The Daily Blue America Report-- #8

They should all retire together

Finally some good news for Ted Stevens! On returning home from his trial in Washington Stevens was told that Alaska law permits felons to run for federal office. In fact, as long as he isn't sentenced before Tuesday, he can even vote for himself! And he'll need every vote he can muster. "Like most people, I'm not perfect," Stevens told a throng of adoring recipients of wealth from the Lower 48 spread around through Stevens' earmarks.

Stevens has been kicked to the curb by both friend and for. McCain, who has always hated his guts, called on him to resign before the last juror had a chance to nod. He then forced Palin do the same, breaking with the Alaska Republican Party, which is still urging the faithful to vote for Uncle Ted. Many of the crooked Republicans who have been taking bribes from Big Oil funneled through Stevens' PAC-- particularly Republican senators in jeopardy of losing their seats Tuesday, like Mitch McConnell R-KY), Norm Coleman (R-MN), who is having his own spiraling out-of-control ethics scandal, Gordon Smith (R-OR) and John Sununu (R-NH)-- have hypocritically demanded their old partner in crime resign... immediately. Who's name is missing from this list? Well, check out which members of the Senate got the really big pay-outs from Stevens' money-laundering operation, The Northern Lights PAC and you will find Maine's most corrupt political hack, Susan Collins ($10,000 this year and $10,000 last time she ran). Maine's other senator, the honest, moderate one, Olympia Snowe, has joined her colleagues urging Stevens to resign. But not Collins, whose own PAC funneled $10,000 to Stevens, a kind of semi-legalistic way for politicians to avoid campaign finance laws.

And while Susan Collins is pledging her undying fealty to convicted felon Ted Stevens, her opponent, Tom Allen, one of the finest-- and most tested and proven-- public servants running for the Senate from anywhere, is being supported by Bill Clinton. President Clinton and Congressman Allen are old friends from the days they were both Rhodes Scholars at Oxford. Tens of thousands of Mainers were surprised when they picked up their phones tonight-- praying it wouldn't be another hysterical robocall from another of the far right GOP front groups flooding the state with negativity on behalf of Collins-- to find President Clinton's comforting voice urging them to vote for Tom.

"Hello this is President Clinton and I'm calling to urge you to support Tom Allen for United States Senate.  Barack Obama needs Democrats like Tom Allen in Washington in order implement his agenda of change to turn this economy around.

"Congressman Tom Allen opposes Bush's failed economy policy and is fighting for change: a new economic policy that focuses on the middle class, creates jobs in Maine, and supports small businesses. For Real Change support Tom Allen for US Senate on November 4."

That was especially refreshing after a day of dire warnings from the Republican wing of the Democratic Party that they intend to control Obama's agenda and the Democratic Party after Tuesday.

Conservative Democrats who've been a thorn in the side of liberal party leaders could grow into a major obstacle to Barack Obama's agenda if he is elected president.

Majority Democrats are positioned for big gains in next week's congressional election. But many of the new faces would join a growing chorus of "Blue Dogs" who often part from the party base on big issues like taxes and increasing federal spending.

That could set up a roadblock for Obama, who has promised to broaden health insurance coverage, start a new round of public works projects and improve early childhood education, among other things-- all initiatives that would require substantial government spending at a time of soaring deficits.

Ironically, it was Obama's radio ad for one of the worst of the Blue Dogs, John Barrow, a nominal Democrat from Georgia, that saved him from being defeated in a primary by state Senator Regina Thomas, who is an exemplary progressive. On substantive matters, Barrow has voted with the GOP 65% of the time and with the Democrats 35% of the time. And Barrow is only one of 16 nominal Democrats who have voted with the Repugs more frequently than with their own party. The others, from bad to worse, are: Zach Space (OH), Baron Hill (IN), Gene Taylor (MS), Harry Mitchell (AZ), Jim Matheson (UT), Chris Carney (PA), Heath Shuler (NC), Jason Altmire (PA), Dan Boren (OK), Brad Ellsworth (IN), Travis Childers (MS), Don Cazayoux (LA), Joe Donnelly (IN), Jim Marshall (GA) and Nick Lampson (TX).

Lately we've been mentioning how the DCCC is spending far more money on Independent Expenditures for conservative and corporate candidates than for grassroots and progressive candidates. Today I saw quite a few weighty endorsements come over the transom-- mostly for conservatives. Many of the best candidates across the country-- the hope of the progressive movement, have been snubbed by the Establishment Democrats over and over, as though they actually hope they lose. Today conservative business shill Mark Warner warmly endorsed fellow conservative Glenn Nye, while ignoring progressive candidates Judy Feder and Tom Perriello. Simultaneously Jim Webb sent out a last minute plea for 4 Democratic candidates for the Senate-- pointedly leaving out progressives-- and pleading for cash from a right-wing corporate shill like Bruce Lunsford (KY) and for right-of-center bad-news-Dems Kay Hagan (NC) and Ronnie Musgrove (MS) plus moderate Jim Martin (GA). Not a word about struggling progressives like Jeff Merkley (OR), Rick Noriega (TX), Andrew Rice (OK), or Tom Allen (ME).

Connecticut-04- On the other hand, Jim Himes did get a little help that should go a long way in the form of a radio ad by Barack Obama.

New York-25- Yesterday's NY Times reported that the Republican Party has given up on all but two of the congressional races in New York State, the others being hopelessly out of their reach. Dan Maffei is sure to win a seat he just missed out on in 2006. The only Blue America candidate in New York now facing a challenge is Eric Massa, who is leading in a tight rematch with Bush rubber stamp Randy Kuhl.

National Republican officials have decided to withhold financial support from all but two closely contested Congressional races in New York, as the party braces for the possibility that it could lose several more House seats in the state.

The decision to abandon much of the state came after internal party polls showed Republican candidates in at least three once-promising races falling behind their Democratic opponents, a party official briefed on the internal deliberations said.

As a result, Republican leaders are diverting money to candidates in other races in which party officials believe they have a greater chance of success, the official said.

The decision by national Republicans to focus on a smaller group of races underscores the degree to which the party is on the defensive not only in New York but also in New Jersey, Connecticut and many other states. The national party is short on cash and is being forced into the difficult position of deciding where to continue to fight-- and where to effectively surrender-- as the election enters the final days of campaigning.

“Tough decisions have to be made,” said Representative Peter T. King, a Republican from Long Island, who conceded that the party was seeking to minimize its losses. “You have to decide who comes off life support and who gets a massive infusion.”

Two of the races effectively being written off in New York are in districts currently held by Republican incumbents who are retiring at the end of the year-- the 25th Congressional District in the Syracuse region, now held by James T. Walsh; and the 13th District on Staten Island, where Vito J. Fossella is stepping down. Representative Fossella was found guilty in a Virginia court this month on a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol.

VIRGINIA-05- In a stunning and precedent-shattering move, the Danville Register & Bee has ended its career-long support for corrupt Bush rubber stamp Virgil Goode and urged voters to trade him in for Tom Perriello.

This newspaper hasn’t endorsed a Democrat for Congress since Virgil Goode was a Democrat. Since Goode’s first campaign for Congress in 1996, we have backed him in every election, defended him from what we thought was unfair criticism by challengers and wished for him a long career in Washington.

But today, the Danville Register & Bee endorses Tom Perriello for the 5th District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

We haven’t left Virgil Goode. Virgil Goode has left us.

...We expect to receive great criticism for endorsing Perriello over Goode.

But our decision was born out of frustration with a career politician who has already told us he expects to be ineffective as Democrats gain more power in Congress. Just this year, Goode has voted against the tax rebate checks that people throughout the 5th District received this year and he voted against a financial rescue plan that even his own Republicans believed was necessary to stave off more serious economic problems.

If we send Goode back to Washington, how many more times will he vote against our interests? We can’t take that chance.

On Tuesday, it’s time to elect a young man of integrity, energy, faith and hard work. It’s time to send Tom Perriello to Congress.

Texas-10- Cook upgraded Larry Joe Doherty's chance of unseating Bush rubber stamp Michael McCaul... for the second time. McCaul, one of the least knowledgeable hacks in the whole Congress has refused to debate Doherty and over the past couple of months the district went from "safe Republican" to "likely Republican" to "leans Republican." McCaul has no get ground game and Doherty has been building one all year. The latest polling shows a virtual tie. A victory Tuesday for Larry Joe will be reason to celebrate-- for Texans and for all Americans. Watch him on local TV news yesterday explaining his ideas about bailing out big corporations.

