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What Republicans Don’t Want You to Know!

Posted by TomCat at 1:57 am Plus

Sep 252010

In their Pledge to America, Republicans pledged to make government more transparent. Are they telling the truth, or is this just one more in the long list of Republican lies to America. The proof is in the voting, so lets take a look.

Despite promises of Senate Democrats to amend their signature campaign disclosure legislation, a unified Republican caucus today again blocked the legislation from an up-or-down vote in Congress’ upper chamber.

Republicans stuck together to oppose the DISCLOSE Act, a legislative response to the Supreme Court’s January ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which opened the door for unrestricted sums of corporate and union treasury money to fund political advertisements. A unified Democratic caucus supported the legislation, voting 59-39 on a procedural vote that needed 60 votes to pass.

Republicans successfully filibustered the DISCLOSE Act in July as well, after the House narrowly passed the bill in June.

The bill’s main focus is new reporting and disclosure requirements for groups that run independent expenditures, such as television ads that overtly advocate for or against federal candidates, and electioneering communications — that is, broadcast communications that feature a federal candidate but don’t expressly advocate for that candidate’s election or defeat.

New restrictions would apply to corporations, unions, trade associations, so-called 527 groups and 501(c)(4), (c)(5) and (c)(6) advocacy organizations.

One provision would require groups to show the names of the top donors in the advertisements and have the head of the organization or the group’s largest contributor "stand by the ad" — giving the same, familiar disclaimer that candidates must include in their advertisements: "My name is so-and-so, and I approve this message."

Additionally, the bill would prohibit companies from producing independent expenditures if they met certain criteria. These include bailout recipients with outstanding loans from the government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), large government contractors and foreign-controlled companies… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <Common Dreams>

One day after making the pledge, Republicans had already violated it, They don’t want you to know who is financing them, because if you do, you also know just who it is that they represent. Fortunately for us, Rachel Maddow did the research and blew the lid off their lies with Chris Hayes.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

The bottom line is what I’ve been saying all week, and I hope you start saying it with me. With all their flaws, at least Democrats try to represent everyone. Republicans govern exclusively for the benefit of criminal corporations and the richest one percent.

Of course, the best solution is to institute 100% public financing of all federal campaigns. Why?

Corporations are NOT people! Money is NOT speech!

The Democratic Dilemma

Posted by TomCat at 12:48 am Plus

Sep 192010

If you look at polls on almost any issue, the people side with the Democrats the vast majority of the time. Given that fact, it should be a no brainer that Democrats should be a shoe-in come November, but that are not. That’s the dilemma. Now what? Here are some ideas.

Victoria Newman is a proud Democrat who says that when she voted for Barack Obama in 2008, it was the most excited she’d been about politics in all her 58 years. But now, Democrats grasping to keep control of Congress will have to do without her.

Newman says she’s planning to stay home on Election Day.

As she pays for a package of corn muffins at a grocery store, Newman, a retired state employee who’s black, sums up her feelings about voting in November’s congressional elections with a dismissive flick of her wrist.

To retain House control, Democrats must find a way to reactivate core supporters and re-energize the independent and new voters who handed Obama the White House and swept Democrats into office.

It’s a tall order in dozens of competitive districts where enthusiasm for the president is at a low; even some of his strongest backers aren’t motivated to go to the polls.

The challenge is boosting Republicans’ hopes of winning the 40 seats they need to seize the House in a year when a sagging economy and disillusionment with Obama have created a grim outlook for the majority party.

National surveys show Republicans are far more enthusiastic than Democrats about the election. The latest Associated Press-GfK Poll found Obama voters are much less attuned to the fall contests than are those who supported Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona in the 2008 presidential race… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <AP/Google>

Part of the problem is Democratic mistakes. Even before Obama’s inauguration Republicans were in full attack mode. Democrats should have counterattacked forcefully. Instead, they spent a year and a half accomplishing what they could in the face of unyielding opposition, and kissing elephant butt trying to get just a vote or two, which rarely happened. They accomplished some good things, but when they did, the Republicans attacked the accomplishments. Now from a media perspective, and bot even counting the Republican Reichsministry of Propaganda at Fox, attacks are better infotainment than accomplishments and sell no soap, so the public knows all about the attacks, but very little about the accomplishments. Thus, Democrats allowed Republicans to dominate the news.

Part of the problem is that the economy has not recovered, as voters hoped it would. I and other well informed people knew it would not, because the Republican damage to the economy was far too severe to undo in the short term. Adding to the problem, Obama appointed Geithner, Bernanke and Summers, banksters all, in the mistaken belief that only someone who knew the system could save it. Republican obstruction also slowed recovery.

