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exposed as one of the Biggest political cop-outs of all time.
Now we see what Harry would do with his "60 Vote Majority" - cement Bush/Cheney's criminal legacy, with even more Gusto.
by leonard145b on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 12:47:45 PM PDT
[ Parent ]
from the 'attack demon' link:
We’re asking Congress to update FISA and especially to extend this protection to communications providers alleged to have given such assistance any time after September 11th, 2001.
By backing up the admin, Reid is aiding and abbetting the administrations lies. Specifically that warrantless wiretapping began after 9-11.
This lie must be confronted Head-On.
It must be pinned on Reid's chest like a medal of dishonor.
"Cynicism is a sorry wisdom." - Barack Obama
by BlueGenes on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 12:57:08 PM PDT
Bush/Cheney, just won't do anymore!
by leonard145b on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:05:41 PM PDT
If passage of FISA is so important before the SOTU address, then give it too Bush with no immunity for the telecoms and let him bear the responsibility.
Blanket immunity has nothing to do with defense of the nation... only defense of the most criminal administration in the history of the United States!
And while I'm at it... its a good time to remind Reid and Pelosi that the reason for not taking Impeachment off of the table is that in negotiations if you have no stick... the carrots that you hold out look like begging and that is really weak and lame.
You have nothing to induce compliance with the constitution or our laws in that position and Bush has shown that he will continue to break our laws with impunity.
Its about time that Reid and Pelsoi took a stand on principle. This "negotiation" and "pragmatism" crap has gotten us nothing but the biggest Orwellian nightmare in our history!
by Flint on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:39:22 PM PDT
kinda like when Dear Leader just went to the Saudis with no stick.
For a guy who originally campaigned on restoring respect to the office of the Presidency, he sure has a penchant for being an international beggar.
by BlueGenes on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:59:10 PM PDT
of Negotiating. Reid aced Capitulation 101. Pelosi wrote an "A" Paper entitled: "PEACE IN OUR TIME."
"We the People of the United States..." -U.S.Constitution
by elwior on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:12:43 PM PDT
The Dem leadership is CORRUPT.
Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night.
by Glorfindel on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 05:46:19 PM PDT
The young man who has not wept is a savage, and the old man who will not laugh is a fool. George Santayana
by Bobjack23 on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 06:10:50 PM PDT
I just don't understand why this is not an absolute no-brainer for Reid. I feel like there has to me something big behind the scenes we are not seeing because the whole thing is so irrational.
"The maxim of civil government being reversed in that of religion, where it's true form is, 'divided we stand, united we fall." - Thomas Jefferson
by DWSUWF on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 06:49:18 PM PDT
I have the impression that Reid has no brains, only a pair of lips with which to kiss Bush's ass!
The Prince of Peace has been usurped by the God of War.
by Spoc42 on Thu Jan 24, 2008 at 02:58:58 AM PDT
and has the goods on Reid...?
by Gustogirl on Thu Jan 24, 2008 at 05:03:26 AM PDT
Give 'Em Head Harry.
Anyways, I now think of Harry Reid more as Dr. Smith from Lost in Space. Each week, Dr. Smith would secretly try to sell the children into slavery or trade the lives of the Robinson family for his own personal gain. For some reason, the family never blew him out the airlock when they learned of his craven greed. Instead, Will Robinson would just just sigh, "oh, doctor Smith!"
For some reason, Senate Democrats are content with continuously sighing, "oh, Senator Reid!" instead of doing something about him.
And now a word from the National Paint, Varnish and Lacquer Association
by Olds88 on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:45:51 PM PDT
"Give 'em Head Harry."
The only thing is (to extend the metaphor)I picture him more of "Bend him Over Harry!"
by elwior on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:16:03 PM PDT
Contact: Senate majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)
It feels GR8!!
Get 'em, kossacks!!
