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December 29, 2005
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Sunday's Links
Activism
Send an Iraq War Veteran to Congress. With all the talk about the 2006 elections, we don't want to forget the important ones this year. There's an open House seat in Ohio, and a special election will be held on August 2, just 9 days from now. Democrat Paul Hackett can win this election, but he needs our help. Blog for America has the link to ActBlue, and MyDD has the link to Citizens for a Sound Government, both of which will show you how to volunteer. What are you waiting for?
News
DeLay Gets By With Less Help From Hill Friends. Tom DeLay has resurfaced, briefly, in a report on research conducted by Public Citizen, a liberal advocacy group. According to their analysis of contributions to his legal defense fund, only two other House members donated money during the last quarter. The fund has raised over a million dollars since it was formed five years ago. In past quarters the fund has been more successful; DeLay's colleagues contributed more than four times as much the previous quarter, and the quarter before that nearly seventy percent of the quarter million the fund reported receiving. The declining numbers are interpreted as a loss of support by Public Citizen, but the fund's trustee said it only indicated that they hadn't been focused on fundraising.
US Defiant After London Attacks. The BBC interviews travelers flying from Washington Dulles airport to London, and finds that despite the bombings in London, travel companies are reporting few trips to the UK are cancelled. Americans are concerned about the increased terror attacks, but (for the most part) determined to go about their normal schedules. According to an ABC/Washington Post poll, seventy three percent of Americans are worried about another major terrorist attack in the US - the same as the national average since the 9/11 attacks. Just days ago, Bush evoked the July 7 bombings in a speech supporting renewal of the Patriot Act in full, and the House of Representatives later voted to extend most provisions of the Patriot Act indefinitely.
CIA Vet's Harsh Retort to Rove's Spinners. In an unofficial hearing held today by Senate Democrats, former CIA case officer and former prosecutor James Marcinkowski delivered a stinging rebuttal of main GOP talking points in the Rove/Plame leak. Marcinkowski rebuked the administration for endangering national security with a partisan smear campaign to silence Joseph Wilson's dissenting voice, and explained in detail the notion of "cover," and how it applied to Plame. He also discussed the threat to national security inherent in showing the world that your government's leaders are willing to put politics first, potentially alienating sources who might think twice about coming forward. Does this leak, and the administration's actions pertaining to it, undermine the credibility of case officers in the field? How do you recruit a source when you can't, literally can not, guarantee them protection?
Editorials
Spiritual Activism: The Religious Left Fights Back Ö On All Fronts. As Van Jones writes, Rabbi Michael Lerner is another religious figure who is fed up with the religious right's claims that they are being repressed. He recently held a "Spiritual Activism" conference for the religious left (doesn't that have a nice ring to it?) Jones also discusses his personal problem with Democrats and the way that many "don't get" religion. Lerner is right when he says that the Democratic party has problems that it needs to fix when it comes to religion. Question is, how are we going to do it?
An Empty Apology. We'll bet that you didn't know that Ken Mehlman, head of the RNC, went before the NAACP last week and apologized for the RNC's "reprehensible, decades-long Southern strategy." Only, the RNC still uses the same tactics. The RNC still employs a racist strategy in the South. Think of Reagan in Philadelphia, MS. Think of H.W. and Willie Horton. Think of W. and Bob Jones University and Buddy Dyer. Then tell us that the party is "sorry."
Excuse Me, but Do You ENJOY Being In the Minority?? This Think Progress editorial is very good. It shows the questions that Democrats should have asked at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee meeting that interviewed Karen Hughes. The questions are well thought out, and aren't a witch hunt, as they each document evidence to show their relevance. Only, they didn't ask these questions. In fact, they didn't ask any questions, because they didn't show up. The bigger question out of this editorial, and the reason for the title, is why Democrats didn't show up? Biden cites previous commitments, but there are eight Democrats on the Committee, including Barak Obama, John Kerry and Barbara Boxer. What was so important that they couldn't show up? Maybe, as the title suggests, elected Democrats DO enjoy being the minority. But we don't. We've already called Paul Sarbanes's office to ask what was so damn important that he couldn't make it. If you live in Deleware (Joe Biden), Maryland (Paul Sarbanes), Connecticut (Christopher Dodd), Massachusetts (John Kerry), Wisconsin (Russ Feingold), California (Barbara Boxer), Florida (Bill Nelson) or Illinois (Barak Obama), we strongly encourage you to do the same. Find your Senator's contact information here.
