10/24/06

How Many Ways Does Johnson Suck?

Let CT Progressive at No More Nancy! count the ways:
In the race, Ms. Johnson has used fearmongering commercials that try to paint Mr. Murphy as soft on terrorism and, most curiously of all, a big spender. It is unconvincing. Ms. Johnson is the senior member of an important committee. She has served longer in the House than any other Connecticut representative. Yet she has not been able to change significantly the House GOP leaders' reckless fiscal policy or its radical agenda.

Mr. Murphy, a lawyer, is impressive. He has spent eight years in the Connecticut House and Senate. He pushed for the state to adopt a system of campaign finance reform when he first entered the House, long before this was considered an important issue. He helped pass legislation that made it easier for uninsured to obtain health insurance. He wants to work on the same issue in Congress.

...snip...

Mr. Murphy would be a strong candidate in any race, and even against a seasoned incumbent, is impressive. He would make a superb addition to Congress. We strongly endorse his candidacy.

--- NY Times


OK! So CT PROGRESSIVE just cut and pasted from the NY Times endorsemnet of Murphy. At least the Times can still count, even though they employed Judy Miller at one time and have yet to find one her Iraqi WMDs.

But let us not forget Johnson's signature legislation:

Medicare D(isaster)

Johnson was counting on you to remember that for the election!

It sucks to be anything GOP these days... Even the right wing corporate owned media is "cutting and running" from anything GOP.

10/23/06

How Does The Incompetent Bush Admin. Confirm Intel Reports on WMDs?


They wait for things to BLOW UP!

Buried in the bowels of a Washington Post story by Glenn Kessler, while travelling with Condi Rice on a "Junk It" in Moscow, reveals the incompetent Bush administration's strategy for assesing North Korea's advances in developing their nuclear technology:

Before North Korea announced it had detonated a nuclear device, some senior officials even said they were quietly rooting for a test, believing that would finally clarify the debate within the administration.


Yep... Just sit back and wait for the explosions.

Isn't that the same tactic they used to assess the threat when reports that "Al Quaeda determined to attack within US" hit the administrations' desks before 9-11? The same tactic that resulted in a "Goat" eyed president frozen from fear and staring at the bright lights of jets crashing into buildings.

The GOP and their pet neocons still sit and wait for the explosions...

While the rest of America has to watch the American death toll get higher and higher in the biggest military blunder ever in American history. You know? The "Civil War in Iraq". The one that everyone lays much of the blame at the feet of Donald Rumsfeld for his gross incompetence, bordering on negligence when it comes to equiping our soldiers with the needed equipment to do the job. A situation that to this day has yet to be rectified.

And just in case you weren't already worried enough about the Bush administrations' innumerable past failures, whom do they put on the job to protect us from the next attacks?

After 9/11, the United States launched an extensive effort to stop the spread of weapons of mass destruction. The Special Operations Command, which has been directed by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to take the lead in planning and leading U.S. counter-terror campaigns, is playing a major role.

SOCOM’s commander, Army Gen. Bryan D. Brown, told the conference that he has given Rumsfeld a 600-page plan to fight a global war, including a strategy to prevent terrorists from using mass-casualty weapons against the U.S. The plan went through six revisions before Rumsfeld accepted it, Brown said.

He revealed few details of the plan. A key concept, however, is in the slogan, “no borders, no boundaries,” he said. “We don’t have geographical boundaries in special operations,” he said. “We have a global defense.”

That slogan also is meant to be taken intellectually, he said. “The borders and boundaries in our minds are those of our own making,” he said. “In fighting this war, we have to think outside the box.”

National Defense Magazine - February 2005


Donald
"The Most Incompetent Neocon Of Them All!"
Rumsfeld...

Apparently, given their actual track record, their idea of "thinking outside the box" is to wait for the "mushroom cloud" here in the USA... Then, and only then, will the Bush administration be able to confirm reports that terrorists wanted to attack us again.

But Bush won't mind if that happens.

In an all-out PR assault, co-ordinated by Rove with the "embeded MSM", Bush will just declare that:

"They are blowing us up over here because we are winning over there!"

And some Americans, the kind that blindly cheered when a similar meek-minded battlecry eminated from the Cheerleader in Chief's office, the kind that blindly follow the incompetent bush and support lying GOP candidates without question as to where the GOPs' real loyalties lay, will hail this as a combination of both foreign & domestic policy genius.

Genius MY ASS!

Those kind of GOP supporters should do themselves a favor. Go and buy themselves a new campaign T-shirt with this self-evident GOP campaign slogan boldly emblazoned upon it:

"I'M WITH STUPID...
VOTE GOP"


Just add a few "Faux-Patriotic" stars and stripes and the picture will be complete. And then those GOP supporters can sit and wait with all of the patience of the ranting and raving lunatics that they are (much like their idiot leader Bush) for the next explosion coming to a city near them if they get their way in the November 7th elections.

A Few Words About What the GOP Does For You

If a picture is worth a thousand words...


THAN THIS ONE SPEAKS VOLUMES!


CLICK ON THE PIC!