At this point, our best hope is to educate voters about the nature of the choice before them. With all the Democrats’ flaws, they are far better for the poor and middle classes than the Republicans, because Democrats represent the majority of Americans. Republicans, on the other hand, have demonstrated that they only have one policy: No Millionaire Left Behind. That is the choice.

Consider this ad from Barbara Boxer (H/T Daily Kos)

Barbara has the right idea, here. We need to focus the choice on this. Who should represent America, the party that governs on behalf of most Americans or the party that governs on behalf of the top 1%?

Happy Yom Kippur!

Posted by TomCat at 1:16 am Plus

Sep 182010

Yom Kippur

Honoring the faith of our Jewish friends, we wiss them a blessed Day of Atonement

Politics Plus Constitution Series to Download

Posted by TomCat at 1:19 am Plus, Politics

Sep 072010

Republicans leaders love to wave their little Constitutions about, but the things they use it to defend and the policies they propose indicate that, if they have ever read it at all, they are hell bent on using it as toilet paper. To expose their lies, I recently posted a series of articles including the entire Constitution, all its Amendments, and my commentary explaining each Article and Amendment, with emphasis on how Republicans ignore it at best and try to trash it at worst. It was very well received, and I received multiple requests to put it in some more permanent form. I have collected the entire series into a single forty two page file in PDF format. You may download it free of charge.

Clicking the link will open the file in your browser. Use the file menu to save it. Or right-click the link and choose ‘save target as’ to download it without opening it.

To get it, click here.

Happy Labor Day!

Posted by TomCat at 12:35 am Holiday, Plus

Sep 062010

Labor-day

Every labor day, I post an article on the importance of the labor movement, and this year is no different. I think mine is an excellent article. But One Fly has posted a piece so remarkable, that I have moved my own article to the number two position for the day.

…In this country there are not many who know why we celebrate this holiday but the story told below explains and we should all take pause now and then and remember those who came before us whether it’s this or any number of other stories of people who sacrificed so our country could be a better place to live in.

Remembering the Haymarket Martyrs…

Inserted from <Oak Creek Forum>

Please click through and read this most excellent piece. It will open in a new window, so when you you’re done, I hope you will scroll down and read mine too.

Watch Out for Himmicane Earl!

Posted by TomCat at 1:38 am Plus

Aug 312010

31Earl

As Earl barrels down on the east coast, I feel concerned for those of you who are in its path. Please take care. I love you guys.

On a lighter note, shouldn’t all hurricanes still be named after women? 😉

Or better yet, how about calling all of them hurricane Lisa. 😀

Mexico Wins Miss Universe

Posted by TomCat at 1:06 am Plus

Aug 242010

Every once in a while, it’s nice to take our minds off of politics long enough to appreciate beauty.

A 22-year-old Mexico woman won the Miss Universe pageant Monday night after donning a flowing red gown and telling an audience it’s important to teach kids family values.

Jimena Navarrete of Guadalajara was first contestant to answer an interview question onstage and the last of 83 standing in the headline-grabbing pageant on the Las Vegas Strip.

"I want to give my parents a big hug," she said at a news conference after the pageant. "There was a lot of effort and a lot of sacrifice."

The train of her single-strap dress floated behind her like a sheet as she walked during the evening gown competition. Before that, she smiled in a violet bikini as she confidently strutted across the stage.

Asked by Olympic gold-medal figure skater Evan Lysacek how she felt about unsupervised Internet use, Navarrete said the Internet is important but parents need to be careful and watch over their kids.

"I do believe that Internet is an indispensable, necessary tool for the present time," she said through an interpreter. "We must be sure to teach them the values that we learned as a family."

First runner-up was Miss Jamaica Yendi Phillipps, while second runner-up was Miss Australia Jesinta Campbell…

Inserted from <AP/Google>

As soon as my tongue peels off my keyboard, I’d like to congratulate Miss Navarrete. Also, considering that Arizona lies between Las Vegas and Mexico, I hope that she takes the long way home. Jan Brewer is probably having a hissy fit over this, making Arizona a dangerous place.

Beach Bum Has a BIG Mouth! ;-)

Posted by TomCat at 2:30 am Blog News, Plus

Aug 212010

9500-Beach

Beach writes a blog that is largely political, and quite astute, especially since he hails from the one of the reddest states there is, but on days when I’m too busy to read them, he puts up short stories that are so good that I find myself unable to stop reading. You can find him here.

Congrats, Beach!

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