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December 29, 2005
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Sunday's Links
Activism
Send an Iraq War Veteran to Congress. With all the talk about the 2006 elections, we don't want to forget the important ones this year. There's an open House seat in Ohio, and a special election will be held on August 2, just 9 days from now. Democrat Paul Hackett can win this election, but he needs our help. Blog for America has the link to ActBlue, and MyDD has the link to Citizens for a Sound Government, both of which will show you how to volunteer. What are you waiting for?
News
DeLay Gets By With Less Help From Hill Friends. Tom DeLay has resurfaced, briefly, in a report on research conducted by Public Citizen, a liberal advocacy group. According to their analysis of contributions to his legal defense fund, only two other House members donated money during the last quarter. The fund has raised over a million dollars since it was formed five years ago. In past quarters the fund has been more successful; DeLay's colleagues contributed more than four times as much the previous quarter, and the quarter before that nearly seventy percent of the quarter million the fund reported receiving. The declining numbers are interpreted as a loss of support by Public Citizen, but the fund's trustee said it only indicated that they hadn't been focused on fundraising.
US Defiant After London Attacks. The BBC interviews travelers flying from Washington Dulles airport to London, and finds that despite the bombings in London, travel companies are reporting few trips to the UK are cancelled. Americans are concerned about the increased terror attacks, but (for the most part) determined to go about their normal schedules. According to an ABC/Washington Post poll, seventy three percent of Americans are worried about another major terrorist attack in the US - the same as the national average since the 9/11 attacks. Just days ago, Bush evoked the July 7 bombings in a speech supporting renewal of the Patriot Act in full, and the House of Representatives later voted to extend most provisions of the Patriot Act indefinitely.
CIA Vet's Harsh Retort to Rove's Spinners. In an unofficial hearing held today by Senate Democrats, former CIA case officer and former prosecutor James Marcinkowski delivered a stinging rebuttal of main GOP talking points in the Rove/Plame leak. Marcinkowski rebuked the administration for endangering national security with a partisan smear campaign to silence Joseph Wilson's dissenting voice, and explained in detail the notion of "cover," and how it applied to Plame. He also discussed the threat to national security inherent in showing the world that your government's leaders are willing to put politics first, potentially alienating sources who might think twice about coming forward. Does this leak, and the administration's actions pertaining to it, undermine the credibility of case officers in the field? How do you recruit a source when you can't, literally can not, guarantee them protection?
Editorials
Spiritual Activism: The Religious Left Fights Back Ö On All Fronts. As Van Jones writes, Rabbi Michael Lerner is another religious figure who is fed up with the religious right's claims that they are being repressed. He recently held a "Spiritual Activism" conference for the religious left (doesn't that have a nice ring to it?) Jones also discusses his personal problem with Democrats and the way that many "don't get" religion. Lerner is right when he says that the Democratic party has problems that it needs to fix when it comes to religion. Question is, how are we going to do it?
An Empty Apology. We'll bet that you didn't know that Ken Mehlman, head of the RNC, went before the NAACP last week and apologized for the RNC's "reprehensible, decades-long Southern strategy." Only, the RNC still uses the same tactics. The RNC still employs a racist strategy in the South. Think of Reagan in Philadelphia, MS. Think of H.W. and Willie Horton. Think of W. and Bob Jones University and Buddy Dyer. Then tell us that the party is "sorry."
Excuse Me, but Do You ENJOY Being In the Minority?? This Think Progress editorial is very good. It shows the questions that Democrats should have asked at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee meeting that interviewed Karen Hughes. The questions are well thought out, and aren't a witch hunt, as they each document evidence to show their relevance. Only, they didn't ask these questions. In fact, they didn't ask any questions, because they didn't show up. The bigger question out of this editorial, and the reason for the title, is why Democrats didn't show up? Biden cites previous commitments, but there are eight Democrats on the Committee, including Barak Obama, John Kerry and Barbara Boxer. What was so important that they couldn't show up? Maybe, as the title suggests, elected Democrats DO enjoy being the minority. But we don't. We've already called Paul Sarbanes's office to ask what was so damn important that he couldn't make it. If you live in Deleware (Joe Biden), Maryland (Paul Sarbanes), Connecticut (Christopher Dodd), Massachusetts (John Kerry), Wisconsin (Russ Feingold), California (Barbara Boxer), Florida (Bill Nelson) or Illinois (Barak Obama), we strongly encourage you to do the same. Find your Senator's contact information here.
