Our Judges Or Else!

Cheney: Bush backs conservative judges - Yahoo! News: "WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney assured a conservative lawyers' group on Friday that the Republican loss of Congress would not dissuade President Bush from nominating more judges who believe in interpreting rather than making law.

'Throughout our time in office, the president has selected judges who understand their role in the constitutional system,' Cheney told the Federalist Society.

'And I assure you, nothing that's happened in the last two weeks will change his commitment to nominating first-rate talent like John Roberts and Sam Alito,' Cheney said, referring to the two members of the Supreme Court named by Bush..."

More Anti-Pelosi Nonsense

When Corporate Hacks Attack

'You can get caught with your fly open and diddling a teenage page and elicit sympathy, while a drug hoarding radio host gets a pass for using his housekeeper as a pusher. That same host can then get caught with sex drugs in a bogus bottle at an airport, coming back from an all male weekend in one of the child sex capitals of the world, but his radio show doesn't miss a beat. Meanwhile, the former (we assume) foot fetishist Dick Morris is still Sean Hannity's favorite hack, pontificating out his pie hole about all things anti-Hillary. Oliver Iran-contra North has his own TV show, with former felon G. Gordon Liddy holding court on radio. A compulsive gambler is not only kept on radio, but given a spot on CNN, while telling the world about morals. Newt Gingrich, the disgraced speaker of the House and multiple marriage man, is still the go-to guy for Hannity on Fox. A man who reportedly married his third cousin (then divorced her), one of 2 (or is it 3?) marriages, just announced his presidential bid; the other GOP bidder a self-proclaimed philanderer, as well. But God help you if you're a woman against a war with a champion you want to promote to leadership; a person who helped raise the war debate to a campaign issue that carried your party to power, but loses that race. Let the corporate clucking begin.

Make no mistake about it, Murtha falling short of majority leader was a loss for Pelosi. So what? She stood by the man who brought the Iraq war into the debate and changed the subject from "stay the course" to "change course and redeploy." Steny Hoyer was gracious in his overwhelming win, as was Speaker-elect Pelosi, making it clear that Murtha's power lives on to fight the fight in his subcommittee, where he holds the defense purse strings for the war. Pass the president the Tumms..."

Taylor has a load of links this topic here.

SurveyUSA® Home Page

Go here and pick John Edwards as the Democrat then compare. Edwards appears to be a good choice.

Congrats to SurveyUSA® Home Page for a nifty map.

Soft On Drugs?

Andrew Sullivan | The Daily Dish: Quote for the Day: "'Alcohol and tobacco cause many more deaths in users than do drugs. Decriminalization would not prevent us from treating drugs as we now treat alcohol and tobacco: prohibiting sales of drugs to minors, outlawing the advertising of drugs and similar measures. Such measures could be enforced, while outright prohibition cannot be. Moreover, if even a small fraction of the money we now spend on trying to enforce drug prohibition were devoted to treatment and rehabilitation, in an atmosphere of compassion not punishment, the reduction in drug usage and in the harm done to the users could be dramatic.

This plea comes from the bottom of my heart. Every friend of freedom, and I know you are one, must be as revolted as I am by the prospect of turning the United States into an armed camp, by the vision of jails filled with casual drug users and of an army of enforcers empowered to invade the liberty of citizens on slight evidence,' - Milton Friedman, in a 1990 open letter to Bill Bennett, big government conservative."

Shocked Suer

AMERICAblog: A blog for a great nation that deserves the truth: "Tasered UCLA student retains prominent civil rights lawyer, plans massive law suit
by John in DC - 11/17/2006 11:42:00 AM

Good for him. It's about time we took back our country. In America we don't taser people for not having IDs in a school library. We don't taser people for civil disobedience - i.e., sitting on the floor when you ask them to leave. We don't taser people for simply being a jerk. Civil rights exist for a reason - they exist to protect you especially when the authorities think you're being a jerk. UCLA just embarrassed itself in front of the entire world. How the administration responds to this incident will affect its reputation for decades to come.

