March 14, 2005 - The New Yorker publishes an article, NUKE ‘EM in which Senator Chuck Grassley is quoted, discussing the purpose of the filibuster:
"Filibusters are designed so that the minority can bring about compromise on legislation," Senator Charles Grassley, an Iowa Republican, told Toobin. "But you can’t compromise a Presidential nomination. It’s yes or no. So filibusters on nominations are an abuse of our function under the Constitution to advise and consent."
My husband called Grassley's office today - he read this quote to the aide and asked, "Does Senator Grassley stand by this statement?"
Aide: Oh yes. Absolutely. The Senator stands by that statement.
clonecone: Really? Then why did he vote against cloture for Chris Hill to be Ambassador to Iraq? Why is Senator Grassley helping to hold up Dawn Johnsen's confirmation vote? And why did he help prevent the Senate confirmation of Kathleen Sebelius to Secretary of Health and Human Services?
Aide: I'll be sure the Senator knows your opinion. Thanks for calling.
/translation - I'm a weasel and so is the Senator I work for, so I have no answer for you. Oh, and Senator Grassley wants me to run out and take more photos of idling cars outside of offices in D.C. This is his pet project - idling cars is a serious issue that every American (and certainly every Iowan) really cares about.
So, on 4/20/09 Senator Grassley, according to his own definition, voted to abuse the Constitution. Senator Grassley prides himself on being an "honest" kinda guy. What kind of honest guy votes to abuse the Constitution?
Dawn Johnsen's vote is being stalled by Republicans who are threatening to filibuster. This seems surprising because Senator Grassley's vote isn't in question - I mean, he's not an abuser of the Constitution, so is he really planning to help the Republicans filibuster Dawn Johnsen's nomination? Surely not.
And I'm SURE Senator Grassley doesn't plan on joining a possible filibuster (suggested by Senator Inhofe) of Judge David Hamilton, who was nominated to fill a vacancy on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit.
And there's just NO way Senator Grassley would join in a filibuster of Kathleen Sebelius. His spokeswoman says he intends to vote for cloture:
Meanwhile, at least one Republican who opposes Sebelius’s confirmation plans to vote to end any GOP filibusters. Finance Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) voted against Sebelius in committee and will do the same on the Senate floor, but he intends to vote for cloture, a spokeswoman said. Grassley believes "it would be impossible to get an anti-abortion HHS secretary nominee in this administration, so holding things up wouldn’t change the ultimate outcome," the spokeswoman explained.
First of all, read the phrase in bold - "holding things up wouldn't change the ultimate outcome"? That doesn't really work with his initial statement defining a Constitutional use of filibusters:
"Filibusters are designed so that the minority can bring about compromise on legislation," Senator Charles Grassley, an Iowa Republican, told Toobin. "But you can’t compromise a Presidential nomination. It’s yes or no. So filibusters on nominations are an abuse of our function under the Constitution to advise and consent."
There is no legislation here - we're talking about a nomination and according to Grassley, filibustering nominations is "an abuse of our function under the Constitution to advise and consent." It doesn't matter if Grassley wants an anti-choice nominee and decided not to filibuster because he thinks he'll never get one. Regardless of whether or not he'd ever get the nominee he wants, it is (according to him) an ABUSE of the Constitution to vote against cloture.
So, will he really vote for cloture? Since Senator Grassley, by his own definition, voted just this week to abuse the Constitution, can we trust anything this Senator says?
I certainly don't.
Here are tonight's Top Comments!!
From phonegery:
After watching a vidio clip where Liz Cheney asserted time and again that waterboarding was not torture, and that American troops were subjected to it all the time, as a means of teaching them to resisit interrogations, there was this comment by Grumpy Young Man.
From eyesoars:
In response to a trollish diary, RElland replies to this comment That's worth the price of admission.
From Angry Mouse:
This comment, by Geiiga, was great.
From buhdydharma:
This comment, by Andee1270, from Turkana's diary, U.S. Soldier Killed Herself After Refusing To Torture starkly illustrates the devastating damage that the Bush administration has done to us on absolutely every level.
From revbludge:
In davidkc's 23 April diary, Now we know why Condi is in CYA mode, to Safi's comment, "I doubt Bush will get prosecuted," Remembering Jello replies...