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December 29, 2005
Send an Iraq War Veteran to Congress. With all the talk about the 2006 elections, we don't want to forget the important ones this year. There's an open House seat in Ohio, and a special election will be held on August 2, just 9 days from now. Democrat Paul Hackett can win this election, but he needs our help. Blog for America has the link to ActBlue, and MyDD has the link to Citizens for a Sound Government, both of which will show you how to volunteer. What are you waiting for?
News
DeLay Gets By With Less Help From Hill Friends. Tom DeLay has resurfaced, briefly, in a report on research conducted by Public Citizen, a liberal advocacy group. According to their analysis of contributions to his legal defense fund, only two other House members donated money during the last quarter. The fund has raised over a million dollars since it was formed five years ago. In past quarters the fund has been more successful; DeLay's colleagues contributed more than four times as much the previous quarter, and the quarter before that nearly seventy percent of the quarter million the fund reported receiving. The declining numbers are interpreted as a loss of support by Public Citizen, but the fund's trustee said it only indicated that they hadn't been focused on fundraising.
US Defiant After London Attacks. The BBC interviews travelers flying from Washington Dulles airport to London, and finds that despite the bombings in London, travel companies are reporting few trips to the UK are cancelled. Americans are concerned about the increased terror attacks, but (for the most part) determined to go about their normal schedules. According to an ABC/Washington Post poll, seventy three percent of Americans are worried about another major terrorist attack in the US - the same as the national average since the 9/11 attacks. Just days ago, Bush evoked the July 7 bombings in a speech supporting renewal of the Patriot Act in full, and the House of Representatives later voted to extend most provisions of the Patriot Act indefinitely.
CIA Vet's Harsh Retort to Rove's Spinners. In an unofficial hearing held today by Senate Democrats, former CIA case officer and former prosecutor James Marcinkowski delivered a stinging rebuttal of main GOP talking points in the Rove/Plame leak. Marcinkowski rebuked the administration for endangering national security with a partisan smear campaign to silence Joseph Wilson's dissenting voice, and explained in detail the notion of "cover," and how it applied to Plame. He also discussed the threat to national security inherent in showing the world that your government's leaders are willing to put politics first, potentially alienating sources who might think twice about coming forward. Does this leak, and the administration's actions pertaining to it, undermine the credibility of case officers in the field? How do you recruit a source when you can't, literally can not, guarantee them protection?
Editorials
Spiritual Activism: The Religious Left Fights Back Ö On All Fronts. As Van Jones writes, Rabbi Michael Lerner is another religious figure who is fed up with the religious right's claims that they are being repressed. He recently held a "Spiritual Activism" conference for the religious left (doesn't that have a nice ring to it?) Jones also discusses his personal problem with Democrats and the way that many "don't get" religion. Lerner is right when he says that the Democratic party has problems that it needs to fix when it comes to religion. Question is, how are we going to do it?
An Empty Apology. We'll bet that you didn't know that Ken Mehlman, head of the RNC, went before the NAACP last week and apologized for the RNC's "reprehensible, decades-long Southern strategy." Only, the RNC still uses the same tactics. The RNC still employs a racist strategy in the South. Think of Reagan in Philadelphia, MS. Think of H.W. and Willie Horton. Think of W. and Bob Jones University and Buddy Dyer. Then tell us that the party is "sorry."
Excuse Me, but Do You ENJOY Being In the Minority?? This Think Progress editorial is very good. It shows the questions that Democrats should have asked at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee meeting that interviewed Karen Hughes. The questions are well thought out, and aren't a witch hunt, as they each document evidence to show their relevance. Only, they didn't ask these questions. In fact, they didn't ask any questions, because they didn't show up. The bigger question out of this editorial, and the reason for the title, is why Democrats didn't show up? Biden cites previous commitments, but there are eight Democrats on the Committee, including Barak Obama, John Kerry and Barbara Boxer. What was so important that they couldn't show up? Maybe, as the title suggests, elected Democrats DO enjoy being the minority. But we don't. We've already called Paul Sarbanes's office to ask what was so damn important that he couldn't make it. If you live in Deleware (Joe Biden), Maryland (Paul Sarbanes), Connecticut (Christopher Dodd), Massachusetts (John Kerry), Wisconsin (Russ Feingold), California (Barbara Boxer), Florida (Bill Nelson) or Illinois (Barak Obama), we strongly encourage you to do the same. Find your Senator's contact information here.
