Argue With My Dad

We finally got some relief from the heat and the weekend went by way too fast.   Now, it is time once again for AWMD’s Monday Musings.  There are plenty of news items to choose from after the weekend.  There are so many possible issues to discuss, it is hard to choose just a few, but I will choose just one tonight.  I don’t know if anyone else will be interested in the issue that I have chosen, but if so I hope you enjoy it. If my “Musing” interests you, let me know what you think.  Hell, even if they don’t interest you, let me know!  I am interested in your opinion too….as long as you agree with me!

I wonder if there is anything that Republicans won’t say or do to get themselves elected or reelected?  A great example of this is Rep. Steve King of Iowa who once again is on the stump calling President Obama a Marxist!  “He’s at least a Marxist. And he surely understands the Muslim culture.”  http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/16/king-obama-marxist/  This same Republican Congressman claimed that “He doesn’t have an American experience. He does not have an American experience.” Let me get this straight now.  Obama is a Marxist and he did not have an American Experience.  I guess growing up in Hawaii with a single mother and his grandparents is not an American experience according to the Republican Party.  When are reasonable conservatives going to wake up and realize that their Republican Party has been taken over by a small number of right wing crazies?  Senator Goldwater must be turning over in his grave by now!

When you hear the nonsense being pedaled by the Republicans that the sky will fall if the Bush Tax Cuts for the wealthy aren’t extended, I can only wonder why people with common sense and normal intelligence can’t see through this cloud of lies.  The Republicans only want to appease their base.  Their base seems to be taxpayers earning $200,000 or more.  This Crooks and Liars link has a very good graph which shows the hypocrisy of the Republican plan to extend the free lunch for millionaires. http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/scarce/maddow-gop-plan-extend-tax-cuts-rich  A quick look at the graph shows that once a taxpayer gets to $200,000, the Republican plan starts to benefit the wealthy.  If you go to the next level you will see huge give aways to the wealthy.  “New data from the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation show that households earning more than $1 million a year would reap nearly $31 billion in tax breaks under the GOP plan in 2011, for an average tax cut per household of about $100,000.” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/11/AR2010081105864.html  The Republicans want to add Billions to the deficit to assuage their biggest donors and we are supposed to be happy with that?  The Republicans keep trying to claim that extending the tax cuts for the wealthy will help create jobs, but as of yet, have not produced a single shred of evidence to back up that ridiculous claim.  All you have to do is look at what happened during the Bush years when these tax cuts were given to the wealthy and you know the Republican’s noses are getting longer again!

My final muse of the night concerns the Fat Man himself, Rush Limbaugh.  It seems that his lies just keep on coming.  His latest outrageous and incendiary piece of nonsense is that President Obama is “  “our first anti-American president.” http://tv.gawker.com/5614128/rush-limbaugh-barack-obama-is-our-first-anti+american-president  Of course, Rush does not provide the listener any evidence of his claim, but that is just standard operating procedure for the Liar in Chief.  He even puts his foot in his mouth again in that same rant. “Limbaugh sarcastically suggests that we build a Hindu Temple next to Pearl Harbor and a Mosque next to the Pentagon… without realizing that Shinto, not Hinduism, is the most common religion in Japan, and there is already a Mosque inside the Pentagon and a Shinto temple next to Pearl Harbor.”  Not only is Rush a liar.  He is also stupid!

What do you think about my latest musings?  It is now time for you to let us know what you think!  Don’t be shy.  Get busy and give us your opinion!  Take the first step and write down what you think.  It won’t hurt!  I promise!

After a beastly hot day today and thunderstorms this evening,  it is time once again for yet another edition of the AWMD Friday Free For All. This is the only time of the week when our arguewithmydad.com readers can control the topic(s) for discussion.  All you have to do is get someone else to respond to your suggested topic and then the floor is yours.  Don’t be shy and don’t hesitate.  Get busy and be sure to let us know your views and arguments so everyone can read and react to them.  Right here on arguewithmydad.com.  I will make some suggestions for a possible topic, but they are only suggestions.  Today is Friday so only you can be the decider.   But you need to tell us what you want to discuss.  So, what is on your mind today? With all that is going on, how can you not speak your mind?  Let’s hear from you!  TGIF! 

