Republicans Vote Against Moms; No Word Yet on Puppies, Kittens

Video at Think Progress

Peter Spiegel & Greg Miller | Washington | May 7

LA Times - Amid criticism of a lack of oversight on spending, the U.S. has denied or deferred about $81 million in requests from Pakistan, the Government Accountability Office says.

The Pentagon has rejected or deferred millions of dollars in military aid requests from Pakistan amid criticism that the Islamabad government has squandered U.S. funding and allowed Al Qaeda to rebuild a haven in its western tribal regions.

In February, the Defense Department turned down or delayed more than $81 million requested by Pakistan, according to a report issued Tuesday by the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress.

The rejection represents a small portion of the nearly $1 billion a year Pakistan has received through a program called Coalition Support Funds, launched after the Sept. 11 attacks.

But it marks a sudden change in U.S. policy toward Pakistan, which for years has spent American military aid without having to show results in the fight against Al Qaeda and other militant groups. Even some officials in the Pentagon have acknowledged shortcomings in U.S. funding strategy.

Jennifer Loven | Washington | April 29

AP -
Bush Blames Congress for Not Passing Foreclosure, Gas Bills
The President Says Congress Is Not Sending Him Bills That He Can Sign

President Bush says Congress is blocking his proposals to deal with high gas prices and dragging its feet on legislation to make more student loans available and ease the mortgage crunch.

Bush told a Rose Garden news conference Tuesday that it's a "tough time for our economy." He said Americans were "understandably anxious" about the economy.

By Bob Geiger

Citing "the Bush administration's failure to take aggressive action to enforce and punish wartime fraud," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) on Friday introduced legislation to crack down on the massive fraud and theft by some defense contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan and allow the government to criminally prosecute guilty parties even after the war is over.

S. 2892, the Wartime Enforcement of Fraud Act of 2008, would close a loophole in the 66-year-old Wartime Suspension of Limitations Act, that allowed the government to investigate and prosecute contracting fraud up to three years after the end of a war, but that does not apply to the current Bush-McCain war in Iraq because it was never formally declared.

It’s amazing how ideas that were rejected just a year ago are flying through cyberspace as well as real-space, at the speed of light. I’m talking about two things here. The first I’ll mention is the idea that both the Democrats and the Republicans’ are pawns of the corporate power structure in this country. It will probably seem hard to believe now, but just a short time ago I was called all sorts of things for bringing that up. Since 2004, I have been writing about campaign financing and the need for reform. This one issue is the basis of corporate control along with the “good folks” on K-Street that staff 70 lobbyist’s for every legislator we have on Capitol Hill. Gee, what a great system we have up there (for the legislators and the lobbyists). I can’t wait to run for office myself so I can get in on those goodies they’re passing out (only kidding), this can’t last forever…or can it?

Pablo Bachelet | Washington | April 19

McClatchy - An empowered Democratic Party has taken command of U.S. policy toward Latin America, stalling a free-trade agreement and taking aim at military aid programs for Colombia and Mexico.

This assertiveness began after Democrats took control of Congress in early 2007, but it took a dramatic turn in recent weeks, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi derailing an effort by President Bush to force a vote on a free-trade agreement with Colombia.

Beyond taking aim at military aid, Democrats say they want a new approach toward Latin America.

Dodd proposed a new ''strategic partnership'' based on broader public security and rule of law, poverty and inequality and energy integration.

He said changing the long-standing U.S. embargo against Cuba would help Washington reengage with Latin America.

I have been writing about the same things for years now. I have been writing against the loss of our freedoms, the draconian laws that have been enacted in order to “protect” us from people that “hate us for our freedom”, I have written about the corporations that have tied this nation to war and more war. Even though my message has been the same, I find that my writing has fallen on deaf ears as of late. In fact, my writing, because of my criticism of this phony two-party system that has led us to where we are now, I have been banned from OpEdNews.com, DailyKos.com.TPMMuckracker.com, and left me with a small sidebar on SmirkingChimp.com.