If you vote for the GOP or for Lieberman
EXPECT MORE OF THE SAME.

That is what "Stay the course!" means...

10/21/06

20% of Republicans think Bush Should be Impeached According to Newsweek

In the "WTF?" file:

According to Newsweek 5% Of Republicans think impeaching Bush should be a TOP priority for the Dems when they take over. 15% of Republicans think it should be a lower priority.

That is 20% of REPUBLICANS that think it should be a priority for the Dems when they take over the House Nov. 7th. (With numbers like that, maybe the Senate as well?)

Other parts of a potential Democratic agenda receive less support, especially calls to impeach Bush: 47 percent of Democrats say that should be a “top priority,” but only 28 percent of all Americans say it should be, 23 percent say it should be a lower priority and nearly half, 44 percent, say it should not be done. (Five percent of Republicans say it should be a top priority and 15 percent of Republicans say it should be a lower priority; 78 percent oppose impeachment.)

--- Newsweek


The other BIG number that might jump out at you up there?

51% of Americans think that impeaching Bush should be a priority.

Numbers like these spell doom for all Republican candidates across the nation.

If 20% of Republicans AND 51% of Americans think impeaching Bush should be a Dem priority when they take the House... Who do you think all of these people will be voting for this election?

Heh

Gibson Needs to Pull His Head Out of Rove's Ass

From Judd at Think Progress:

(Fox News anchor John) Gibson asked Washington Times editor Tony Blankley: “Does the fact that the North Koreans actually tested a nuclear weapon balance out the bad news from this Foley scandal?


My Question for Gibson:

How far up Rove's GOP Talking Point do you have to have your head before the oxygen runs out?

No wonder Fox news stinks. They think that North Korea getting nukes is "good news for everybody" simply because it might provide political cover for the disgraced GOP leadership in the House.

10/20/06

Let the Voter Suppression Begin!

Yesterday Markos wrote "GOP suppressing Latino vote" in California. Today DemFromCT writes that "Now the Orange County GOP wants their own candidate out."

Orange County Republican leaders on Thursday called for the withdrawal of a GOP congressional candidate who has acknowledged that his campaign sent a letter threatening Hispanic immigrant voters.

County Republican Chairman Scott Baugh told The Associated Press that the party's executive committee voted unanimously to ask candidate Tan D. Nguyen to pull out.

--- The Mercury News


Goes to show that even Republicans are sick of Republican candidates...

10/18/06

The Ultimate in Freeway Blogging!

Not your typical "Freeway Bloggers"... Think big!

Think BILLBOARD BIG!

Lifted from a dKos diary by DelicateMonster


"A group of religious activists has purchased a giant billboard on the interstate for a massive ad accusing four Connecticut incumbents of voting for torture. The Associated Press reports that the group,  Reclaiming the Prophetic Voice, bought the space to target Senator Joe Lieberman and and GOP Reps. Chris Shays, Nancy Johnson and Rob Simmons. According to the AP piece all four voted for the controversial Military Commissions Act of 2006, which allows the President to "authorize aggressive interrogation methods that might otherwise be seen as illegal by international courts." In other words, torture, as well as the suspension of habeas corpus, of course."



They have a picture of the actual billboard up at the I Wage Peace website, a group that is working with Reclaiming the Prophetic Voice to get this message out, if you want to see it.

10/15/06

Murphy - Johnson Debate

ctblogger has the video up from the Murphy - Johnson Debate:

Although I videotaped the event (with the help of the great Spazeboy), one really needed to be part of the audience and experience the reactions from the crowd as Nancy Johnson told lie after lie after lie. The responses from the crowd ranged from moans and groans to a woman standing up, saying "I can't take anymore of her bullshit," and walking out of the auditorium. The look of disbelief on everyone's faces including some Nancy Johnson volunteers was unreal.

Like a kid getting every present he wanted on Christmas Day, Murphy not only outperformed Johnson, he easily debunked every one of her claims, and clearly won over the crowd with his detailed outlined proposals which he would bring to Washington if elected Congressman.


Why is it that all of these GOP candidates go limp when they have all of their lies exposed by hard facts? Does anyone really want a limp Johnson in Congress?

(There has to be a Foley Joke in there somewhere? Put it in the comments if you think of it... lol:)

Rell: Selling Out CT to Big Apple Buyers


It is bad enough when you see the list of companies that have contracts with the State of Connecticut that are also MAJOR donors to the Rell campaign, something Rell claims she has never done... But today we see that Rell was selling out Connecticut to Big Apple buyers intent on gaining more influence on our States business than she will ever give to regular Nutmeggers.

About 75 people attended the $1,000-per-person reception Thursday evening, said Rell's campaign spokesman, Rich Harris.

Like many of Rell's other fundraising breakfasts, luncheons and receptions, the event was closed to the press. The reception was also not mentioned on Rell's campaign website.


Republican Rell influence peddling? Oh no! Never!

What do you have to hide, Jodi, that you can't let the press into these buyouts of our State?

For a full understanding of influence peddling see Republican criminal/super-lobbyist Jack Abrahmoff, criminal Republican Randy "Duke" Cunningham, criminal Republican Bob Ney, or likely criminal Republican Curt Weldon.

