House Democratic leadership appears to be embracing an Iraq bill put together by David Obey and John Murtha. There's no doubt in my mind we'll be debating this bill furiously for as long as it's on the table, but an introduction: The bill would provide funding into July, at which point a vote on withdrawal would be held.
The White House has not yet used the word "veto" in addressing the bill, though as you may imagine they're hardly embracing it.
Rep Boehner is wrong though....the men and women in uniform don't need looked upon as children. It's really the rubber-stamp Republicans that ruined, or spoiled President Bush. High time someone stepped in and set some limits on that...but I still have doubt on how much oversight this Congress will accomplish....because Bush will veto any such legislation, and Dem majorities aren't strong enough to override the veto. :\
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Monday, May 7, 2007
French in OC
I also met a few of Assemblyman Jose Solorio's staffers. One of them said she spoke to Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido in French earlier in the evening. Oh that Pulido - he is such a Francophile. I wonder how he feels about a conservative getting elected President of France? Sacrebleu!
Sarkozy wins!
Yesterday, Nicolas Sarkozy was elected President of France. Hungarian born Sarkozy is the leader of the main center-right political party in France, Union for a Popular Movement. In round two of voting (France has a similar voting method to Louisiana, where there is a second round for runoffs), with 53% of the vote, he defeated Socialist candidate Segolene Royal, who had 47%. Turnout in this French election was remarkably high, around 87%.
President Bush promptly offered his congratulations to Sarkozy just minutes after the official results. Sarkozy’s victory is a definitely a good thing for the US and it’s relations with France. Under Chiraq, US-France relations have been somewhat shaky throughout the course of the Iraq War. Chiraq was vocal in his opposition to the war and refused to provide military support (though he later sent French military to Afghanistan), causing the Capitol Building cafeteria to famously renamed its French fries to “freedom fries.” Sarkozy, though opposed to the Iraq war, is considered more pro American than any other candidate.
Sarkozy promised economic growth, cutting taxes, revising labor laws (unions are much more influential in France), and strong immigration reform. He also vowed to bring global warming to the forefront of international politics.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/06/AR2007050600216.html
President Bush promptly offered his congratulations to Sarkozy just minutes after the official results. Sarkozy’s victory is a definitely a good thing for the US and it’s relations with France. Under Chiraq, US-France relations have been somewhat shaky throughout the course of the Iraq War. Chiraq was vocal in his opposition to the war and refused to provide military support (though he later sent French military to Afghanistan), causing the Capitol Building cafeteria to famously renamed its French fries to “freedom fries.” Sarkozy, though opposed to the Iraq war, is considered more pro American than any other candidate.
Sarkozy promised economic growth, cutting taxes, revising labor laws (unions are much more influential in France), and strong immigration reform. He also vowed to bring global warming to the forefront of international politics.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/06/AR2007050600216.html
Friday, May 4, 2007
Obama is given secret service protection
Barack Obama was just recently placed under secret service protection. Exciting for supporters, who may think it boosts his status in the primary, as an even better alternative to Hillary Clinton. The article points out the John Edwards and John Kerry were placed under secret service protection around the same time, in February 2004. Obama is getting the secret service protection 9+ months early. I do not think it will have much effect on the campaign, because like Chertoff and other authorities say it wasn’t the result of a specific event or threat. Obama may have requested it because a specific threat, but I do not think he was approved for that reason. Jesse Jackson was also given secret service protection early on in his campaigns in the 1980s.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/05/03/obama.protection/index.html
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/05/03/obama.protection/index.html
Thursday, May 3, 2007
The GOP Presidential candidates debate
The GOP Presidential candidates participated in a debate today at the Ronald Reagan presidential library in Simi Valley. The candidates were: John McCain, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee, Tommy Thompson, Sam Brownback, Duncan hunter, Jim Gilmore, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Tom Tancredo. The main theme throughout the debate was Ronald Reagan’s optimism, every candidate wanted to make sure this legacy survived.