"International law? I better call my lawyer; he didn't bring that up to me" -- George W. Bush, 12 December 2003
by markthshark on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 10:17:25 PM PDT
Sir I realize that you do not directly represent me, but in a way you do represent me and every US Citizen. So it is with that in mind that I write this. The Senate is considering the new FISA bill and it seems that the bill being pushed is the version containing immunity for the telcom giants. I also believe by the bills draft that it will in fact also grant immunity to the Bush Administration. Far more than half of the country have voiced their opinion that the FISA bill has already gone far too far even without the immunity provision. It is my understanding that we have at least a few senators who if necessary will filibuster the bill to try to stop it. My question to you sir after reading what appears to be a threat by you against our own Democratic Senators who oppose this bill is what the heck is going on? Why is it that if Democrats oppose they would be required to actually stand there and perform a filibuster, but if it is Republicans opposing something all it takes to stop it is just voicing opposition. Sir just which party do you represent? I must be mistaken since I have been under the misguided belief that you were a member of the Democratic party elected to represent the people who put you there. The Bush administration has managed very well to ignore our constitution in far too many ways without those in what is suppose to be the opposition party enabling them at every turn. I respectively ask that you take the stand that America demands and stop this bill which is not necessary and which gives get out of jail free cards to those who would shred our rights under the constitution. From a very disappointed Democratic voter.
Sir I realize that you do not directly represent me, but in a way you do represent me and every US Citizen. So it is with that in mind that I write this.
The Senate is considering the new FISA bill and it seems that the bill being pushed is the version containing immunity for the telcom giants. I also believe by the bills draft that it will in fact also grant immunity to the Bush Administration.
Far more than half of the country have voiced their opinion that the FISA bill has already gone far too far even without the immunity provision. It is my understanding that we have at least a few senators who if necessary will filibuster the bill to try to stop it.
My question to you sir after reading what appears to be a threat by you against our own Democratic Senators who oppose this bill is what the heck is going on? Why is it that if Democrats oppose they would be required to actually stand there and perform a filibuster, but if it is Republicans opposing something all it takes to stop it is just voicing opposition.
Sir just which party do you represent?
I must be mistaken since I have been under the misguided belief that you were a member of the Democratic party elected to represent the people who put you there.
The Bush administration has managed very well to ignore our constitution in far too many ways without those in what is suppose to be the opposition party enabling them at every turn.
I respectively ask that you take the stand that America demands and stop this bill which is not necessary and which gives get out of jail free cards to those who would shred our rights under the constitution.
From a very disappointed Democratic voter.
Peace :)
I am beginning to feel like a man with no country. That country died when we failed to stand up for what is right.
by eaglecries on Thu Jan 24, 2008 at 04:01:30 AM PDT
won't the telecoms still be liable for what they did before 9/11?
The influence of the [executive] has increased, is increasing, and ought to be diminished.
by lysias on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:14:25 PM PDT
Here you go Mr. Reid, I even wrote your speech for you:
"Dubya says that this FISA bill is life and death, and yet he says he will veto it if we dont provide immunity for the telecoms. So in fact the only thing that is life and death are the revenues and profit margins for AT&T, Verizon and Bell South.
Tell Dubya and the Pubs in congress to stop playing games with national security: either it's life or death, which means pass the bill regardless of telecom immunity or it's not life or death, which means let it lapse and let's craft a better bill now that we have some time".
The world is so cold and the rhythm is your blanket, wrap yourself up in it, if you love it then you'll thank it.
by Ajax the Greater on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:24:13 PM PDT
Harry would never say that.
AT&T gave him $22,000 in 2006.
Reid won't fight for you, because he's busy fighting for his corporate paymasters.
yes, i realize I'm breaking the rules by criticizing a democrat. Sue me.
by Frenchy Lamour on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:03:19 PM PDT
If this is what Democrats are going to do, they NEED TO BE EXPOSED. No more having it both ways.