This has been coming for a long time. I’ve been watching the politicians in Washington very closely to see exactly how they intended to manage an administration that is so extremely neo-conservative that they are dangerous to this country and the world. I’ve seen heroic stances by some like Dennis Kucinich, Bernie Sanders, Patrick Leahy, Russ Feingold and even Ron Paul. However, this is not enough. We’ve seen Cynthia McKinney disenfranchised as well as others that have stood up to tyranny and war. Meanwhile, while all of this has taken place, the Democratic Party has been split down the middle and has offered no protection or support to any that oppose the horrendous regime in Washington.

Personally, I think another free trade deal at the current time is a bad idea. And as I wrote last night I think Pelosi was making the right moves demanding something of Bush before a vote and not accepting promises after. We all know how well Bush keeps his promises. So, Pelosi did it today. She hosed the president. And I disagree with Nelson: I think she did a good thing. But I'll let you read Nelson and decide for yourself:

Today's other "bomb" was exploded by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. As promised, the Democrats un-did Fast Track by a 224-195 vote, in order to avoid being forced to start the 90-day clock on the Colombia FTA.

From the Nelson Report:

SUMMARY: Speaker Nancy Pelosi says the House will vote tomorrow to change the rules right out from under the Administration's attempt to force a vote on the Colombia FTA within 90 days.

Cue cries of outrage from said Administration, business and financial leaders, bemusement from worried trade partners, and general confusion, including, "can they DO that?"

Answer: you bet. Fast Track is a rule of the House and Senate (separately) and can be changed any time you have the votes.

Question: OK, but is this a good idea?

Answer: it depends...are the Dems still serious about negotiating (our argument), or is this a lame, transparent effort to avoid being blamed for a strategic disaster (as some in the Administration's fear)?

A brave and agreeable statement from Sen. Menendez:

Dear President Bush:
1400 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington DC

We are writing to express our concerns about the Chinese government's continued human rights violations and urge you not to attend the opening ceremonies at the Olympic Games in Beijing this summer. The Chinese government's unwillingness to acknowledge or address their record of human rights violations is in direct conflict to the spirit of the Olympic Games, and the United States cannot just accede to the Chinese government with our attendance.

The recent developments in Tibet, in which Buddhist monks and other ethnic Tibetans were violently punished and in some cases killed for participating in protests, are disturbing and should be unacceptable to anyone who believes in basic human freedoms. Furthermore, these developments also seem to confirm that the Chinese government, which has long disrespected the rights of its citizens, has failed to sufficiently improve its conduct when confronted with citizens who happen to

April 7

The Hill - Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic attempt to revive a controversial wiretapping law for 30 days on Monday night, leading to a mini-squabble on the chamber floor over the Bush administration’s program.

Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) had asked for unanimous consent for the month-long extension to allow more time for House-Senate negotiations.

Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) objected, saying the temporary fix was inadequate. The objection essentially blocks Reid’s extension request.

Washington | April 7

NYT - Sometimes on Capitol Hill, lawmakers find that it pays to ask nicely instead of just ordering the bureaucrats around.

With great fanfare, Congress adopted strict ethics rules last year requiring members to disclose when they steered federal money to pet projects. But it turns out lawmakers can still secretly direct billions of dollars to favored organizations by making vague requests rather than issuing explicit instructions to government agencies in committee reports and spending bills. That seeming courtesy is the difference between “soft earmarks” and the more insistent “hard earmarks.”

How much money is requested for any specific project? It is difficult to say, since price tags are not included with soft earmarks. Who is the sponsor? Unclear, unless the lawmaker later acknowledges it. Purpose of the spending? Usually not provided.

How to spot a soft earmark? Easy. The language is that of a respectful suggestion: A committee “endorses” or notes it “is aware” of deserving programs and “urges” or “recommends” that agencies finance them.

Related: Despite earmark reforms, 'pork' spending rises

Andrew Clark | New York | April 4

The Guardian - · Senate committee told of threat to financial system
· JP Morgan agreed deal only with Fed's backing

The head of the crisis-hit investment bank Bear Stearns has blamed short sellers and market manipulators for spreading negative financial rumours to induce a collapse of the 85-year-old Wall Street institution.