California-04- Last night we talked about the soft-core porn robocalls Republican congressional candidate Zane Starkewolf has been using (illegally) in CA-01. Mike Thompson, the incumbent from that district was campaigning with Charlie Brown yesterday in CA-04. And Little Zane's buddy, Tom McClintock was also employing more illegal robocalls, which most people in Northern California refer to as nuisance calls. (McClintock, who lives in the L.A. suburbs doesn't know anything about northern California, so he isn't aware people don't like them-- or that they're illegal.) A couple weeks ago Charlie Brown called on McClintock to join him in swearing them off. "Robo-Dial phone calls are a nuisance and a deceptive campaign tactic typical of negative campaigns that would rather attack a person’s character than offer detailed solutions. I am calling on Tom McClintock to join me in a bi-partisan effort to conduct an above board campaign based on direct contact with voters-- not deceptive and annoying robo-calls." McClintock refused and instead launched another barrage of the calls, illegal because they violated laws requiring that they include a disclaimer identifying who paid for and authorized the campaign communication.

Another great SEIU TV spot-- this one on behalf of progressives in Ohio. Let's hope it rubs off on Vic Wulsin, the best candidate in the entire state and the one who is being pummeled the hardest by the GOP smear machine.



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Extra, extra, read all about it: Jim Himes takes the lead over Chris Shays's sad carcass in CT-04. PLUS: A wingnut outrage you won't believe in NC-05

by Ken

You know Howie well enough to know that even when he's traveling on business, as long as he has any access to information, he keeps an eye on political news. And he's just passed on a big breaking news story:

In a new SurveyUSA poll in this morning's edition of Roll Call, a poll taken Oct. 13-14 among likely voters shows outstanding Democratic challenger Jim Himes taking the lead over the entrenched once-moderate Republican incumbent Christopher Shays:

Jim Himes (D): 48 percent
Chris Shays (R): 45 percent

To me, Shays is one of the sadder spectacles in present-day politics. He's a guy who could once lay claim to being a moderate, a pol of genuine character. But he stood on the sidelines as his party moved farther and farther to the right, to the edge of its flat earth, and when the Bush regime issued its demand for unwavering party-line obedience, he knuckled under without an audible whimper. In fact, faced with the need to justify his appalling voting record, he increasingly sounded pretty nutty himself.

By the last election New England had of course become hostile territory for Bush-rubber-stamping Republicans, but Shays managed to survive. Apparently the home folks are sometimes the last to get the message, as seems to be happening in Maine, where Sen. Susan Collins has spent the Bush years cringing in cowardly acquiescence but seems still able to persuade her constituents that she is some sort of maverick, even in the face of as outstanding (and trustworthy) a candidate as Rep. Tom Allen.

A couple of days ago we had news that one of our favorite candidates, Darcy Burner, whom we expect to see become a progressive force in the House, has finally taken a lead over her rubber-stamp opponent Dave Reichert in Washington's 8th District. If Reichert's and Shays's constituents are finally getting the message, can Senator Susie's be far behind?

It goes without saying -- but we're going to say it anyway -- that you can contribute to the campaigns of Jim Himes and Tom Allen and Darcy Burner and the rest of our "better Democrats" on the Blue America page. It's looking like now you can make those contributions pay off more than ever.


WHILE WE'RE ON THE SUBJECT, CHECK OUT THIS AD
FOR DEM CHALLENGER ROY CARTER IN NC-05

Here's another pass-along from Howie. In NC-05, Roy Carter is challenging Virginia Foxx, whom Howie describes as "a horrible witch and one of the half dozen most extreme members of Congress." The campaign is now circulating this ad:

Summer Lipford is a Gold Star mom from NC.

Her son was killed in Iraq. When he died, Summer contacted Rep. Foxx's office for help with transportation to the memorial ceremony at Ft. Benning.

Foxx never called her back and Summer was never able to afford to attend her son's own ceremony.

Summer ran into two of Foxx's staffers at a couple months later in her hometown. She asked them, "Why has Foxx never called me back, or answered my letters?"

They replied, "Why are you so special that our Congresswoman should talk to you?"

Summer then said, "Because my son was killed in a war she voted for."

One Foxx staffer snapped back, "Well he volunteered for the war didn't he?" And the other one piled on, "Yeah and he was getting paid over there, so what's the problem?"

Yeah, what's the problem?

Besides, don't you know you have to be really "special" to be worthy of your congressmember's attention?


UPDATE: FOR MORE INFO ON THE ROY CARTER NC-05 AD --

Check out Bruce's comment in the comments section. And for more information on the NC-05 race, check out the Roy Carter for Congress website.
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Planned Parenthood Goes To Maine-- Dumps Bush Rubber Stamp Susan Collins

I was furious the other day when I read that the Sierra Club had declined to endorse Darcy Burner (D-WA) in what is arguably the most important congressional race in the country. It made me think back to Markos' first book, Crashing the Gates and how he chastised single-issue advocacy groups playing politics (badly) by bending over backwards to appear bipartisan, damaging any semblance of a progressive coalition in the process. In the past we have attacked boneheaded moves by HRC and NARAL when they've endorsed Republicans whose only quality was that they were not quite as bad as your garden variety, drooling fascist GOP member of Congress. HRC, an out-of-touch, Inside-the-Beltway gay civil rights organization, for example, endorsed Susan Collin's mediocre record on gay issues while ignoring Tom Allen's 100% record. Their callous political calculations-- that if Allen won he'd be pro-gay anyway and that if Collins won she'd "owe" them, are just plain putrid and it's typical of these one-issue, puffed-up Insider orgs in Washington.

Today the opposite happened, thanks to some foresight from Planned Parenthood. Collins Watch broke the story in Maine.

In a precedent-setting move with national ramifications, Planned Parenthood has broken decisively with Sen. Collins, and will endorse Rep. Allen's bid to unseat her.

The decision to intervene in the race--coming from the nation's most important and respected pro-choice organization--sounds an urgent warning to pro-choice Collins supporters, admonishing them to take another look at the junior senator's record.

And because Planned Parenthood backed Collins in 2002 (and frequently endorses Republicans) its support for Allen represents a serious, nonpartisan challenge to Collins' carefully-cultivated "moderate" image.

It's the first time Planned Parenthood has backed the challenger to a senator it had previously endorsed. It also seems to be the first time Planned Parenthood has backed a Senate challenger over an incumbent who identifies as pro-choice. And It also serves as an example to other so-called "progressive" groups, showing that it's possible to avoid reflexively fluffing those in power. It still irks actual progressives that NARAL endorsed Joe Lieberman over Ned Lamont-- and Lincoln Chafee over Sheldon Whitehouse. There have been rumors all year, in fact, that the undependable NARAL would even, despite her overwhelmingly rubber stamp posture and intense support for McCain, endorse Collins this year. In light of Planned Parenthood's courageous decision, NARAL might be more hesitant to make such a move. Instead they should remember that Collins:

-voted for the confirmation of anti-Choice radical Sammy Alito to the Supreme Court.
-voted for nearly all of President Bush's lower court judicial nominees, including right-wing activist appointees like Priscilla Owen and Janice Rogers Brown.
-voted for the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, a law that pro-choice groups saw as a backdoor attempt to undermine Roe v. Wade.
-has remained silent about the Bush administration's recently proposed DHHS rule, which grants health care providers wide latitude to deny services to women on a case by case basis.

So... today we congratulate Panned Parenthood for doing the right thing. This is probably a good time to remind everyone that Tom Allen's race to win the Maine Senate seat is tightening and that Tom needs help from grassroots donors. You can do that here at our Blue America ActBlue page.

From Planned Parenthood:

The national Planned Parenthood (PPAF) Action Fund board unanimously voted to endorse Congressman Tom Allen in his bid to unseat Senator Susan Collins.

...We need a leader who will represent the interests of the thousands of Mainers served by Planned Parenthood...We need someone in the Senate who understands prevention and who will support quality, affordable health care...Planned Parenthood wholeheartedly agrees that Tom Allen is that leader."

...[Allen's] record proves he will support and protect a woman's right to make personal childbearing decisions...This election is absolutely pivotal for our organization and the people who count on us. We look forward to doing whatever we can to ensure the people of this state know who they can trust to protect their rights, protect our courts, and protect the health and safety of all Mainers."

