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Thursday, January 24, 2008

Remind me again why we're supposed to be "unified" behind Democrats
Posted by Jill | 5:41 AM
Kudos to Keith Olbermann, who seems to be the last journalist in America to remember that there are still three candidates in the Democratic presidential race, instead of just making sure that everyone is so disgusted with the Clinton/Obama nastiness that they just stay home on February 5th.

Meanwhile, back at the hackocracy in Washington, Harry Reid, who's supposed to be the Senate Majority Leader, said majority being Democrats, is once again being the Republicans' bitch. As Glenn Greenwald notes, Reid, who has never once forced a filibuster from the Republicans, is about to force one from Chris Dodd, should he dare to thwart the drive to give the telecommunications companies retroactive immunity from prosecution for its massive, warrantless, and yes, illegal, surveillance program:

Harry Reid -- who has (a) done more than any other individual to ensure that Bush's demands for telecom immunity and warrantless eavesdropping powers will be met in full and (b) allowed the Republicans all year to block virtually every bill without having to bother to actually filibuster -- went to the Senate floor yesterday and, with the scripted assistance of Mitch McConnell and Pat Leahy, warned Chris Dodd, Russ Feingold and others that they would be selfishly wreaking havoc on the schedules of their fellow Senators (making them work over the weekend, ruining their planned "retreat," and even preventing them from going to Davos!) if they bothered everyone with their annoying, pointless little filibuster.

To do so, Reid announced that, unlike for the multiple filibusters from Republican colleagues, he would actually force Dodd and company to engage in a real filibuster. This is what Reid said:

[I]f people think they are going to talk this to death, we are going to be in here all night. This is not something we are going to have a silent filibuster on. If someone wants to filibuster this bill, they are going to do it in the openness of the Senate.

That is what Democrats have been urging Reid to do to the filibustering Republicans all year -- in order to dramatize their obstructionism -- but he has refused to make them actually filibuster anything, generously agreeing instead that every bill requires 60 votes. Instead, he reserves such punishment only for the members of his own caucus trying to take a stand for the rule of law and the Constitution, those who are trying finally to bring some accountability to this administration.


That's right, folks -- Our Senate Majority Leader is in cahoots with Mitch McConnell to make sure that George W. Bush's evisceration of the Constitution is made legal and permanent, and that those who engaged in these activities before Harry Reid decided that whatever campaign cash is being funnelled into his pockets was more important than the Constitution, are never held accountable.

Greenwald cites this comment to show exactly what is going to become legal, thanks to Harry Reid...the leader of the so-called "opposition party".

The problem we have goes way beyond the fact that there is absolutely zero opposition to unfettered executive branch and corporate power in our government. The bigger problem is that Americans just plain don't care. Far too many have no idea what's in the Bill of Rights, and too many of those who do actually know what the Fourth Amendment says:


The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.


...just don't care about it. "I have nothing to hide, and if that's what the government needs to keep us safe from terrorists, I'm all for it."

That's an actual quote from someone with whom I had a conversation recently. This person is a conservative Republican who is disgusted with George W. Bush and planning to vote for Barack Obama, but is still willing to cede his freedoms to an all-powerful executive branch in the name of "safety." That's "safety", not safety. It's a notion of safety instead of actual safety, and that's enough. When I asked this person why the ports are still unsecured, or why he's OK with having his phone calls to his mother recorded while nothing has been done to secure our ports and air security is a joke, he has no answer. Of course he has no answer -- because to open his eyes and look at how this Administration and this Congress, with the help of the very Democrats who are supposed to represent some kind of check on this madness, is to realize that We the People have allowed this to happen -- and now it's too late.

As for the two Democratic frontrunners and the ex-president who wants another crack at it, they're busy putting more energy into trying to mortally wound each other than either of them has ever put into trying to uphold the Constitution, hold George W. Bush accountable for the 935 lies about Iraq told by his Administration in the run-up to war, or any of the other tasks that a Senator from the opposition party ought to be doing in their legislative role of providing checks and balances to an Administration run amok. They're giving lip service to opposing immunity, but somehow I don't think this is going to translate to returning to Washington to help Chris Dodd (whose boots neither of them is fit to wipe) with the filibuster.

