DCRepublican.com

Despite not having the majority that they would like in the Senate, Republican Senators have done a fairly good job of flexing the muscle they have in terms of blocking pieces of legislation that could have an extremely negative impact on the economy.

Of these key pieces blocked is what some Democrats believe would be the “second round of economic stimulus” for the lagging US economy.

This bill that the Democrats tried to push through the Senate essentially does what they are known for, creating more programs and more problems.

Just like any bad piece of legislation that makes its way through the legislature, every effort was made to sugarcoat it to make it sound good, and more importantly to sound as if it is something the American people need.

After the bill was blocked, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made the following statement:

From CNN:

“The people on Wall Street are high-fiving. They just won again,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said after the vote.

“The big banks just won again. The mortgage bankers won again. Oh, there are a few losers out there, like millions of consumers — millions of people who are going into foreclosure or are about to go into foreclosure. They lost.”

Yes, it is indeed another powerful statement by Harry Reid, but is the problem really as big as he makes it sound?

While in Chicago yesterday, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had some other ideas:

From the New York Times:

In the early afternoon, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson jumped into the fray, releasing remarks from a speech to be given tonight at the Economic Club of Chicago.

‘So while some in Washington are proposing big interventions, most of the proposals I’ve seen would do more harm than good,’ Paulson is scheduled to say, according to the excerpts released to reporters in Washington.

‘Im not interested in bailing out investors, lenders and speculators,’ he added.

Instead, Paulson is pushing harder for both lenders and borrowers to avoid delays in mortgage relief programs already going on. Paulson noted that 93 pct of mortgages are paid on time and only 2 pct are in foreclosure.

While I wouldn’t consider myself as the most knowledgeable person on many of these matters, I don’t think that the Senate Democrats are doing themselves any justice in terms of getting things passed by trying to push through bills without working with the Republicans.

Since every major candidate running for president is a member of the Senate, the dynamics of the Senate have become even more interesting.

As it stands, the Senate currently has 49 Republicans, 49 Democrats and 2 Independents, with the two Independents caucusing with the Democrats. Basically, the mix has been 51/49.

However, with Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and John McCain on the campaign it becomes much closer to 50/50, with John McCain much more likely to fly back for a vote than any of the others.

The Senate Republicans should take advantage of this opportunity as quickly as possible, and try and get some meaningful legislation pushed through.

In what will most certainly be a close election year, Republicans have got to deliver meaningful pieces of legislation so that they have something to take back to their states and camapaign on.

I’m pleased to see that Mike Duncan has stepped in to regulate what has simply become an annoying series of statements being made by some prominent Republican leaders and figureheads.

From CNN:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan formally denounced on Thursday the Tennessee Republican Party’s use of Barack Obama’s full name in a recent news release questioning the Illinois senator’s commitment to Israel.

“The RNC rejects these kinds of campaign tactics,” Duncan said in a statement. “We believe this election needs to be about the critical issues confronting our nation.”

Amen!

In such a close race, the GOP’s image cannot be put at risk of being tarnished simply because some people think that it might “wake people up” if they realize that Obama’s middle name is Hussein.

While I understand what they are trying to do, create the sense that he could be a risk to foreign and security policy because of potential ties, there are plenty of other ways that you can go after him. Use his record and not his name to make whatever arguments you are trying to make. If what you’re looking for doesn’t show up on his record (as will be the case with most things), emphasize his inexperience.

When members of the GOP make such a big deal about things like someones middle name, or a picture taken on a trip, it makes us look like we don’t have any arguments, and because of that, have to resort to mudslinging to get our message across.

If we can stick to the issues and be the bigger man in this fight, we’ll win. But, if we keep focusing on things that are for the most part irrelevant to this election, such as names and/or pictures, we’re going to lose miserably. If we lost the White House, there is no doubt that we’ll fall further into the minority in the House and Senate and quite possibly prevent the chances of ever gaining a strong conservative majority on the SCOTUS, at least for many of our lifetimes.