Giuliani was asked how to continue Ronald Reagan’s (RR) Morning in America, Giuliani’s response was with RR’s optimism, because RR built on strengths of America, and did not run it down. Yes, these are all Republicans, and this is the RR library, but RR did his fair share of running down America, his entire trickle down policy did just that. RR’s deficit exceeded $200 billion, and the way the US moved past this was by raising taxes (there were some spending cuts, but it was really the tax increases that deserve the credit). Giuliani thinks that America has the greatest healthcare system in the world…how is that possible with nearly 50 million people uninsured? And what are the strengths of this program that we use to fix this problem? The sky-high profits HMOs make?
Giuliani also thinks that the Iranians took one look into the eyes of Ronald Reagan and decided to release hostages in 1981. If Iranians released their American hostages because of Ronald Reagan, it’s ridiculous to think it was because they had an awakening after looking into his eyes. Their decision to do so had to do with Reagan’s past connections to Iran than anything else (he would also later sell arms to Iran).
The one thing I like that Giuliani said was that no party has a monopoly on virtue or morals. A lot of the candidates tried to make that case. For example, Romney argued that the heart of the Republican Party is the American family; the US should have more marriages before babies. Well, I think the American family is at the heart of the Democratic Party; it should be at the heart of every political party. Democrats care about keeping families healthy, educating our youth, securing jobs, how is this not at the core of every American family? It’s nonsense, and what makes it worse is that Romney thinks that only Americans with a religious faith have moral and values. I think the average person cares about their family and their friends not because a religious text tells them to, but because these people are important to them. Those people that do not have a strong religious faith can certainly have morals and values.
I like that Tommy Thompson think the Iraqi government should vote on whether or not the US should stay in Iraq. If they vote yes, if you give us legitimacy, and if they vote no, the US should leave. One problem: Iraq will most certainly vote to keep the US in Iraq because it’s our resources, our soldiers, and our taxpayers money that funding their civil war. Why would they want to fight this themselves when they will most likely become the next Israel…their day-to-day existence will forever be dependent on our military support. Ron Paul said that Ike was elected to stop Korean War, and Nixon was elected to stop the Vietnam War. This is true, but both of these presidents first escalated the war before employing a cut and run policy. If Paul supports a cut and run policy, then I think he should be consistent and apply this to Iraq as well.
Huckabee on the economy: Republicans should not win in 2008 if they cannot prevent mass outsourcing of jobs. According to this logic, Hillary Clinton will be the next president. Globalization can’t and shouldn’t be prevented; it has a lot of benefits. The interdependency of the economies of different countries is generally a good thing, but it also includes labor. If the Republican Party is pro business, then how can they not support what’s in the best interest of business=>increasing profits by cutting costs. If Republicans have their way, and the 12+ million illegal immigrants are deported, there will definitely be more outsourcing. Huckabee will alienate a lot of potential supporters in the party.
According to McCain, there is a dangerous shift to the left in this country with regards to the appointment of Supreme Court justices. WTF? The current Supreme Court is like this: Roberts, Alito, Scalia, Thomas, Kennedy, Breyer, Souter, Ginsburg, and Stevens. The entire membership of this court ranges from conservative to moderate, not to liberal.
As promised from my blog on the Democratic presidential candidates debate, I found a stupid question in this debate. Chris Matthews asked each candidate to respond to this question: Would the election of Hillary Clinton be a bad thing because Bill Clinton would be back in the White House? Someone like Hillary Clinton, I think, would be the dominant force behind her decisions, it’s just stupid to think that Hillary’s win will be a third term for Bill Clinton. This is a stupid question for another reason; I (every reasonable person should) know what the response will be from every candidate=> YES! How could someone expect Huckabee or McCain or Romney to say that Hillary Clinton’s victory would be a good thing? Also, why is Hillary Clinton the focus of the Republican debate? The Democrats last week were not asked about any of the Republican candidates. Are Republicans supposed to choose a candidate to nominate in 2008 based on their Hillary platform? Whoever hates Hillary the most gets the nomination? I think Huckabee would win the nomination with this reasoning.