Blue America Senate Candidates Speak Out On The Bush Regime "Bailout"

Blue America is in the middle of a competition between our five awesome Senate candidates, Andrew Rice (D-OK), Rick Noriega (D-TX), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Mark Begich (D-AK), and Tom Allen (D-ME). In our first 24 hours we've had over $4,300 in contributions from 118 people. Today Crooks & Liars has a letter posted from Blue America alum Jon Tester urging his supporters get behind Mark Begich. I was thinking of posting a similar better from one of Jeff Merkley's supporters. But Jeff is way out ahead and I'll hold that letter for now and pass along some comments from our candidates on the latest Bush Regime/Republican Party catastrophe to come down the pike, one whose proposed "solution" is probably worse than the catastrophe itself and one, I'm happy to see, hasn't been embraced by either Barack Obama or the American people.

Andrew Rice is a state Senator in Oklahoma City dealing, in a less removed way than Washington politicians, with the everyday travails of everyday people. Like his constituents, he's growing increasingly concerned with GOP ideology getting in the way of a non-political commonsense approach to basic problems the country faces.

"Over the weekend the Bush Administration contradicted their own longstanding ideology and sent Congress a massive $700 billion proposal to bailout financial institutions on Wall Street. What has Jim Inhofe, who's been in Washington for 22 years, done to avert this crisis? Absolutely nothing. And now that we're in this mess, all he said last week when we saw the biggest financial crash since the 1930s was that he'll 'be keeping a close eye on the fallout.'"  
 
"Jim Inhofe is responsible for this mess. George Bush was probably the most successful president since FDR in getting everything he wanted in his economic package passed through congress. Massive tax cuts for the wealthy. Deregulation. Limited Oversight. And Jim Inhofe rubber-stamped it every step of the way. Look where it's gotten us. And all he can offer the people of Oklahoma is "I'll be keeping a close eye on it." The good people of Oklahoma deserve much better than this."

This morning Tom Allen and rubber stamp Republican Susan Collins squared off in Portland in the first of ten debates leading up to Maine's Senate election in November. Tom hammered her on her complicity in every disastrous Bush Regime policy initiative that she has been tied up in-- from the Iraq war and the crises in energy and health care right to the mortgage crisis and the Wall Street meltdown. "I fundamentally disagree with Susan Collins on her support of these policies that have been so harmful to people in Maine. At the fuel pump and the grocery, looking at our 401k statements or watching $12 billion per month go out the door for an endless civil war, we are all feeling the consequences." Collins is in a particularly awkward position because she is the only member of the Maine congressional delegation to support all of the failed Bush economic policies down the line and she is still doing it, even as the economy slides towards the precipice. Tom:

"The Bush Administration's consistent philosophy has been that free markets work but without government regulation. Now we ask, works best for whom? Wall Street Manhattan or Wall Street Portland? Now taxpayers may have to pay as much or more as they've already paid for the war in Iraq for the Bush Republicans' refusal to conduct oversight or accountability."

Allen said it is critical that the bailout package minimize taxpayer exposure, make sure homeowners get a lifeline, include oversight of the Treasury and limits on excessive compensation for executives.

"We need to protect Maine families and small businesses. We have to contain the financial crisis on Wall Street and take action to spur economic activity on Main Street," he added. "We must make sure this never happens again."

"We need a government that works for ordinary families and small businesses, not special interests. This crisis is a vivid illustration of what happens when the federal government refuses to do responsible regulation and oversight of the financial markets. That is exactly what the Bush Administration and its allies like Susan Collins and John McCain have adopted -- policies and positions that have led us to the edge of financial disaster,."

The Bush Administration on Saturday sent a three-page proposal to lawmakers calling for taxpayers to buy $700 billion in mortgages. Some estimates are that a bailout package will reach or exceed $1 trillion. The $700 billion figure is roughly what has been spent to date on the war in Iraq and the annual budget appropriation for the Pentagon. The Bush proposal is the largest financial bailout since the Great Depression.

"The Bush Administration and its allies have put us into a corner where we must bail out these firms. We're going to do that this week and I look forward to working in a bipartisan manner to get that job done. But we should not bail out Wall Street without taking care of Main Street.

"We must address the root causes of the Republicans' failure to do oversight and to regulate our financial markets. We can no longer sit by as corporate America assumes all the profit but wants taxpayers to assume the risk. We need bold corporate reforms for transparency, to reign in compensation, and to strengthen fraud laws."

The ideas widely held by the Bush Administration and its allies like Susan Collins and John McCain that the market will take care of itself without federal regulation and oversight have failed our middle class miserably. Amid a market panic last week, John McCain reiterated for the 17th time his position that "the fundamentals of our economy are strong." Chief executive officers presiding over reckless behavior are walking away with millions in compensation while homeowners face foreclosure and watch their retirement investments dwindle.

"We need to change our economic policies in order to strengthen our middle class instead of feeding the superwealthy and big corporations. We must do that - now. And to fix the problem on the longterm, we need new leadership in Washington that will meet the tough challenges with bold solutions. It's time for a change."

This afternoon Jeff Merkley is in Central Oregon talking with working men and women about the bailout. Unlike his multimillionaire opponent-- most recently caught employing scores of undocumented low wage workers in his frozen foods factory-- Jeff's perspective comes straight from the heart of the middle class. "For years, CEOs on Wall Street made millions based on sub-prime mortgages and backroom deals.  Today, they still have those millions but taxpayers are the ones paying the price. The bailout may be necessary, but that doesn't mean it's right... American workers have fallen victim to the pervasive greed in the Bush-Smith economy. This week's collapse on Wall Street and news about a trillion dollar bailout is startling news for millions of Americans.  What is most troubling and infuriating to many is the idea that powerful special interests have made billions through greed-driven ventures and working families are paying the price."

From his perch on the powerful Finance Committee, Gordon Smith has rubber stamped the Bush policies that have led us to this point. In many ways, he is echoing his friend John McCain about our "strong economy." This is one of the worst financial crises in a century. It is certainly not a symptom of a "vibrant" economy.

...Federal bailouts may be necessary, but that doesn't change the fact that this situation should never have become the crisis it is today. Years of lax government oversight and deregulation directly contributed to the meltdown of financial markets. George Bush, John McCain, and Gordon Smith are all followers of an economic philosophy that has favored the powerful over working class Americans. We are all feeling the effects of that philosophy today and it's just one more reason we need a change and make Washington work for working Americans.

You can vote for your favorite Senate candidate here and the winner will get $5,000 and the runner up $1,000.

Help Blue America Pick A Senate Candidate

A few weeks ago Blue America launched a competition among 9 of our progressive House candidates. It was far more successful than we had imagined when our PAC offered $5,000 as seed money to get the show on the road. In the end, 1,899 individual donors contributed over $43,000 to our candidates. On top of that DCCC chair Chris Van Hollen matched our $5,000 to the winner and two other Democrat House leaders, who wish to remain anonymous, gave another $15,000 between them. So, our winner, Miami-Dade progressive Democrat, Annette Taddeo walked off with over $30,000-- and the next day she was added to the DCCC's Red to Blue list.

Today we begin a week long competition between the five candidates for the U.S. Senate endorsed by Blue America, Tom Allen (D-ME), Mark Begich (D-AK), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Rick Noriega (D-TX) and Andrew Rice (D-OK). None of these are the "easy" races that the big money is flowing to. These are the tough ones, although each one is winnable. And these are the races that will make the difference between the Republicans ability to filibuster and thwart Obama's reform program for real change. If at least two of these candidates don't win, we will be stuck in the same hideous gridlock we're in now-- with partisan hacks like Mitch McConnell, Jon Kyl and John McCain obstructing everything the Houses passes and then cynically claiming the "Democratically-controlled" Senate can't get anything done.

Each of these candidates has done at least one live-blog session with us at Firedoglake and I encourage you to go back to the archives and re-read their responses to the questions they were given. Each link above goes to an FDL session. I want to say something about the rules of this game before we go further. Blue America will send the candidate with the most "votes" a check for $5,000 and the runner-up will get a Blue America check for $1,000. A vote is a contribution-- for any amount between $1 and $2,300 at the Blue America Senate contest page. If you contribute $1.00 that counts as one vote. If you contribute $2,000 that counts as one vote. (We're Democrats for the most part; not Republicans.) We loved the enthusiasm of supporters donating again and again and again. One guy gave Russ Warner 80 individual donations. It still just counted as one vote though. If you vote for two or more candidates though, each counts as a vote.