Nader, I fear, was right all along. No difference between Republicans and Democrats, some bullcrap rhetoric aside.
The 2008 Democratic Presidential Ticket: Barack Obama, President; Ray Mabus, Vice President. *** Change, Reform, Competency, Expertise.
by simca on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:29:01 PM PDT
unfortunately it is getting smaller every day...
In a 1787 letter to Edward Carrington, a hero of the Revolution and member of the Continental Congress, Thomas Jefferson wrote of the role citizens played in keeping the government's nose to the grindstone: "If once they become inattentive to the public affairs, you and I, and Congress, and Assemblies, Judges, and Governors, shall all become wolves."
by LostInTexas on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 04:12:37 PM PDT
...except in a very few cases. We need a new party, or a mother lov'en Jeffersonian revolution that sweeps out the majority of both parties and Diebold et al has been put in place to prevent just that.
I have more in common with my Republican neighbors and relatives than I do with the Democratic leadership in DC and most of the Democrat presidential candidates...bare in mind I say that loathing Republican political philosophy.
by Bobjack23 on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 06:20:11 PM PDT
He's a ball-less Bush-abetting bastard.
Word to all sell-out, corporate-owned Democrats: No donation without representation!
by big spoiled baby on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 11:25:25 PM PDT
Let's stick a provision in there which clearly states that any infractions committed before 9/11 will still be prosecutable.
Of course that will never happen, because Reid is a shill.
We need a new leadership.
"we must make the rescue of the environment the central organizing principle for civilization" - Al Gore
by racerx on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:36:52 PM PDT
Actually it's like the old "Would you like some molasses?" "I ain't had NO 'lasses yet."
We need some real leaders not infected with the insidious Rubberstamp and Spineless viruses.
Throw the bastards out and keep throwing them out till the new ones get the message!
by jakebob on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 03:14:53 PM PDT
thats just what Cheney is saying to try and sell the FISA extension.
He's uh, you know..... lying again.
by BlueGenes on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:00:29 PM PDT
daily Kos is a blog dedicated to electing democrats. Stop criticizing Harry Reid. He is a Democrat and you are undermining the explicit rules of this site. Rather you should writing, "Hooray for Harry!!!!"
or so I've been told by others when i was criticizing Bush Dogs a few weeks back.
by Frenchy Lamour on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:00:48 PM PDT
I will oppose the re-election of anyone, nominal Democrat included, who votes for telcom amnesty. That would be an abandonment of such a core principle as to render the label Democrat irrelevant
If that is a problem here, I'm in the wrong place. If the rumored clout of this community is worth anything, that is where we should stand up and draw a line in the sand.
Tell me that Ralph Nader wasn't right. I'm begging you all.
"I can't be part of a famous hippie commune. I have a career to think about" - Candy Crowley, 1973
by MadCityRag on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:18:38 PM PDT
Not a lick of difference, aside from that the Republicans will at least tell you that they're gonna fuck you, while the Democrats will pretend to be on your side.
by simca on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:30:50 PM PDT
cost Gore the election. The party of Corporate Hillary and the great congressional Democratic leaders:Nancy "Impeachment is off the table" Pelosi and Harry "Filibustering is off the table" Reid spits on progressives repeatedly. We do have a two-party system, though. We've got the Fascist(Formerly GOP)Party and the Republican Lite(Formerly Democratic) Party.
by mcartri on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 03:42:07 PM PDT
No thanks.
by simca on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 05:03:43 PM PDT
Republicans are parasites, Democrats are symbionts.
by LostInTexas on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 04:25:10 PM PDT
But, as a loyal DEMOCRAT...
FUCK HARRY REID.
Many people did not care for Pat Buchanan's speech; it probably sounded better in the original German."
by Flippant on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:30:32 PM PDT
I was going to opine in Harry's general direction that he should just go ahead and shoot the dog, as the diarist says he threatened to do..
But we can't have anyone getting the wrong idea about that, can we?
