Take Mukasey Up On His Offer
In justifying his vote to support torture Michael Mukasey, Chuck Schumer said Mukasey:
made clear to me [in private] that, were Congress to pass a law banning certain interrogation techniques, we would clearly be acting within our constitutional authority. And he flatly told me that the President would have absolutely no legal authority to ignore such a law, not even under some theory of inherent authority under Article II of the Constitution. He also pledged to enforce such a law and repeated his willingness to leave office rather than participate in a violation of law.
Sen. Kennedy is taking Mukasey up on his offer with S.1943, which will prohibit the following:
(1) Forcing an individual to be naked, perform sexual acts, or pose in a sexual manner.
(2) Placing a hood or sack over the head of an individual, or using or placing duct tape over the eyes of an individual.
(3) Applying a beating, electric shock, burns, or other forms of physical pain to an individual.
(4) Subjecting an individual to the procedure known as ‘waterboarding’.
(5) Subjecting an individual to threats or attack from a military working dog.
(6) Inducing hypothermia or heat injury in an individual.
(7) Conducting a mock execution of an individual.
(8) Depriving an individual of necessary food, water, or medical care.
For some reason, only five Senators are cosponsoring this badly needed legislation (Why? Are the rest afraid that the least-liked president in American history will say mean things about them), and, of those, Joe Biden is the only presidential candidate supporting it.
Let’s see the presidential contenders show some real leadership. Contact information for each of the candidates who are current Senators is below. My vote will depend on whether or not they will take an affirmative stand against this Administration’s views on illegal torture. Let them know that yours will too.
- Hillary Clinton: (202) 224-4451, email
- Chris Dodd: (202) 224-2823, email
- Barack Obama: (202) 224-2854, email
- John McCain: (202) 224-2235, email
11/7/07 8:16 pm | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, Chuck Schumer, Edward Kennedy, Joe Biden, Michael Mukasey, president, torture, waterboarding
Flip-Fops Hurt Mitt in MA
Via TPM:
Recent polling has made something pretty clear for Mitt Romney: He would have a hard time at best in the general election in his home state of Massachusetts, where he served one term as governor. The latest SurveyUSA poll shows him losing the state by an amazing 65%-31% margin against Hillary Clinton. And what’s more, he might not even try to compete there at all.
The Romney campaign’s response makes sense. Massachusetts is a pretty solidly liberal state, and I think it’s safe bet to say that Generic Democrat will do better than Generic Republican in 2008. But what does this new poll really say about Mitt Romney?
After all, Massachusetts elected him once, so the must have liked where he stood on some things. And yes, his approval ratings weren’t great, but he certainly wasn’t at the bottom of the barrel. So what happened? What changed between 2002, when half of Massachusetts elected him governor, and now, when he’s considering not even campaigning in his own state?
What changed is that he’s flip-flopped on so many of the issues that got him elected in the first place, like abortion or gay marriage, and even such things as campaign finance and making English our official language.
Massachusetts, that bastion of liberalism, liked Romney when they knew what he stood for. As long as Mitt keeps making it difficult for people to figure out what he believes, his poll numbers are going to hurt, even among people who used to support him.
(Cross-posted at DailyKos )
11/1/07 9:19 am | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, Mitt Romney, president
Biden is Right About Rudy
At last night’s Democratic Debate, Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) had some interesting insights on GOP frontrunner (?) Rudy Giuliani:
And the irony is, Rudy Giuliani, probably the most underqualified man since George Bush to seek the presidency, is here talking about any of the people here. Rudy Giuliani… I mean, think about it! Rudy Giuliani. There’s only three things he mentions in a sentence — a noun, a verb, and 9/11. There’s nothing else! There’s nothing else! And I mean this sincerely. He’s genuinely not qualified to be president.
I know, it sounds like a ridiculous accusation, like something you might find in the Onion. But here’s the crazy thing: Biden is right about Rudy.
WHY DID YOU FLIP ON GUN CONTROL?
“There are some major intervening events – Sept. 11 – which cast somewhat of a different light on the Second Amendment.”
- Giuliani’s September speech to the NRA
WHY DID YOU INTERRUPT THAT SPEECH TO TAKE A CALL FROM JUDI?
“Since Sept. 11, most of the time when we get on a plane we talk to each other and just reaffirm the fact that we love each other”
- September interview with CBN News
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF BUILDING A FENCE ON THE BORDER?
“I support security at the borders. I think security is enormously important in the post-Sept. 11 period. I think we have to know who’s coming into this country.”
- February interview with Fox News
WHAT’S WITH THAT FLAG ON YOUR LAPEL?
“Each time I wear it, it reminds me of Sept. 11.”
- July rally in Wilmington, Del.
SHOULD THERE BE FEDERAL FUNDING FOR AIDS DRUGS?