I asked each candidate to write a few paragraphs that would serve as a vision statement about why they are running for a seat in "the world's most exclusive club." Before I share them with you, though, I want to say something about our candidate in Texas, Rick Noriega. Rick is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Texas Army National Guard and is on duty this week which has been so calamitous for so many residents of Texas. With the devastation in Houston and the Texas Gulf Coast area, his campaign and the Texas progressive movement are putting all their energy into helping with the recovery efforts. As Matt Glazer wrote today, "We have Red Cross facilities and shelters being shut down and there is no food in the food banks in Austin or San Antonio." (Needless to say, John Cornyn is using this lull as an opportunity for more negative, distorted campaigning.)

Rick had managed to get this statement off to us though:

I'm running for the Senate, because I believe that we need to get our country back on track.

Our energy crisis is a national security concern. I have proposed policies that provide immediate relief for Texas families, move the United States towards energy self-sufficiency, and develop a sustainable energy and economic future for Texas. By increasing investment in alternative energy technologies and improving the efficiency of our cars and homes, we can begin to address our nation's energy problems, make Texas a leader in renewable energy technologies and create thousands of new jobs.

Our health care system is broken and Washington hasn't doing a thing to fix it. I've called on the federal government to expand health insurance for children of hardworking Texas families. I've also proposed providing tax incentives for small businesses that provide health coverage for employees, closing the prescription drug "donut hole" currently affecting Medicare recipients, focusing on preventative medicine and building transparency and accountability in our health care system.

I'll work to responsibly end the war in Iraq and bring our troops safely home, with a phased military re-deployment. At home, veterans are denied the basic benefits they deserve. We must honor the sacrifices of our men and women in the armed services by keeping our benefits commitment, and I am dedicated to this goal.

Texas needs a senator who will prioritize Texas families over the special interests, and that is exactly what I am committed to working for you when I'm in the U.S. Senate.

Even before Alaska's corrupt senior Senator, Ted Stevens, was indicted Mark Begich was leading in the polls. He was looking like a shoe-in. The danger now is that with his Republican colleague, Sarah Palin on the national ticket, Stevens could get a boost to what once seemed like a moribund and hopeless campaign. Mark may still be favored to win, but it's going to take a great deal of hard work and plenty of resources. As of last month Stevens had raised $4,438,543, primarily from the special interests he serves, and Mark had raised $1,714,299. Here's what Mark had to say about why he's in the race:

I'm running to represent Alaska in the US Senate to try to get Washington working for Alaska's families again. Being born and raised here and as the father of a young son, I care deeply about Alaska and its future. Alaska families face many challenges today, including skyrocketing energy costs and decreasing health care access. Alaska needs open, ethical and independent leadership to set our state on a path toward healthy, vibrant communities with new opportunities for Alaska families. The contrast I offer with Senator Stevens is clear.

Alaska has accomplished a lot in the last 50 years since statehood but it time to start a new chapter of Alaska history. I recognize the past but its time to think about the future. I will work to provide leadership to develop a national energy policy-- Alaska should be a world-leader in developing our non-renewable and renewable resources responsibly and in a way that improves local economies. Alaska can-- and should-- be exporting these energy innovations into the world market. I also intend to bring to new standards for ethics in government. I will work to end self-policing by senators, make financial records of public servants accessible, and stop special treatment for senators and their families. It's time to rebuild trust in our government. While I work to make new, tougher standards the law of the land, I will personally live by them from Day One.

Thanks to Crooks & Liars, Firedoglake, Digby, Down With Tyranny, and all the supporters of Blue America. I appreciate the help you're giving to my campaign and the work you're doing to achieve change nationwide.

Andrew Rice is running in Oklahoma, a state with a proud populist tradition that has gotten redder and redder in recent years. We really have our work cut out for us with this one! But, considering what it would mean to Oklahoma, to America and to mankind to retire James Inhofe and replace him with someone as forward-thinking as Andrew, it's well worth the effort. We've gotten to know Andrew and his family pretty well and I guess that's why he sent such a personal statement:

I’m regularly asked why I decided to run for the U.S. Senate. There are certainly moments when I wish I wasn't so busy and away from my wife Apple and our two amazing boys. I know it's worth it, though, because we desperately need new solutions and new leadership that will put people before politics again. Truth be told, there are a lot of personal and important reasons why I am running for U.S. Senate. The two most important and simple reasons are below:

That is Parker on the left. He is 20 months old, and that's a photo of him on his first birthday enjoying his cupcake. On the right is Noah; he is 3 years old, and he loves to wear his cowboy hat and dance. Noah and Parker are Apple's and my two children. It may seem cliché to say I'm doing this for my kids, but this is the easiest and most sincere way to explain why I care about what happens in the United States Senate, and why I want to have a seat at the table in deciding what happens.

What I want to do for Oklahoma is simple: I want to make sure that the people of this state have a voice in Washington. They haven’t gotten that from Jim Inhofe, and I think that’s the very least people should get when they elect someone to the U.S. Senate. When I’m elected to the U.S. Senate, the people of Oklahoma will know that we may not agree on every single issue, but when it comes down to what’s most important-- jobs, the economy, health care, protecting our troops-- I will always have their back. I will look out for Oklahoma because I will always think about the effect my decisions have on the world Parker and Noah will inherit.

No matter what the pollsters or the pundits say about me or my race, I will always hold fast to these simple truths. That’s true for my campaign, and will be true when I get to the U.S. Senate.

In politics no one is perfect so I don't use perfection as a standard of measurement. I use Paul Wellstone. I like to think all of our candidates will get into the Senate and work as selflessly and courageously as he did. From the minute I heard Jeff Merkley speaking in front of a live audience, I thought, "Wow, he's like Wellstone!" His statement is too:

Hello Blue America, I’m Jeff Merkley and I’m challenging Republican Gordon Smith for U.S. Senate in Oregon. I’m here to tell you why I’m running and what I’ll do to shake things up in Washington. When I was a child, my father took me to my public school, pointed to the front doors of the schoolhouse and told me they were not just doors to the building, they were the doors to opportunity-- if I worked hard, I could do and be just about anything. I took his words to heart.

You and I know that Washington is truly broken. I am determined to change the way Washington works. As House Speaker, I fought hard to make serious changes in Oregon from granting gay and lesbian couples the same rights as married couples, to cracking down on the payday lenders who prey on working families. I took on the insurance companies and the pharmaceutical companies and never backed down. In my eight years as a state legislator I have never abandoned my progressive values and I will not abandon them as your next Senator from Oregon. I will never look the other way when Government tries to take away your civil liberties and erode the laws this nation was founded upon. I will not sit quietly when Congress tries to block hardworking people from organizing and advocating for fair wages and affordable health care. And, I will fight with every fiber of my being to end the biggest foreign policy blunder in the history of this nation and bring our sons and daughters and husbands and wives home immediately.

It’s time to inject some backbone into Congress, and if elected, I’ll be there to lead the way.

Tom Allen was elected to the House on the same day Susan Collins was elected to the Senate. She has been a dependable rubber stamp for Bush and for the special interests that have so lavishly financed her career. Tom took a very different approach to his duties. He's been working for the families of Maine, not for the insurance companies, not for Big Oil, not for the banks, not for Wall Street and not for Big Pharma-- and not for Dick Cheney. His voting record and Susan Collins' voting record are very different. His looks like what you would expect a Mainer's to look like. Her's would be perfect too... if her constituents lived in Mississippi.

Since first being elected to Congress I have never never been afraid to stand up for what is right and in the best interest of Maine and America. In 2002, I stood up to President Bush and the Democratic leadership to vote against the War in Iraq. I opposed the President’s failed economic policies and the Cheney Energy Bill, while helping to ignite a national debate on prescription drugs and writing legislation to prohibit the construction of U.S. bases in Iraq. Susan Collins has supported President Bush on all of the biggest issues of our time-- on energy, on the economy, and on the war in Iraq. She also voted for FISA, voted against habeas corpus, voted for the President’s plan to redefine the Geneva conventions against torture, and cast one of the deciding votes to confirm Samuel Alito.

I am the only U.S. Senate candidate to have my own plan for universal healthcare. I have worked towards some of the toughest climate change legislation ever introduced in Congress and I have an energy plan to provide immediate relief to Mainers and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. I have made the right choices for Maine and will work to change the direction of the country when in the U.S. Senate. I need your help to get his message out to the people of Maine!

