Bad Deeds for 7-11-2007

Homeland Security Secretary Uses Stephen Colbert’s Method to Predict Terror Attacks – On Tuesday, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told the editorial board of The Chicago Tribune that he had a “gut feeling” about a new period of increased risk. Who needs facts or logic when you can use “gut feeling?” Besides, facts have a liberal bias.

Rick Santorum Would Very Much Like It If You Blew Up And Couldn’t Vote for a Democrat – Rick Santorum apparently has some sort of info that we don’t, as he said yesterday on Hugh Hewitt’s radio show that there’s going to be a terrorist attack before the elections so people will vote Republican.

Sun Not Living Up to Conservatives’ Expectations in Warming Earth – The sun’s changing energy levels are not to blame for recent global warming and, if anything, solar variations over the past 20 years should have had a cooling effect, scientists said on Wednesday. Their findings add to a growing body of evidence that human activity, not natural causes, lies behind rising average world temperatures, which are expected to reach their second highest level this year since records began in the 1860s. Britain’s Royal Society — one of the world’s oldest scientific academies, founded in 1660 — said the new research was an important rebuff to climate change skeptics. “At present there is a small minority which is seeking to deliberately confuse the public on the causes of climate change. They are often misrepresenting the science, when the reality is that the evidence is getting stronger every day,” it said in a statement.

E-Mail Shows CNN and Dr. Gupta Were Given The Right Facts Before Getting Them Wrong – Dr. Sanjay Gupta today admitted that he was wrong about some of the facts in his CNN report on SiCKO — a report that led Michael Moore to blast Wolf Blitzer. The e-mail exchange below, between Moore’s team and Gupta’s producer, shows that Gupta and CNN had the facts — including the one he apologized for — a full day before the Gupta piece first aired on AC360 on June 29 (following Moore’s first appearance regarding SiCKO on Larry King Live), and a full 10 days before the network re-aired it preceding Moore’s volatile July 9 appearance on The Situation Room.

People in the US Are Waiting an Average of About 70 Days to See a Health-Care Provider – What country endures such long waits for medical care that even one of its top insurers recently admitted that care is “not timely” and people “initially diagnosed with cancer are waiting over a month, which is intolerable?” If you guessed Canada, guess again. The answer is the United States. Scrambling for a response to the popular reaction to Michael Moore’s Sicko and a renewed groundswell for a publicly-financed, guaranteed health care, single-payer health care solution like HR 676, the big insurers and their defenders have pounced on Canada, pulling out all their old tales of people waiting years in soup kitchen-type lines for medical care. But, here’s the dirty little secret that they won’t tell you. Waiting times in the U.S. are as bad as or worse than Canada. And, unlike the U.S., in Canada no one is denied needed medical care, referrals, or diagnostic tests due to cost, pre-existing conditions, or because it wasn’t pre-approved.

Bush Says YOU Are the Problem With Health Care – Bush spoke in Ohio today and blames YOU for lawsuits on doctors, not choosing the correct health plan, being in poor health.it goes on and on. The medical industry is freaking since Michael Moore’s movie just came out. They need you dumbed down and Bush tries to do that for them. Having a health savings account won’t help you when your HMO refuses treatment or won’t let you see the doctor of your choice. All the Republican candidates use the same talking points: health care “reform” based on “personal responsibility,” meaning it’s all up to you.

Ex-Bush Aide Refuses Answer Senate Questions About US Attorney Firings – President Bush’s former political director Sara M. Taylor obeyed his instructions and declined to answer Congress’ questions Wednesday about her role in the firings of federal prosecutors. “It is apparent that this White House is contemptuous of the Congress and feels that it does not have to explain itself to anybody,” Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said as he opened the hearing. “I urge Ms. Taylor not to follow that contemptuous position and not to follow the White House down this path.” Taylor, who met briefly with Leahy before the hearing, said she would answer only limited questions to comply with her former boss’ orders, unless a court orders her to comply with the congressional subpoena instead.

The ‘Grand Obstructionist Party’ – Does it seem as if every time the Senate is poised to consider an important measure, Republicans launch a filibuster? Senate Republicans have obstructed almost every bill in the Senate – even ones with wide bipartisan support. So far, in the first half of the first session of the 110th Congress, there have been THIRTEEN cloture votes on motions to proceed – each one wasting days of Senate time. In comparison, in the first sessions of the 108th and 109th Congresses combined, there were a total of FOUR cloture votes on motions to proceed. It’s quite a record the Senate minority has assembled:
EIGHT times Republican obstruction tactics slowed critical legislation

• Fulfilling the 9/11 Commission Recommendations (Passed 97-0, Roll Call Vote #53)
• Improving security at our courts (Passed 93-3, Roll Call Vote #133)
• Water Resources Development Act (Passed 89-7, Roll Call Vote #162)
• A joint resolution to revise U.S. policy in Iraq (Passed 89-9, Roll Call Vote, #74)
• Comprehensive Immigration Reform (Passed 69-23, Roll Call Vote #173)
• Comprehensive Immigration Reform (Passed 64-35, Roll Call Vote #228)
• CLEAN Energy Act (Passed 91-0, Roll Call Vote #208)
• Funding for the Intelligence Community (Passed 94-3, Roll Call Vote #129)

FOUR times Republicans blocked legislation from being debated

• Senate Republicans blocked raising the minimum wage. (Rejected 54-43, Roll Call Vote #23)
• Senate Republicans blocked ethics reforms (Rejected 51-46, Roll Call Vote #16)
• Senate Republicans blocked comprehensive immigration reform (Rejected 45-50, Roll Call Vote #206)
• Senate Republicans blocked funding for renewable energy (Rejected 57-36, Roll Call Vote #223)

FOUR times Republicans stopped bills from reaching a vote

• Senate Republicans blocked funding for the intelligence community. (Rejected 41-40, Roll Call Vote #130)
• Senate Republicans blocked raising the minimum wage. (54-43, Roll Call Vote #23)
• Senate Republicans blocked ethics reforms (Rejected 51-46, Roll Call Vote #16)
• Senate Republicans blocked funding for renewable energy (Rejected 57-36, Roll Call Vote #223)

TWICE Republicans blocked bills from going to conference

• Senate Republicans blocked appointing conferees on the 9/11 Commission Recommendations (6/26/07)
• Senate Republicans blocked appointing conferees on ethics reform (6/26/07)

Outside of budget resolutions, you need 60 votes in the Senate to pass a bill. So the solution to getting something done is less Republicans in the Senate.

Lieberman Says Give the Troops a Break by Not Giving Them a Longer Break – Joe Lieberman is counseling his colleagues to vote against Jim Webb’s amendment requiring that active-duty troops have at least the same amount of time at home as the length of their previous tour of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan because he thinks they should give the troops a break.

People for the American Way (PFAW) Continues Dishonest Lobbying Campaign for Holt Election Bill – People for the American Way (PFAW) — previously the “good guys” in many a fight for your democracy — continues their dishonest and misleading campaign to support Rep. Rush Holt’s dangerous Election Reform Bill (HR 811). The bill, as written currently fails on a number of levels. Most notably, its institutionalization of the use of disenfranchising Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) touch-screen voting machines for all of America. Such machines use secret, unverifiable, invisible ballots to count your vote. As HR 811 comes towards the U.S. House floor for a vote, PFAW is ramping up their efforts by sending out emails to members requesting they call Nancy Pelosi’s office at (202) 225-2965. We suggest you do the same. But demand that Pelosi amend the bill to include a ban on DRE voting systems or otherwise vote against the bill. Then send this item to everyone you know!

Regards,

Jim