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Recent entries
- Mahoney: Honoring Soviet veterans?
- 911 records cited breathing problem for John Linder
- Will Wes Clark hurt Rick Noriega?
- Cornyn losing endorsement of Texas Medical Association
- Pelosi continues praise of Chet Edwards
- Lamar Smith, other Republicans want to amend Constitution on child rape
- Travelers would flock to see this
- More entries...
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Mahoney: Honoring Soviet veterans?
Republicans are having a field day over a flier sent out by U.S. Rep. Tim Mahoney that shows an elderly gentleman bedecked with what appear to be Soviet medals.
The picture is on the cover of a Mahoney flier labeled: “Honoring Those Who Defend Our Freedom.” The flier touts Mahoney’s record on veterans’ issues.
“Is Tim Mahoney’s commitment to our veterans so shallow and superficial that he can’t even tell the difference between an American veteran and one who fought for Communism in Joseph Stalin’s Red Army?? said Ken Spain, press secretary for the National Republican Congressional Committee.
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911 records cited breathing problem for John Linder
Newly released emergency 911 records describe Rep. John Linder as suffering from “difficulty breathing” or “allergic reaction” May 15 after being helped outside a Capitol Hill bar and restaurant, although the Georgia congressman continued to assert that his problem was an injured knee.
District of Columbia officials, in compliance with open records laws, disclosed a recording of the emergency dispatch exchanges and a written chronology of the incident, which drew national press coverage last month.
Asked in an interview about the official account, the Republican congressman said, “This is a knee that was injured in February, and I re-injured by slipping on something” while dining with his grown son. He added, “It could have been allergic reaction or trouble breathing. All I know is that I was hurt badly. I was helped out of the place.”
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Will Wes Clark hurt Rick Noriega?
On paper, an association with retired Gen. Wesley Clark is probably a plus for Texas Democratic state Rep. Rick Noriega as he seeks to unseat Republican John Cornyn from the U.S. Senate.
But don’t be surprised if Republicans try to use Clark against Noriega after Clark’s controversial appearance Sunday on “Face the Nation” on CBS.
Clark was there to talk about Barack Obama and get in some shots on John McCain, as Joe Lieberman had just done on McCain’s behalf in the prior segment. But the conversation moved toward McCain’s military service (Naval aviator, Vietnam, POW) and that’s where the controversy began. Clark praised McCain’s military service, but then said McCain did not have the kind of executive experience that forced him to make major military decisions.
Then, after a followup question, came the money quote:
“I don’t think getting in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president,” Clark said.
So how does this relate to Noriega? Clark is scheduled to host a fundraiser for Noriega on July 16 in Dallas. And Noriega has made his own military service, first in the Army and then the Texas Army National Guard, key to his campaign. Clark’s Sunday comments probably won’t make much of an impact, but they can’t help Noriega’s message.
Here’s a fuller video of the Clark interview:
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Cornyn losing endorsement of Texas Medical Association
The political action committee of the Texas Medical Association, furious about a Thursday night vote on a Medicare-funding bill, is going to rescind its endorsement of Sen. John Cornyn’s re-election bid, two sources familiar with the association said.
Cornyn and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison voted to stall a bill that would have prevented a 10 percent cut in Medicare funding for physicians, prompting an unusually harsh reaction from the medical association, which has 43,000 members and is one of the most powerful trade groups in Texas politics.
The two Republican senators say they wanted a 30-day extension that would have prevented the cuts, which are scheduled to take effect July 1.
Here’s the letter from the chair of the medical association’s political action committee.
Dear Senator Cornyn:
The Texas Medical Association Political Action Committee (TEXPAC) is outraged that you made the decision to follow the direction of the Bush Administration and voted to protect health insurance companies at the expense of America’s seniors, those with disabilities, and military families.
On July 1 - just four days from now - the government will slash Medicare physician payments by at least 10.6 percent, even more in many parts of Texas. That will force physicians into an impossible choice: face financial crisis by continuing to see their Medicare patients, or protect their practices and cut off those patients.
There is talk and then there is action. We expect our elected officials to show leadership and do the right thing. Absent that, TEXPAC has rescinded our endorsement of your candidacy.
Sincerely,
Manuel Acosta, MD Chair
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Pelosi continues praise of Chet Edwards
At her weekly press conference Thursday, reporters asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi about her surprising mention earlier this week of Waco Democrat Chet Edwards as a possible running mate for Barack Obama.
Pelosi said she has always tried to encourage Edwards to run for leadership posts.
“I particularly admire the work that he has done on veterans’ issues,” Pelosi said. “He is Mr. Veterans in the Congress.”
She went on to praise spending increases on veterans’ programs while Edwards has led the Appropriations subcommittee that deals with those issues.
She continued, “Whether it’s with regard to homeland security, to protecting our people, to protecting our Constitution, he would be a great addition to the ticket.”
How do you really feel, Madam Speaker?
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Lamar Smith, other Republicans want to amend Constitution on child rape
Rep. Lamar Smith, a San Antonio Republican who represents part of Austin, and three of his GOP colleagues introduced legislation Thursday to change the U.S. Constitution to allow the death penalty for the rape of a child younger than 12.
This comes in response to the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling this week that the death penalty for someone who rapes a child but did not kill or intend to kill the child violates the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which bars punishment that is excessive or cruel and unusual.