This competition will last all week and we'll announce our winner and runner-up winner next Saturday. Please don't forget to vote and don't forget to get your friends and family to vote. Try to visualize a U.S. Senate without James Inhofe, John Cornyn, Susan Collins, Gordon Smith and Ted Stevens. And truck over to Crooks & Liars where you can see the TV ads the campaigns made so you'll get an idea about one of the ways they'd like to use your donation. In fact, if there's an ad you see that you feel is especially effective and want to see run on TV... think about including an extra couple of bucks.

Who Wants To Extend And Deepen The Bush Economic Miracle?

Even if you don't blame McCain, per se, for the Wall Street meltdown this weekend, there is no getting around the fact that the Republican Party mania against the federal regulatory agenda protecting consumers and workers has been part of the McCain gestalt from the time he was first elected to Congress-- and as recently as May 29, 2007 McCain boasted to the Wall Street Journal that "you are interviewing the greatest free trader you will ever interview, and the greatest deregulator you will ever interview." But Obama was dead on when he said it's Republican Party philosophy we should blame for the economic and financial problems we're facing, not the man who admits he doesn't know squat about the economy and who surrounds himself with the worst set of predators running GOP economic policy since the late 1920s.

I certainly don't fault Senator McCain for these problems, but I do fault the economic philosophy he subscribes to. It's a philosophy we've had for the last eight years-- one that says we should give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down to everyone else. It's a philosophy that says even common-sense regulations are unnecessary and unwise, and one that says we should just stick our heads in the sand and ignore economic problems until they spiral into crises.

Across the country savvy Democratic challengers to Republican rubber stamps of the Bush Economic Miracle have been explaining to voters the connection between GOP "philosophy" --and policy, and the economic woes and financial meltdown that are engulfing us all. In Nebraska, Scott Klebb is running against an anti-regulatory hack from Bush's cabinet, Mike Johanns. He was quick to explain why his campaign had put together a stomach churning video: "On a day where lax accountability and reckless oversight in Washington are in the forefront of the nation's mind, this 30 second video summarizing four years of broken government encapsulates the need for change in Washington."

Maine Congressman Tom Allen is running for a Senate seat held by one of Bush's most dependable allies on economic issues, Susan Collins, often opposing not just the Maine Democrats in the House, but even the Maine Republican, Olympia Snowe, in the Senate. According to the Portland Press Herald "Senator Olympia Snowe was right when she called these Bush tax breaks for the superwealthy 'cynical' and the 'wrong message for middle class America.'" The whole Maine delegation opposed them-- except Collins, who, as usual, stuck with Bush and the Republican dedication to wreck the federal regulatory system, the results we now see getting a stranglehold on the American economy, an economy in shambles, regardless of how many McCain shills call the American people whiners and exaggerators and no matter how many times McCain insists that the economy is sound and that we're better off under Bush's stewardship of the economy.

As the Dow dropped over 500 points, no doubt on what McCain insists are "strong fundamentals," I heard from several congressional candidates, particularly from candidates running against Republicans directly complicit in the Wall Street meltdown, like New Jersey's far right ideologue Scott Garrett, a member of the House Financial Services Committee. His Democratic opponent, Dennis Shulman, the can-do, blind rabbi lionized in yesterday's NY Times has some very pointed questions for Garrett who, it rightly asserts, helped bring about the subprime mortgage crisis by championing the specific legislative agenda of Countrywide Financial, the arch villain in this catastrophe.

"Countrywide Financial is widely recognized as having been the company at the forefront of these shady practices, practices that are bringing down generations-old investment banks and threatening to further derail the economy. Why did Scott Garrett vote consistently in favor of Countrywide Financial's desired positions, why did he put their former lobbyist on the taxpayers' payroll as his chief of staff, and will Garrett take responsibility for the disaster that occurred under his watch?" Shulman for Congress calls upon Scott Garrett to answer three questions:

• What were the terms of the mortgage you refinanced with Countrywide Financial in May 2003, during the time in which your current Chief of Staff lobbied for Countrywide and when Countrywide was giving congressmen with oversight responsibilities sweetheart deals?

• Why did you vote against anti-predatory lending bills and defend those pro-Countrywide Financial votes this spring by observing, "Just a year ago we were talking about how great it was (that) the highest percentage of Americans ever were in their homes?"

• Will you acknowledge that Dennis Shulman is right to vow to not take any money from industries his committees regulate, given how your votes in favor of Countrywide Financial have led to a national disaster?

Another extreme right ideologue on the Financial Services Committee is Republican Patrick McHenry. Yesterday we did a profile on McHenry's opponent, Democrat Daniel Johnson. Our research turned up an Op-ed McHenry penned for the Charlotte Observer on October 27, 2005. (Keep in mind that McHenry's biggest campaign "donors" are from three industries with one anti-regulatory agenda: Real Estate, Insurance and Commercial Banks.) McHenry's Op-ed was in response to a series of stories that didn't reflect well on his buddies at Countrywide and other predatory subprime mortgage lenders. In his effusive praise for the subprime mortgage industry, McHenry argues against what he and most Republicans call "burdensome regulations," but what normal Americans call society's way of protecting consumers from powerful unscrupulous operators.

Tom Perriello is in a knock down drag out fight with one of the Abramoff-connected operators in the House, Virgil Goode (R-VA). Tom's clear and powerful statement yesterday is how Democrats should speak with their voters about the economic crisis:

The failed economic policies of the Bush-Goode years rear their ugly head yet again. This is another financial crisis that Virginia's middle class families cannot afford. We have rising unemployment rates, an exploding national debt, a housing crisis, and yet, all we see from the gang in Washington is more of the same failed policies, which Congressman Goode has rubber-stamped during his time in Congress. The Good Book says we shall be known by our fruits. Well, Southside has lost over 10,000 jobs on Congressman Goode's watch. It's not surprising that when you take $1.5 million in campaign contributions from the special interests, you protect giant corporations again and again while middle class families pay the price. We need new leaders who will work a double shift for economic revival, which I've pledged will be my number one priority in Congress.

SAYING THANK YOU TO REAL AMERICAN PATRIOTS WHO STOOD UP FOR US

Yesterday the Blue America PAC started running a series of full page newspaper ads in GA-12, alerting John Barrow's constituents that although he campaigns as a Democrat in Savannah, Vidalia, Augusta, Milledgeville, and Statesboro, when he's back Inside the Beltway, he's been the single most dependable Democrat for George Bush and Dick Cheney and for the big money corporations looking for money-grubbing congressmen who will vote for their special interests. The week before that, the Blue America PAC took out a full page ad in the Washington Post and in every newspaper in Steny Hoyer's Maryland district, making sure his constituents knew about his shameful and decisive role in getting Bush's anti-constitutional FISA bill passed.

But over the last few days the Blue America bloggers, Digby, Jane, John and myself-- plus our colleague Glenn-- were mightily impressed by the courageous battle some members of the House and Senate and some candidates for the House and Senate, have waged against overwhelming odds and a sense of gruesome Insider inevitability. We decided that on behalf of the 5,969 donors who contributed $345,395.81 in the last few weeks we would pick a dozen and make symbolic contributions as tokens of gratitude to their campaign funds.

The first names to pop up, of course, where Chris Dodd and Russ Feingold, the heart, soul and conscience of the Senate. Listen to Chris Dodd make his last ditch plea to the Senate yesterday. And take a look at excerpts from Russ Feingold's speech:

“…it could not be clearer that this program broke the law, and this President broke the law. Not only that, but this administration affirmatively misled Congress and the American people about it for years before it finally became public.”
…
“If Congress short-circuits these lawsuits, we will have lost a prime opportunity to finally achieve accountability for these years of law-breaking. That’s why the administration has been fighting so hard for this immunity. It knows that the cases that have been brought directly against the government face much more difficult procedural barriers, and are unlikely to result in rulings on the merits.”
…
“I sit on the Intelligence and Judiciary Committees, and I am one of the few members of this body who has been fully briefed on the warrantless wiretapping program. And, based on what I know, I can promise that if more information is declassified about the program in the future, as is likely to happen either due to the Inspector General report, the election of a new President, or simply the passage of time, members of this body will regret that we passed this legislation. I am also familiar with the collection activities that have been conducted under the Protect America Act and will continue under this bill. I invite any of my colleagues who wish to know more about those activities to come speak to me in a classified setting. Publicly, all I can say is that I have serious concerns about how those activities may have impacted the civil liberties of Americans. If we grant these new powers to the government and the effects become known to the American people, we will realize what a mistake it was, of that I am sure.”