More info here, including a student-shot video of the incident..."

Huff Right On Murtha Vote

The Blog | Arianna Huffington: Murtha Loses... But It's Still a Victory for Pelosi | The Huffington Post: "...So even though Murtha won't be Majority Leader, he is still the one Democrats need to follow on Iraq -- the clearest, most passionate voice breaking through the cacophony trying to give new life to staying the course or, even worse, upping the ante in Iraq.

And don't shed any tears for Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi. Even though her guy lost, this was still a big win for her. A victory for taking a stand -- and for her leadership. Because that's what real leaders do, they take stands. They listen to their hearts and follow their gut. If you only jump into the fights you're sure you can win -- notches in the W column that will look good on your political resume -- you're a hack, not someone who can move the party and the country forward. It's not about trying to have a spotless record; it's about knowing which battles are worth fighting, whatever the outcome.

It bodes well for Pelosi that she was willing to spend her political capital right off the bat -- especially on the issue that will define her time at the helm. Far too many modern politicians save their political capital until it's lost all its value."

Exactly correct.

Sexy Lott

Trent Lott, sex machine | CorrenteWire

Submitted by lambert on Thu, 2006-11-16 22:58. Department of All The Damn Gall | Republicans | Trent Lott

Jonah Goldberg:

Nobody disputes that Lott could be a great minority whip. He was elected precisely because he has the skills a minority whip needs: an intimate [!] knowledge of the institution, and the ability to shake down colleagues for votes. Lott is detail oriented, collegial with an Old World gentility — as well as a certain sexual confidence befitting a former cheerleader at Ole Miss.

I’m speechless.

Mind reels. Stumbles away...

Uh, We're Not Racist Or Anything

Hotline On Call: Putnam Wants To Know: Where Were The Rednecks?: "Putnam Wants To Know: Where Were The Rednecks?

“White rednecks” who “didn’t show up to vote for us” partly cost GOPers their cong. majorities, Rep. Adam Putnam (R-FL) told fellow Republicans today. And Putnam, seeking the post of GOP conference chair, chided ex-Chair J.C. Watts (R-OK) for ruining the conference’s ability to serve its members.

Three Republicans in the room independently confirmed to the Hotline the substance and context of Putnam’s remarks. But Putnam’s chief of staff insists that the remarks were taken out of context..."

...as opposed to those black, brown, yellow, and copper rednecks we've been looking for.

Wingnut Awards

The Poor Man Institute » Golden Winger Official Unofficial Pre-Nominations: "We won’t be officially starting the 2nd Annual Golden Winger Awards for another 6 weeks or so, but, as I’ve not been following wingnuttia as closely this year, I thought I’d solicit early nominations so we’d get a good crop to start off with, something really representative of the whole year’s wingnuttery, just so it will be that much more annoying when everybody votes for some stupid shit that happened last week like last year..."

Submit your favorites at the link.

More Hate From Home

Firedoglake - Firedoglake weblog » Late Nite FDL: The Inevitable Fall of the Pajamahadeen: "...And Mary Katherine Ham wonders why I don't want to rub shoulders with her at a party and make nicey-nice! These people are ultimately exactly the same as the radical Islamic clerics and jihadis they claim to oppose, and it's time we called them out as such. The Right Blogosphere is a cesspool of boiling hate and howling insanity and we need to stop pretending that these are people who can be engaged rationally, appeased, or tolerated. They stand in direct opposition to everything that America is about, freedom of speech, plurality of ideas, and equality before the law regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, and ideological or spiritual affiliation. To Malkinites, ALL MUSLIMS ARE KILLERS, ALL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARE DANGEROUS, and ALL LIBERALS ARE 'UNHINGED'..."

This goes nicely with Ms. Atlas calling for the murder of State Department officals.

Zapped In A Lab

UCLA Student Tasered by UCLA Police for not showing ID

This video is generating quite a discussion over at Crooks and Liars.