We have repeatedly reported on Republican hypocrisy here on AWMD.  In light of the upcoming mid term elections, it is time to highlight some of the crazier Republican candidates.  One of the most bizarre lies that the Right Wing is trying to pass off lately is the claim that terrorists are having “anchor babies” and then training those youngsters to attack the United States from within! Yes, you read that correctly.  The latest to push this preposterous and unfounded claim is Republican Congressman, Louie Gohmert of Texas. The good news is that even the main stream media smells the same rat that I am smelling.  “While Gohmert’s allegations went uncontested on Fox, CNN’s Anderson Cooper has begun looking into them, after hosting state Rep. Debbie Riddle (R-TX) on his show a few days ago, who similarly argued that pregnant foreign women are having babies in the U.S. “with the nefarious purpose of turning them into little terrorists, who will then come back to the U.S. and do us harm.” The next day, Cooper spoke with Tom Fuentes, the FBI’s former assistant director in the office of international operations, who affirmed that “[t]here was never a credible report — or any report, for that matter — coming across through all the various mechanisms of communication to indicate that there was such a plan for these terror babies to be born.” ‘  http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/13/gohmert-terrorists-immigration/  So Congressman Gohmert keeps spreading a lie, even after being reminded that the FBI has stated that there are no credible reports of such a plot.  I guess that is the key.  A  lie can rarely be credible!

Speaking of crazy Republicans, the next suggested topic concerns the Tea Party/Republican party nominee for the U.S. Senate in Nevada, Sharron Angle.  It seems that Ms. Angle has another great idea!  She suggests that our participation and membership in the United Nations is unconstitutional because there is no mention of it in the Constitution.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/13/sharron-angle-suggests-us_n_681198.html & http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/13/angle-un/  I guess some one forgot to explain to Sharron Angle that the United Nations was not around when the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution.  I also guess that Ms. Angle forgot that the Constitution does provide for treaties to be agreed to by the government.  “Angle might want to actually read the Constitution before she starts talking about what’s in it. Article II of the Constitution provides that the president “shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur.” That is why the United States may belong to treaty organizations such as the UN. President Truman entered into the treaty which creates the UN, and the Senate ratified that treaty.” http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/13/angle-un/  Where does the Tea Party find these braniacs?  How does the Republican Party think that these kind of candidates are actually going to net them control of either the House or Senate?  This is the same Sharron Angle who wants to privatize Social Security and start a system patterned after the plan that Chilean Dictator Augusto Pinochet in the 1980’s.  I wish I could say that I could make this stuff up, but the Tea Party hacks are real.  Real crazy.

Of course, I couldn’t discuss crazy Tea Party/Republican candidates without mentioning our old “friend” Rand Paul who is the Republican nominee for the Kentucky Senate seat.  Dr. Paul’s latest trip into the wackosphere is the claim by a fellow Baylor college student that Rand and a friend forced her to swear allegiance to a made up God. “But she maintained that they “took me out to this creek and made me worship Aqua Buddha.” Soon after, the woman severed her relationship with Paul and his friends because of the incident.” http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0811/rand-paul-denies-college-kidnapping-memory-fuzzy-aqua-buddha/  As I said earlier, you just can’t make up this kind of stuff.  These Tea Party candidates are not only bizarre and uninformed on the issues, they are going to bring the Republican Party even farther to the Right.  If that is possible!

I have made my suggestions, and they are just that, suggestions.  Let’s hear what You want to talk about.  The sky is the limit and I will be anxiously waiting to see what You want to talk about.  It is time to get busy and let everyone know what you are thinking about.  Let’s hear from all of You!  Don’t be shy and do not delay in telling us what you think.  These are important issues that all of our readers should have an opinion on.   It won’t hurt to let us know what You think!

We had another very hot and humid day here in Northern Illinois with no relief in sight!    This week is just flying by and I just can’t wait until our Friday Free For All so here are this week’s Wednesday’s Shorts.  I will take a quick look at some of the hot issues of this week and even some of the issues that fly under the radar.  I hope you like them.