OR, of course, you could just look at Rell's mentor, disgraced Republican and former Governor Rowland to know how that scam works:

Her showing at the Garde Arts Center in New London won't hurt her with voters relieved that this steady-as-she-goes matron is not John G. Rowland, her glib predecessor and former political teammate whose greediness landed him in jail.

But a few gaffes in an otherwise OK performance are what viewers are talking about.

Late in the debate, Mrs. Rell pulled a George W. Bush when considering whether she made any mistakes in office. She didn't name any - though surely she could have wished, for just one thing, that the state Department of Transportation had kept an eye on the contractor who installed hundreds of faulty drains on I-84.


"I'm Jodi Rell, and I am perfect BUT please ignore the skeletons in my closet!"

Good lord!

Rell = GOP + Bush + Rowland + $$$ wasted + incompetent

That is basic math for republican politics...

10/13/06

Shays, Kolbe, Foley: More Weird Republican Sex

BranfordBoy at My Left Nutmeg asks about Shays sanity:

"Looks like Chris Shays really, really, really wants to lose. How else can you explain this insanity from the Wednesday debate?"

Shays: Then the next question is, well what has the US done? Well it has been accused of doing torture. That's what it's been accused of. Now I've seen what happened in Abu Ghraib, and Abu Ghraib was not torture, it was outrageous, outrageous involvement of National Guard troops from Maryland who were involved in a sex ring and they took pictures of soldiers who were naked. And they did other things that were just outrageous. But it wasn't torture.

It's difficult though how the dialogue in the rest of the world about that when you have news media all around the world saying we're torturing people. The bottom line for me is this. We follow the Geneva Convention period. That's what we do.


Matthew Gertz has the video


I think the insanity results because all republicans ever think about is sex.


BUT why do republicans have such freakin' weird ideas of what sex is supposed to be?

Republican Mark Foley is one example, and Republican Kolbe may very well be another example:

From NBC news:

Federal prosecutors in Arizona have opened a preliminary investigation of a camping trip Congressman Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., took 10 years ago that included two teenage congressional pages, a Justice Department spokesman told NBC News. NBC News first reported on the camping and rafting trip on Tuesday.

Kolbe's office denies anything "improper" happened.

More NBC:


NBC News interviewed several people who were on the trip, and their accounts vary. One participant, who requested anonymity, said he was uncomfortable with the attention Kolbe paid to one of the former pages. He was "creeped out by it," he said, adding that there was a lot of "fawning, petting and touching" on the teenager's arms, shoulders and back by Kolbe.

--- Joe in DC at AMERICAblog


Is the GOP setting their standard for all of our childrens futures?

If they are, then our kids are truely all fucked if the GOP remains in power.

GOP - Jack Abramoff Influence-Peddling Scandal

The investigation into the GOP - Jack Abramoff influence-peddling scandal starts to show some results:
Standing before Judge Ellen S. Huvelle, Ney pleaded guilty to conspiracy and making false statements. He acknowledged taking money, gifts and favors in return for official actions on behalf of Abramoff and his clients.

The 52-year-old lawmaker faces a maximum of 10 years in prison. Huvelle said prosecutors had agreed to recommend a term of 27 months, and said federal guidelines suggest a fine of between $5,000 and $60,000.

Despite his guilty pleas, Ney did not resign his seat in Congress. His lawyer, Mark Touhey, told the judge he would do so before sentencing on Jan. 19. Under the Constitution, he'll be gone before then. His term expires when the new Congress is sworn in at noon on Jan. 3.


The GOP had this to say AFTER Ney plead guilty:
House Republican leaders vowed Friday to expel convicted Rep. Bob Ney "as our first order of business" after the elections unless he resigns.


Given the fact that House Republican leaders like Hastert, Reynolds, Boehner, and others are all too busy trying to cover-up their culpability in the Foley scandal you can understand why they won't have time to boot Ney just yet.

I find it intereting that they wait until after their members are found guilty in a court of law to boot members of the corrupt GOP that should have already been under investigation by republican Doc Hasting's committee at the very least for ethical violations, if not for criminal violations.

Of course I always forget the fact that republicans don't investigate other republicans. They just cover-up for eachother and hope the MSM, and the rest of America, don't ask the questions that need to be asked and dig a little into the real facts.

The real facts: Every stinking GOP candidate, in the White House, the Senate, and especially the House, are responsible for allowing, sometimes encouraging, and often participating in actions that show that they believe GOP members are above the law.

Absolute power corrupts absolutely...

10/10/06

Echoes of Conspiracy Theories

Echoes of the conspiracy theory concerning the
Reagan-Bush era Congress Callboy Scandal:

Trandahl's name comes up in three accounts of confrontations between lawmakers and Foley over his reported approaches to underage pages dating back to at least 2001. It's not surprising, since as Clerk Trandahl, a Republican appointee, was a member of the Page Board and exercised day-to-day oversight of the page program.