Shafting the Troops, Part 3

Wounded vets continue to have payroll problems according to ABC New's The Blotter: "...In an interview earlier this year, the Commander of the United States Army Finance Command told ABC News that wounded soldiers like Kelly will no longer be reported to credit bureaus or have debt collectors sent them.

But the payroll problems continued. A few months after our interview, the General Accounting Office released a report saying hundreds of soldiers have been wrongly saddled with debt.

The Finance Command has not responded to requests made by ABC News for an update on efforts to fix the payroll problems."

Just damn peachy.

Liberal Pledge

From the "Good Email" Department:

A Liberal's Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives

November 14th, 2006

To My Conservative Brothers and Sisters,

I know you are dismayed and disheartened at the results of last week's election. You're worried that the country is heading toward a very bad place you don't want it to go. Your 12-year Republican Revolution has ended with so much yet to do, so many promises left unfulfilled. You are in a funk, and I understand.

Well, cheer up, my friends! Do not despair. I have good news for you. I, and the millions of others who are now in charge with our Democratic Congress, have a pledge we would like to make to you, a list of promises that we offer you because we value you as our fellow Americans. You deserve to know what we plan to do with our newfound power -- and, to be specific, what we will do to you and for you.

Thus, here is our Liberal's Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives:

Dear Conservatives and Republicans,

I, and my fellow signatories, hereby make these promises to you:

1. We will always respect you for your conservative beliefs. We will never, ever, call you "unpatriotic" simply because you disagree with us. In fact, we encourage you to dissent and disagree with us.

2. We will let you marry whomever you want, even when some of us consider your behavior to be "different" or "immoral." Who you marry is none of our business. Love and be in love -- it's a wonderful gift.

3. We will not spend your grandchildren's money on our personal whims or to enrich our friends. It's your checkbook, too, and we will balance it for you.

4. When we soon bring our sons and daughters home from Iraq, we will bring your sons and daughters home, too. They deserve to live. We promise never to send your kids off to war based on either a mistake or a lie.

5. When we make America the last Western democracy to have universal health coverage, and all Americans are able to get help when they fall ill, we promise that you, too, will be able to see a doctor, regardless of your ability to pay. And when stem cell research delivers treatments and cures for diseases that affect you and your loved ones, we'll make sure those advances are available to you and your family, too.

6. Even though you have opposed environmental regulation, when we clean up our air and water, we, the Democratic majority, will let you, too, breathe the cleaner air and drink the purer water.

7. Should a mass murderer ever kill 3,000 people on our soil, we will devote every single resource to tracking him down and bringing him to justice. Immediately. We will protect you.

8. We will never stick our nose in your bedroom or your womb. What you do there as consenting adults is your business. We will continue to count your age from the moment you were born, not the moment you were conceived.

9. We will not take away your hunting guns. If you need an automatic weapon or a handgun to kill a bird or a deer, then you really aren't much of a hunter and you should, perhaps, pick up another sport. We will make our streets and schools as free as we can from these weapons and we will protect your children just as we would protect ours.

10. When we raise the minimum wage, we will pay you -- and your employees -- that new wage, too. When women are finally paid what men make, we will pay conservative women that wage, too.

11. We will respect your religious beliefs, even when you don't put those beliefs into practice. In fact, we will actively seek to promote your most radical religious beliefs ("Blessed are the poor," "Blessed are the peacemakers," "Love your enemies," "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God," and "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."). We will let people in other countries know that God doesn't just bless America, he blesses everyone. We will discourage religious intolerance and fanaticism -- starting with the fanaticism here at home, thus setting a good example for the rest of the world.

12. We will not tolerate politicians who are corrupt and who are bought and paid for by the rich. We will go after any elected leader who puts him or herself ahead of the people. And we promise you we will go after the corrupt politicians on our side FIRST. If we fail to do this, we need you to call us on it. Simply because we are in power does not give us the right to turn our heads the other way when our party goes astray. Please perform this important duty as the loyal opposition.

I promise all of the above to you because this is your country, too. You are every bit as American as we are. We are all in this together. We sink or swim as one. Thank you for your years of service to this country and for giving us the opportunity to see if we can make things a bit better for our 300 million fellow Americans -- and for the rest of the world.