“I don’t want to promise you the federal government will take over the role. My general experience has been that the federal government works best when it helps and assists and encourages and sets guidelines on a state-by-state, locality-by-locality basis. It’s no different from the way I look at homeland security. Maybe having been mayor of the city, I know that your first defense against terrorist attack is that local police station, or that local firehouse.”
- July rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa
ARE YOU RELIGIOUS?
“I need God’s help for everything, and I probably feel that the most when I’m in crisis and under pressure, like Sept. 11, when I was dealing with prostate cancer, or when I’m trying to explain death to people.”
- September interview with CBN News.
HOW ABOUT THOSE DEMOCRATS?
“They do not seem to get the fact that there are people – terrorists in this world, really dangerous people – that want to come here and kill us. That in fact they did come here and kill us.”
- May interview with Fox News
SO, UM, WHAT ABOUT YOUR MESSY PERSONAL LIFE?
“You can judge me on my public record. I’ve had a long one. I’ve had an intense one. I’ve been under enormous pressure, took over a city that was the crime capital of America, had to handle the city at the very end, when it was part of the worst attack on America.”
- May interview with Fox News
BZZZZZZZZZZZZZT WRONG!
$9.11 was the answer a couple of Giuliani volunteers in California came up with as a suggested contribution for a fund- raising party. Giuliani said, “I think they made a mistake.”
So there you have it. No matter what he’s talking about–guns, speech interruptions, border control, flag pins, AIDS, religion, Democrats, or his personal life–the answer for Rudy Giuliani is always 9/11. Joe Biden hits the nail on the head: is someone with, quite literally, one platform qualified to be President of the United States?
(Cross-posted at Daily Kos)
10/31/07 8:55 am | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, Joe Biden, president, Rudy Giuliani
Colbert Gaining in Polls. Seriously.
Just say it a few times: President Stephen Colbert. President Stephen Colbert. President Stephen Colbert. Sounds ridiculous, but it could happen:
Less than a week ago, shortly after he announced for president, Stephen Colbert was favored by only a little more than 2% of Democrats as the favorite for the nomination. Now, a Rasmussen Report national telephone survey has found that he gains 13% of voters in a matchup with Rudy Giuliani and Sen. Hillary Clinton.
…
If he keeps gaining over 10% a week, Colbert should be leading the field before November is out.
(And E&P is already a little bit outdated. That Facebook group, “1,000,000 Strong for Stephen Colbert,” has 1,022,064 members as of noon today.)
“Leading the field?” Holy shit.
10/26/07 10:13 am | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, president, Stephen Colbert
Biden, Obama, Richardson Join Dodd in Opposing Telecom Immunity
A few days ago, I praised Chris Dodd for putting a hold on the FISA reauthorization bill that would give retroactive immunity to the telecom companies that helped George Bush spy on you and me. Not surprisingly, Harry Reid is not pleased, but Chris Dodd is prepared to go the distance, threatening to filibuster if Reid tries to bring the bill to the floor. Dodd deserves a lot of credit. This, as I’ve said, is really leadership. It’s doing what the people want, not what the lobbyists want and definitely not what the Chump-in-Chief wants. Fortunately, Dodd is not the only presidential candidate willing to lead, so, if it comes down to it, Dodd will not be filibustering alone.
From an online chat at The Washington Post:
San Francisco: Will you join Sen. Chris Dodd’s hold and proposed filibuster on any FISA bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecoms? Thanks for joining us for this chat today, Sen. Biden, and thanks for the leadership you provide the Democratic Party and America.
Sen. Joe Biden: Yes.
Via Greg Sargent at Talking Points Memo:
It’s official: Obama will back a filibuster of any Senate FISA legislation containing telecom immunity, his campaign has just told Election Central. The Obama campaign has just sent over the following statement from spokesman Bill Burton: “To be clear: Barack will support a filibuster of any bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies.“
Although he obviously can’t be part of the filibuster, Bill Richardson also voiced his support:
I urge my Democratic primary opponents, and every Senator, to stand up and state loudly and clearly — without any equivocation — that he or she will not pass any bill that grants retroactive immunity to companies that willingly aided the Bush administration in violating the law and spying on our own people.
I hate to sound like a broken record, but it’s true: there is a clear difference between running for president and acting you are the president.
10/25/07 12:09 am | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, Barack Obama, Bill Richardson, Chris Dodd, FISA, Joe Biden, leadership, politics, president, telecom immunity
Summarizing the GOP Debate
I didn’t watch the Republican debate, mainly because I wasn’t in the mood for throwing up. Fortunately, MissLaura over at the Great Orange Satan has a brief summary.
Giuliani: “I rebuilt 9/11 with my bare hands and personally raised the children of all the fallen heroes in New York, in addition to lowering crime by 400% and giving every New Yorker a thousand dollars and a Christmas card.”
Romney: “Hillary Clinton wants to give terrorists keys to the White House. In Massachusetts, I personally stopped the marriage of a man and a horse, and secured our borders by ensuring that Massachusetts remained at least one state away from any other country. Hillary Clinton wants you to abort your child even if they’ve already been born!”