Those two were the easy ones because they were on the front line of the Senate every step of the way. It took us hours of e-mails and phone conversations to come up with the other 8, not because there weren't eight worthy progressives and patriots but because there dozens of them. It was painful narrowing them list down to just 8. Let me run down the list and give you a bit of rationale for each:

Rep. Tom Allen (D-ME) was elected to the House on the same day that Susan Collins was first elected to the Senate. Collins, a reflexive Bush rubber stamp, was a big booster of warrantless wiretaps and retroactive immunity. We don't think it's a coincidence that only 2 senators not running for president received bigger donations from the telecoms than Collins. In 2008, her campaign chest has swelled by over $35,000 with telecom money while she was working diligently to grant them everything they wanted. (She's taken $87,621 from them since being elected.) Tom voted against warrantless wiretaps and against retroactive immunity despite pressure from powerful Democratic Party hacks Steny Hoyer and Rahm Emanuel. Tom didn't care about the telecoms contributions or about party leaders manipulations. He stood for principles that cannot be compromised. "I strongly oppose retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies," he told us. "Neither the government nor large corporations are above the law. Individuals and corporations that break the law must be held accountable." Bingo.

Rep. Tom Udall (D-NM) has a somewhat similar story. He's running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Pete Domenici, who voted in favor of wiretapping U.S. citizens. Worse yet, the right-wing extremist Tom must face in November, Congressman Steve Pearce, is equating giving his corporate donors immunity from Justice with national security. Although Tom's Colorado cousin, Mark Udall, buckled under right-wing pressure, Tom stood firm. This is what he had to say on June 20th when the House voted:

The FISA bill we considered today would compromise the constitutionally guaranteed rights that make America a beacon of hope around the world.

Today's vote was not easy. I stood up to leaders of my own party and voted against this bill, because I took an oath to defend Americans and That duty is most important when it is most difficult. We can protect our nation while upholding our values, but unfortunately, this bill falls short.

Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH) has fought to protect the constitution and to respect the traditional New Hampshire motto: "Live Free Or Die." In her state people don't give up hard-won liberties for some tinpot would-be tyrant. Her opponent, a rubber stamp zombie she beat in 2006, is trying to make a comeback and is beating up on her by claiming her defense of the Constitution was... unpatriotic. She's fighting back... proudly and unapologetically. This is part of what she wrote in the Union Leader two weeks ago:

The foundation of democracy is individual freedom from government interference. I am willing to compromise on many issues-- but not on the Constitution. Being forced to choose between protecting our national security or protecting our Constitution is a false choice; we do not have to sacrifice one for the other. It is our responsibility as Americans to protect both.

Doug Tudor isn't in office. He's running against the third ranking Republican in the House, central Florida ideologue and extremist Adam Putnam. Doug is a 20 year Navy veteran and he takes the Constitution for which he fought and risked his life very seriously. His comments about the FISA battle were jarring for their straightforward, no holds barred directness:

“On five occasions during my Navy career, I raised my hand and affirmed ‘to protect and defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic.’ Members of Congress take a similar oath. I believe that those members who voted in favor of HR 6304 did so in violation of their oath of office. I would have voted against this bill.”

Needless to say, Putnam was jumping up and down and eager as a little redheaded beaver for the warrantless wiretaps to be made legal for his campaign contributors in the telecom industry to have their minds set to rest that they would never have to answer for any crimes they may have committed.

Dennis Shulman is a blind rabbi in northern New Jersey running for a House seat currently occupied by the last radical right Republican left in the Northeast United States, Scott Garrett, who has taken over $9,000 from the Telecom industry this year and, of course, is gung-ho for wiretapping Americans. Dennis spent a great deal of time thinking this issue through. Here's what he told us:

"The House of Representatives, with the support of Republican Scott Garrett, recently passed a bill that would grant President Bush and future administrations unprecedented powers to spy on American citizens without a warrant or review by any judge or court. The new law would also let our nation's largest telecom companies off the hook for knowingly violating the law and releasing their customers' private information at the behest of George Bush.

"Our constitutional right to protection against unsupervised searches was written into our Bill of Rights for good reason by Founders whom we rightly celebrate.

"Neither President Bush nor Scott Garrett are as wise as James Madison.

"It is unfortunate that it appears that the telecom industry has managed to falsely conflate its quest for retroactive immunity for lawbreaking with the issue of national security. The Founding Fathers understood that our safety as a nation depended on our being a nation of laws. Retroactive immunity undermines the rule of law, and therefore undermines our principles and security as a nation.

"The President, his advisers, and his rubber stamps in Congress, including Scott Garrett, have demonstrated a pattern of disregard for the laws of the United States. This bill not only immunizes telecom companies from lawsuits, but it would also block the American people from ever knowing the full extent of the Bush Administration's illegal behavior.

"I urge my fellow Democrats in the Senate to vote against this unnecessary and deeply troubling law.

"I believe that Congress must protect the rights of citizens and the laws of our country from career politicians in Washington too willing to cave to special interests and endanger the fundamental rights that we, as Americans, hold so dear."

State Senator Andrew Rice (D-OK) is running a strong campaign against one of the most extremist members of the U.S. Senate, James Inhofe, who raked in $12,550 from the Telecoms this year and was determined to grant them retroactive immunity-- and positively giddy about giving the government the right to listen in to all phone conversations and read all e-mails without a court order. Andrew disagrees-- strongly:

“Congress must remain vigilant in order to protect Americans from another terrorist attack. However, the bill that is before Congress this week bargains away the privacy of law-abiding American citizens while protecting the companies that allegedly participated in the President’s illegal wiretapping program. The Senate should stick to the narrow fix it set out to accomplish by making it clear that the government does not have to obtain a warrant to listen to foreign-to-foreign communications. Instead, this bill allows a significant expansion of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act so that government can eavesdrop on the international communications of innocent American citizens. Since losing my brother on 9/11, I have vowed to improve America’s anti-terrorism capability without sacrificing the freedoms that so many Americans have died to protect.”

Rick Noriega is running in that big ole state just south of Oklahoma. His opponent, rubber stamp corporate shill John Cornyn has taken $15,250 from the Telecom industry this year and he is as eager as Inhofe to grant them retroactive immunity. Rick has thought about the issue more seriously and from a different perspective than just helping out campaign contributors.

“Many times throughout my lifetime I have sworn an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States . This isn’t a part-time Constitution. We as a nation cannot grant anyone sweeping amnesty if they break the rules. It’s appalling that my opponent, John Cornyn, puts his special interest campaign contributors ahead of the Constitution. Texans have had enough.

Americans will not accept an abuse of power, and they will not accept corporations getting away with breaking the law.

We already have a law in place that balances national security concerns while adhering to the Constitution. This is not the time to compromise the privacy of the American people and not the time to disregard the Constitution of United States. I regret that the Senate has voted this way.”

Jim Himes is standing firmly with his state's senior senator, Chris Dodd on this issue. Fake moderate Chris Shayes is once again eager to rubber stamp the Bush-Cheney agenda, somehow trying to say that granting Bush the ability to wiretap all American citizens without a court order makes us "safe." Jim sees right through that craven, partisan posturing:

"In Congress, I will always stand up for the fundamental American belief that no man, and no corporation, is above the law. As always, this is a matter for the courts to decide-- not for Congress, and absolutely not for the same Bush Administration who may have violated the law in the first place. It is great to see so many American citizens of all backgrounds coming together to stand up for the rule of law and in opposition to retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies who may have illegally spied on American citizens at the Bush Administration's request. I am disappointed that Chris Shays and so many others continue to stand with President Bush by refusing to stand up for this most fundamental of American principles."

Jon Tester (D-MT) was a populist underdog who ran for the Senate in 2006 against an Insider Democrat backed by Chuck Schumer and the Beltway Establishment. He beat him in the primary, beat an entrenched Republican incumbent in November and has gone on to represent the interests of regular Montana folks in DC. His statement about the this fight was an inspiration and may well have influenced his Montana colleague: "It deals with the freedoms that so many people have fought and died for. If we want to get serious about the War on Terror, we need to make the investments to fight the war on terror. We ought not be taking rights away from honest citizens. If we've got terror cells around the world, then let's invest in human intelligence. Let's invest in our Special Forces. Let's go after 'em, and let's be serious, and not get sidetracked by Iraq. Right now, we're taking rights away from honest people. If they think you fall into their list, you're a target. By the time they figure out there's a terror cell, they can get a warrant.... The government ought not be taking away our freedoms."