(/snark)
On second thought , let's not go to Camelot. 'Tis a silly place
by o the umanity on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 08:14:37 PM PDT
I'd say they wouldn't need immunity if it was "alleged" eh?
Garrhgsfsafasd!
by Hedwig on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:35:05 PM PDT
It must be pinned on Reid's chest like a medal of dishonor
The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein -- best book ever, I nominate for a Nobel Prize!
by xaxado on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 07:13:26 PM PDT
he would be McClellan. Always failing in his mission because he felt he needed more and more troops, when in fact he had vastly more than the South.
However, this might be unfair to McClellan. He was at least highly skilled in organization and training. Reid cannot even do this right.
Is he ineffective because he can't do it or won't? It doesn't matter he needs to be replaced.
"The fact which the politician faces is merely that there is less honor among thieves than was supposed, and not the fact that they are thieves." Thoreau
by shigeru on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:03:30 PM PDT
Deranged neoconservative militarism isn't the solution to nuclear proliferation; it's a cause. -- Glenn Greenwald
by factbased on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:12:02 PM PDT
to borrow the army for a little while since McL didn't plan on using it. Maybe Dodd ought to send a similar letter to Reid.
To think I once believed that Reid was an improvement over Daschle. Either Reid is in hock to the telecos, or the WH has serious dirt on Reid.
Some men see things as they are and ask why. I see things that never were and ask why not?
by RFK Lives on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:13:35 PM PDT
by BlueGenes on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:01:17 PM PDT
by Glorfindel on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 05:52:04 PM PDT
See my comment above: $22,000 from AT&T.
here's more for 2008. Check out all that SWEET telecom money. Another $5K from AT&T, $2500 from verizon. Another $2500 from verizon Wireless.
Then compare that $95,317 he got in 2008 to the $6000 he got in 2006. Starting to make sense now?
by Frenchy Lamour on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:12:54 PM PDT
When your contributions from telecos increase by 15 fold, it explains a great deal. So Harry is willing to sell out the Constitution for $100k<. Not only is he a whore, but he's a cheap whore.</p>
by RFK Lives on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:38:32 PM PDT
,,,,Democrats Reid, Pelosi and Hoyer as Senate and House leaders?
by calibpatriot on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 03:26:49 PM PDT
They got the most votes from the Democratic members of the House and Senate.
That says it all right there!
by shigeru on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 03:49:52 PM PDT
Illustrate your opinion...Steal these pics
by Duke S on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:13:55 PM PDT
That's what Harry is. Let that be Harry's caption.
LBJ would have crushed Harry like a Juniper Berry and drank him with Lunch!
It's a disgrace having Harry, anywhere, in near association with LBJ.
Just take LBJ's Bust, and place it right on top of Harry's silly little plastic Bobble-Head!
Harry, you're a sorry excuse for an American!
by leonard145b on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:26:02 PM PDT
by dgone36 on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:44:22 PM PDT
... and the Senator of the Masters."
"To lodge all power in one party and keep it there is to insure bad government and the sure and gradual deterioration of the public morals." - Mark Twain
by The Damned Yankee on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 07:26:36 PM PDT
"The Mastered Senator"
by The Damned Yankee on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 07:51:50 PM PDT
look like Custer at Little Big Horn, the sooner the better!
by dgone36 on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:43:14 PM PDT
What we need is a Harry-proof Senate.
"Mission Accomplished" -7.62, -6.36
by wiscmass on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:22:22 PM PDT
Leadership could produce a veto override. These are not impossible objects. Leadership is the quality that is lacking here.
"Do not forget that every people deserves the regime it is willing to endure." -- White Rose letter no. 1
by keikekaze on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:26:01 PM PDT
[I]f people think they are going to talk this to death, we are going to be in here all night. This is not something we are going to have a silent filibuster on. If someone wants to filibuster this bill, they are going to do it in the openness of the Senate.
