Disqus - Friends of MrLynn

Re: Democrats Lose Another Veto Challenge

SouthernRoots — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 17:15:07 -0000

We the People of the United States, ...[to] insure domestic Tranquility, ... promote the general Welfare, ...do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

This is about how the big spenders read the Constitution.

Re: The Silly Season Keeps Congress In Session

SouthernRoots — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:25:15 -0000

Here is the Senate rule on quorums. We should have Republicans use it.

Standing Rules of the Senate
RULE VI
QUORUM - ABSENT SENATORS MAY BE SENT FOR
1. A quorum shall consist of a majority of the Senators duly chosen and sworn. 2. No Senator shall absent himself from the service of the Senate without leave. 3. If, at any time during the daily sessions of the Senate, a question shall be raised by any Senator as to the presence of a quorum, the Presiding Officer shall forthwith direct the Secretary to call the roll and shall announce the result, and these proceedings shall be without debate. 4. Whenever upon such roll call it shall be ascertained that a quorum is not present, a majority of the Senators present may direct the Sergeant at Arms to request, and, when necessary, to compel the attendance of the absent Senators, which order shall be determined without debate; and pending its execution, and until a quorum shall be present, no debate nor motion, except to adjourn, or to recess pursuant to a previous order entered by unanimous consent, shall be in order.

Re: The Silly Season Keeps Congress In Session

SouthernRoots — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:29:39 -0000

I'm curious about this as well. Was it just a phrasing issue, or do we really have Congress nominating appointments? How is it that Congress has any business making "picks for the executive branch" other than confirmation votes? Isn't this a trampling of the separation of powers? Does the executive branch have any "picks for the legislative branch"?

Senate sources said Reid made the decision after he was unable to strike a deal with White House officials that would have allowed swift consideration of several key Democratic picks for the executive branch. In his statement, Reid points to the Federal Communications Commission, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and Nuclear Regulatory Commission as examples where Democratic choices have not been moved along.
“Up until recently, the President has generally discharged that obligation,” Reid said. “In the last several months, however, the administration has been stalling progress on Democratic appointments.”
Democrats have feared Bush would look to use the upcoming break to appoint some of his own nominees that may not otherwise clear the Senate. In particular, concerns have centered on the appointment of James Holsinger as surgeon general, who has met criticism from gay rights organizations and opposition from key Senate Democrats.

Re: More Independence At Justice

SouthernRoots — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 12:53:27 -0000

Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey issued new restrictions yesterday on contacts between Justice Department and White House officials regarding ongoing criminal or civil investigations,...

Of course, Congress never gets out of line by interfering with or pestering DoJ regarding ongoing criminal or civil investigations. When will new restrictions be placed on the channels they can use?

Re: Hillary: Have A Wonky Christmas, On You

SouthernRoots — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 12:37:35 -0000

Gee, I would have thought that all of these packages would have been much bigger.

Santa Clinton has all of these "gifts" for us, but what wasn't shown was the lump of coal (taxes) that she also is more than happy to put in our stockings.

What's the going rate for eutopia these days?

Re: Will Bush Cancel Congress' Christmas?

SouthernRoots — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 12:48:04 -0000

I think the point is conference reports possibly are not "portions of laws passed". They are tacked on after Congress votes on the actual bill, they have not been specifically voted on by the whole congress.

For those that eschew presidential signing statements as unconstitutional, where are you now with conference reports that, in effect, are the congressional equivalent?

Re: Experience By Osmosis

SouthernRoots — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 13:26:43 -0000

What annoys me the most about Senators that run for president is they have all these "plans" about how they will "fix" things when they become president.

They are Senators. Write these ideas up as bills. Work to pass the legislation. You have the power - heck, it's even in your job description! Do it TODAY. Why wait another year or two if these ideas are so good? Too much work? Sounds good on the evening news, but isn't really workable? Had it written up but your dog ate your legislation?

Get going! If these ideas are so worthy, why aren't they written up as legislation and being pressed in Congress at this very moment? If you had been the main sponsor and drivers of this legislation and you got it passed, think of how that would have looked on your resume.

By the way Hill and Barry, if you become president, these ideas will have to originate in the House or Senate anyway, you won't be able to decree them - get the ball rolling today.

At least Silky has an excuse; he is a former Senator, former Presidential candidate, and former Vice Presidential candidate. He currently doesn't hold any position of public power or trust, so he doesn't have a direct way to initiate legislation. He's really just biding his time until universal healthcare can be established and then he will go back to lawsuits where he can now sue the deeper pockets of the single payer government medical service. He'll be richer in less time than it takes to do his hair.

Re: Happy New Year

SouthernRoots — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 20:59:25 -0000

"Dick" doesn't always go to prison....

http://www.komotv.com/news/...