Everyone knows that Ron Paul isn’t going to be the next President of the United States, but despite that he still has a strong army of dedicated volunteers and activists who are ready to go at the drop of the hat to do whatever the campaign needs.Yes, some of his ideas are quite “out there,” and yes, he seems like a quirky guy at times. But the fact that he has built such a grassroots army, of what seem to be strong conservative and libertarian activists is something that Republican’s cannot overlook.

I came across this video today on youtube:

Even though the odds are obviously stacked against him, and his people know that he can’t win, they are still ready to go without question. I wish many so-called Republicans would be that loyal and dedicated to their party (particularly many in congress, though we’ll save that for another post)

Now that McCain is going to be the nominee for the GOP, the question that must be asked is how the Republicans are going to tap into what has become this large base (in the activist sense) of Ron Paul supporters?

As of now, I don’t know if there is a way into that base, they seem completely loyal. But eventually, Ron Paul is going to have to step out of the race if he is going to run again for his seat in Texas and I’m hoping these people won’t lose their fire.

Even though Ron Paul supporters don’t agree with John McCain on a few issues, and sure, many probably don’t even like him, at the end of the day the question that has to be asked, is which of the two remaining candidates is going to be the best fit for their issues. I’m hoping that John McCain will be the obvious answer for many of them, especially since this looks like its going to an extremely close election.

It’s no Obama girl, but I still kinda like it. I really hope the GOP comes out with some creative videos, we need something more appealing to the younger Republicans. McCain has an interesting background, and while I’m sure a song like “I’m Hustlin” isn’t the best fit, there has to be something!

…. if only I were a little more creative…

While there is no doubt in my mind that when it comes to policy and political style, Robert Byrd isn’t going to rank anywhere near the top on my list of favorites, but I have to be honest, when it comes to his dedication to serving in the Senate, he wins hands down.

Just like Strom Thurmond (who would be #1 on my list if he were still alive), Byrd loves the Senate and all that it has to offer.

Even at the age of 90, and with broken bones, he’s still planning on making a return to the Senate:

From the Hill:

Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) will return to Capitol Hill next week after being hospitalized because of severe back pains, his office announced Thursday.

Byrd, 90, has been hospitalized at Walter Reed Army Medical Center since Tuesday after sustaining a back injury from a fall at his Virginia home on Monday night. X-rays showed that Byrd suffered no broken bones from his fall, according to the senator’s spokesman, Jesse Jacobs.

Byrd will undergo physical therapy “to ensure he is steady on his feet when he returns to his Senate duties next week,” Jacobs said.

Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) will return to Capitol Hill next week after being hospitalized because of severe back pains, his office announced Thursday.

Byrd, 90, has been hospitalized at Walter Reed Army Medical Center since Tuesday after sustaining a back injury from a fall at his Virginia home on Monday night. X-rays showed that Byrd suffered no broken bones from his fall, according to the senator’s spokesman, Jesse Jacobs.

I guess when half of your state is named after you, the motivation and stamina becomes endless.

I wouldn’t put it past Senator Byrd that if he had to, he would deliver one of his famous Senate speeches from a hospital gurney wheeled onto the Senate floor. I guess in old age, some retire, and others just try and rule the world

From Townhall.com:

Republican John McCain quickly denounced the comments of a radio talk show host who while warming up a campaign crowd referred repeatedly to Barack Hussein Obama and called the Democratic presidential candidate a “hack, Chicago-style” politician.

Hussein is Obama’s middle name, but talk show host Bill Cunningham used it three times as he addressed the crowd before the likely Republican nominee’s appearance.

While this is just a small blurb of the story, it pretty much sums up the fact that many pf the conservative talk radio personalities that have attacked McCain for condemning these remarks are making a bigger deal out of this situation than they need to.

First of all, there is absolutely no reason that Bill Cunnigham needed to refer to Obama by his middle name three times in his speech, attack him on his record, not his name. Fear mongering is a tactic that should be saved for times in the campaign when it is truly needed, not for some ridiculous statement that doesn’t even make any strong claims.

Furthermore, John McCain is running for President in what is going to be a highly contested election. People are going to be voting for someone that they believe will be ready to take the job on day one, without any training. With that being said, should it surprise anyone that John McCain is already starting to act Presidential so that people can see that he knows what he is doing?