I just have to submit robobagpiper's comment of 23 April on Christopher Hitchens' experience of being waterboarded. Even though one should not joke about torture, this was a gem:
brillig collected your Top Mojo for you today. Please tip her and thank her for her contribution and work.
Top 30 (plus ties) Comments excluding search-identifiable tip jars, first comments and C&J:
1) Rice approved waterboarding, forgot 2 tell Senate by jhutson — 256
2) Question is by Denversk — 196
3) Apologist for the defense by buhdydharma — 181
4) One can hope that they are willing to use the by feelingsickinMN — 138
5) This is definitely orchestrated by Safi — 127
6) witness for the defense by Lady Libertine — 115
7) Peterson Shouldered Our Collective Burden by frandor55 — 113
8) Condi was a bit forgetful during the 911 hearings by madtownpopulist — 112
9) Waterboarding is not simulated drowning by Bobs Telecaster — 104
10) THANK GOD FOR SY HERSCH! by Safi — 98
11) Oh crap by Sun dog — 92
12) When I watched that bitch by DivaBabe — 80
13) Haul her ass in front of Congress by RobertInWisconsin — 79
14) Personally.... by Miss Blue — 78
15) She died defending her country by Andee1270 — 78
16) The island won't let you leave, Jeff by Seneca Doane — 77
17) Earth to Lynn Cheney by gchaucer2 — 77
18) Obama should award her by Ken in Tex — 74
19) "the best way to rob a bank is to own one" by Inky99 — 71
20) Because this is really all about Cheney by Buzzer — 69
21) total fucking tragedy by MinistryOfTruth — 69
22) You are so fucked. by JeffLieber — 69
23) Troll! by Timaeus — 68
24) No, that's Medal of Honor material... by SgtRocky1 — 67
25) Yes but torture would have saved no one by Dartagnan — 65
26) worst national security advisor ever by RickD — 64
27) Yep, Condi "lying sack of shit" Rice. by AvoMonster — 64
28) You've got the damned dates all wrong! by Timaeus — 64
29) There is a massive amount of information compiled by NY brit expat — 63
30) A fracking 4-Star General?!?!?!? by The Lighthouse Keeper — 63
31) her suicide didn't make her a heroine by Turkana — 63
32) Um yeah, we do it to "our people" by FleetAdmiralJ — 63
Top 30 comments with no exclusions:
1) Tips by Dartagnan — 637
2) Tips for justice by davidkc — 612
3) h/t by Turkana — 467
4) Tips for truth by kat68 — 426
5) "The greatest moral good... by JeffLieber — 362
6) Please do this much by teacherken — 359
7) TJ, by Jeffersonian Democrat — 300
8) tips for the victims by testvet6778 — 278
9) Rice approved waterboarding, forgot 2 tell Senate by jhutson — 256
10) Thank you Kossacks (tips) by Josh Nelson — 247
11) Tips n/t by Cenk Uygur — 235
12) Question is by Denversk — 196
13) Apologist for the defense by buhdydharma — 181
14) Tip Jar for breaking 80! by WineRev — 166
15) One can hope that they are willing to use the by feelingsickinMN — 138
16) This is definitely orchestrated by Safi — 127
17) tip jar by Vladislaw — 119
18) witness for the defense by Lady Libertine — 115
19) Peterson Shouldered Our Collective Burden by frandor55 — 113
20) Condi was a bit forgetful during the 911 hearings by madtownpopulist — 112
21) Tips! For the "Bailout"....of jail! n/t by bobswern — 108
22) The love of money is the root of all evil... by rogerdaddy — 106
23) Waterboarding is not simulated drowning by Bobs Telecaster — 104
24) If it was possible by buhdydharma — 101
25) THANK GOD FOR SY HERSCH! by Safi — 98
26) Oh crap by Sun dog — 92
27) Tips for better framing. :) by NCrissieB — 87
28) PS tips for the abused American soldiers and by testvet6778 — 86
29) When I watched that bitch by DivaBabe — 80
30) tip jar by jamesboyce — 79
31) Haul her ass in front of Congress by RobertInWisconsin — 79