I Called it Right -- Rep. Pelosi is Folding Under Her Ultra-Left Constituents

[Gawain 0]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061116/ap_on_go_co/congress_leaders

Just days after sitting in the White House, promising meaningful debate and movement on issues in Congress, she passes over Rep. Hoyer (D-MD) for Rep. Murtha.

This will succeed in several things, none of them positive. It will force the Democratic agenda farther to the left, and it abandons the center that elected them back to power in the Congress. It also alienates the centrists that are newly elected. If the push is too strong, you could see some leaving the party.

Here was prediction: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=2500296#2500296

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[mnealtx 0]

Yup... after all the talk about "draining the swamp", who does she put in charge? A Senator that came within a whisker of getting snagged in ABSCAM and who is well know for pork barrel projects and sending contracts to a company run by his brother...

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[rehmwa 2]

So they are doing the same thing the reps did when they took both houses.

Politicians suck.

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[Andy9o8 3]

Murtha is hardly left-wing; although yes, he's pro-withdrawal on Iraq.

Having said that, Murtha's a really bad choice from a standpoint of his ethics (Mnealtx is right on the money on that one); and not only is Pelosi being stupid, she's squandering gobs of political capital before she even takes her new office. Stupid, stupid.

Incidentally, the GOP just made the same kind of stupid mistake, too, in electing Trent Lott as Senate Whip. Stupid, stupid.

People are sick to death of The Same Old Shit from both parties. Hasn't anyone learned this from the last election? What the hell are these people thinking?

[NCclimber 0]

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So they are doing the same thing the reps did when they took both houses.

What are you talking about?

[rehmwa 2]

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So they are doing the same thing the reps did when they took both houses.

What are you talking about?

"Mandates"

that, and wind tunnels

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[wmw999 2,602]

Bill -- mandates? you? I thought you were married

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[rehmwa 2]

Wendy - It's much more complicated than just political mandates perceived by those that really wish they had one - I mean if GWB could do it based on a 50/50 election, and Pelosi will do it based on a desire to go more centrist by the people (not far left vs far right). Here's why:


So gas was $2.07 on the day of the election.
It shot to $2.26 by Thursday.
Then it went to $2.15 by Sunday.
By this Tues and Wed it's now back to $2.07
But this morning, I think it's back up to $2.18


My conclusions?

1 - The oil interests are manipulating gas prices to affect the election. Though why they want to swing left is beyond me.....

or 2 - gas prices tend to go up just before the weekend and then down again around Tuesdays....

Even though #2 is pretty well the weekly trend for the last 2 years in my area, I think #1 is more fun

Now, the sunspot cycle seems also slightly off pattern in the last 2 decades with the tundra melt off showing more gold reserves in the fan belt tuna hopper.

My net conclusion is "stay out of my booze"

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[Gravitymaster 0]

Perhaps gas prices went up because demand increased by 6% in October.

http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20061115-100425-8000r

Naw!!! Must be a giant conspiracy by Bush and his oil buddies. Supply and demand couldn't be the reason.

-

[lawrocket 3]

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Murtha will chair the powerful defense subcommittee with responsibility for the war in Iraq and the Pentagon budget. "Nancy asked me to set a policy for the Democratic Party. Most of the party signed onto it," he said, referring to pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq.

Did anyone see that comment as downright frightening? The policy is not what is best for America, the troops, the citizens. It's about a policy for the Democrats.

It's fine if Howard Dean is setting policy for the party. It's quite another for a person who is supposed to be putting the best interests of the country and his constituents to be making policies for a political party.

That bipartisanship will be impossible is borne out in that comment.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[billvon 3,132]

>Did anyone see that comment as downright frightening?

Nope. The administration has a policy on the war. The IAVA has a policy on the war. The military has a policy on the war. Many groups do. Doesn't mean they are good or bad. Indeed, it will answer many of their critics who have been blasting them for NOT having a policy on the Iraq war.

Now, if the democrats have a policy on Iraq that sucks, that would be bad.

[Gawain 0]

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Murtha is hardly left-wing; although yes, he's pro-withdrawal on Iraq.

He sides with the "right" when it gets him the pork. He's a mega spender (like them all, but he stands out).

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Having said that, Murtha's a really bad choice from a standpoint of his ethics (Mnealtx is right on the money on that one); and not only is Pelosi being stupid, she's squandering gobs of political capital before she even takes her new office. Stupid, stupid.

Even worse, her pick didn't get the post, Rep. Hoyer got it, and they do not like each other. She lost at her first leadership task. Talk about falling on one's face.

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Incidentally, the GOP just made the same kind of stupid mistake, too, in electing Trent Lott as Senate Whip. Stupid, stupid.

Why? Because of those comments he made that somehow magically translated to endorsing segregation?? He shouldn't have left his post in the first place.