Now, he's lawyered up with Cono Namorato, until recently the former head of the IRS office of professional responsibility and before that counsel to former Clinton Administration HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros, who resigned and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of lying to the FBI about hush money payments to his mistress.

--- Andrew Zajac at the Chicago Tribune's Swamp Blog


Why would Trandahl need a lawyer that specialized in hush money payments to mistresses? Naaaaah... Who would believe the Foley cover-up would be about prostitutes on Capitol Hill, never mind the possibility of young boys being involved? (I may read conspiracy theories for fun... Doesn't mean I believe them all;)


This whole Foley thing is getting a little too weird with how many GOP politicians and staffers that knew all about it for so long. I keep waiting for another republican to pop up from behind the grassy knoll...

X-posted at The Booman Tribune
and at My Left Nutmeg

10/9/06

Republican Kolbe Joins the Already Disgraced GOP List


Hastert, Boehner, Shimkus, Reynolds, Alexander, and various members of their staff (Trandahl, Fordham) have all been linked into the cover-up of Foley's stalking of young pages in Congress to varying degrees. (From the grossly incompetent, to the criminally negligent.) According to the WaPo this is a 5 year old issue AND...


You can add Kolby to the list:


A Republican congressman knew of disgraced former representative Mark Foley's inappropriate Internet exchanges as far back as 2000 and personally confronted Foley about his communications.


A spokeswoman for Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-Ariz.) confirmed yesterday that a former page showed the congressman Internet messages that had made the youth feel uncomfortable with the direction Foley (R-Fla.) was taking their e-mail relationship. Last week, when the Foley matter erupted, a Kolbe staff member suggested to the former page that he take the matter to the clerk of the House, Karen Haas, said Kolbe's press secretary, Korenna Cline.


The revelation pushes back by at least five years the date when a member of Congress has acknowledged learning of Foley's behavior with former pages. A timeline issued by House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) suggested that the first lawmakers to know, Rep. John M. Shimkus (R-Ill.), the chairman of the House Page Board, and Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.), became aware of "over-friendly" e-mails only last fall. It also expands the universe of players in the drama beyond members, either in leadership or on the page board.


A source with direct knowledge of Kolbe's involvement said the messages shared with Kolbe were sexually explicit, and he read the contents to The Washington Post under the condition that they not be reprinted. But Cline denied the source's characterization, saying only that the messages had made the former page feel uncomfortable. Nevertheless, she said, "corrective action" was taken. Cline said she has not yet determined whether that action went beyond Kolbe's confrontation with Foley.


There is clearly NOTHING INNOCENT about these E-mails...


This pushes it all back another by 5 more years and shows that there have been NUMEROUS OCCASIONS over the years where GOP Congressmen have been asked to address the situation.


Just another in a long line of failures by the GOP...


X-posted at The Booman Tribune and My Left Nutmeg

10/8/06

Waking Up Walmart!

Courtesy of Connecticut Bob

Ned Lamont talks about "Waking Up Walmart!"

Rell and DeFelice-ing of Connecticut

What does Jodi Rell do when the contactor costs the state millions by bungling a MEGA project?
State to check for Route 7 project mistakes

The state is inspecting the Route 7 widening project in New Milford to make certain mistakes a contractor made on an I-84 widening project were not repeated on Route 7.

...snip...

The state Department of Transportation and the state attorney general are investigating projects by L.G. DeFelice, Inc., which failed in 2005. They are also investigating the DeFelice successor company, Hallberg Contracting Corp. of West Haven.

Late Monday, Gov. M. Jodi Rell ordered an independent audit of the I-84 project.

DeFelice officially defaulted on the Route 7 widening project in New Milford in May. It was immediately replaced by Hallberg Contracting Corp., which is run by the former president of DeFelice, Stephen Hallberg.

--- The New Milford Spectrum

Good Lord! She orders an audit?

Which crony will you hand more cash out to in order to have your "independent audit"?

I'll give you an audit for free:

Republican Rell gave the contract to cronies (Business as usual for Republicans) and when they messed up so badly, and went bankrupt, Rell turned around and handed the project to a company headed up by Stephen Hallberg, the former president of the same company that messed up the first time!

Jodi Rell's "DeFelice-ing" of OUR public funds through gross incompetence...

Not just once, BUT TWICE!

First on the I-84 project, and the second time on the Super 7 project.
Nothing like repeating your same mistakes over and over again.

Care to rethink whom you should vote for Governor of Connecticut (or for any level of government these days...) if you are a fiscal conservative?

You sure can't vote for the GOP and expect them to take care of your money.

10/6/06

Johnson's Half-Baked Deflection

Hat tip to ct progressive at No More Nancy!:
Johnson's Half-Hearted Stand:

"If any leader from either party tried to cover up this information at the expense of the safety of our children, then they should resign their position immediately.

It would be reprehensible if any Republican leader intentionally covered up the full facts of the case, and it would be equally reprehensible if Democrat leaders sat on this information for a year in order to release it 30 days before an election.

I want an investigation to go forward to find out answers to these questions."


It would be reprehensible for Johnson to say that Dems "might have leaked this", which is a complete and total lie designed to deflect from the real issue.