Bear's chief executive, Alan Schwartz, told the senate's finance committee in Washington that his firm had been as well-capitalised as its rivals but it suffered an evaporation of confidence last month fuelled by falsehoods.

"As an observer of the markets, it looked like more than just fear," said Schwartz. "It looked like people wanted to induce a panic."

He told senators that he never dreamed a run on the bank could happen so quickly. Bear lost $10bn of liquidity in a single day, with its financial resources plummeting from $12.4bn to $2bn on March 13 as customers, trading partners and investors fled.

"The minute we got a fact out, a different set of rumours would start," said Schwartz, who testified that the "nature and pattern" of the damaging whispers made him suspicious they were being circulated deliberately. He urged regulators to investigate the debacle. "There are laws against market manipulation and there used to be laws against spreading rumours about banks," he said.

Andrew Taylor | Washington | April 2

AP - Momentum built Wednesday for a bipartisan Senate bill designed to ease the slumping housing market and help millions of families threatened by foreclosure, though economists are skeptical that it will help much.

The scaled-back proposal released by Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and GOP leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky contains an amalgam of ideas aimed at boosting demand for housing and helping homeowners saddled with subprime mortgages avoid foreclosure.

The plan contains $4 billion in grants to local governments to buy and refurbish foreclosed homes, new authority for states to issue bonds to be used to refinance subprime mortgages and a $7,000 tax credit for people buying new homes or properties in foreclosure.

``It is a robust package,'' Reid said. ``This is good news for the American people.''

But economists across the political spectrum were skeptical that the measure would have much practical effect to ease the wrenching crisis in the housing market and the wave of foreclosures spreading across the country.

Gail Russell Chaddock | April 3

CSM -

Despite promises on both sides of the aisle to cut back on "pork-barrel" spending, Congress served up 11,610 member-sponsored projects in spending bills for FY 2008 at a cost to taxpayers of $17.2 billion.

That's the second-highest number of pet projects since Citizens Against Government Waste began counting 18 years ago, according to CAGW's annual Pig Book, released Wednesday. Since 1991, the public tab for "pork" spending is a budget-busting $271 billion.

"When Congress adopted earmark reforms last year, there was hope that the number and cost of earmarks would be cut in half," says CAGW President Tom Schatz. "That has not occurred."

Yet there are signs Congress is getting the message that the public is fed up with pork – at least for those projects located outside their own states or districts.

Thanks to ethics reforms sponsored by Democrats at the beginning of the current Congress, lawmakers in the House and Senate are now required to add their names to each earmark.

For the first time, CAGW tallied the number and cost of earmarks for each member of Congress. As expected, top members of Appropriations Committees led the list.

I know that there has always been a segment of the American public that can’t seem to back the two main political parties but the amount of dissatisfaction with both the Republican Party and the Democrats has been particularly pronounced this time around. I have been predicting large scale defections from both parties in this presidential contest, but even I am surprised at the number of people that have been voicing their displeasure at the choices that have been presented to them. Even more than the number of people that are dissatisfied, the thing that I find most surprising is how early on they are voicing these opinions. I had expected that it would be closer to November before we would see this, after the people had time to get a closer look at the candidates, and after the constant media attention devoted to the them became too much to bear. This seems to be happening already, and its only April 1st.

By Bob Geiger

Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) who has long been a Democratic stalwart on the Senate Intelligence Committee has smacked down Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell for using the Fox News "some say" construct to smear Democrats at a Furman University speech last week.

"To falsely attribute statements to United States Senators serves only to mislead the American people," wrote Feingold in a letter sent to McConnell today. "It also undermines your credibility and that of the position of Director of National Intelligence."

Here's what McConnell said in his speech at Furman about the recent Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) debates in the Senate:

“We had a bill go into the Senate. It was debated vigorously. There were some who said we shouldn't have an Intelligence Community. Some have that point of view. Some say the President of the United States violated the process, spied on Americans, should be impeached and should go to jail. I mean, this is democracy, you can say anything you want to say. That was the argument made. The vote was 68 to 29.”

Feingold called McConnell on this and demanded that he cite specifically which U.S. Senators had made those assertions.