P.S. Please feel free to pass this on.

Shakespeare's Sister Hearts Edwards

Shakespeare's Sister: "Tonight, while watching John Edwards on The Daily Show, a great appearance which culminated in Edwards giving absolutely the right response to the Seat of Heat question (if he’d been vice president, who would he have shot in the face? “Dick Cheney.”)..."

Good post about one of my favorites.

Reapin' 'N Sowin' Department

The Plank

Deep thoughts from Grover Norquist on the midterms:

"Sherwood's seat [in Pennsylvania] would have been overwhelmingly ours, if his mistress hadn't whined about being throttled," said Mr Norquist. Any lessons from the campaign? "Yes. The lesson should be, don't throttle mistresses."

Yeah, especially if they're just going to whine about it afterwards...

--Bradford Plumer

Torture Memos

Andrew Sullivan | The Daily Dish: "For the first time, the CIA has admitted that two critical government memos ordering torture from the president and the Justice Department do indeed exist. They insist they will not be released to the public. Money quote:

The ACLU describes the first as a 'directive' signed by Bush governing CIA interrogation methods or allowing the agency to set up detention facilities outside the United States. McPherson describes it as a 'memorandum.' In September, Bush confirmed the existence of secret CIA prisons and transferred 14 remaining terrorism suspects from them to Guantanamo Bay.

The second document is an August 2002 legal memo from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel to the CIA general counsel..."

Echoing Reagan

Missoulian - Democrats to control Legislature, for now: "HELENA - It took only one strange day, but Montana Democrats now have carved out tenuous majorities in both houses of the 2007 Legislature, thanks to a party-switching senator and four more votes that erased a Republican winner in a Laurel House district.

In the state Senate, tied 25-25 between Democrats and Republicans after last week's elections, Republican Sen. Sam Kitzenberg of Glasgow said Monday he plans to switch parties, giving Democrats a 26-24 majority.
“I'm a moderate, and there is no room left in the Republican Party for moderates,” Kitzenberg said. “I'm not leaving the Republican Party; it has basically left me.”

And in the House, Rep. Emelie Eaton, D-Laurel, picked up four more votes Monday in the counting of provisional ballots, forging a tie with House District 58 opponent Krayton Kerns, a Republican from Laurel..."

From The "A Win Is A Win" Department

Recount gives Courtney win in 2nd District - Boston.com: "By Susan Haigh, AP Political Writer | November 14, 2006

HARTFORD, Conn. --A roller-coaster recount that uncovered vote-counting flaws in several Connecticut towns gave Democrat Joe Courtney a narrow victory over three-term Republican Rep. Rob Simmons on Tuesday.

Courtney won by 91 votes instead of the 167-vote margin counted on election night, according to results tabulated by 65 town clerks and reported to The Associated Press. Nearly 250,000 votes were cast..."

Fair Elections

Crooks and Liars » Look Back in Anger

American Prospect:

Democrats have their majority in the House, and that's cause for celebration. But as of this writing several House races are still listed as "too close to call." The Senate has also changed hands — after the Virginia race narrowly escaped a recount, and Republicans came close to challenging the results in Montana and Missouri. Whether Democrats possess enough of a congressional majority to truly put fear into Republicans, and add backbone to Democrats nervous about challenging the president, is still very much in the air.

Meanwhile, we are forced to reckon with an uncomfortable question. Republicans cheat. To what extend did their cheating on Election Day keep the will of the people from being fully registered? Just how close did it come to keeping the new majority from arriving? And what does the kind of cheating we saw Tuesday — and its antecedents in the past and its likely echoes in the future — portend for the project of turning liberalism once again into the dominant force in American politics? Read on…

Fox Outed

Click to go to HuffPo and see the memo:
FOX NEWS INTERNAL MEMO: "Be On The Lookout For Any
Statements From The Iraqi Insurgents...Thrilled At The Prospect Of A Dem Controlled Congress"... | The Huffington Post