It is already a known fact that it was a republican staffer that leaked this, and that this would not be an "October surprise" in this election year if GOP leadership had dealt with Foley when they FIRST LEARNED OF HIS IMMORAL BEHAVIOR.

The fact is that the GOP leadership has known about this issue for at least 5 years now.

I hate to break this to you, Nancy, BUT America does not give a damn "who leaked what"... They do, however, care that GOP leadrship has shown absolutely no moral fiber, and absolutely no will to take personal resposibility for their inaction.

Your little political game of deny and deflect has already burned you because your party chose to protect one House candidate instead of the children of America.

And you are welcome Nancy!
(For that nice BIG cup of STFU!)

Come back again when you have some moral values...

As a side note: I put some chocolate flavored Exlax in that BIG cup so she should start running off at the mouth any second now...
:)

To Shays: You Already Did...



What Shays says now:
Shays reiterated his views Tuesday and added that he would not vote for any leader who "knew or should have known about Mark Foley's conduct." Shays' stance satisfied American Family Voices. "Our goal was to have Congressman Shays do what he did," said spokeswoman Hayley Zachary.

--- The Hartford Courant


The problem here is that GOP House leadership has known about Foley's immoral behavior for at least 5 years.
FACT: GOP staff, working for Republican Speaker Denny Hastert, warned the page class of 2001-2002 to stay away from Foley - five years ago.

FACT: Former chief of staff to GOP Rep. Tom Reynolds (R-NY), Kirk Fordham, says he warned Hastert's chief of staff of Foley's behavior three years ago. Whether or not you believe Fordham, his testimony is consistent with the other facts showing that the Republicans knew about Foley's behavior long before last week.

FACT: Both Reps. John Boehner, the Republican House Majority Leader, and Tom Reynolds both say they told Dennis Hastert personally about the Foley issue months ago. Hastert says Boehner is lying. So one of the two most powerful Republicans in the House is lying about an investigation into a child sex predator. That deserves a separate investigation right there.

FACT: Hastert's staff was informed of the Foley emails a year ago, but Hastert would like us to believe his staff simply never told him that a member of Congress, a member of his leadership team, was under investigation for preying sexually on young children - children who Hastert was responsible for.

And finally, the Republicans would have us believe, yet again, that a 52 year old man sending emails to a 16 year old boy he doesn't even know, and talking to that boy about how his 16 year old friend has a great body, is somehow simply "overly friendly." That is absurd on its face.

--- John Aravosis at AMERICAblog


And in an effort to distract and dissemble right-wing-nut cheerleaders manage to get some more egg on their face:
I'm shocked, shocked, I tell you. That Drudge bamboozlement about the Foleygate cybersex IMs being a 'prank'. The kid's lawyer says Drudge's piece was "a piece of fiction."

-- Josh Marshall at Talking Point Memo


But the simple fact remains that YOU, Shays, have already voted for GOP House leadership that knew about Foley's transgressions and they have known for at least 5 years.

I am curious Shays...

Were you irresponsibly ignorant of the GOP Leadership you have already voted for?

OR

Were you willfully ignorant of the GOP leadership you have already voted for?

I won't even impugn your supposed "good character" by suggesting that you might, possibly, have known about Foley's problems personally... That would be irresponsible on my part.

BUT

Either fact suggests gross misjudgment on your part and proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that you continue to choose to run with the wrong crowd.

The immoral, corrupt GOP crowd.

So please don't tell me what you plan to do in the future or, more precisely, to cover your political ass because your past record already speaks for itself.

Shays, YOU have already voted for DeLay and Hastert…

Which corrupt and immoral GOP leader would you choose to vote for next?

Does it really matter what you say now?

10/5/06

Hastert Mismanages Foley

Silent Patriot at Crooks & Liars writes:

"Jon Stewart and the Daily Show team really went to town on the scandal-ridden GOP tonight. From the cancellation of the "Annual GOP Barebeque and Nude Cub Scout Wrestle" to the passing of the Foley buck among the House Leadersip, Jon puts a hysterical spin on a truly disastrous scandal that's getting worse by the minute.

Reynolds: I did what most people would do in a work place. I heard something, I took it to my supervisor.

Stewart: "I took it to my supervisor?" Tom Reynolds…Congressman? or Assistant Manager at Applebees?
"


I didn't know Hastert was a manager at Applebees?

I would hope that Foley isn't the one providing the "service" at the table... I do have kids, ya know?

Go check out the video and read the rest of the post at C&L.

Have a Cup Of Joe...

I am a Veteran of the US Army Infantry. This sort of BS really galls me when I know that my friends and family are STILL serving in Iraq and Afghanistan with substandard equipment.

In three out of the last four Congresses, Joe Lieberman has had one of the top seven worst voting attendance records in the entire U.S. Senate. He has skipped hundreds of votes, often times to travel around the country to fundraisers for himself. He has skipped half of all votes on the Iraq War since the invasion began and skipped all votes to fund the inaugural budget of the Department of Homeland Security. But today, as Ned Lamont is endorsed by a major veterans group, the Cup of Joe asks a simple question: Why did Lieberman skip a close vote on legislation by Senator Chris Dodd to improve body armor for our troops in combat?