Giuliani was asked how to continue Ronald Reagan’s (RR) Morning in America, Giuliani’s response was with RR’s optimism, because RR built on strengths of America, and did not run it down. Yes, these are all Republicans, and this is the RR library, but RR did his fair share of running down America, his entire trickle down policy did just that. RR’s deficit exceeded $200 billion, and the way the US moved past this was by raising taxes (there were some spending cuts, but it was really the tax increases that deserve the credit). Giuliani thinks that America has the greatest healthcare system in the world…how is that possible with nearly 50 million people uninsured? And what are the strengths of this program that we use to fix this problem? The sky-high profits HMOs make?
Giuliani also thinks that the Iranians took one look into the eyes of Ronald Reagan and decided to release hostages in 1981. If Iranians released their American hostages because of Ronald Reagan, it’s ridiculous to think it was because they had an awakening after looking into his eyes. Their decision to do so had to do with Reagan’s past connections to Iran than anything else (he would also later sell arms to Iran).
The one thing I like that Giuliani said was that no party has a monopoly on virtue or morals. A lot of the candidates tried to make that case. For example, Romney argued that the heart of the Republican Party is the American family; the US should have more marriages before babies. Well, I think the American family is at the heart of the Democratic Party; it should be at the heart of every political party. Democrats care about keeping families healthy, educating our youth, securing jobs, how is this not at the core of every American family? It’s nonsense, and what makes it worse is that Romney thinks that only Americans with a religious faith have moral and values. I think the average person cares about their family and their friends not because a religious text tells them to, but because these people are important to them. Those people that do not have a strong religious faith can certainly have morals and values.
I like that Tommy Thompson think the Iraqi government should vote on whether or not the US should stay in Iraq. If they vote yes, if you give us legitimacy, and if they vote no, the US should leave. One problem: Iraq will most certainly vote to keep the US in Iraq because it’s our resources, our soldiers, and our taxpayers money that funding their civil war. Why would they want to fight this themselves when they will most likely become the next Israel…their day-to-day existence will forever be dependent on our military support. Ron Paul said that Ike was elected to stop Korean War, and Nixon was elected to stop the Vietnam War. This is true, but both of these presidents first escalated the war before employing a cut and run policy. If Paul supports a cut and run policy, then I think he should be consistent and apply this to Iraq as well.
Huckabee on the economy: Republicans should not win in 2008 if they cannot prevent mass outsourcing of jobs. According to this logic, Hillary Clinton will be the next president. Globalization can’t and shouldn’t be prevented; it has a lot of benefits. The interdependency of the economies of different countries is generally a good thing, but it also includes labor. If the Republican Party is pro business, then how can they not support what’s in the best interest of business=>increasing profits by cutting costs. If Republicans have their way, and the 12+ million illegal immigrants are deported, there will definitely be more outsourcing. Huckabee will alienate a lot of potential supporters in the party.
According to McCain, there is a dangerous shift to the left in this country with regards to the appointment of Supreme Court justices. WTF? The current Supreme Court is like this: Roberts, Alito, Scalia, Thomas, Kennedy, Breyer, Souter, Ginsburg, and Stevens. The entire membership of this court ranges from conservative to moderate, not to liberal.
As promised from my blog on the Democratic presidential candidates debate, I found a stupid question in this debate. Chris Matthews asked each candidate to respond to this question: Would the election of Hillary Clinton be a bad thing because Bill Clinton would be back in the White House? Someone like Hillary Clinton, I think, would be the dominant force behind her decisions, it’s just stupid to think that Hillary’s win will be a third term for Bill Clinton. This is a stupid question for another reason; I (every reasonable person should) know what the response will be from every candidate=> YES! How could someone expect Huckabee or McCain or Romney to say that Hillary Clinton’s victory would be a good thing? Also, why is Hillary Clinton the focus of the Republican debate? The Democrats last week were not asked about any of the Republican candidates. Are Republicans supposed to choose a candidate to nominate in 2008 based on their Hillary platform? Whoever hates Hillary the most gets the nomination? I think Huckabee would win the nomination with this reasoning.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Ghosts of Mississippi
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This movie from the late 1980s was a true story about an investigation regarding the murder of a civil rights activist in the 1960s by Klansmen. A Klansmen (Earnest Gilbert) who witnessed this murder was too afraid of his fellow Klansmen to testify. The story is becoming news once again when it was recently found that he gave a tv interview before he died about the other Klansmen involved and specs of the murder. Of the names he mentioned, only one is still alive today after the case was re opened. Prosecutors (representing civil rights groups, and living relatives of the slain activist) are trying to get the court to allow them to show this interview as evidence that famed Klansmen James Seale (the only person mentioned by Gilbert that’s still living) killed the activists. What makes this interesting, I think, is the timing, it’s right after the large scale immigration rallies took place all over the US. It shows as a result of these deep racial tensions, the US is not a melting pot like some people like to believe, it’s a salad bowl.