Both Clinton and Obama claim to be opposed to telecom immunity, but neither have committed to a filibuster. And don't hold your breath waiting for them to do so. They're too busy handing the November election to the Republicans.

Meanwhile, in other news of Democratic fecklessness, remember the subpoenas issued to White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers over their refusal to testify about the firing of the U.S. attorneys? Oh, well, the Democrats were just kidding about that, too. Rule of law? Oh, sorry, sir...madam. we forgot back in July that we're supposed to just kiss your asses. Well, we'll do something about that right now:
House Democrats will postpone votes on criminal contempt citations against White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers, while congressional leaders work with President Bush on a bipartisan stimulus package to fend off an economic downturn, according to party leaders and leadership aides.

Senior Democrats have decided that holding a controversial vote on the contempt citations, which have already been approved by the House Judiciary Committee as part of its investigation into the firing of nine U.S. attorneys, would “step on their message” of bipartisan unity in the midst of the stimulus package talks.

Bush, citing executive privilege, has refused to allow Bolten or Miers to testify before the House Judiciary panel about the prosecutor purge. And former deputy White House chief of staff Karl Rove was barred by the administration from appearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the same issue.

“Right now, we’re focused on working in a bipartisan fashion on [the] stimulus,” said House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), indicating that the contempt vote is not expected for weeks, depending on how quickly the stimulus package moves.

Brendan Daly, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), said “no decision has been made” as to when a criminal contempt vote would be held by the House.


I've got my money on "the twelfth of never" on that one.

What a relief it must be to Nancy and Steny and Harry, that they don't have to deal with the unpleasantness of having to, oh, say, UPHOLD THE FUCKING LAW. Instead, they can work in perfect harmony with Congressional Republicans to print money backed by nothing and hand it out to American voters just in time for election day, hoping that a few hundred bucks will shut them up until after the election -- when by the time they do their 2008 taxes next year and realize that they now owe money because of the "rebate" they got this year, it'll be too late for them to do anything about it. And then it'll be another year till they have to run for re-election anyway.

All this as the one candidate who recognizes that the system is broken is further and further marginalized by the media -- and by Americans who are now too worried about their dwindling 401(k) savings and their plummeting home values and their tenuous job security to even pay attention.

(h/t: Digby and Dday)

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3 Comments:
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Jill,

Surely you know that Nancy's and Harry's phones are tapped. Indeed, since all Democrats support terrorists and want nothing more than to see them win in Iraq, they might even be able to get a FISA warrant. [And even if terrorism didn't exist, W & Co wouldn't pass the opportunity to 'follow' the activities of their key opponents!]

It's probably not a coincidence that Verizon is the local phone company in DC, Va, and Md. They used to run the Federal system and probably still do, but it goes out to bid every once in awhile! And I haven't followed who the latest winner was! [Given the vagueries of law, it might not actually be necessary for the 'federal' government to get a warrant to tap the 'federal' telephone system. Does GE need a warrant to listen in on employee phone calls made on company phones? emails are certainly not protected. Indeed, companies are expected to monitor employee email against abuse!]

I wouldn't be at all surprised if Rove read the transcripts over breakfast. Might still! I'm sure he passed along the juicier bits to W and they both laughed together.

So why are Nancy and Harry so determined to let Verizon off? They know what's on the tapes! Can you say "Cayman Islands bank account!"?
1/24/08, 10:59 AM  
Blogger Jayhawk said...
I do not agree with much that Senator Clinton says, and I strongly disagree with her, "What's really important is to install a Democrat in the White House in 2009."

What's really important is to get the incumbents out of all branches of our government, regardless of party affiliation.
1/24/08, 11:19 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Amen, Jay!
I've got my own form of term limits. I almost never vote for the incumbent. Being the incumbent is a HUGE NEGATIVE in my book.
ONE TERM is more than enough for the critters to do damage and I see no reason to aid and abet...
1/24/08, 2:53 PM  
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