DETAILS OF LIEBERMAN’S SKIPPED VOTE ON BODY ARMOR: Senator Lieberman skipped a tight vote on legislation sponsored by Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd that would have provided additional emergency funding for safety equipment such as body armor for troops serving in Iraq. [Source: Senate Roll Call Vote #376,
10/2/03]


DODD PLEADED FOR SUPPORT ON THE SENATE FLOOR: In trying to corral enough votes for this critical amendment, Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd explained exactly what his amendment would do. “This amendment was designed specifically to see to it that those U.S. troops coming into Iraq, into a theater of war, would receive important equipment they need to perform their missions effectively,” he said. “This equipment includes important high-tech body armor, bullet-proof helmets, special water packs to keep soldiers hydrated, and other survival gear.” He added: “Let us take care of our men and women in uniform going over to Iraq. I do not think any of us want to read a story where one of our young troops has to go out and buy their own equipment to protect themselves. This is the 21st century. And in this day and age, the sole superpower in the world should not have to tell its military personnel to fend for themselves.” Unfortunately, the bill lost on a close vote, with Lieberman nowhere to be found. [Source: Congressional record page S12352, 10/2/03]


NEWSWEEK SAID TROOPS UNECESSARILY DIED OR WERE INJURED BECAUSE OF POOR BODY ARMOR: A year after Lieberman skipped the vote on Dodd’s amendment and the amendment subsequently went down to defeat, Newsweek reported that a study by one defense consultant circulating throughout the Army noted that up to “one in four of those killed in combat in Iraq might be alive if they had had stronger armor around them” and “thousands more who were unprotected have suffered grievous wounds, such as the loss of limbs.” [Source: Newsweek, 4/25/04]


It is pretty sad that Senator Dodd could not count on his "junior Senator" from Connecticut to help deliver a vote that could have saved many Veterans' lives.

Since you have whole-heartedly supported "Bush's endless war failure", AND you have failed to even try to help adequately equip Connecticut's and other American soldiers' lives, please hang this weight around your neck Lieberman:

Connecticut's War Dead

I hope this weight is at least enough to drag you down on election day.

Connecticut Senate Race Info

So you can be an informed voter:

Info on Ned Lamont:

Ned Lamont - Official Campaign Website

Ned Lamont - Ned Lamont, the Political Entrepreneur

Ned Lamont - "Democrats Back Lamont; Lieberman Files Independent Run" (F0x)

Ned Lamont - Unofficial Ned Lamont Resource

Ned Lamont - Unofficial Lamont Blog

Ned Lamont - "The Democrats Mean Business" (WSJ)

Ned Lamont - "Ned Lamont vs. Joe Lieberman" (The Nation)

Ned Lamont - "Lieberman Loses Debate With Challenger Ned Lamont"

Ned Lamont - "Lamont: Lieberman Sounded Like Cheney"

Ned Lamont - "Lamont Fires Up Naples" (New Haven Independent)

Info on Joe Lieberman:

Joe Lieberman - "Seasonal Memory Lapses" by Paul Bass (Hartford Courant)

Joe Lieberman - "Truth About Joe"

Joe Lieberman - "Lieberman Wins Republican Friends, Democratic Enemies..." (WaPo)

Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman is a Big Oil Republican" (LamontBlog)

Joe Lieberman - "Kerry Calls Lieberman the New Cheney" (ABC)

Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman Doesn't Care About Handicapped People" (Wonkette)

Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman is Running With a Bad Crowd" (Firedoglake)

Joe Lieberman - "116 Reasons Not to Vote for Joe Lieberman"

Joe Lieberman - "How Joe Lieberman Tried to Kill Rock 'N Roll" (Huffington Post)

Info on Alan who?
Nevermind... heh

10/4/06

No More Nancy!

CT Progressive had this to say about Nancy Johnson:

"Chris Murphy's campaign just issued a press release demanding that Nancy Johnson publicly call for Dennis Hastert's resignation as Speaker of the House, saying:

If Nancy Johnson had the courage to stand up to her morally bankrupt colleagues in Washington, she would have done so already in a direct, public manner. The Republican leadership she proudly proclaims herself to be a part of knew what was going on and turned a blind eye. Now the people of Connecticut know without a doubt that Nancy Johnson is more interested in staying in Washington than doing what is right.

Johnson has continued to maintain her silence on the issue."


I guess that if silence is consent...

Johnson must approve of the way the GOP leadership she installed in Washington has, and is, mishandling this tragic situation?

10/3/06

Hastert, Boehner, Reynolds - ALL MUST RESIGN!

What are the self-anointed Grand Ol' Protectors from terrorists around the world actually doing when important security issues are discussed on the floor of the House?

This message was dated April 2003, at approximately 7 p.m., according to the message time stamp.

Maf54: I miss you
Teen: ya me too
Maf54: we are still voting
Maf54: you miss me too

The exchange continues in which Foley and the teen both appear to describe having sexual orgasms.