http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:YRrDFqy4vxoJ:rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/cnn_us/~3/113645394/index.html+%22May+2%22,+2007+cnn+news&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us
Interview transcript: http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=2826063&page=1
http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:YRrDFqy4vxoJ:rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/cnn_us/~3/113645394/index.html+%22May+2%22,+2007+cnn+news&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us
Interview transcript: http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=2826063&page=1
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Immigration rallies today
I didn’t mention this in my blog but after Virginia Tech I was thinking within a few weeks immigration would be the main focus in politics, today it was…but I’m not really sure if it was because of Virginia Tech. Densely populated cities known for their immigrant populations like Los Angeles, Miami, and Chicago, New York were the sites of protest to the immigration reform package proposed by President Bush in March.
Immigration is a complex issue, and I find myself on the fence. I can sympathize with both sides, I have relatives who are decent, hardworking people, and they have been waiting over 10 years now to get approved for a green card and become American citizens the legal way. I would love for this to happen, but I doubt it will, especially after 9-11, and now illegal immigration. However, the government cannot order the immediate deportation of all 12 +million illegal immigrants. If actually happened, it would have disastrous effects on our economy, especially CA’s economy (it’s the 7th or 8th largest in the world in terms of GDP=>$1.5 trillion), a good portion of the 12 million are in California. American workers are not getting marginalized because of this massive importation of cheap labor…Americans would not take the jobs the illegal immigrants in SoCal work for the same wages. Working in a strawberry field, gardening/landscaping in the 100 degree California summer for minimum wage. If the US were to deport this new labor force, that wouldn’t create jobs, in fact it would push outsourcing. If US companies cannot get the low cost labor in the US, they will simply leave and look for it in some other country, like Mexico. Mexico will get thousands of jobs, because of our immigration policy.
A better worker visa program must be worked out though because the current proposal forces illegal immigrants to after working here in the US for sometime to go back to Mexico and then apply for citizenship. I do not think these applications for citizenship should take preference over those who have been waiting for 10 years.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18411370/page/2/
Immigration is a complex issue, and I find myself on the fence. I can sympathize with both sides, I have relatives who are decent, hardworking people, and they have been waiting over 10 years now to get approved for a green card and become American citizens the legal way. I would love for this to happen, but I doubt it will, especially after 9-11, and now illegal immigration. However, the government cannot order the immediate deportation of all 12 +million illegal immigrants. If actually happened, it would have disastrous effects on our economy, especially CA’s economy (it’s the 7th or 8th largest in the world in terms of GDP=>$1.5 trillion), a good portion of the 12 million are in California. American workers are not getting marginalized because of this massive importation of cheap labor…Americans would not take the jobs the illegal immigrants in SoCal work for the same wages. Working in a strawberry field, gardening/landscaping in the 100 degree California summer for minimum wage. If the US were to deport this new labor force, that wouldn’t create jobs, in fact it would push outsourcing. If US companies cannot get the low cost labor in the US, they will simply leave and look for it in some other country, like Mexico. Mexico will get thousands of jobs, because of our immigration policy.
A better worker visa program must be worked out though because the current proposal forces illegal immigrants to after working here in the US for sometime to go back to Mexico and then apply for citizenship. I do not think these applications for citizenship should take preference over those who have been waiting for 10 years.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18411370/page/2/
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