Benjamin Wallace-Wells | Washington, D.C. | March 30

New York Times - “This isn’t an ideologically conservative country, and maybe some of us overreached in thinking that it was, and have been corrected for that,” [Tom Cole, chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee] told me in January. “But I believe that it is still a center-right country, and I think this election will show that.”

In a lengthy article in the Sunday New York Times Magazine, Benjamin Wallace-Wells profiles the uphill task of the Republican campaigns in Congress, chaired by Indiana Congressman Tom Cole.

“What is concerning is that we lost ground in every one of the highest-growth demographics,” said [Ken] Mehlman, the former R.N.C. chairman...

I am very excited to see Mike Gravel “jump ship” and align himself with the Libertarian Party. I’m sure that anyone who that has read any of my articles knows that I too have come to the conclusion that there is basically very little difference between the Democrats and Republicans when it comes to the central core issues. We have of course, Republicans that espouse “progressive” stances as well as a good number of Democrats that could be considered liberal/progressives. The premise that the two parties have radically different ideologies when we look at their centrist bases however, belies the fact that the two parties have any real substantive differences.

Washington | March 26

AP - Federal prosecutors say Saddam Hussein's intelligence agency secretly financed a trip to Iraq for three U.S. lawmakers during the run-up to the U.S.-led invasion.

An indictment in Detroit accuses Muthanna Al-Hanooti of arranging for three members of Congress to travel to Iraq in October 2002 at the behest of Saddam's regime. Prosecutors say Iraqi intelligence officials paid for the trip through an intermediary.

In exchange, Al-Hanooti allegedly received 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil.

The lawmakers are not mentioned but the dates correspond to a trip by Democratic Reps. Jim McDermott of Washington, David Bonior of Michigan and Mike Thompson of California. There was no indication the three lawmakers knew the trip was underwritten by Saddam.

It just goes to show that some people will never “get it”. The Progressive Press has whipped up a cauldron of molten ire against George W. Bush’s statement that the war in Iraq was “worth it”. My God, how could he say such a thing? The Progressive Press remarks; “Doesn’t he know that almost 4,000 Americans and untold Iraqi’s have died in a quagmire? Doesn’t he realize that the cost of this war is in the trillions? Doesn’t he realize that we are no closer to victory than we were five long years ago?”

Sure he does. He just doesn’t really care. He feels that as long as the defense contractors are making windfall profits along with Halliburton and their subsidiary KBR, and are getting gigantic no-bid contracts, and the Federal Reserve pours trillions of dollars at interest into the economy, making the bankers rich, and as long as the oil companies can get their hands on that Iraqi oil, the world is a great place. If you believe that he sees anything as wrong or right, you have a problem with your perception.

The Winter Soldier is underway in Washington DC. There, brave Iraq Vets are testifying to criminal acts committed while on duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. These orders came from the top down and the rules of engagement changed from day to day, all outside the scope of International Law. These soldiers and sailors have been vetted and they are speaking “Truth to Power”, something that also happened during 1971 at the First Winter Soldier.

The Seminar is getting huge mainstream media attention, however this is mostly International attention, the US media doesn’t seem at all interested in reporting on this, which is par for the course. The facts are that the Iraq War has only 1% of the coverage of the MSM. This is different than the pre-surge level of 15%. It seems as if the perception in this country is that the US has “turned the corner” in Iraq. This is the farthest thing from the truth. This week alone was one of the most violent weeks since before the surge. 12 US soldiers were killed last week alone.

Apparently the House did the right thing, passed the FISA bill, stripped retro-telecom immunity from the bill and played a nice little parliamentary trick, thus punking Bush, the Bluedogs and Senate Republicans. Well played.

Jim Abrams | Washington | March 11

AP - House Democrats, trying to restore integrity to the chamber's tarnished image, pushed through a measure Tuesday to create an outside panel to review possible ethical lapses by its members.

The new Office of Congressional Ethics would bring fundamental changes to how the House investigates itself. It would be charged with reviewing cases and referring them to the House ethics committee, which has drawn wide criticism in recent years for its partisanship and ineffectiveness.

The vote was 229-182, with much of the opposition coming from Republicans who argued that lawmakers should be able to police themselves.

LoL!