SEATTLE -- The State Patrol says a 51-year-old Lynnwood man who was arrested over the weekend has been arrested a total of 15 times for drunk driving and has five driving under the influence convictions.

Robert Castle's driver's license is already revoked, and he has three outstanding warrants.

Trooper Jeff Merrill said the man's arrest on Saturday afternoon qualifies as a felony DUI, meaning he could face a stiffer sentence if he is convicted.

His name is Robert, but he is a Dick to me. But what does it say about our "enlightened" legislature too?

Re: Does The Peacock Have A Brown Beak?

SouthernRoots — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 14:02:36 -0000

Were any of these Journalist's Code of Ethics violated by this interview?

Distinguish between advocacy and news reporting. Analysis and commentary should be labeled and not misrepresent fact or context.

Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived.

Remain free of associations and activities that may compromise integrity or damage credibility.

Be vigilant and courageous about holding those with power accountable.

Re: There's No Crying In Softball!

SouthernRoots — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:39:49 -0000

ABC News' Kate Snow Reports: Campaigning in New Hampshire one day before the first-in-the-nation primary, Senator Hillary Clinton got emotional and had tears in her eyes as she spoke with voters about her passion for the country.

Jazz, you'll need to go to several sites to refute the Hillary tearing up story. The Captain didn't make it up and it appears to have been reported in other venues besides MM or CQ.

Re: There's No Crying In Softball!

SouthernRoots — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 16:23:40 -0000

I watched the vid. Her eyes were wellin'. Did it flow down her cheek, no, but that doesn't change the fact that the tear pump was being primed - ABC was reporting it, not localized to blogs.

Of course, it would have been nice to see the response from the other 87 candidates to the same question, "My question is very personal, how do you do it?" .... "How do you, how do you keep upbeat and so wonderful?". But, alas, it doesn't appear that this is a stock question for all candidates.

Re: If It's An Election, There Must Be A Conspiracy

SouthernRoots — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 12:03:06 -0000

I've heard about this law from other places as well. Is it really true? If so, could registration records be inspected (by a curious news organization...) to determine how many same day registrations came from non residents?

If this aspect were investigated and reported, it would answer at least one part of the surprising turn of events.

Re: Poor, Poor Pitiful Me

SouthernRoots — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:56:02 -0000

If Hillary can't stand the heat, she should get out of the kitchen.

Compared to being the president, campaigning is nothing.

Look at what GWB has had to put up with since December of 2000. Would Hillary be able to hold up under that type of pressure or scrutiny? If she thinks her current competitors are being "unfair" in their criticism, could she withstand criticism similar to what GWB receives on a daily basis?

If she thinks a campaign is hard, could she hold up to the stress of:

A contested election, with half the country screaming for a boycott of your presidency?
A hostile Congress controlled by many that do not believe you were officially elected?
A crisis with China when a surveillance aircraft was forced down?
9/11 where terrorists hijack aircraft and bring down two large buildings and fly into the Pentagon killing thousands?
Afghanistan.
Iraq. Bush made the decision, he has stayed with his decision despite the slings and arrows shot his way. Can Hillary make a tough decision like that and maintain her resolve to carry it through, regardless of what it means to her politically and no matter how vicious her critics become?
Can Hillary cope with rejection? When she reaches out to someone and they bite her hand off, can she cope?
When other world leaders openly degrade her, call her names, or are gruff – can she handle it?

Or will she go to a soft venue get emotional and complain about how hard it is?

Re: Barack's Nightmare?

SouthernRoots — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 15:52:22 -0000

From Drudge:

49.01% Current Nevada Democratic Caucus Results:
CLINTON 50.03%
OBAMA 44.51%
EDWARDS 5.15%

Re: A Solution In Search Of A Problem?

SouthernRoots — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:08:17 -0000

The houses affected by the mortgage problems didn't vanish. They still exist.

The banks will foreclose and then resell the houses. They will start earning interest payments again.

Hillary is promising a freeze on mortgage rates - if she is elected. This means that she will do absolutely nothing for a whole year!

She is currently a Senator. Why has she not introduced a bill already to freeze interest rates - if it is such a good idea? Where is her bill for health insurance? Where is her bill for alternative energy advancement?

For all of those sitting Senators (or Congressmen) currently running for President and promising to do something after they are elected - why have you not proposed bills for your promises to the current Congress? If they are such damn fine ideas and so desperately needed, why do the American people have to wait yet another year?

Why won't CNN, NBC, ABC, FOX, MSNBC, CBS, NPR, NYT, WaPo, NIA, CIA, NCIS, FBI, or any other news outlets ask those questions? Would it be better if a snowman asked?

Sorry, rhetorical question.

Re: Bush's Pork Focus Not Popular On The Hill

SouthernRoots — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 18:16:50 -0000

POWER FORBIDDEN TO CONGRESS

Article 1, Section 9, [7] No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.

If it isn't in the bill, it isn't Constitutional - rules be damned.