Maf54: ok..i better go vote..did you know you would have this effect on me
Teen: lol I guessed
Teen: ya go voteÂ…I don't want to keep you from doing our job
Maf54: can I have a good kiss goodnight
Teen: :-*
Teen:

The House voted that evening on HR 1559, Emergency War Time supplemental appropriations.

read more at ABC's The Blotter


Apparently the GOP only protects pedophiles... Not America.

Geriatric Ol' Pedophiles.

How long do you think Foley has been protected by the GOP leadership?

One former page says pages were warned specifically to be careful with Foley five years ago.

"I know people who had been interacting with him like that, so I wasn't surprised. You know it's one of those things you know is going to come out some day," Matthew Loraditch, a page in the 2001-2002 class who is now president of the Page Alumni Association, said.

House Republican leaders were told about possible problems with Foley last year, and now they want an investigation to see how many pages may have been victimized by Foley.

ABC's The Blotter


I am willing to bet that GOP leadership has known about this AT LEAST as long as the pages did.

John at AMERICAblog has proven a pretty solid connection to THE COVERUP:


What's more, The LA Times didn't realize, and no one in the MSM has picked up on yet, that Reynolds sent his chief of staff [to "advise" Foley last week http://americablog.blogspot.com/2006/10/mr-reynolds-why-is-your-chief-of-staff.html] before the predator resigned. What's worse, Reynolds' chief of staff tried to broker a deal with ABC News last Friday in order to get ABC to cover-up
the worst of the evidence against Foley.


There is no doubt that Foley is a internet sexual predator.

There is no doubt that Republican leadership failed to protect the kids.

AND

There is no doubt that there was a concerted effort to cover this up.

All that remains to be seen is who is simply too irresponsible to be a politician, and who is criminally responsible. And how long the GOP leadership has been this irresposible and criminal.

Hastert? Boehner? Reynolds?

AMERICAblog: Reynolds' chief of staff is link between Foley and House GOP leadership in child sex predator scandal

John at AMERICAblog writes:
"Clearly, the House Republicans have decided that Speaker Denny Hastert is going to resign. Hastert has decided, I suspect, to let the other members use him as their scapegoat - blame Hastert, so then when he resigns, the "problem" will be gone, and the other members can no longer be blamed.

But this is absurd. Congressman Reynolds' office had a direct role in covering up this scandal.

...snip...

The mainstream media has now picked up on the fact that Congressman Tom Reynolds (R-NY) is linked to alleged child sex predator Mark Foley through his chief of staff Kirk Fordham. Fordham was Foley's chief of staff and campaign manager. However, they've still missed a key point (read below).

Here's today's LA Times:
Another former staffer said it was an oft-repeated story around Capitol Hill that Foley's former chief of staff, Kirk Fordham, would sometimes accompany the congressman to keep him out of trouble.

Fordham represents a link between Foley and House GOP leaders. Shortly after leaving Foley's office last year, he became chief of staff to Rep. Thomas M. Reynolds (R-N.Y.), chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Reynolds has said he was told this spring about the e-mails that sparked the initial complaint about Foley.

Fordham has not responded to repeated requests for comment from The Times.


What's more, the LA Times didn't realize, and no one in the MSM has picked up on yet, that Reynolds sent his chief of staff to "advise" Foley last week before the predator resigned. What's worse, Reynolds' chief of staff tried to broker a deal with ABC News last Friday in order to get ABC to cover-up the worst of the evidence against Foley.

If this allegation is true, then Reynolds' chief of staff knew that Foley had issues. But we're to believe that the chief of staff didn't mention this to his boss, Reynolds, when the Foley emails came to light months ago?

...snip...

Why won't Tom Reynolds explain why he sent his chief of staff to help a sex predator cover-up the evidence?(emphasis mine) No one has reported on this story yet - come on media, it's a freebie."


Good question John. Go read the whole post here...

10/1/06

Nancy Johnson's Junk in the Trunk Revisited

BrandfordBoy at My Left Nutmeg writes:

Good grief! Nancy Johnson's response to Chris Murphy telling the truth about how her drug-industry-funded health care policies are screwing Connecticut's seniors is to launch a full-scale Rovian Big
Lie
campaign.

A crowd of about 15 Nancy Johnson supporters briefly gathe ed outside Chris Murphy's campaign headquarters Friday afternoon holding signs a d accusing Murphy of "scarin
A number of those protesting at the West Main Street site were senior citizens themselves who expressed concern over losing Medicare.

"These seniors here support Medicare," said Ken Hiscoe, campaign director for Nancy Johnson. "Chris Murphy wants to destroy Medicare Part D."

The protesters chanted phrases such as "Shame on Murphy," "Stop scaring seniors" and "Stop the attacks," prompting passing motorists to honk their horns in support.

"He has been scaring seniors for the past year and a half and it's reprehensible that he would use senior citizens for his own political gain," said Hiscoe.

Louis Salvio, Republican minority leader of the Common Council, also held up a sign and took part in the protest.

"I'm just here supporting Mrs. Johnson," he said.