I always enjoy stories about the hypocrisy of the Republican party and its officials.  It seems that the disgraced adulterer and Republican Governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford, recently accepted Obama stimulus money very quietly after railing against it.   http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/11/us/politics/11carolina.html?_r=1&ref=politics & http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/11/sanford-stimulus-jobless-benefits/   Should we really be surprised that someone who would cheat on his wife and his state to carry on an affair with a woman in Brazil, actually might lie about not accepting Stimulus monies??

How many former Republican president staffers and cabinet members are going to go on the record that Republican economic measures and policies are not only wrong, but are actually destructive to the American economy?  First, we heard from Alan Greenspan, then Former Bush Treasury Secretary, Paul O’Neill spoke out,  and now we hear from Reagan’s director of the Office of Management and Budget, David Stockman,  that Republicans are out of control.  ‘ “If there were such a thing as Chapter 11 for politicians, the Republican push to extend the unaffordable Bush tax cuts would amount to a bankruptcy filing. The nation’s public debt … will soon reach $18 trillion.” It screams “out for austerity and sacrifice.” But instead, the GOP insists “that the nation’s wealthiest taxpayers be spared even a three-percentage-point rate increase.” ’  http://www.marketwatch.com/story/reagan-insider-gop-destroyed-us-economy-2010-08-10?pagenumber=1  Mr. Stockman claims that his fellow Republicans in Congress are trying to bankrupt the country.  I couldn’t have said it any better!

It wouldn’t be a Wednesday if we didn’t have two examples of Republican hypocrisy.  Our old friend New Gingrich, the former Speaker of the House in the 1990’s, has been outed by his second wife.  It seems that not only did family value Guru, Newt Gingrich cheat on his first wife, he cheated on his second wife and is currently on his third marriage.  His second wife tells us that Newt asked her to marry him even before asking his bed ridden wife for a divorce.  What a sweetheart!  http://crooksandliars.com/john-amato/newt-gingrich-spiritual-leader-gop-expo  “And he did the same thing to her eighteen years later, with Callista Bisek, the young congressional aide who became his third wife. “I know. I asked him. He’d already asked her to marry him before he asked me for a divorce. Before he even asked.”  I guess by Republican standards, the third time is the charm.  I wonder if his third wife reads Crooks and Liars?? 

Those are our Wednesday’s Shorts.  Take a look at them and at the sites where I found the stories and let us know what you think!  We’ll be waiting for you! Let’s hear from you!  Don’t be shy!   See you on Friday!

I had a great weekend, but it just went by way too fast.  Now, it is time once again for AWMD’s Monday Musings.  There are plenty of news items to choose from after the weekend.  There are so many possible issues to discuss, it is hard to choose just a few, but I will choose just one tonight.  I don’t know if anyone else will be interested in the issue that I have chosen, but if so I hope you enjoy it. If my “Musing” interests you, let me know what you think.  Hell, even if they don’t interest you, let me know!  I am interested in your opinion too….as long as you agree with me!

Another former Bush official has come out in favor of letting the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy expire as the law requires at the end of 2010.  “Yesterday, Paul O’Neill, who was Treasury Secretary when the Bush tax cuts were enacted, seemed to follow suit. On CNN’s GPS with Fareed Zakaria, O’Neill pointed out that “I was strongly opposed to the Bush tax cut that was enacted in 2003. It was one of the reasons I got fired.” He explained that he opposed the cuts because they were unaffordable, given the looming war with Iraq. When pushed by Zakaria about whether or not the cuts should expire, O’Neill said a full expiration is “okay,….” ‘ http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/09/oneill-cuts/  Of course, the mere idea of the wealthiest taxpayers having to pay more taxes after almost 9 years of large cuts, drives the Republican Party nuts.  If the Republican Party didn’t want these cuts to expire, why did they include the “sunset” when they passed the cuts in 2001 and 2003?  You might be surprised by the answer, but I am interested in hearing your opinion.

I have another question for climate change deniers.  How important is it that a 100 square mile chunk of ice broke off of Greenland recently? http://www.udel.edu/udaily/2011/aug/greenland080610.html & -http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/113171-markey-global-warming-deniers-should-start-their-own-country-on-giant-ice-island-     A University of Delaware researcher informs us of this incident in this amazing treatise.  The broken piece is 4 times the size of Manhattan!  I am sure glad that global climate change is just a myth because if it was real, just imagine how big this chunk of ice might have been!  Even Rep. Edward Markey uses this report to send a message to those colleagues who are still denying the reality.  How will climate change denier Sarah from Wasilla explain away this incident?

