UPDATE: As of this morning, a news google for Democrats Lamont Cheney gets nearly 2,000 story links. The meme is spreading. It takes time to get out there.
For those who think that the Democrats have been silent on the outrageous statements that Cheney has made about Lamont and about the Republican manipulation of the terror arrests in Britain, I've compiled just a few stories about the Democratic leadership's response.
WAPO, Harry Reid
WASHINGTON -- Senate Democratic leaders on Friday accused Vice President Dick Cheney of playing politics with terrorism and contended that voters won't buy Republican arguments that the GOP is stronger on national security.
"They've run this play one too many times," Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said in a conference call with reporters. "The American people simply do not recognize any validity in what they're saying."
Hillary on Cheney:
Senator Clinton says, "I don't take anything he says seriously anymore. I think that he has been a very counterproductive even destructive force in our country and I am very disheartened by the failure of leadership from the president and vice president."
According to New York Public Radio, WNYC, during a campaign stop in the Bronx yesterday, Clinton accused the administration of shortchanging New York of its homeland security money. A spokeswoman for the vice president said his comments on the importance of a strong national security strategy "speak for themselves
Schumer
August 11, 2006 7:55 p.m. EST
(AHN) - U.S. Senate Democratic leaders have claimed that Vice President Dick Cheney was politicizing terrorism and that voters are unlikely to believe Republican debate that they are tougher on national security.
snip
Sen. Chuck Schumer, charged Cheney and Senate Republicans for dragging politics into the issue. He said, "They shouldn't. We should all be uniting and be together at this point," said Schumer, the head of the Senate Democrats' campaign committee. "But if they're going to throw the political bombs on this issue, we are going to answer them loud and clear, and we believe we have the political high ground."
Basically, there are about 39 news outlets, according to google news, that are carrying this AP story by Liz Sidoti entitled "Cheney Accused of Politicizing Terrorism" including ABC News, CBS News, Salon, SF Chronicle, Sacramento Bee. There could be more on the way. Or not.
Here are excerpts from the statements on the Democratic Party websites. Click through to read the whole text because there's more:
DNC
"With no record to run on, the President's poll numbers in the tank and polls showing Americans' willingness to put their trust in Democrats to keep them safe, Republicans are resorting to the only thing they have left, using desperate measures to try to win votes," said Democratic National Committee Press Secretary Stacie Paxton. "These smear tactics and fear-mongering only go to show that Republicans realize they are going to lose big in November. The American people want real leadership not more mean-spirited, partisan propaganda. Democrats have a new direction for America that includes protecting our airports, ports and borders, implementing the recommendations of the 9/11 commission, and a real plan for success in Iraq."
Please also note Howard Dean's statement about the London terror arrests. Dean was apparently bumped off several newscasts over the past few days because of the terror alerts. According to floridagal, "Dean was scheduled to be on ABC and CNN in the morning on the day the terror threat broke, around 7:00. He wasn't on, and terror was...so I guess that speaks for itself"
from the DSCC website
POLITICIZING THE PLOT: A SAMPLING OF WHAT THE GOP HAS DONE SO FAR
Cheney Knew About Terror Plot When He Attacked Dems in Rare Conference Call. In a rare conference call with reporters on Wednesday, Cheney suggested that the results of the CT primary might encourage "the al-Qaida types." The AP notes, "As Cheney made those comments, the administration was aware of the plot unfolding in Britain..."
RNC Tried Scoring Campaign Cash As Plot Unfolded. As details of the terror plot became public, the RNC sent out a fundraising letter in which Rudy Giuliani invoked the war on terror. Republicans were forced to acknowledge that sending the letter yesterday was a mistake.
White House: "Plot Will Play Big:" One anonymous White House official was quick to put a political spin on events, telling Agence France-Presse: "Weeks before September 11th, this is going to play big."
Bush Aide Said Plot Will Be Used As Campaign Fodder. On Air Force One, a senior White House official "dismissed the notion that there was anything wrong with these kinds of issues being mixed up in a political campaign. `The issue is going to be discussed in the fall,' this official said."
House Majority Leader and Speaker Hastert Immediately Went Into Attack Mode. Soon after the terror plot hit the news, House Majority Leader John Boehner attacked Democrats as "Defeatocrats!" in a statement. House Speaker Dennis Hastert also used the news as an opportunity to attack Democrats.
[Sources: AP, 8/10/06; New York Times, 8/11/06; Wall Street Journal, 8/11/06; AFP, 8/10/06; Hastert Press Release, 8/10/06]
Harry Reid from DSCC email:
It is at times like these when every leader in Washington, regardless of party affiliation, should be united behind the singular goal of keeping this country safe. But Republicans don't see it that way.
Once again, GOP leaders are using terrorism and our national security as a political wedge issue. It is disgusting - but not surprising.
This week, after Ned Lamont won the Connecticut Democratic primary, Dick Cheney said his victory would embolden "al-Qaeda types." Is this the type of country we're going to live in? Where the Vice President of the United States can blatantly suggest that Connecticut voters are aiding the terrorists?
Even more disgraceful is that when Cheney made those comments, he had been briefed on the Britain terror plot. There are simply no boundaries for these people. In their minds, our national security and their continued hold on power are one and the same. And they will stop at nothing to keep it that way.
This list is not comprehensive, and I'm not making any particular judgement about whether this is sufficient response or whether the statements are strong enough. I'm presenting it for information and discussion since I've noticed many have been wondering but few have been googling..... I haven't gone through and checked all the Democratic leadership websites to see if there have been statements made on the floor of Congress or press releases sent that may not have gotten covered, but I think it's a habit that we should get into, especially before we start bashing Dems for saying nothing. Please keep in mind that just because the news media doesn't have statements from Democrats doesn't mean they haven't made any. Oftentimes, press releases or LTEs get send by many Democrats and they get ignored by the media.
from SusanG's interview with Byron Dorgan
It's strange because it's easy to assume that a senator has one of the biggest soapbox in the world, yet you express such a frustration that you feel you have to reach the public directly through a book because you cannot get your message out.
I have sent multiple op-eds to the Washington Post, but they don't print them because the Washington Post is not interested in entertaining both sides on the issue of trade relationships. They are not interested in having both sides be represented. And many of the press stories are the kind of stories that would take longer presentation to say, Hey, here's what's going on. So the book is an alternative way to make that point. I can go to the floor of the Senate - and I do - I've spoken many times on the floor of the Senate about fair trade issues, but it is rarely covered. It shows over C-SPAN, of course, but it's not covered in the media.
I think it behooves us to make an effort to amplify as many statements that Democrats DO make so they get more notice. Since we have a media that tends to gobble up Republican talking points like M&Ms, the Democrats need activists like us to help them spread the word when the media drops the ball.