All three branches of government have the individual responsibility to react to anything another branch does that might be unConstitutional. Forcing the earmarks ("Money ... drawn from the Treasury") to actually be in the bill should have been a "no-brainer".

One of the reasons the Republicans lost elections in 06 was due to their Big Government spending. Their earmarks should have been disallowed as well. Democrats saying that, though they are doing the same thing, it is on a "smaller scale" doesn't matter.

No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law

Re: Time For Spector To Get A Hobby

SouthernRoots — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:16:11 -0000

Every single Senator or Congress[person] that has served two terms or more is a poster-child for term limits.

Re: It Keeps Growing, And Growing, And Growing, And ....

SouthernRoots — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 19:06:57 -0000

"In six years, the budget has grown 33%. Do you feel better served by that increase? "

Heck, here in Washington State, we have a Democratic Governor, and a virtual super-majority in the Senate and House.

We had 33% budget growth in only three years. We have another month or two until we know how much more the budget will increase this year.

Even if we didn't have a war to spend money on, under a Democratic President and Congress, we wouldn't be spending any less - we would be spending more, just less on defense.

Most of the Democrats complaints about our spending isn't that it is too much, it is typically that we don't spend enough and spending on the war is the only place they declare that we spend too much.

Re: Can't Anyone In Washington Handle An Election?

SouthernRoots — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 11:45:30 -0000

The way I understand it, there wasn't even a "vote". The "results" were taken from the sign in forms where the attendee wrote in their presidential preference.

The "votes" and "assignments" after sign in did not specifically address presidential candidates.

Re: Can't Anyone In Washington Handle An Election?

SouthernRoots — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:32:01 -0000

Huckabee "lost" the presidential preference write-in - there was no "vote".

The results of the caucus will eventually result in only 49% of delegates (this particular caucus didn't actually award any delegates). The primary next week will be an actual vote and will directly lead to 51% of delegate assignments.

Therefore, unless McCain had an overwhelming majority of presidential preference write-ins on the caucus sign in sheet (he didn't), the primary election will be the final arbitor on who "won" Washington.

Gotta wait for the 19th before you get all bent out of shape.

Re: A Walk Down Terrorist Memory Lane

SouthernRoots — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 15:13:07 -0000

OK, this was the week before Obama's staff moved in. And you literally say Obama hung a picture in Houston.

How about, "Workers setting up Obama's Houston campaign office allowed themselves to be filmed and photographed - as official Obama campaign supporters - in front of a Cuban flag with Che Guevera's photo."

Sounds just as good as, "Hillary received the endorsement of Hispanic legislators after her husband, President Clinton, pardoned FALN terrorists".

Re: RNC Unveils The Spendometer As They Focus On Obama

SouthernRoots — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 14:05:37 -0000

Only $65 billion for health care? The Democrats in the Washington Legislature have proposed a healthcare bill that would impose taxes of over $8 billion a year for only 6.5 million residents. (Not sure what they would actually spend).

A national plan that is only 8 times bigger than my little old State?

If Obama or Clinton would impose their "universal healthcare" in a similar manner as that proposed by my legislators, the annual bill would be more along the lines of $369 trillion a year ($1230 per person, 300 million people in the U.S.).

Or maybe my State's plan should be closer to $1.5 billion a year.....

Re: RNC Unveils The Spendometer As They Focus On Obama

SouthernRoots — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 15:31:43 -0000

Thanks jvandahm. After awhile, all these numbers run together - my checking account doesn't use as many zeroes.

You're right though. My point is that either Obama's plan is far from "comprehensive", or that my State's plan is overstated.

Either way, the combined tax hits are tremendous.

Re: RNC Unveils The Spendometer As They Focus On Obama

SouthernRoots — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 16:01:46 -0000

digital electricity grid

Probably means that it's either on or off. Californians under Grey Davis know what that is.

Re: Ban On Waterboarding Wins Approval

SouthernRoots — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 08:48:47 -0000

I agree with docjim505. I can see terrorists the world over giving each other "high-fives". After reading about POW treatment in WW2, Korea, Vietnam, and seeing how AQ has treated Americans they have captured, I do believe that we have lost sight of what real torture is. I think it is a mistake to have a narrowly defined set of interrogation methods and that those methods are made painfully public.

Since we can't waterboard to extract time sensitive information any more, maybe we can make a video collage of campaign speeches (past and present) and use them to disorient and breakdown terrorists.

Congress has the Constitutional power to create laws. That they sit back and bellyache about something for years without passing laws to alleviate the problems (as they see them) is beyond credulity.

What is especially galling to me are the sitting Senators that run for President. They will solve all the world's problems - after they are elected President. They have the power - right now - to create bills to address the problems as they see them. They did last year, too. Why does America have to wait for them to be elected before they take action? And they say that Bush acts like a "dictator".