Finally, the latest craze among Republicans these days is the idea that we should repeal the 14th Amendment because it allows illegal immigrants to have babies here in the States and the child is automatically a U.S. citizen.  These so-called “anchor babies” represent the scare tactic of the day for the Republicans.  http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/boehner-thinks-repealing-fourteenth-a  What is so bad about repealing the 14th Amendment anyway?  No one really knows if there really is a substantial “anchor baby” situation, but we know facts are something that the Republicans have little need for. Do these Republicans actually know what the 14th Amendment says?  Here it is for your perusal: http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constitution/amendment14/  Take a look at it and see what Republicans including the Senate Minority leader McConnell and Senator John McCain are talking about when they call for a repeal of the 14th amendment. Sure, it talks about making people citizens if they are born here, but it also guarantees this:

“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”  http://topics.law.cornell.edu/constitution/amendmentxiv 

Maybe the Republicans are just using the nonsense about anchor babies in order to repeal the 14th amendment due process and equal protection language in order to stop anchor babies and stop gays from getting married!  How dangerous is that?  What do you think?

What do you think about my latest musings?  It is now time for you to let us know what you think!  Don’t be shy.  Get busy and give us your opinion!  Take the first step and write down what you think.  It won’t hurt!  I promise!

After a beautiful day today, it is time once again for yet another edition of the AWMD Friday Free For All. This is the only time of the week when our arguewithmydad.com readers can control the topic(s) for discussion.  All you have to do is get someone else to respond to your suggested topic and then the floor is yours.  Don’t be shy and don’t hesitate.  Get busy and be sure to let us know your views and arguments so everyone can read and react to them.  Right here on arguewithmydad.com.  I will make some suggestions for a possible topic, but they are only suggestions.  Today is Friday so only you can be the decider.   But you need to tell us what you want to discuss.  So, what is on your mind today? With all that is going on, how can you not speak your mind?  Let’s hear from you!  TGIF! 

The big news this week had to be the decision in the California Prop 8 case where the judge threw out the California legislation that outlawed gay marriages.  The Right Wing’s heads have been exploding ever since Chief District Judge Walker decided that even Gay people have rights. http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/06/judges-marriage/   On Wednesday I asked for someone to explain how gays getting married adversely impacts traditional marriages and I have not received any responses as of this writing.  I challenge anyone in the AWMD nation to come up with a convincing case that proves that gay marriages should not be allowed.  I am waiting…….

Another court decision made the news this week, but it received very little press.  The U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington “overturned the 2008 conviction of Antoine Jones, saying police violated his constitutional rights by tracking his movements with a satellite navigation system device installed on his vehicle without a warrant.” http://rawstory.com/news/afp/US_appeals_court_nixes_GPS_tracking_08062010.html  The court didn’t stop there.  ‘ “The judges said the use of GPS, or Global Positioning System tracking, was a violation of the constitutional guarantee in the Fourth Amendment of unreasonable searches and seizures, saying it was an “intrusion” into “private affairs.” ‘  I guess the 4th Amendment still counts for something in the United States.  I consider this decision to be just as important as the Prop 8 decision mentioned above.  What do you think?

I have just one more item to discuss tonight.  I want to congratulate my youngest daughter for graduating from Law School and completing the Illinois Bar Exam last week.  I took the same test 28 years ago and I understand what she went through to prepare for the grueling 2 day test.  I know she passed the exam even though the results won’t be available until October.  She has excelled from the First Grade and she kept those high standards all the way through High School,  Syracuse University and Loyola University of Chicago Law School.  Both “Mom” and I are proud of her many accomplishments and we know that she will be a credit to the profession.  Congratulations kiddo!!

I have made my suggestions, and they are just that, suggestions.  Let’s hear what You want to talk about.  The sky is the limit and I will be anxiously waiting to see what You want to talk about.  It is time to get busy and let everyone know what you are thinking about.  Let’s hear from all of You!  Don’t be shy and do not delay in telling us what you think.  These are important issues that all of our readers should have an opinion on.   It won’t hurt to let us know what You think!