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[Andy9o8 3]

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Incidentally, the GOP just made the same kind of stupid mistake, too, in electing Trent Lott as Senate Whip. Stupid, stupid.

Why? Because of those comments he made that somehow magically translated to endorsing segregation?? He shouldn't have left his post in the first place.

That's a separate issue from the point I'm making: electing Lott as Whip was politically stupid. Like it or not, politics is all about image. The GOP lost this last election because of its image problem. If they're to have a shot at electoral rehabilitation in 2008, they need to project a fresh image to contrast with the tired one that the voters just booted out. But reinstating Lott to the leadership just sends a message of "same tired, old business as usual". I'm telling you, that won't hold well with the voters. Politically-savvy Republicans should be pissed at this.

[Gawain 0]

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Incidentally, the GOP just made the same kind of stupid mistake, too, in electing Trent Lott as Senate Whip. Stupid, stupid.

Why? Because of those comments he made that somehow magically translated to endorsing segregation?? He shouldn't have left his post in the first place.

That's a separate issue from the point I'm making: electing Lott as Whip was politically stupid. Like it or not, politics is all about image. The GOP lost this last election because of its image problem. If they're to have a shot at electoral rehabilitation in 2008, they need to project a fresh image to contrast with the tired one that the voters just booted out. But reinstating Lott to the leadership just sends a message of "same tired, old business as usual". I'm telling you, that won't hold well with the voters. Politically-savvy Republicans should be pissed at this.

I understand your point, but don't agree on this issue. Lott's re-ascention to a leadership post has generated zero hype in the media, on the left, or the right...only a basic reporting of the fact that it happened.

The image issue is very important, but the establishment in Washington is so tarnished that it doesn't matter. Speaker Pelosi was pushing for one of the least "image-worthy" to be her second.

Sen. Lott, while his comments generated a lot of hype, he essentially bowed out and sat in the second row for a while. He politically saved face to a degree.

Fact is, that aside from those comments alone, Sen. Lott is probably one of the most distinguished, and "clean" (relative term here) politicians on the hill.

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[billvon 3,132]

>I understand your point, but don't agree on this issue. Lott's
>re-ascention to a leadership post has generated zero hype in the media . . .

So part of your criteria of the fitness for a political position involves what sort of reaction the media has to the appointment?

[DaVinci 0]

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She lost at her first leadership task. Talk about falling on one's face.

I would not go so far as to say she failed. She didn't get what she wanted, but I give more credit to the party for not letting her get her way if they don't agree.

Think about how much better things would be if people stood up to each other a bit up there.

[Gravitymaster 0]

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She lost at her first leadership task. Talk about falling on one's face.

I would not go so far as to say she failed. She didn't get what she wanted, but I give more credit to the party for not letting her get her way if they don't agree.

Think about how much better things would be if people stood up to each other a bit up there.

I disagree with you here. I think any smart leader who had just been elected would not want their first show of power to be met with a defeat. Doing so sets the tone for the future. (Not that I think it's a bad thing in this case).

Now that it's been demonstrated publicly that she isn't going to be the Queen she thought she would be, perhaps Congress can get down to the business at hand.

[Gawain 0]

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>I understand your point, but don't agree on this issue. Lott's
>re-ascention to a leadership post has generated zero hype in the media . . .

So part of your criteria of the fitness for a political position involves what sort of reaction the media has to the appointment?

No, I was just countering his argument. He was saying people should be upset about it, and I'm saying that noone appears to be upset about and cited my feelings why.

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[kallend 2,182]

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She lost at her first leadership task. Talk about falling on one's face.

I would not go so far as to say she failed. She didn't get what she wanted, but I give more credit to the party for not letting her get her way if they don't agree.

Think about how much better things would be if people stood up to each other a bit up there.

I disagree with you here. I think any smart leader who had just been elected would not want their first show of power to be met with a defeat. Doing so sets the tone for the future. (Not that I think it's a bad thing in this case).

Now that it's been demonstrated publicly that she isn't going to be the Queen she thought she would be, perhaps Congress can get down to the business at hand.

Pity it took 6 years for GWB to realize that he's not Emperor.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[rushmc 23]

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She lost at her first leadership task. Talk about falling on one's face.

I would not go so far as to say she failed. She didn't get what she wanted, but I give more credit to the party for not letting her get her way if they don't agree.

Think about how much better things would be if people stood up to each other a bit up there.

I disagree with you here. I think any smart leader who had just been elected would not want their first show of power to be met with a defeat. Doing so sets the tone for the future. (Not that I think it's a bad thing in this case).

Now that it's been demonstrated publicly that she isn't going to be the Queen she thought she would be, perhaps Congress can get down to the business at hand.

Pity it took 6 years for GWB to realize that he's not Emperor.

Incoming!!

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln