another opportunity to let their actions speak louder than their words.”

The Washington Post has more.

Posted by at 3:52 PM | Comments (16)

Empty GOP Threats and an Overdue Spending Bill

The Republican-dominated Congress failed to fulfill their obligations last year by putting off approving a spending bill funding nearly half the federal government. Senate Democrats, however, passed the spending plan today despite the GOP threatening to block the bill.

Despite the empty threats, the bill passed 81-15. The Washington Post cited the failure of the Republican Congress to approve the appropriation bills:

Congressional Democrats blame Republicans for leaving them a fiscal mess from last year, when Congress approved just two of the 11 appropriations bills and forced them to craft an omnibus bill that would fund a large chunk of the government for the remainder of fiscal 2007.
"Today's action is another step towards cleaning up the fiscal mess left by the 109th Congress," said Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.).

So it appears there will be no "showdown." This is a victory not only for the Senate Democrats who stood up to Republican empty threats, but also for the American people. Here's more information from the Washington Post about the bill that passed in the Senate:

The spending plan would maintain funding for most federal agencies at their 2006 level, but it would add billions of dollars in funding for Democratic priorities such as veterans' health care and Pell grants for higher education.
The additional funding for Pell grants would mean an increase of $260 per year, up to $4,310, for students, according to congressional estimates. The National Institutes of Health will have an additional 500 research grants to administer because of almost $620 million in increased funding.

The Republicans were wise not to block the bill and shut down the government because of their own failure to resolve this in the 109th Congress.

Posted by Michael Link at 3:39 PM | Comments (2)

Culture of Corruption, Hangover Edition

I bet you thought that the corruption files had been closed. After all, we did get rid of the do-nothing rubberstamp Republican Congress. Well, it would seem these things linger, like a hangover, and are still around the next day.

Take Nevada Governor, Republican Jim Gibbons:

Federal prosecutors are investigating whether Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons accepted unreported gifts or payments from a company that was awarded secret military contracts when Mr. Gibbons served in Congress.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is examining whether any gifts or payments violated federal contracting rules or were offered in exchange for official acts by Mr. Gibbons, people briefed on the investigation said. Mr. Gibbons, a Republican, represented Nevada for five terms in Congress, where he served on the House Intelligence and Armed Services committees, and was sworn in as governor last month.

The close ties between the congressman and the contractor, Warren Trepp, were disclosed in a Nov. 1 Wall Street Journal article, which revealed that Mr. Gibbons accepted private jet flights and a Caribbean cruise from the software-company owner. Mr. Gibbons says accepting the cruise and flight didn’t violate House ethics rules.

New evidence has emerged that includes emails to Mr. Trepp — the majority owner of eTreppid Technologies LLC and the former chief trader for convicted junk-bond dealer Michael Milken — discussing a payment or gift to then-Rep. Gibbons. They also show Mr. Gibbons repeatedly using his congressional office to help the firm seek classified military and civilian contracts.

The emails show that since at least 2003, Mr. Trepp maintained close ties to Mr. Gibbons, who helped eTreppid get no-bid software contracts from the Air Force, U.S. Special Operations Command and Central Intelligence Agency. Messrs. Trepp and Gibbons have denied any wrongdoing, and no charges have been filed; indeed, such investigations sometimes end without official action.

On March 22, 2005, days before Mr. Trepp and his wife embarked on the Caribbean cruise with the congressman and his family, Jalé Trepp sent a reminder to her husband. “Please don’t forget to bring the money you promised Jim and Dawn,” referring to Mr. and Mrs. Gibbons. Minutes later, Mr. Trepp responds, “Don’t you ever send this kind of message to me! Erase this message from your computer right now!” Mr. Gibbons failed to disclose the cruise and travel on Mr. Trepp’s leased private jet, as required by House ethics rules. He later asked the House Ethics Committee for an exemption, but left office before any action was taken.

(Emphasis added)

This is the second major story the Wall Street Journal has published raising questions about whether Gov. Gibbons used his position in Congress to help a contributor secure contracts.

Gibbons has been in office just less than two months, but already he has embarrassed the state with a bizarre midnight swearing-in, little understanding of his own budget, a baffling energy program and an investigation into whether his top campaign advisor tried to pressure a woman into dropping assault charges against Gibbons. The string of gaffes has earned him the nickname among some bloggers as "the nation's worst governor."

There is some good news in the story, if not for Jim Gibbons, at least for the American people:

The FBI declined to comment on the investigation, which appears to be in a preliminary stage. The bureau has stepped up its pursuit of public-corruption cases, and says it now has about 620 agents working on federal, state and local cases, compared with 260 in 2002.

As we said post-election 2006, RIP Culture of Corruption.

Posted by at 3:03 PM | Comments (6)

Watching the Privacy Watchdog

In keeping with the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, some lawmakers in Washington seek to make the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board more independent from the president. According to the Washington Post, the House version would "remove the board from the Executive Office of the President but keep it within the executive branch and give it subpoena power."

As the commission's vice chairman, Lee H. Hamilton, said yesterday: "We felt that you had to have a voice within the executive branch that reached across all of the departments of government with strong powers to protect our civil liberties."
But the five-member Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board is resisting proposals that would dramatically change its composition and powers. The battle is another sign of the changed political landscape, with the Democratic-controlled Congress pushing for stronger oversight of the Bush administration's counterterrorism programs.

The board, which took office in March 2006, made news in December when they held their first public meeting, where they "refused to answer any questions from the press, and stonewalled privacy advocates and academics on key questions about domestic spying."

Wired News:

Raul acknowledged in a roundabout way that the [warrantless wiretapping] data existed, but said it was too sensitive to release. Graves then asked if the board had pushed to have that data made public, as the Justice Department is required to do with typical spy wiretaps.
Raul declined to say. "It is important for us to retain confidentiality on what recommendations we have and haven't made," he said.

"Congress put us in the office of the president, we didn't," Davis said. "Had Congress wanted us to be an incensement agency, it would have made us independent."

So now there is a push from the Congress to make the body more independent from the president. Because the Bush administration has frequently misled the American people on privacy issues, such as the domestic spying program collecting information on law-abiding citizens, some are looking to this board to serve as a watchdog.

Posted by Michael Link at 2:11 PM | Comments (1)

CDA: There's Something Happening Here

Wondering what College Dems are up to? Well you don't have to wonder for much longer. First, College Democrats have recently debuted their very own YouTube channel - CDA TV. Check out CDA President Lauren Wolfe in the latest installment where she talks about the College Democrats organization and what it's like to be President of the organization.

Then check out their blog, Smart Ass, where Lauren blogged about the College Dems experience at the DNC Winter Meeting, where in addition to attending the meeting, College Dems held their national Leadership Summit:

The College Democrats had their strongest showing ever at the DNC's Winter Meeting last weekend. Over 300 students had the opportunity to hear from all the Democratic presidential candidates and student leaders were given extensive training on how to build a better state federation. CDA unveiled its plan for a new website, we launched our new fundraising program, and we were able to highlight our New Media Team. College Dems were able to contribute to the DNC Caucus Meetings, cheer in the general session and take part in exciting events throughout DC!

Also at the meeting, CDA Communications Director, Ethan Porter, sat down with Matt Stoller of MyDD and chatted about about the organization's latest steps. Matt observed:

College students have turned Democratic quite strongly, and college Democrats are beginning to capture this group. Porter is saying that there is a national field plan for college Democrats, but also that chapters themselves create field plans unique to their localities. Bard College, in Gillibrand's district, increased turnout on their campus by 100%. In UConn, students increased turnout substantially in Joe Courtney's district, a district that Courtney won by 67 votes. Joe Sestak found help from college students, as did candidates all over the map in 2006. The compelling new piece of information here though is that college Democrats themselves are planning and executing field programs...
...Dean himself is creating a more open and respected place for college Democrats at the DNC. There are for instance 450 DNC members here, and 200 college Democrats with space reserved for them. Dean is also pushing money to college field plans, so that students have what they need to execute.

It's exciting to see the work that is happening to mobilize college voters and to engage them in the political process, not just in blue states, not just in an election year, but every year and in every state. Lauren told me that her goal is to see a CDA chapter on every campus in America that is active and organized. It's a great goal and one that is completely possible.

If you want more info on College Democrats, check out their website at http://www.collegedems.com.

Posted by at 1:35 PM | Comments (2)

Employee Free Choice Act Clears House Committee

Just last week the Employee Free Choice Act was introduced in the House of Representatives, and already it has cleared one significant hurdle: the House Education and Labor Committee.

From the AFL-CIO blog:

The House Education and Labor Committee beat back attempts to weaken or kill the Employee Free Choice Act, then voted late Wednesday to send the bill to the full House for a vote in the coming months.

The committee vote was 26-19 in favor of advancing the legislation (H.R. 800), which was introduced Feb. 5 and has the bipartisan support of 233 co-sponsors.

[...]

The most significant of several amendments offered by Republican opponents of the bill would keep workers from forming a union by majority sign-up even when their employer agrees. It would force workers to continue to try to win a voice at work through the flawed National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election procedures.

Not surprisingly, the Republican opponents offered up amendments that would gut the Employee Free Choice Act. Another reason to be thankful for a Democratic majority in the House -- committee majorities. Most bills must be voted on by a House committee before a final vote in the full House of Representatives can take place. We expect the final House vote on the Employee Free Choice Act to occur in the next few months. At that time there will surely be more shenanigans by House Republicans.

Posted by at 1:04 PM | Comments (1)

If It Weren't For Those Pesky Facts...

Over at Talking Points Memo, Greg Sargent covers the GOP's obsession with the "liberal" media. It's actually a really great deconstruction of how those GOPers, who are always bent on the so-called bias against them, think.

A taste:

The problem with the liberal media, according to these two top Republicans, is that it's enabling Americans to understand the consequences of the war. But the media's bias is preventing it from reporting the "consequences" of not doing what the President wants.

And just in case you have any doubt as to any bias in the media, check out Media Matters, which documents the media distortions daily.

Posted by at 1:02 PM | Comments (2)

Go Figure...

This morning on CBS News during the segment where they were discussing yesterday's press conference (the one that left us with a whole lot of more questions), reporter Bill Plante said:

Mr. Bush seemed irritated at the suggestion that his government was relying on faulty intelligence.

He seemed irritated? At the suggestion that his administration was being questioned about doing something again that they