If this speech was given before the President of the United States spoke, I have no doubt in my mind that the White House Press Secretary would have a statement on the wire within minutes decrying Cunningham’s remarks and taking a different position.

Somehow I have a feeling that if Cunningham were speaking before a George W. Bush event and this happened, and Bush gave the same response as McCain, conservative talk radio hosts wouldn’t be in attack mode like they are now.

This is really something that is concerning for me as the election draws near. Is talk radio going to keep attacking McCain, calling him a liberal and making foolish claims, such as supporting Hillary Clinton instead? I really hope not.

These talk radio hosts need to realize that if we don’t have McCain, we’re going to have one of the most liberal and unexperienced members of the United States Senate in office, with a Democratic majority in the House and Senate, and Supreme Court Justices getting up there in age.

While that might give them plenty to talk about on the air and guarantee that their base of listeners will increase exponentially, is the future of our country something that they truly want to play with?

I’m hoping that the majority of conservatives look beyond those in talk radio who are attacking McCain for doing something that any President would have done, and focus on the real issues, and more importantly getting on the ground persuading as many people as possible to support the Republican nominee.

Things link this are not going to help conservatives win in 2008.

Since when did a philosophy of supporting the liberal ever help advance conservatism? Bill Cunningham needs to stop crying, grow up, and stand by his Party.

In looking for some more articles and tributes to William F. Buckley, I came across a disturbing post from a leftist blogger regarding what seemed to be their satisfaction with the death of William F. Buckley.

What is the posts headline: William F. Buckley Jr. Joins Dead Homophobes Club

The rest of the post:

Back in the beginning of the AIDS crisis, Buckley suggested all HIV+ Americans get visibly tattoo to warn and protect the public. Very soon after this Machiavellian suggestion, Buckley had a biopsy sent to a laboratory where an AIDS activist from ACT-UP was a technician. When becoming aware it was Buckley’s biopsy, the diagnosis of “Kaposi Sarcoma” was sent out. To Buckley’s horror, that he may have contracted an AIDS related cancer, he was re-biopsied and coincidentally, the same lab tech received the specimen and the same diagnosis was sent. Biopsy Terrorism. Ah. Sweet Revenge. Good riddance to bad karma.

Absolutely ridiculous and disrespectful.

This isn’t how conservatives act when a respected American leftist dies, yet its always the conservatives who are labeled as insensitive, having no compassion for humanity. I think that this just goes to show the double standard between the left and right.

While I don’t encourage anyone to become a frequent of the blog that posted this rediculous statement, I think its an important affirmation of what WFB talked about in many of his articles regarding the behavior of many on the far left.

Update: I guess there are some more WFB haters who couldn’t wait to show their excitement:

http://redsoxstateofmaine.typepad.com/my_whatever_world_in_main/2008/02/william-f-buckl.html

http://symbioid.livejournal.com/1100652.html

http://winterpatriot.blogspot.com/2008/02/straight-to-hell-william-f-buckley-is.html (this is horrible)

http://leftedgenorth.blogspot.com/2008/02/straight-to-hell-william-f-buckley-is.html (this is horrible)

http://brileystyleshow.blogspot.com/2008/02/good-news-william-f-buckley-is-dead.html 

It’s a sad day for the conservative movement, one of the great ones has passed.

From the New York Times:

William F. Buckley Jr., who marshaled polysyllabic exuberance, famously arched eyebrows and a refined, perspicacious mind to elevate conservatism to the center of American political discourse, died Wednesday at his home in Stamford, Conn.

Mr Buckley, 82, suffered from diabetes and emphysema, his son Christopher said, although the exact cause of death was not immediately known. He was found at his desk in the study of his home, his son said. “He might have been working on a column,” Mr. Buckley said.

Mr. Buckley’s winningly capricious personality, replete with ten-dollar words and a darting tongue writers loved to compare with an anteater’s, hosted one of television’s longest-running programs, “Firing Line,” and founded and shepherded the influential conservative magazine, “National Review.”

He also found time to write 45 books, ranging from sailing odysseys to spy novels to celebrations of his own dashing daily life, and edit five more. Two more books, one a political novel, and the other a history of the magazine called “Cancel Your Own Goddam Subscription” are scheduled to be published in 2007.