We had another very hot and humid and rainy day here in Northern Illinois, but we may get some relief starting tomorrow.  This week is just flying by and I just can’t wait until our Friday Free For All so here are this week’s Wednesday’s Shorts.  I will take a quick look at some of the hot issues of this week and even some of the issues that fly under the radar.  I hope you like them.

The first story tonight is one more example of Republican hypocrisy and obstructionism.  The Republicans once again have filibustered the aid bill for the States that will keep teachers on the job and provide much needed funding for medicaid.  This time, however, after the Democrats made some concessions 2 Republicans actually joined the Dems and defeated the Senate Republicans latest filibuster.  http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/medicaid/112609-with-help-from-maine-senate-passes-emergency-medicaid-funding & http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/04/38-gop-filibuster/ ”The tally was 61 to 38, with Maine GOP Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe joining every Democrat in favor of the bill.”   This bill will provide funding for Medicaid and funding to retain teacher jobs that the States have been screaming for.   The Republican Senators who didn’t vote for cloture to allow the bill to proceed called it a giveaway to the teachers unions. I guess jobs for Teachers don’t count when the Republicans scream at the top of their lungs on Fox News for jobs!

My next story really caught my eye when I first noticed it on Raw Story.  You know that talking point that the Arizona crazies have been spewing that the Federal Government is not doing their job in controlling the border?  Well, it turns out that more people have been deported by the Obama Administration than the Bush Administration.  “Findings by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse show more illegal immigrants were removed from the United States during the first nine months of this fiscal year than during the same period in 2008, when Republican George W. Bush was president and controlled immigration enforcement.” http://azstarnet.com/news/local/border/article_bb4c50a8-3e86-5187-a243-7c7f1b69d3c1.html  This study by Syracuse University has just shone a bright light on the crap that the Republicans in Arizona and in Washington have been lying about.  This same study shows that the Obama Administration has put their money where their mouths are. “The TRAC report also shows the Obama administration is devoting more resources to removing those who have committed serious crimes.”   I wonder why the Republicans didn’t complain that Bush wasn’t  securing the border??

After reading about the monumental decision in the California Prop 8 lawsuit I was impressed with the Judge’s logic.  As you probably remember, the California law legalizing gay marriage was struck down by Proposition 8 and the American Foundation for Equal Rights filed a lawsuit to challenge the constitutionality of Proposition 8.  http://www.truth-out.org/decision-landmark-challenge-proposition-8-imminent62028  Today  U.S. Chief District Judge Vaughn R. Walker declared that Prop 8 is unconstitutional.  “The ruling states that Proposition 8 violates due process and the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. ’ “Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license,” Vaughn wrote in his sweeping ruling against the ban. “Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite-sex couples are superior to same-sex couples.” ’  http://www.truth-out.org/decision-landmark-challenge-proposition-8-imminent62028 & http://www.equalrightsfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/35374462-Prop-8-Ruling-FINAL.pdf  If you have some time, take a look at Judge Walkers decision that I have provided a link to.  I really have never understood the Republican and the Religious Rights’s claim that allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry will harm straight marriages.  Can anyone explain the logic of that whopper to me?

Those are our Wednesday’s Shorts.  Take a look at them and at the sites where I found the stories and let us know what you think!  We’ll be waiting for you! Let’s hear from you!  Don’t be shy!   See you on Friday!

Where did the weekend go?  It is time once again for AWMD’s Monday Musings.  There are plenty of news items to choose from after the weekend.  There are so many possible issues to discuss, it is hard to choose just a few, but I will choose just one tonight.  I don’t know if anyone else will be interested in the issue that I have chosen, but if so I hope you enjoy it. If my “Musing” interests you, let me know what you think.  Hell, even if they don’t interest you, let me know!  I am interested in your opinion too….as long as you agree with me!