A constitutional amendment must be approved by a two-thirds vote in the U.S. House and Senate, then ratified by at least three-fourths of the states before it becomes law.
“States, with the approval of their legislatures, should be able to impose the maximum punishment for a crime that may not constitute murder in the legal sense, but certainly results in the death of youthful innocence and the carefree joys of childhood,” Smith said.
Also introducing the amendment were GOP Reps. Steve Chabot of Ohio and Tom Feeney and Ric Keller of Florida.
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Travelers would flock to see this
On Thursday, the House Small Business Committee examined the impact of high air fares and flight cutbacks on business travelers. But the committee’s senior Republican, Steve Chabot of Ohio, also wanted to use the hearing as an opportunity to remind witnesses from the travel industry that his district is a great place to visit.
He noted that Cincinnati has great sports franchises and fine museums. But even better, at its annual Oktoberfest, the Queen City sets records for getting the most people anywhere in the world to do the Chicken Dance. “We’re proud of that, of course,” he said.
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Obama still has big social networking edge over McCain
If the election came down to social networks like Facebook and MySpace, John McCain would already be back on the Senate floor doing his normal job.
The 71-year-old McCain has never been too keen on the Internet Web 2.0 phenomenon. He told Yahoo! News that he was “an illiterate” with computers who relies on his wife for computer assistance. And it shows.
Barack Obama has more than 1 million supporters on Facebook, while McCain has just more than 150,000 supporters. Hazelnut spread Nutella, the cartoon Tom and Jerry, and ventriloquist/comedian Jeff Dunham have more supporters than McCain.
Even Obama’s wife, Michelle, has a Facebook page and a rapidly growing support base - in just three days she went from about 37,000 supporters to almost 50,000 supporters this week. Cindy McCain, the supposed tech guru of the McCain couple, doesn’t have a page.
Does this flood of youth support mean much for Obama though?
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Spymaster Drives For Sixty Cents Per Gallon
Former CIA director James Woolsey makes no secret about wanting to reduce the amount of U.S. petrodollars flowing to the Middle East: his devotion extends to the car he drives, a plug-in hybrid.
“Electricity today is like driving on about sixty-cent-per-gallon gasoline,” Woolsey told reporters this week. “There’s no way that the Saudis undercut that.”
Called “part-geek, part zealot” by the liberal magazine, “Mother Jones,” Woolsey lives in a solar-powered farmhouse near Annapolis, Md., and makes the hour-long commute into Washington where he has a private law practice and is a security consultant.
Lately, he’s been advising GOP presidential hopeful John McCain on energy and security policy.
McCain is offering a $300 million reward to the company that can build a low-cost, high-powered battery to lead the auto industry away from the age of the internal combustion engine and into the era of the electric car.
Woolsey plugs in his hybrid at night to take advantage of low-cost kilowatts.
“There’s no way oil prices come down enough to compete with off-peak, overnight electricity prices,” said Woolsey. “Electricity is going to come along nicely,” as an auto power source, he said, “if we have the batteries.”
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Warning to Southern delegates: Democratic convention a no-fry zone
The South has been a huge political headache for the Democratic Party for the better part of the last half century. In the last 10 presidential elections, for example, the South was pretty solidly behind the Republican presidential nominee.
So, you would think the Democrats, with their 50-state strategy instituted by national chairman Howard Dean, would be a little more accommodating to the Southern delegates to the party’s presidential convention in Denver in August.
You would think. But you would be wrong, at least as far as food is concerned.
As part of the effort to make the 2008 national convention the greenest ever, the Democrats’ catering guidelines include one that strikes at the heart of Southern cuisine: no fried food.
No fried chicken. No fried catfish. No fried green tomatoes. No fried okra. No fried anything.
The Democratic guidelines say every meal should be nutritious and include “at least three of the following colors: red, green, yellow, purple/blue and white.”
“It’s the new patriotism,” says Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, the driving force behind the greening of the Democratic convention.
But having lost all but three of the last 10 presidential elections - and almost disappearing from the South as a presidential party - you would think the Democrats would have bigger fish to fr… - uh, make that - bake.
You would think.
Latest comments
There is not enough lithium in the World to provide for even 10% of automobiles
TOYOTA PRIUS the car that James is driving ALREADY cut sales BECAUSE THERE IS NOT ENOUGH BATTERIES for older PRIUSES to replace!!!!
Dont buy into electric cars.
... read the full comment by Kabud | Comment on Spymaster Drives For Sixty Cents Per Gallon Read Spymaster Drives For Sixty Cents Per Gallon
To the Honorable Representative Lamar Smith: Please stop increasing the power of the federal government, and leave criminal prosecutions and punishments to the states. Read the Constitution. Sincerely, Russ
... read the full comment by Russ Columbo | Comment on Lamar Smith, other Republicans want to amend Constitution on child rape Read Lamar Smith, other Republicans want to amend Constitution on child rape
Seems that all Dems are pretending to be supportive of our vets this election season. It is such a new concept that many are making mistakes. Mahoney can’t tell the difference between soviet heroes and American heroes. You have folks like Kennedy,
... read the full comment by Larry | Comment on Mahoney: Honoring Soviet veterans? Read Mahoney: Honoring Soviet veterans?
I agree. Good luck, gentleman, and I hope you succeed.
... read the full comment by Tracy | Comment on Lamar Smith, other Republicans want to amend Constitution on child rape Read Lamar Smith, other Republicans want to amend Constitution on child rape