The more than 4.5 million words of his 5,600 biweekly newspaper columns, “On the Right,” would fill 45 more medium-sized books.

Mr. Buckley’s greatest achievement was making conservatism — not just electoral Republicanism, but conservatism as a system of ideas — respectable in liberal post-World War II America. He mobilized the young enthusiasts who helped nominate Barry Goldwater in 1964, and saw his dreams fulfilled when Reagan and the Bushes captured the Oval Office.

I know I’ve tagged this with a lot of categories, but its almost impossible to limit someone so dynamic to just one tag. I hope to post more on this later.

In the meantime, here are a few respected blogs that are covering this:

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/nb-staff/2008/02/27/william-f-buckley-jr-passes-away

http://hoosieraccess.com/blog/2008/02/27/bulletin-columnist-william-f-buckley-jr-has-died/

http://time-blog.com/real_clear_politics/2008/02/william_f_buckley_jr.html

http://authentic-connecticut-republican.blogspot.com/2008/02/william-f-buckley-1925-2008.html

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0208/8720.html

http://www.observer.com/2008/william-f-buckley-jr-dead-82

http://www.poliblogger.com/?p=13321

http://www.primezero.com/blog/2008/02/27/william-f-buckley-dies-at-82-a-critical-thinker-from-a-more-civilized-age/

http://wigdersonlibrarypub.blogspot.com/2008/02/rip-william-f-buckley-jr.html

Update: It looks like the left waited no time to lash out on WFB

Email from the DNC this afternoon (already, these things seem to be daily):

Dear DC Republican,

There was a lot of talk last week about John McCain’s blatant hypocrisy on ethics and integrity in Washington.

Here we go again.

McCain is now breaking the law by ignoring the campaign spending restrictions for the Republican primary that came when he asked for federal matching funds — funds he used as collateral on a loan that helped keep his campaign going.

But now that the lobbyist and special interest money has started pouring into his campaign, he’s trying to back out of the promise he made just a few months ago. They’re feeding so much cash into his bank account, this “reformer” wants nothing to do with federal campaign finance laws anymore.

That’s why today, we’re filing a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission demanding that John McCain be held to the campaign finance laws. Trying to back out shows a total lack of integrity and honesty — he made a deal with the American people to to abide by the law, and in return, he was guaranteed taxpayer money that he used to back a loan.

DC Republican, I’d like you to add your name in support of our complaint, and ask as many people as you can to sign on. American taxpayers made a deal with John McCain — now that he’s flush with lobbyist cash, he wants to pretend that it never happened.

Sign on right now:

http://www.democrats.org/McCainBusted

Here’s the background on the situation.

A few months ago, John McCain applied for and was approved to receive federal matching funds. Because he couldn’t find enough people to fund his campaign, he was also forced to apply for a $4 million line of credit, which he secured by using the federal matching funds as collateral.

By taking the federal funding, he agreed to spend no more than $57 million until the Republican convention. But so far, his campaign has spent at least $49 million — leaving him with less than $10 million to campaign with through September.

Now that he’s won the nomination and has the support of the Republican lobbyist and special interest machine, he’s trying to ignore that the whole thing ever happened. He recently wrote a letter to the FEC telling them that he was backing out, even though the FEC is very clear that any request to withdraw from the agreement must be approved; you can’t just change your mind and take it back — legally, you have to be given permission.

McCain isn’t asking because he knows he’ll never be granted permission, and he doesn’t want to have to accept the funding restrictions he agreed to when he used the money as collateral for a loan. He’s ripping a page right from George Bush’s playbook: ignoring the laws when they aren’t convenient and hoping no one will notice.

Stand up and show him that hundreds of thousands of people have noticed — he can’t change the rules in the middle of the game because he doesn’t like how things are going for him:

http://www.democrats.org/McCainBusted

Using government programs when it’s politically convenient and breaking the rules when it’s not … remind you of anyone?

Just like George Bush, John McCain thinks he’s above the law. McCain poses as a reformer, but seems to think reforms apply to everyone but him.

Time to send him a message.