McCain: “When I was in ‘nam– that’s right, I was in ‘nam as a P.O.W.– we had Charlie all around us. Two of my buddies went down in the rice paddies of Da Nang, and I was still able to command the U.S. Navy and win World War II retroactively. Also I was in Vietnam, did you know that?”
Ron Paul: “Keep the government away from my tax dollars! What was the question again? I can’t hear you because I’m farking a hundred years old.”
Huckabee: “Jesus is Lord. Praise his name. Did I mention Jesus is Lord? Also, I’m changing my party from Republican to the ForJesus party.”
Everyone else: “Hey assholes, we’re running too. Ask us some questions!”
It’s so much fun to watch the Republicans pander to the quarter of Americans that still think the Decider is doing a good job. I mean, it’s not like the need the votes of more than 7 in 10 Americans to win the election. Right? Right??
10/22/07 1:19 pm | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, GOP, president
Facebook Conservatism
Ever wonder what the Republican presidential candidates’ Facebook profiles would look like? Thanks to the fine folks at People for the American Way, you can take a look at profiles for Rudy, Fat Mike, Mitt!, Frederick of Hollywood, and that other guy who’s still running. For those of you who don’t want to click on all the links, here are some of the highlights:
Rudy Giuliani’s activities:
Travelling across the country spreading my uplifting message of the country’s imminent destruction at the hands of terrorists as official U.S. Roving Ambassador of 9/11, answering cell phone calls in the middle of speeches.
About Mike Huckabee:
Not much to say really. I’m just a good ol’ boy who happens to be running for president. I took off a lot of weight recently and I’m feeling great! Want me to tell you about it at length? Because I’d be happy to.
Basically, I’m just trying to distance myself as far as possible from the president while still embracing all his policies. It’s a little tricky, but I think I’m doing alright! lol!
Mitt Romney’s interests:
Combing my hair, tying my dog to the roof, having children, discouraging discussion of my family tree.
Fred Thompson’s groups:
All For Equality, Except the Marriage Kind ▪ My Wife is Hotter Than Your Wife (Unless You’re Dennis Kucinich)
John McCain’s activities:
Firing staffers, “hangin’” with my Religious Right “homies” (do the kids still say “homies” these days?), searching for loose change for gas money for the Straight Talk Express, reminding people I’m actually still running for president.
I’m afraid I don’t have space to do the whole parody justice. Check it out for yourself. You won’t regret it.
10/20/07 11:05 am | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, Facebook, president
Acting Presidential
So much of the 2008 presidential race is utterly superficial. Who’s wearing a flag pin on their lapel? How much money does each candidate spend on their hair? Why does the candidate with breasts have cleavage? It’s so nice to finally see two of the Democratic candidates showing real leadership and doing what’s right for America even if they aren’t getting much press from it.
On Thursday, Chris Dodd put a hold on the Senate’s FISA bill. You know, the bill that would grant retroactive immunity to the telecommunication companies who shouldn’t need it since they swear they never spied on you (even though it’s looking more and more like they were spying on you long before 9/11). In his statement, Dodd said:
I have decided to place a “hold” on the latest FISA bill that would have included amnesty for telecommunications companies that enabled the President’s assault on the Constitution by illegally providing personal information on their customers without judicial authorization. I said that I would do everything I could to stop this bill from passing, and I have.
The Democrats should never have let this provision come to floor of the Senate, but they did because they didn’t want the big, bad Republican minority meanies calling them “weak on terror” and stealing their lunch money. Chris Dodd was willing to stand up to the Senate Republicans and President 24% because it’s what’s right for America. End of story.
Barack Obama is the other candidate who was truly presidential today. Earlier this month, John Tanner, chief of Justice Department’s voting rights section, argued that voter ID laws, which have been shown to negatively impact minorities, actually hurt whites the most. His reasoning?
Tanner explained that “primarily elderly persons” are the ones affected by such laws, but “minorities don’t become elderly the way white people do: They die first.” So anything that “disproportionately impacts the elderly, has the opposite impact on minorities,” he added. “Just the math is such as that.”
I can’t respond any better than Obama did:
“Such comments are patently erroneous, offensive, and dangerous, and they are especially troubling coming from the federal official charged with protecting voting rights in this country….Through his inexcusable comments, Mr. Tanner has clearly demonstrated that he possesses neither the character nor the judgment to be heading the Voting Rights Section. For that reason, I respectfully request that you remove him from his position.”
Even if, as I cynically suspect, the Justice Department ignores Obama and continues to justify voter disenfranchisement laws, I can rest slightly easier knowing that there will be no room for people like John Tanner in the Obama administration.
Kudos to
10/20/07 10:40 am | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, Barack Obama, Chris Dodd, leadership, politics, president
Welcome Back
Welcome back to crazydrumguy.com. Please watch this video for an important announcement.
10/17/07 2:03 pm | | Permalink | Tags: 2008, meta, president, Stephen Colbert
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