|
14 Nov 06 - 09:08 AM (#1885445) Subject: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: GUEST,Looks like biz as usual to me From this morning's NY Times: In Race for Majority Leader, Pelosi Risks Early Setback WASHINGTON, Nov. 13 — The intensifying fight for the No. 2 Democratic leadership job in the House is evolving into an early test of the power of the incoming House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, following her decision to throw her public support behind Representative John P. Murtha of Pennsylvania. Mr. Murtha, widely considered an underdog to Representative Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland, the current second-ranking Democrat, sought on Monday to use a new letter of support from Ms. Pelosi to gain ground on his rival, asking for new pledges from Democrats who converged on Washington after their decisive midterm election victory. Mr. Murtha and his allies said the role he had played in questioning the war in Iraq helped legitimize Democratic opposition and turn it into a winning campaign issue, making him the natural choice for majority leader at a time when Iraq policy will dominate the coming months of the Congress. "When the public speaks, things are going to change," Mr. Murtha, a decorated Vietnam veteran, said today. Mr. Hoyer and Mr. Murtha are similar in some respects, both veterans of the Byzantine appropriations process and skilled in winning money for local projects in the annual spending bills. While Mr. Murtha has been closely allied with Ms. Pelosi against the war, he is well to the right of her on many social issues like abortion and gun control and is known for his ability to work with conservatives in both parties. Mr. Hoyer is more liberal over all on social issues but is considered a pro-business Democrat. While Mr. Hoyer has been a fixture in leadership, Mr. Murtha eschewed the spotlight and seemed content to wield his considerable influence well behind the scenes until he took a high-profile stand against the war. But Mr. Murtha is also coming under the spotlight on another subject that dominated the campaign: Congressional ethics. Mr. Murtha helped block ethics changes that Democrats had proposed last year. He has been an astute backroom dealmaker known for trading votes for the pet projects known as earmarks. He has had family members who lobbied on issues under his control, and he was caught up in the Abscam scandal more than 25 years ago, though he was never charged. The leader of one watchdog group said today that Mr. Murtha's record should disqualify him from the job, particularly since Democrats campaigned so hard against Republican corruption and have promised to make new ethics and lobbying rules a priority. "How can Americans believe that the Democrats will return integrity to the House when future Speaker Pelosi has endorsed an ethically challenged member for a leadership position?" asked Melanie Sloan, the head of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics, a "mainstream" group that focuses of government integrity in Washington. "Representative Murtha is the wrong choice for this job." Mr. Murtha dismissed the attack and promised that, if elected majority leader, he would help formulate a strict ethics policy. "Wait until you see the ethics package we support and we pass," he said. "No meals, no trips, nothing. I support it 100 percent." Mr. Hoyer, who learned of Ms. Pelosi's letter of support while he was courting new Democratic members at a reception on Sunday, said he did not anticipate much of a shift in votes as the result of what he described as her low-key endorsement. |
|
14 Nov 06 - 09:32 AM (#1885461) Subject: RE: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: Amos Murtha, for all his problems, is a more honest and forthright man, and sees more clearly, than Mister Hoyer. A |
|
14 Nov 06 - 09:45 AM (#1885468) Subject: RE: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: GUEST,number 6 It is the likes of Murtha who got the Dems into power in last week's election .... isn't the 'war' the biggest issue anyway right now. biLL |
|
14 Nov 06 - 09:49 AM (#1885470) Subject: RE: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: Big Mick Yeah, but this poster can't be bothered with practical little details like that. They don't want to be bothered with things like the fact that it was Murtha who finally created the movement to question the war in the minds of Moderate Repubs. But he is an ex Marine, so in the mind of this bitter person, he is the devil. But what do you expect of someone who hasn't a clue as to how the real world works. That is what happens when you are all smoke and no fire. Mick |
|
14 Nov 06 - 05:27 PM (#1885788) Subject: RE: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: GUEST Actually, Murtha is one of the Dem's biggest right wing nuts, and he is now in a bit of hot water over tossing his brother, a military contractor, a few bones. Even more than the war, voters cited corruption as one of their main reasons for voting against the Republicans. You know, corruption like Murtha has been playing footsie with, by kicking some back to his bro. And that "Murtha turned it all around for Dems" stuff is pure Democratic fairy tale. The stuff of inside the Beltway legend. There are so many factors that have turned the US public against the war, but the first one was discovering they had been lied to, the second was the death toll, and the third was the civil war the Bush League kept insisting wasn't a civil war. Murtha is a right wing hawk, who doesn't like losing. Pelosi is no progressive. In fact, you couldn't even say she is a friend of the progressive wing of the Democratic party. They are Midwesterners like Feingold and Harkin. But the Mudcat True Blues With their Heads in the Sand can't accept that fact, because they don't think for themselves. They think exactly the way the Democratic Leadership Council propagandists tell them to think: without questioning them or their decisions. They also accuse anyone with a progressive agenda of being bomb throwers, and of plotting a government overthrow. As if. Those are extremely desperate tactics, used by those who know they are on the losing side, even when they win Congress. And we know what a fine mess that has got us in. |
|
14 Nov 06 - 06:07 PM (#1885830) Subject: RE: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: Richard Bridge Looks like the US has the Blairtrap down pat.... 2 of the world's oldest democracies - cradles of the filth of corruption. |
|
14 Nov 06 - 06:13 PM (#1885838) Subject: RE: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: Joe Offer Well, I suppose if Nancy Pelosi actually wants to accomplish something as Speaker of the House, she will have to abandon the liberal agenda and learn how to compromise. It's a choice politicians have to make - they can stick to a pure ideology and make a lot of noise and accomplish nothing; or they can negotiate respectfully with the other people in the room, and hammer out something that satisfies at least some of the goals they'd like to accomplish. It's a case of reality vs. ideology. In the long run, ideology always loses. Perhaps it's better to adopt a new way of thinking, one that considers the needs and ideals of others as much as it values one's own philosophy. -Joe- |
|
14 Nov 06 - 06:31 PM (#1885861) Subject: RE: BS: Pelosi turns hard & far right From: Ebbie They are already saying that they will be pragmatic rather than ideological. Thank the gods. Surely it's been made abundantly clear that the only way to get and keep mainstream America behind an administration or political party's goals is to gather as many from both sides of the aisle as possible which in turn represent the citizens. There will always be people who are unhappy with the party's motivation and results but the goal is to get MOST people conceding that "I don't agree with everything they are doing but there's a lot that I like too." As they say, if both sides are bitchin', you're doin' it right. Or something like that. |