Hey, have the Primary wars got you down?
Are you worried that the Democratic Party may be on a course to divide the Party and hand the election to John Curveball McSame?
Are you starting to see defeat everywhere?
Relax. I come with great news!
Tonight we have a major VICTORY to celebrate:
On April 10th, the Senate had passed S. 2739 by a vote of 91-4.
Tonight at 7:17 PM EST, the US House passed the legislation by a voice vote (Yeas—291, Nays—117, not voting—25).
This is a great Victory and we need to celebrate it.
Jump with me for joy...
Now, you read the vote totals right: 117 Republicans are still voting with Abramoff and the Pirates of Saipan.
In 2006, I used my research of the GOP Culture of Corruption to help us win elections. I have a number of defeated Republicans notched on my laptop. Without the Abramoff scandal these Republicans would still be in Congress and the GOP would still control the Senate and possibly the House.
For years, Congressman George Miller led the effort in Congress to end the abuse. It was an effort supported and joined by human rights activists like Wendy Doromal and many others (like yours truly). We fought to extend US labor, immigration and customs laws to the runaway Territory. We fought to grant long-time guest workers rights and a clear pathway to US Citizenship. In the 1990s some of these workers had already been on the CNMI for 15 years. Tonight many have been there for well over 25 years—and their long denial of basic human dignity is coming to an end. There is a lot more work to do, but there is great celebration today on the Mariana Islands.
Of course, The Pirate of Saipan are not celebrating. Bankrolled by the Hong Kong based Tan Family, they have spent decades creating and protecting the CNMI’s system of sweatshops, exploitation and abuse. They have always fought any effort to extend US laws to the CNMI tooth and nail.
For years, Jack Abramoff, Tom DeLay and the Republican Party worked to ensured that the The Pirate of Saipan always won. They were always able to block any effort to reform this cesspool of corruption befouling the Western Pacific and tainting the image of America around the globe.
We defeated that obstruction when we won the 2006 mid-term elections!
ELECTIONS MATTER
Democratic control of the 110th Congress made tonight’s victory possible.
In 2006 we used the most horrific stories of Saipan sweatshops, brothels and forced abortions to hold many Republicans accountable for their support of Jack Abramoff and the sweatshops of Saipan.
We used the tragedy, horror and personal stories of these workers to WIN seats and take control of Congress and the Senate.
Without his connections to Abramoff, Conrad Burns would still be the Senator from Montana and without the Abramoff/Republican Culture of Corruption we would not have won the House.
I helped in this effort. So did the workers on the CNMI. There were happy to help because they believed that a Democratic Congress would FINALLY bring justice to the Marianas Islands.
We used the stories of these workers. We exploited the stories of their pain and suffering to win control of Congress. We are using their stories again in 2008 as we try to defeat this or that Republican who helped Tom, Jack and the Pirates of Saipan maintain the system of abuse (see Young, Don and Schaffer, Bob for current examples).
Implicit in our use of their pain, their horror, their shame and suffering was a promise to these workers that relief and justice was on the way. Implicit in our use of these stories was a promise to the American people that the Democratic Party would clean up the mess that Republican corruption left on the CNMI.
Passage of Senate Bill 2739 keeps that promise.
In the heat of our internal Primary battles this magnificent victory could easily pass from view. Do Not Let That Happen.
This is what a Unified Democratic Majority could accomplish every day and more Victories like this is the reason we fight for a progressive majority.
Celebrate. Unite. Fight.
The Democrats in the House and Senate were united in their support for CNMI Reform legislation.
Tonight I feel that my Party helped me kept my word as well. My faith, my hope that change could come was renewed tonight.
Make no mistake, the Pirates of Saipan and their allies in Washington did not go quietly into the night. They have tried to block this Legislation at every step and it might have worked if it had not been for the staff of the Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. They manage to out flank every maneuver of the Pirates of Saipan.
Soon this will be signed into law and the battle will move to effective implementation. And the Pirates of Saipan are already at work to continue their obstruction of justice. This fight is not over. We will need to pay attention to finally end the abuse and bring justice to the CNMI.
Back in the 1970s, Henry Kissenger had this to say about the Marianas Islands and all the Pacific Trust Territories:
"We’re only talking about ninety thousand people, so who gives a damn?’’
Tonight, the Democrats in the 110th Congress proved that they care.
It makes me proud to be a Democrat—even in the middle of our Primary Wars, which sometimes fill me with sadness and shame for my Party.
In this intense Primary fight there can be a lot that divides us. Our passions run high (I know that mine do), still we have a lot that unites us us. And tonight we have a victory we should all celebrate.
And if you do raise a glass or say a prayer to mark this victory, I asked that you remember Buddhi Lal Dhimal. I wrote about him one year and four days ago. It was the only Diary of mine ever to be moved to the front page.
Buddhi Lal Dhimal, was a Nepalese guest worker on the CNMI for the 10 years and last April he set himself on fire to protest the corrupt and inhuman CNMI labor system:
Dhimal had won a labor case against former employers who owed him thousands of dollars. He had a piece of paper saying he was owed the money, but the CNMI system moved intentionally slow. While he waited to collect his money, he was order to report to the CNMI Labor Department to pick a a plane ticket for instant deportation to Nepal. He would never see a penny of the money owed to him. The Pirates of Saipan made sure that he had no hope.
And so Dhimal chose the protest of the powerless over the powerful. He went to the CNMI Labor Department, doused himself in a flammable liquid and set him self on five. A month later after a long delay in getting him proper medical care, he died.
His death sparked a new Unity movement on the CNMI. Thousands of foreign workers and locals organized for justice. Their efforts were supported by this community and the 110th Congress. Together we won.
Tonight’s victory is too late for Dhimal, but it is a celebration of his life.
Tonight, I raise a glass and prayer for Dhimal, his family and all the people of the CNMI.
Join me.
Cheers