Darcy Burner is running against a corporate hack and rubber stamp in Washington, Dave Reichert, who is all about rewarding his corporate donors with retroactive immunity. Reichert took $6,000 for the Telecoms so far this year and thinks they should not be accountable for crimes they may have committed. Darcy has been one of the most outspoken opponents of this bill; watch the 30 second video. After the bill passed in the House, she didn't despair; she start rallying for action:

Like many of you, I'm incredibly disappointed with today's vote on retroactive immunity for the telecommunications companies. I've made my position on this issue very clear, and I've been happy to be fighting to ensure that we uphold the Constitution through all of this. But the real question is what we do going forward. We need to make sure that we elect people to Congress who are going to defend the Constitution at the same time that the keep this country safe. I promise you, I will never let you down on that. It's time for us to elect more and better Democrats.

We're less concerned about the "more" and focussing on the "better." We will send each of these patriotic Americans a grassroots contribution for $1,000. If you haven't donated yet and would like to, please feel free-- right here. Let me leave you with a final thought from Senator Dodd. He's talking about you:

Lastly, I want to thank the thousands who joined with us in this fight around the country - those who took to the blogs, gathered signatures for online petitions and created a movement behind this issue. Men and women, young and old, who stood up, spoke out and gave us the strength to carry on this fight. Not one of them had to be involved, but each choose to become involved for one reason and one reason alone: Because they love their country. They remind us that the "silent encroachments of those in power" Madison spoke of can, in fact, be heard, if only we listen.

UPDATE: RUSS FEINGOLD ASKED US TO REDIRECT HIS CHECK

Senator Feingold isn't running for re-election in 2008. He was pleased that we're recognizing his service to the country and he asked us to send the $1,000 check to the Patriot Corps. He's been saying for years that a strong grassroots field program is the key to electoral victory. That's why his Progressive Patriots Fund created the Patriot Corps in 2006-- a way to support progressive candidates nationwide. In the lead-up to the 2008 election, the Progressive Patriots Fund will again be hiring, training and sending field staff to key races across the country. 

McCONNELL LEADS TWO MORE SUCCESSFUL FILIBUSTERS AGAINST RENEWABLE ENERGY AND A WINDFALL GAS PROFITS TAX

Two pro-environment Mainers fought Susan Collins today

This morning the Senate was all set to consider HR 6049, the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act which passed the House on May 21 with a healthy bipartisan majority; 263-160. At that time thirty-five Republicans joined every Democrat (except Texas' arch-reactionary Nick Lampson) in passing the bill which would have amended the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide incentives for energy production and conservation. Realizing it would have easily passed the Senate as well, Bush's chief obstructionist, Mitch McConnell (R-KY), led a disgraceful filibuster to keep the bill from being voted on. Every single Democrat, plus Lieberman and 3 Republicans voted for cloture in order to call a vote. 44 reactionary Republicans were able to prevent the vote. Many are fake moderates who portray themselves as friends of the environment and make believe they are serious about solving the energy crisis but were happy to support McConnell and Bush again. We expect die-hard anti-environmental corporatists, like Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Elizabeth Dole (R-NC), John Cornyn (R-TX) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) to vote against their constituents and for the special interests. They always do. But it is somewhat less comfortable for the fake moderates to explain votes like this.

Although Olympia Snowe of Maine voted with the Democrats to shit down the filibuster, Maine's far more right-wing and far more corporate-leaning other senator, Susan Collins, was in rubber stamp mode today and went along with McConnell and the extremists. Ditto for John Sununu (R-NH) and Norm Coleman (R-MN). We called Congressman Tom Allen, who fought to pass H.R. 6049 in the House and who has been one of Congress' strongest advocates for sane conservation policies. He was disappointed that Collins joined the wingnuts on this one. But he pointed out another factor in the bill beyond conservation and energy concerns. "In killing this legislation, they blocked extension of the teacher expense deduction that saved Maine’s 17,000 teachers $3.4 million last year. Today’s roadblock killed an extension of the child tax credit for almost 38,000 Maine children, as well as investment of $18 billion in incentives for renewable energy research. This is a clear example of why we need a working majority in the U.S. Senate that puts America’s middle class first."

And this wasn't the only successful filibuster of a popular bill this morning. S-3044, the Consumer-First Energy Act of 2008, sought to provide energy price relief and hold oil companies and other entities accountable for their actions with regard to high energy prices. This is commonly referred to as the Windfall Profits Tax Bill and again, McConnell and a gaggle of corrupt Republicans, fat with bribes from gas and oil companies, were able to filibuster it to death. (In this case, reactionary fake-Dem, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, a recipient of gigantic oil and gas donation, joined the filibuster. She was the only Democrat who did. Olympia Snowe and a small handful of Republicans voted with the Democrats. One was Gordon Smith who is in a desperate battle with progressive Democrat Jeff Merkley to retain his seat. Recalling that Smith had voted to oppose windfall profits taxes twice in 2005, we asked Jeff why he thought Smith-- who has accepted over a quarter million dollars from oil and gas interests-- had voted with the Democrats this morning.

"Gas prices in Oregon are the 7th highest in the nation and families are feeling squeezed. For nearly eight years Smith has voted with Bush 90% of the time and has been in the pocket of big oil campaign contributors, supporting billion dollar bailouts and opposing a windfall profits tax. While Smith has fostered our dependence on foreign oil and delivered billion dollar giveaways to big oil, I championed the most aggressive climate change legislation in the nation. Now Smith is running scared, flip flopping on important issues to pretend he's a moderate."

What Does Susan Collins Have Against American Veterans?

I don't think Susan Collins hates veterans; she just votes as though she does. Between March 21, 2003 and March 22, 2007 Maine's junior Senator participated in 12 role call votes impacting the well-being of U.S. military veterans. She voted against veterans 10 of the 12 times. But like I said, it isn't because she hates veterans; she just likes staying in lockstep with George Bush more than she cares about the well-being of our veterans. How else can you explain this kind of voting record?

Last week the Maine Democratic Party analyzed all of the votes that "Sweet Susan" (as Bush condescendingly calls her) took regarding health care for vets. They found that of 17 votes, she voted against vets 17 times! Their research goes all the way back to May 27, 1996 when she put out a press release entitled "Susan Collins Salutes Veterans on Memorial Day," in which she vowed that "preserving health care and other benefits for veterans" would be a top priority for her in the Senate. "Our effort to balance the budget," she told fellow Mainers, "is not an attack on the mission of the Veterans Administration or America's commitment to veterans. On the contrary, the greatest threat to that commitment comes from the deficit itself that we will literally run out of money to pay for benefits. Balancing the budget will preserve that commitment far into the future. While the process of balancing the budget will undoubtedly require difficult choices, I will never support a budget proposal that unfairly affects veterans."

Now, let's take a look at how she actually voted since she made those lofty promises.

Collins Voted Against an Amendment to Eliminate Tripling in TRICARE Fees for Vets.  During debate on the FY 2007 budget resolution, Collins helped kill an amendment that would have eliminated a tripling of fees for veterans in the TRICARE health care program by raising the discretionary spending limit by approximately $10 billion. President Bush's budget proposal included fee hikes for the military's TRICARE health program for retirees under 65 and their families, and, according to critics, "would double or triple health care premiums for about 3 million military retirees." [Vote #67, 3/16/06; Washington Post, 3/16/06]
 
Collins Voted Against Making Vets' Health Care a Mandatory Program.  During debate on the Fiscal Year 2007 budget resolution, Collins helped kill an amendment that would have made veterans' health benefits a mandatory program at a cost of $104 billion over five years, to be offset by closing corporate tax loopholes and rolling back tax cuts for millionaires. The bill's sponsor explained that the amendment "provides full funding for veterans medical care to ensure that the VA has the resources necessary to provide quality health care in a timely manner to our Nation's sick and disabled veterans."  [Vote #63, 3/16/06; Stabenow Floor Speech, 3/16/06]
 
Collins Voted for Corporate Tax Breaks over Vets' Health Care.  During debate on the Fiscal Year 2007 budget resolution, Collins helped kill an amendment that would have closed corporate tax loopholes in order to increase veterans' health care funding by $1.5 billion. [Vote #41, 3/14/06; Spokesman-Review, 3/15/06]
 
Collins Voted to Preserve Tax Cuts for the Richest Americans Over Funding for Veterans' Health Care.  In February 2006, Collins voted to kill a motion that would instruct conferees on the 2006 tax cut package to insist that the conference report include funding to support health needs of veterans and military personnel in lieu of an extension of tax breaks for millionaires. The motion's sponsor explained that the money saved by rolling back tax cuts for just 0.2% of all taxpayers could be used to pay for veterans' health care and disability payments for veterans. [Vote #15, 2/13/06; Dodd Floor Speech, 2/13/06]
 
Collins Voted Against $19 Billion in Vets' Health Care Funding.  In February 2006, Collins voted against an amendment that would have provided at least $19 billion for military and veterans hospitals, to be offset by rolling back tax cuts for millionaires. According to an official from the American Legion, the proposed funding "acknowledges the need for adequate funding to ensure our nation's veterans receive the healthcare and other benefits to which they are entitled." [Vote #7, 2/2/06; Dodd Floor Speech, 2/2/06]
 
Collins Voted Against $500 million in Funding for Mental Health Services for Veterans.  In November 2005, Collins voted to defeat a proposal to provide an additional $500 million a year over five years for veterans' mental health services, to be offset by rolling back tax cuts for millionaires. [Vote #343, 11/17/05]
 
Collins Twice Voted Against a $1.98 Billion Increase in Funding for the VA.  During debate on the 2005 war spending bill, Collins twice voted to defeat a proposal to increase VA funding by $1.98 billion, of which $840 million would be for veterans' regional health networks; $610 million would be used to address the needs of active duty troops in Iraq and Afghanistan; and $525 million would go to mental health care and treatment. [Vote #89, 4/12/05; Vote #90, 4/12/05; News Tribune, 4/13/05]
 
Collins Voted for Budget that Slashed Funding for Veterans' Funding.  In March 2005 Collins voted for the initial Fiscal Year 2006 budget resolution that slashed domestic discretionary programs by $204 billion over five years, including significant cuts to veterans' benefits. Arguing against the budget, the leader of the American Legion said, "No veteran should be shortchanged by those in Congress with higher national priorities than the ongoing cost of war." The final version of the budget included $212 billion in cuts to domestic discretionary programs, including veterans' health care.  [Vote #81, 3/17/05; Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 4/1/05; American Legion Press Release, 3/18/05; Vote #114, 4/28/05; Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 5/6/05; Congressional Record, 4/28/05]
 
Collins Voted Against $2.8 Billion in Vets' Funding.  During debate on the Fiscal Year 2006 budget resolution, Collins voted to kill an amendment that would have increased veterans' health care funding by $2.8 billion. [Vote #55, 3/16/05; CQ Today, 3/16/05]
 
Collins Voted Against Up to $11.2 Billion in Additional Vets' Funding.  During debate on the Fiscal Year 2005 budget resolution, Collins voted to kill an amendment that would have created a reserve fund with up to $11.2 billion in additional spending for a number of programs, including veterans' medical care. [Vote #48, 3/11/04]
 
Collins Voted Against up to $1.8 Billion for Veterans' Health Care.  During debate on the Fiscal Year 2005 budget resolution, Collins voted to kill an amendment that would have created a reserve fund of up to $1.8 billion for veterans' health programs. [Vote #40, 3/10/04; Tulsa World, 3/14/04]
 
Collins Voted Against Up to $2.7 Billion in Vets' Funding.  During debate on the Fiscal Year 2005 budget resolution, Collins voted to defeat an amendment that would have created a reserve fund of up to $2.7 billion for veterans' health programs, to be offset by rolling back tax cuts for millionaires. [Vote #34, 3/9/04; Salt Lake Tribune, 3/11/04]

I guess she needs to revise that old press release a little. But, like I said, it isn't that she doesn't like veterans; she just likes George Bush and her crazy extremist political party and their reactionary ideology more. This is an election year and you will suddenly find Collins noisily "breaking" with Bush to try to claim that she is moderate and independent. You can't allow yourself to be an utter rubber stamp for 11 years and then expect voters to give you a pass because of what you do under pressure in the lead up to an election.

If you'd like to see an example of an actual independent voting record of a legislator who votes with the well being of veterans foremost in his mind, take a look at the voting record amassed by Congressman Tom Allen. When it comes to vets, Susan Collins has voted no, no, no-- and Tom Allen has fought relentlessly to give the men and women who have fought and sacrificed for our country a fair break. If you'd like to help Tom get his message out while Collins keeps distorting her record with the help of millions of dollars of special interests money, Tom has been endorsed by Blue America and you can donate to his campaign here. (Don't forget to add one cent to your donations this week so he can also win the Air America check.)

YESTERDAY WAS MEMORIAL DAY-- THINKING ABOUT OUR SOLDIERS-- ALIVE AND DEAD-- SHOULDN'T BE A ONE DAY OCCURANCE

Yesterday was the commercialized version of Memorial Day. The real Memorial Day is Friday, May 30. But what would you say if I told you that Memorial Day started as a subterfuge for treason? Hard to believe that this most patriotic of American holidays had its roots in a bit of a conspiracy among Confederates to gather and talk crap about the Union after they were defeated in 1865. Afraid that they would be arrested for treason, Confederate officers had their wives and daughters organize activities around honoring fallen rebels and "the men were figuratively hiding behind the skirts of these women." Sometimes as many as 60,000 white southerners would gather at these reveries for their accursed "Lost Cause." After the Spanish-American War and World War I, the Confederate finally started observing Memorial Day with Americans.

Their sick and perverted "Lost Cause" isn't what Tom Allen had in mind when his campaign sent out a tribute from Maine veterans for their fallen comrades. Tom's powerful and aggressive support for veterans and, recently, for the GI Bill, has forced Bush rubber stamp Susan Collins to break with Bush and McCain, something she rarely does, and vote with the majority to the Senate to update the GI Bill and give Iraq and Afghanistan war vets an opportunity to get an education after serving-- even though McCain was hysterical about Republicans not falling into line and following his leadership.

Back to the "Lost Cause" for one moment. Not all Southerners-- and none I know-- are unreconstructed Confederates. One southern lady sent me a heartfelt note this morning about killed and wounded servicemen and women from Georgia. Unlike me, my friend Regina Thomas organizes a good deal of her life around church. She's a devout and dedicated woman whose belief in Jesus' message has led her in a very different direction from the so-called "Religious Right." Hers (and Jesus') religion is about the Gospel of Love and Inclusion, not the ranting of hatred and bigotry. The first e-mail I read this morning was Regina urging me to pray.

Pray especially for our families of all military personnel and by all means our troops. I read a very sad story today in the Savannah paper. A young (22) trooper who had been burned over 97% of his body 3 years ago-- German is the name-- fought for his life as he struggled to overcome the burns, the surgeries and the pain-- the feeling of not ever being loved by a woman and of all things what he saw when he looked in the mirror and the image looking back. The story will bring tears to your eyes.

This story happens far to often-- the world needs to be able to share the pains of all the families of the fallen, the slain and the injured. God Bless them all and GOD BLESS AMERICA!

This Memorial Day weekend is intense for so many-- this war-- this one war has changed America; it has changed and adversely affected so many lives. Our troops are tired, our families are weary, our children are losing parents, parents are losing children, spouses are losing spouses and the list goes on and on.

Just think... when it is time for a soldier to be relieved of his duty because the time has come for either getting out or staying in, this president issued a "Stop Loss Order" - holding our very own American citizens against their will. And what can be done about it? Congress must act to change this; legislation can change this. If soldiers (no matter the branch) want to get out, then they should be able to do just that. I cannot imagine what they are going through. What are our congressman/women thinking. If they would only put themselves in the shoes of our troops. Maybe those that support the war need to go over to Iraq, sleep where the troops sleep for one night, I can assure you that they will not get any sleep. May God have Mercy on us all!

Regina is a state Senator from Savannah challenging a Blue Dog, John Barrow, who has supported Bush every step of the way-- who brags about supporting Bush every step of the way. Listen to him bragging on the floor of Congress halfway through this song we turned into a viral video for Regina's campaign:



Yesterday, Ken posted a very powerful Memorial Day message from U.S. veteran Bob Geiger, Dead Troops Remembered By President Who Had Them Killed. If you missed it yesterday, I assure you it's relevance hasn't diminished at all since then and I urge you to go back and read it.