My first musing brings in one of our old “friends”.  Is there a lie that Karl Rove does not like?  Karl is now on the record claiming that the Bush Tax Cuts led to the “…the largest amount of revenue being received by the government.”  http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/02/rove-tax-fantasy/  What a Whopper!   ” Factcheck.org has called the assertion that the Bush tax cuts increased revenue “highly misleading,” while the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has said the claim that tax cuts inevitably pay for themselves “is contradicted by the historical record.” In all, the Bush tax cuts will cause $3.4 trillion in deficits over between 2009 and 2019. Just debt-service costs amount to “$1.7 trillion over the 2009-2019 period” and more than $330 billion in the 2019 fiscal year.” http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2010/07/14/conservative-bush-fantasy/  These lying Republicans must really want these cuts for their wealthy friends in the worst way, because these obvious falsehoods will come back to haunt them.  I do enjoy seeing them trying to prove their outrageous lies because you can tell that they don’t believe a word of the crap that they are spewing.

Speaking of Republican crazies, Congressional candidate and Tea Party darling Rand Paul is at it again.  Now he is claiming that the Federal Government shouldn’t have to regulate mines for safety because if the mines aren’t safe, no one will apply for the jobs to work there!  ‘ ”You live here, and you have to work in the mines. You’d try to make good rules to protect your people here. If you don’t, I’m thinking that no one will apply for those jobs.” ’ http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/worker-safety/112133-rand-paul-congress-has-no-business-protecting-miners  What planet does this guy come from?  You can’t make this stuff up!  This kind of nonsense goes beyond the normal Tea Party talking points because real people die and get injured in these mine incidents that can be prevented.  Rand Paul, you should be ashamed of yourself. 

My final musing is related to the latest example of the Republicans continued and unabashed obstructionism.  Defeated Presidential candidate Senator John McCain has put an infamous Senatorial “hold” on President Obama’s nominee for the United States Intelligence Director, James Clapper.  http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0802/mccain-holds-vote-obama-intel-chief-pick/  Even though Mr. Clapper was unanimously voted out of the Senate Intelligence Committee,  Sen. McCain is not ready to allow a vote.  Did Senator Grumpy forget that he lost the election?  How can a guy over 70 years old be such a spoiled child?

What do you think about my latest musings?  It is now time for you to let us know what you think!  Don’t be shy.  Get busy and give us your opinion!  Take the first step and write down what you think.  It won’t hurt!  I promise!

It is time again for yet another edition of the AWMD Friday Free For All. This is the only time of the week when our arguewithmydad.com readers can control the topic(s) for discussion.  All you have to do is get someone else to respond to your suggested topic and then the floor is yours.  Don’t be shy and don’t hesitate.  Get busy and be sure to let us know your views and arguments so everyone can read and react to them.  Right here on arguewithmydad.com.  I will make some suggestions for a possible topic, but they are only suggestions.  Today is Friday so only you can be the decider.   But you need to tell us what you want to discuss.  So, what is on your mind today? With all that is going on, how can you not speak your mind?  Let’s hear from you!  TGIF! 

The first suggested topic has to be the latest example of Republican hypocrisy.  After Republicans helped write the Small Business Bill, they then filibustered it to prevent it from coming up on a vote.  http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/30/us/politics/30cong.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper  The vote to kill the filibuster was 58-42 in favor of stopping the filibuster, but it did not receive the necessary 60 votes to overturn the latest Republican obstruction.  Sen. McConnell used the lame excuse that the 3 amendments that the Democrats would allow to be debated would not be enough.  My first question is if the Republicans actually helped write the bill, why do they need to add amendments?  The answer to that question is that the amendments are just a lie by the Republicans to slow down and defeat the measure.  They are a lie because the amendments had nothing to do with this bill and are designed to delay the process.  This bill would provide billions to small businesses in loans from community banks as well as tax credits for those very same small businesses.   “Republicans had also wanted amendments on other topics, including the estate tax, nuclear loan guarantees, border security and the expiring Bush tax cuts.”  I have to ask again, how do these lying sacks of crap actually sleep at night?  What do you think?