And from Greenwald's Salon article:
That is what Democrats have been urging Reid to do to the filibustering Republicans all year -- in order to dramatize their obstructionism -- but he has refused to make them actually filibuster anything, generously agreeing instead that every bill requires 60 votes. Instead, he reserves such punishment only for the members of his own caucus trying to take a stand for the rule of law and the Constitution, those who are trying finally to bring some accountability to this administration.
Reid bends over without so much as a whimper to take it up the ass for republicans, but when Democrats (note to reid: that's the party you claim to belong to) place a hold on a bill or threaten to filibuster reid screams bloody murder. Asshole. We need to get rid of reid one way or another. Stand up for the Constitution and kill amnesty for law-breaking phone companies.
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.
by cybersaur on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:32:12 PM PDT
We are the ones we've been waiting for.
by Same As It Ever Was on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:46:16 PM PDT
Reid has obviously been bought and sold by Bush and Cheney. At this point that fact is impossible to deny!
by jimreyn on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 02:01:09 PM PDT
by Rex Manning on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 10:57:12 PM PDT
who needs Republicans?
I hope Dodd and Feingold read the constitution out loud for forty days if that what it takes.
by foxklub on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:33:37 PM PDT
FILIBUSTER, and force the Repubs to defend their anti-American, anti-Rule-of-Law beliefs in this general election year. I think a filibuster is the best free campaign publicity the Dems could possibly get -- wall-to-wall media coverage, neocons foaming at the mouth with rage -- the kind of exposure that all the ads in the world couldn't buy.
The Dem leadership can't seem to come up with even one convincing reason to grant this Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free card for the telecoms! If Reid's reluctance is truly due to campaign cash or erstwhile blackmail, as has been speculated, perhaps someone can remind him that he really ought to prioritize the needs of the Democratic Party brand over saving his own job.
Dick Durbin was quoted last year (wish I could remember where) saying that one of the reasons they don't do a "real" filibuster is because it would be "too hard" on the more elderly members... supposedly meaning the oldsters don't have the stamina. When the fate of your fellow Americans and the strength of your Constitution is at stake, it would seem a small price to pay for the average joes who pay for your salary.
There are soldiers over in Iraq and Afghanistan who are dying for this. They don't have the luxury of declining.
Besides, kids today haven't seen a REAL filibuster -- at most they've seen the fictional version in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."
May Feingold and Dodd STAND UP FOR AS LONG AS IT TAKES, and discover far more strength, stamina and backbone than they ever knew they had within them, and launch the first REAL filibuster of the 21st century.
by Spiderpig on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 05:12:46 PM PDT
by eaglecries on Thu Jan 24, 2008 at 04:14:29 AM PDT
Am I the only one this bothers.
The fact that they just came back from an extended recess and the bastard wants to only allow a few days for the bill so they can all get the fuck out of Dodge again?
Geeze
by eaglecries on Thu Jan 24, 2008 at 04:11:09 AM PDT
We need a new Senate Majority Leader. Reid is rapidly becoming a sick joke.
by Randall Sherman on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:43:43 PM PDT
Now that's a campaign I want to fund.
by IvanR on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 05:54:29 PM PDT
leading the majority. Damn this pisses me off to no end.
"...what Washington means by bipartisanship is mainly that everyone should come together to give conservatives what they want." --- Paul Krugman
by puppet10 on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:45:23 PM PDT
I remember when Reid was first selected someone said "Give em Hell Harry" To say he has been a disappointment would be an understatement.
With a big ol' lie And a flag and a pie And a mom and a bible Most folks are just liable To buy any line Any place, any time ~ FZ
by f furney on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 01:54:17 PM PDT
are the two biggest political disappointments of my life. Hell, at least w/ bushco I knew what I was getting, but I had such hopes for these two. sigh . . .
by ssuba on Thu Jan 24, 2008 at 05:39:38 AM PDT
wide narrow
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