Howard Dean

Check out this email from Howard Dean, trying to raise a little bit of money from the Democrats. They’re actually trying to use the baseless New York Times story to attack his ethics and credibility. While I know that this issue brought in a lot of money for the McCain camp, I just don’t see a tactic like this from the DNC compelling, even with the most liberal Democrats.

But, as I have said, the mudslinging has just begun and will only get worse.

The Email:

DC Republican –

It’s like 1989 all over again — John McCain has been caught in yet another ethics scandal.

If you had a TV on yesterday, you saw who jumped to his defense — the team of lobbyists who work for him, led by campaign manager and lobbyist Rick Davis, and the well-oiled right-wing noise machine, led by Rush Limbaugh. In an ironic message to McCain supporters yesterday, lobbyist Davis wrote…

[John McCain] has led the charge to limit the money and influence of the special interests in politics and stomp out corruption.

They spent the day breathlessly assailing the New York Times as “liberal,” ignoring the ethics lapses the team of reporters had uncovered. The fact is, John McCain is facing legitimate questions about lobbyists, favors, and campaign contributions, just as he did during the Keating Five scandal that nearly derailed his political career twenty years ago.

Seeing more dollar signs, the McCain campaign and the RNC decided to jump at the chance to take advantage of the distraction they had created to raise money. They had spent the day firing their supporters up, trying desperately to change the subject, and then they literally cashed in on it. It was textbook sleaze.

So, let’s hit back.

Don’t let John McCain’s team of lobbyists, Rush Limbaugh and the right-wing noise machine, the RNC and their special-interest backers take advantage of John McCain’s most recent ethics scandal — it’s disgusting, and we can’t let them get ahead like this. They’re screaming as loud as they can, and you can send a message right back:

http://www.democrats.org/McCainEthics

You and I know the truth. We know that John McCain is no maverick; he’s no reformer. He promises the same ethics that have defined Washington and the Republican Party for far too long.

Just read what the Washington Post had to say today about John McCain’s campaign operatives…

For years, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has railed against lobbyists and the influence of “special interests” in Washington, touting on his campaign Web site his fight against “the ‘revolving door’ by which lawmakers and other influential officials leave their posts and become lobbyists for the special interests they have aided.”

But when McCain huddled with his closest advisers at his rustic Arizona cabin last weekend to map out his presidential campaign, virtually every one was part of the Washington lobbying culture he has long decried.

The facts are clear: from Keating Five to today, throughout his 25 years in Washington John McCain has consistently taken hundreds of thousands of dollars from his special interest friends, flown on their corporate jets, and then turned around and tried to do favors for them. And he’s surrounded himself with just the type of people he claims to fight against — including Rick Davis, Charlie Black, and senior advisers Steve Schmidt and Mark McKinnon.

McCain and the right-wing noise machine will do anything and say anything to win. Turning an ethics scandal into a fundraising opportunity is just the start, and exactly what you’d expect a team full of lobbyists to come up with.

Now we have to make sure that every voter in America knows it. We need your help to make sure we can take them on — we can’t afford four more years of lobbyists, corporate interests, and George Bush’s Washington.

Send a message about how Washington should work. Match the McCain campaign and the RNC right now:

http://www.democrats.org/McCainEthics

Thanks for hitting back,

Howard Dean

P.S. — John McCain may try to claim that the past careers of his advisers are irrelevant, but look at this passage from today’s Washington Post article about Charlie Black, McCain adviser and chairman of lobbying firm BKSH and Associates…

But even as Black provide a private voice and a public face for McCain, he also leads his lobbying firm, which offers corporate interests and foreign governments the promise of access to the most powerful lawmakers. Some of those companies have interests before the Senate and, in particular, McCain’s Commerce Committee.

Black said he does a lot of his work by telephone from McCain’s Straight Talk Express bus.

John McCain literally has a lobbyist for “corporate interests and foreign governments” working from the “Straight Talk Express.”

Where will they work from if he wins the White House?

Make a contribution right now to stop this kind of politics:

http://www.democrats.org/McCainEthics

Paid for and authorized by the Democratic National Committee, www.democrats.org. This communication is not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.