My next suggested topic concerns the upcoming vote on the nomination of Elena Kagan for the Supreme Court.  Once again, the alleged Democrat, Ben Nelson, has announced that he will vote with the Republicans and against Kagan.   http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/07/ben-nelson-first-democrat-to-v.html  What?  Ben Nelson won’t back a Democratic nominee for a Democratic President.  Who would have guessed.  He should just announce that he is really a Republican, because he is useless to the Democratic caucus.  One of the reasons he proffered for not voting for her was that his constituents did not like her. “”I have heard concerns from Nebraskans regarding Ms. Kagan, and her lack of a judicial record makes it difficult for me to discount the concerns raised by Nebraskans, or to reach a level of comfort that these concerns are unfounded. Therefore, I will not vote to confirm Ms. Kagan’s nomination,” Nelson said.” ’ I just love it when Republicans and pseudo-Republicans claim that she can’t be a Supreme Court justice without having any judicial experience.  Of  course, they forget that the Chief Justice that Justice Roberts replaced, did not have any judicial experience.  http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/rehnquist.bio.html  They also forget to tell the American public that Kagan was nominated for the Federal Court by President Clinton, but her nomination was filibustered by the Republicans.  Once again, hypocrisy is spelled R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-A-N. 

My final suggested topic is one that I was really proud of.  New York Congressman, Anthony Wiener, took the Republicans in the house to task for not voting for health care benefits for the 9/11 first responders who have become ill due to the toxic air conditions subsequent to the twin towers falling.  http://crooksandliars.com/karoli/republicans-911-responders-die-and-die-quic  “When it became apparent that the Republicans were going to attach “poison pill” amendments to the bill that had nothing to do with 9/11 and everything to do with their political agenda, Democrats shut down the possibility of amending the bill by moving it to the suspension calendar, where a minimum 2/3rds vote is needed for it to pass.”  After the vote failed to garner the necessary 2/3rds, Weiner took to the floor and excoriated his colleagues.  Congratulations to Rep. Weiner for telling it like it is and for standing up for the heroes of 9/11.

I have made my suggestions, and they are just that, suggestions.  Let’s hear what You want to talk about.  The sky is the limit and I will be anxiously waiting to see what You want to talk about.  It is time to get busy and let everyone know what you are thinking about.  Let’s hear from all of You!  Don’t be shy and do not delay in telling us what you think.  These are important issues that all of our readers should have an opinion on.   It won’t hurt to let us know what You think!

We had another very hot and humid day here in Northern Illinois, but we may get some relief starting tomorrow.  This week is just flying by and I just can’t wait until our Friday Free For All so here are this week’s Wednesday’s Shorts.  I will take a quick look at some of the hot issues of this week and even some of the issues that fly under the radar.  I hope you like them.

My first article tonight is so crazy that it is hard to believe that it is true.  It was reported today that the Iowa GOP has stated in its platform that they support the removal of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution and they want to replace it with a proposed but defeated 13th Amendment. “Adopted in December 1865, the current 13th Amendment of the Constitution prohibits “slavery” and “involuntary servitude” in the United States or any place under its jurisdiction. The Iowa GOP is not trying to overturn this amendment to reinstate slavery. Instead, it wants to reintroduce the “original 13th Amendment” first offered by senator Phillip Reed of Maryland in 1810. The amendment states that “if any citizen of the United States shall accept, claim, receive or retain any title of nobility or honor” from a “foreign power, such person shall cease to be a citizen” and “shall be incapable of holding any office of trust.” ‘ http://thinkprogress.org/2010/07/28/iowa-gop-supports-amendment-to-strip-obamas-citizenship-because-he-won-the-nobel-peace-prize/  Why would the Iowan GOP want a new 13th Amendment?  They want to strip President Obama of his citizenship because he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize!  This is a perfect example of how far the Republican Party has sunk.  They are no longer a responsible political party.  They are nothing but a conglomerate of crazy, uninformed and uneducated nutcases.  They have not been able to convince any reputable group that President Obama is not a citizen, so they are now trying to reverse history.  I think the best thing the Democrats can do to defeat the Republicans in November is to remind voters of just how stupid and Un-American these thirteenthers and Republicans really are.

You can imagine my surprise when I read earlier today that the Oil inustry is fighting yet another spill.  This time it is an estimated 877,000 gallons of oil spilled in Michigan’s Kalamazoo River!  http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0728/oil-pipeline-leak-pollutes-major-michigan-river/   So more birds and fish will be sporting new coats of oil in the State of Michigan.  The Governor of Michigan has declared the area a disaster area.  But, do not worry because the company that owns the leaking pipeline, Enbridge Energy Partners LP of Houston, has assured everyone that they will clean up the mess.  Where have I heard that lie before?

