Pat Leahy at Brave New Films

Leahy Becomes First Senator to Demand Lieberman's Ouster from Homeland Security Committee

2009-01-02T20:12:47Z

We now have our first Dem Senator who has come on the record and called for Joe Lieberman to be booted from his plum spot on the Homeland Security committee.

In an interview with Vermont Public Radio today, Senator Patrick Leahy left no doubt whatsoever: He believes Lieberman should be given the push:

"Every Senator will have to vote the way he or she believes they should," Leahy said, in a reference to the upcoming vote on Lieberman's fate in the Dem caucus next week. "I'm one who does not feel that somebody should be rewarded with a major chairmanship after doing what he did."
"I felt some of the attacks that he was involved in against Senator Obama...went way beyond the pale," Leahy continued. "I thought they were not fair, I thought they were not legitimate, I thought they perpetuated some of these horrible myths that were being run about Senator Obama."
"I would feel that had I done something similar," Leahy concluded, "that I would not be chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee in the next Congress."

Was the Anthrax Killer a Terrorist?

2008-10-29T03:29:26Z

Watch more at www.theyoungturks.com.

Watch the video

Daley: People Shouldn't Call on Clinton to Drop Out

2008-10-14T11:25:44Z

Obama National Co-Chair Bill Daley, March 28, 2008

Watch the video

Bit and Pieces

2008-01-12T20:28:31Z

Happy Fall!! Pic via Cat of course.

Leahy Expects Mukasey To Be Confirmed After meeting with Attorney General-designate Michael Mukasey, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy said that he expects the nominee to win confirmation. The AP reports Leahy said Mukasey is "headed for swift approval with scant objections."

On another hot-button issue, McClatchy reports over 40 Republican members of Congress "on Tuesday demanded assurances from President Bush's attorney general nominee that he will investigate the prosecution of two Border Patrol agents now in prison for the shooting of a Mexican drug smuggler."

Armenian Genocide Bill's Chances Fading The strong reaction of Turkey, an important US ally, to a House bill that would label the deaths of Armenians just before the birth of the modern Turkish state a "genocide" has several key lawmakers second-guessing their support of the measure.

Former House Leaders Now Lobby For Turkey The New York Times notes that former Rep. Bob Livingston, who resigned on the verge of becoming speaker in 1999, has since "been the main lobbyist for Turkey in blocking Congressional efforts to pass an Armenian genocide resolution. After succeeding twice before - and collecting more than $12 million in fees for his firm, the Livingston Group - he is pushing once again for his client." The Times "also reports that former House Democratic leader Richard Gephardt "began working for Turkey in March under a yearlong contract worth $1.2 million."

Pelosi Lashes Out At "Hate Radio." The AP reports that at a press conference attended by Paul Simon, Speaker Nancy Pelosi criticized "hate radio," saying that attacks on the Democrats' poster child for the SCHIP debate, Graeme Frost, 12, "were 'beneath the dignity of the debate' that surrounds the legislation."

C-Span this morning- Senate Confirmation Hearing on the Nomination of Michael Mukasey (10am) - LIVE

Finally, some funnies-

Jay Leno: "Rudy Giuliani and John McCain have teamed up to attack Mitt Romney. See, you need two people to attack Romney, one for each of his positions on the issues."

Jay Leno: "Now political experts are saying that Giuliani and McCain could be the Republican ticket. Or a remake of 'Grumpy Old Men'. Either one of those."

David Letterman: Top Ten Questions President Bush Asked The Dalai Lama. "6. 'Are you that Japanese guy my dad threw up on?'

Habeas Restoration Failed: Republicans Hate Democracy

2008-12-21T16:25:42Z

As usual, they filibustered, because that's all they know how to do, you know, when in the minority and not arguing that their clinically insane judges "deserve an up or down vote."

The final tally: 56-43.

The Dems picked up Snowe, Sununu (someone's getting scared), Specter, Hagel, Lugar, and Smith. To translate: Roughly 12% of the GOP caucus believes in principles of due process set forth in the Magna Carta--only about 800 years ago.

Sanders voted yes, Lieberman voted no. Reid voted no for procedural reasons (so this could be brought up again).

Go here for more info, and the next time you hear a Republican talking about wanting to bring "freedom" to Iraq, blah blah blah, don't stop yourself, just break out laughing...

Oh, and while I have problems with some Democrats, when people say voting for a Democrat who may be bad on this issue or that one is not worth it, times like this will remind you it is almost always worth it (there is however a Joe Lieberman clause in there, that applies to at least a dozen among our caucus).

UPDATE: From Senator Pat Leahy's statement on this vote (or more accurately, lack thereof):

"It is difficult to defend the higher ground by taking the lower road. The world knows what our enemies stand for.
The world also knows what this country has tried to stand for and live up to - in the best of times, and the worst of times.
"It is from strength that America should defend our values and our way of life. It is from the strength of our freedoms, our Constitution, and the rule of law that we shall prevail. I thank and commend Senators who joined with us to stand up for a stronger America, for the America we believe in, by voting to invoke cloture on the Habeas Corpus Restoration Act of 2007. We will not give up on this important effort."

Call to restore Habeas Corpus

2008-01-12T20:21:04Z

The vote could be as early as tomorrow!!

This week, we have a critical opportunity to restore habeas corpus.
The Habeas Corpus Restoration Act gives us a chance to reverse one of the Bush Administration's many assaults on our civil liberties.
We all want to make America safe from terrorism, but becoming a nation that sanctions the unlawful detention of its own residents -- detaining and jailing them without the chance to appear before a judge -- does not make us safe. Instead, it violates a value that we have held dear for centuries -- safeguarding our individual freedom before arbitrary state action.
Please sign-on here as a citizen co-sponsor to the bipartisan Leahy-Specter-Dodd Habeas Corpus Restoration Act.

They've got a great widget that you can put on your site to keep track of the votes (it won't embed here) and all the info you need to contact your Senators. I called and Bayh is for restoring it and Lugar "Hasn't made his decision known yet".

So far we have 51 yeah, 5 nay and 44 "undecided". Grab a phone and make a call!!

Numbers that can connect you to the switchboard-