We already knew about Nancy Johnson's fault when it came to the Medicare D(isaster) plan from one of my previous posts:



It seems that Nancy Johnson's political career has a lot of junk in the trunk...
Deroy Murdock on Medicare on National Review Online:

"This fiscal malpractice has not bought the White House even political dividends. An August 25-26, 2003 Gallup poll found 40 percent of adults approved of the president's handling of Medicare while 48 percent disapproved. After the benefit's adoption, a March 26-28, 2004 Gallup survey saw 35 percent approve of Bush on Medicare, while disapproval climbed to 55 percent. What a bargain: Each one-point drop in Bush's Medicare approval rating cost Americans $44.5 billion.
The GOP Congress should dump the drug benefit. They should spare taxpayers this absurdly expensive new project whose true costs were concealed by an administration that sacrificed integrity and fiscal responsibility on an altar of blind ambition.

Instead, Republicans should develop a modest plan for poor seniors who lack coverage, rather than any American over 65, including multimillionaires and those who already have drug insurance.

The Medicare drug benefit has metastasized from bad policy to bad politics and now to scandal and possible criminality. This law begs to be euthanized. The GOP should pulls its plug. As for the perpetrators of this colossal public fraud, the Justice Department should fit them for orange jumpsuits."


And this is the legislation she was was so proud of and pinning her 2006 re-election hopes on? Well now... If that ain't an elephant passing some serious gas on to the voters?

Chris Murphy flushes Johnson's crap below...

Careful now!

Never stand behind an elephant that is full of it... You never know when it is going to take its next dump on YOU!

So... What does Democrat hopeful Chris Murphy have to say about all of this?

Drug Benefit will be a problem for Johnson in 2006

Nancy Johnson's biggest legislative effort in years - the drug benefit bill - seems to be falling drastically short of doing what it promised - helping seniors afford their perscriptions. The NY Times explains why this bill will be an albatross around the necks of Republicans in 2006, Johnson in particular.


Already, many Democratic strategists argue that the new program - because of its complicated structure and gaps in coverage - could be much more of a problem than an asset for Republicans next year. Some Democratic challengers are already using the issue on the campaign trail, like Christopher S. Murphy, who hopes to unseat Representative Nancy L. Johnson of Connecticut, a senior Republican who played an important role in writing the law.
"Seniors, frustrated with the complexity of the drug benefit, are realizing that it was constructed to help the insurance industry and the drug industry," said Mr. Murphy, a state senator, in a common Democratic refrain. "It's more helpful to those industries than to a lot of seniors."

Read the rest of the story here.

Anyone that has tried to wade through Johnson's "signature legislation", either for themselves or a relative in need of medication, understands what a pile of hooey it is, and they are also begining to realize just how much more it is going to cost the people in need as well as all other taxpayers more than Johnson lied, err, said it would.

Johnson's rolling in it...
Dirty money that is!

Not only does she take drug industry money out the ying-yang in order to finance her campaign efforts, but Johnson also takes dirty money from Tom Delay.

You can feel free to stand behind Johnson if you want to... But don't say I didn't warn you.


Funny there Nancy!

We Bloggers were only ready for this smear attack about 10 months ago... (Almost as long as the GOP leadership has known that Republican rep. Mark Foley was a pedophile!)

4/5/06

Wake Up and Smell the Roses

For those of you that even bother to tune in to the preznits stupid press conferences just to hear him repeat the same scripted responses to the questions nobody gives a damn about asking it is always refreshing when an "old school" reporter (The kind of reporter that actually asks the hard questions Americans want answers to!) like Helen Thomas push back even if bush completely ignores the actual questions.


After grilling Bush, Helen Thomas gets thousands of flowers

By Albert Eisele


The roses kept coming - and coming - and coming - to the Hearst Newspapers office in downtown Washington on Thursday, until they filled a large conference room to overflowing.


By the time the Federal Express delivery was complete, there were 108 dozen roses, nearly 1,300 in every color. They were the result of an e-mail campaign to show support for Hearst columnist Helen Thomas after she grilled President Bush about his Iraq policy at last week's White House news conference.


...snip...


Thomas, the 85-year-old veteran White House journalist whose outspoken criticism of the Bush administration has drawn much hate mail from Bush supporters in recent years, said Friday that she was overwhelmed by the

avalanche of roses.


"It sure beats the brickbats," she said, referring to hundreds of vitriolic e-mails she's received since last week's encounter with Bush. "Some of them attack you ad hominem and call you a traitor and ask if you've ever been to Iraq," she said. "I think it's the frustration of those who are angry with me and take it out in e-mail. I think there should be a logical debate, but maybe that's not possible during an ongoing

war."



Dear Helen Thomas,


The only people that think a debate is not possible at this time are the very few bush supporters left that know they have already lost any and all debate on this subject.


 You seem to be the only reporter that is willing to do what a reporter is supposed to do. Keep on asking the hard questions and pointing out the stupidity of this administration!


Signed,

Stephen

(AKA: Connecticutman1)



As for the rest of you so-called reporters, the clingons and turds, that love to carry water for the GOP:



WAKE UP AND SMELL THE ROSES!