My final story for tonight involves a name from the past.  Do you remember Dr. Hans Blix?  He is the “former chief of the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) between 1999 and 2003.”  http://crooksandliars.com/jason-sigger/hans-blix-iraq-war-was-illegal  It seems that Dr. Blix was called to testify in the British hearings that are investigating the Iraq War.  Dr. Blix reiterated his findings from 2003 and informed that hearing board that his inspectors did not find a single weapon of mass destruction. “It’s a popular meme for the conservatives in our country to claim that Saddam didn’t allow the inspectors back into the country prior to the 2003 invasion, but in fact he did. The teams had a little over three months before they withdrew, and they only withdrew because they were warned that Iraq was about to become a war zone. It’s also a popular meme for the conservatives to even deny that WMDs were the principle justification for the US invasion. The record shows otherwise.”  Once again the facts show that Iraq did not have any weapons of mass destruction in 2003 just before the United States invaded Iraq.  Those fact thingies just keep getting in the way of the Bush Administration’s alumni and Republican’s lies about the need to invade Iraq.  When will the United States actually follow the law and investigate the decision to invade Iraq and the multiple counts of war crimes that followed?  President Obama, the whole world is watching to see what the current Nobel Peace Prize winner will do!

Those are our Wednesday’s Shorts.  Take a look at them and at the sites where I found the stories and let us know what you think!  We’ll be waiting for you! Let’s hear from you!  Don’t be shy!   See you on Friday!

It is time once again for AWMD’s Monday Musings.  There are plenty of news items to choose from after the weekend.  There are so many possible issues to discuss, it is hard to choose just a few, but I will choose just one tonight.  I don’t know if anyone else will be interested in the issue that I have chosen, but if so I hope you enjoy it. If my “Musing” interests you, let me know what you think.  Hell, even if they don’t interest you, let me know!  I am interested in your opinion too….as long as you agree with me!

You may have seen the story that claims that BP is kicking Tony Hayward into a job in Russia due to the problems related to the Gulf Oil spill.  http://thinkprogress.org/2010/07/26/bp-is-sending-tony-hayward-to-russia/  I have only one question. Do we have an extradition treaty with Russia?!

I saw this article about eliminating or modifying the filibuster rule and it was hard to hold back my enthusiasm.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/26/momentum-for-senate-filib_n_659821.html  The Republicans have set a record for the number of filibusters that they have used to obstruct the business of the Senate and if the Democrats can get rid of the filibuster, the world would be a better place. “Republicans in the Senate have performed more filibusters during the current congressional session than any minority in Senate history. “  It is time to put the Senate back to work!

Just when I thought we were through with this idiot, General Michael Hayden, the former Bush CIA director is once again opening his pie hole about Iran.  It seems that General Hayden has been quoted as saying that an attack on Iran “”seems inexorable.” ‘http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/node/38590    When was the last time that this guy was actually right about anything?  I will be waiting for evidence of an actual fact from this stain on humanity.  This is the same guy that was confused by the proper 4th Amendment search standard and conveniently forgot about the probable cause requirement. ” Gen. Hayden disputed a questioner’s statement that the Fourth Amendment requires a showing of “probable cause,” a reference to the need for a judicial warrant, for surveillance. The Amendment only mandates that a search be “reasonable,” Hayden argued. But the Fourth Amendment does in fact also mandate “probable cause.” http://www.accuracy.org/newsrelease.php?articleId=1210  Who cares what this guy says?

My final Muse of the night is a surprising one.  I have to admit that I agree with a Republican Senatorial candidate!  I know it is hard to believe, but I agree with Colorado Republican Senate candidate Ken Buck when he called the Tea Party dumb asses! ‘ “Will you tell those dumbassesat the Tea Party to stop asking questions about birth certificates while I’m on the camera,” Buck said to the worker while laughing. “God, what am I supposed to do?” ‘  http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/node/38606  It is so heartening to know that there is room for agreement between progressives and conservatives!

What do you think about my latest musings?  It is now time for you to let us know what you think!  Don’t be shy.  Get busy and give us your opinion!  Take the first step and write down what you think.  It won’t hurt!  I promise!