November | 2008 | Democrashield

Obama To Name Clinton as SoS Tomorrow; Clinton Donor List To Be Made Public After

Posted on November 30, 2008 by Democrashield

The Huffington Post reports that President-Elect Barack Obama will formally announce Sen. Hillary Clinton as his choice for Secretary of State tomorrow in Chicago. Supposedly, Obama wanted Clinton for the position for several months and spoke to her about it directly after the election. Thoug Clinton initially wavered at the offer, she finally accepted after considering her relatively junior position in the Senate.

In accordance with the announcement, Bill Clintion will release the names of the donors to his presidential library by the end of the year, a list of about 20,000 names. Clinton also agreed to the following concessions to ensure his wife has a clear shot at becoming America’s top diplomat:

—The Clinton Foundation will publish the names of everyone who has contributed since its founding in 1997 (this year).

—Should Senator Clinton be nominated and confirmed as Secretary of State, during her time of service, the Foundation will also publish the names of everyone who contributes going forward on an annual basis.

—The Foundation will separately incorporate CGI from the Foundation; President Clinton will continue to host CGI gatherings, such as the one in NYC and its meetings for college and university students, as Founding Chairman of CGI.

—Although President Clinton will continue to invite participants to CGI events (which involves normal registration fees), he will not solicit ‘sponsorship’ contributions for CGI.

—CGI will also not host annual events outside the US and CGI will not solicit or accept foreign government contributions.

—Given the extensive and life-saving work of the Clinton Foundation’s HIV/AIDS Initiative which can and should continue, the Foundation will continue to fulfill its commitments funded by foreign governments (including, among others, Sweden Norway, France, Great Britain). In the event an existing contributing country chooses to substantially increase its commitment, or a new country, or government-owned entity, decides to contribute, the Foundation will share such proposed contributions with the State Department ethics officials. State may also share the issue to the WH Counsel’s office for review. To whatever extent there are conflict of interest concerns raised about such potential contributions related to Senator Clinton’s service as Secretary, they will be conveyed to Hillary Clinton and the Clinton Foundation for appropriate action.

—Same procedure to be followed for any foreign country contributors to CCI, CGSCI and CHDI.

—Regarding President Clinton’s private work, during her tenure, President Clinton will share proposed hosts of speeches with the State Department ethics officials for their review, and as appropriate for review by the White House Counsel. Again, should there be conflict of interest concerns related to the Senator’s anticipated service as Secretary, they will share those concerns with Senator and President Clinton for appropriate action.

—During her tenure as Secretary of State, should she be nominated and confirmed, President Clinton will share any proposed consultant relationships with State Department ethics officials, and the same procedures outlined above will apply here as well.

These are very strict requirements, but they speak to the Obama administration’s strict ethical standards and a zero tolerance policy towards conflicts of interest. It’s a far cry from the pay-for-play culture of corruption that defined the Bush years, and it’s a welcome change that our nation sorely needs.

Hillary Clinton will be a fantastic Secretary of State–she’ll have the potential to a lot of good for millions of people around the world. Her selection is welcome development for the burgeoning Obama administration and good news for America, and I gladly welcome the announcement.

Off The Mark

Posted on November 29, 2008 by Democrashield

South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford has some ideas on how to get the GOP back on track. Let’s take a look:

Our party took nothing short of a shellacking nationally. Some on the left will say our electoral losses are a repudiation of our principles of lower taxes, smaller government and individual liberty. But Election Day was not a rejection of those principles — in fact, cutting taxes and spending were important tenets of Barack Obama’s campaign.

That’s a pretty fancy strawman. Progressives aren’t arguing that pledging low taxes and small government sank the GOP; we’re arguing–rightly–that ideals like free market fundamentalism, the primacy of business deregulation, the devaulation of government, a high-cost activist foreign policy, etc. were responsible.

And I wonder how the Governor can argue that cutting taxes and spending are conservative principles considering his admission that Barack Obama campaigned–and won–running on those two tenets. If your opponent is taking your positions and winning with them, they’re not your positions anymore.

Let’s move on:

Instead, voters rejected the fact that while Republicans have campaigned on the conservative themes of lower taxes, less government and more freedom, they have consistently failed to govern that way. Americans didn’t turn away from conservatism, they instead turned away from many who faked it.

So then that begs the question, what is conservatism? If what conservatives do while in office isn’t conservatism, then what is? And if liberals are running (and winning) by adopting “conservative” ideals, are those ideals still conservative? How?

First, let’s go back to the principle of saying what you mean and meaning what you say. A political party is much like a brand, and brands thrive or wither based on how consistently they deliver on what they promise. Along those same lines, it’s important for brands to stick to their knitting. If John Deere’s tractor sales are declining, they don’t say, “Tell you what, let’s make cars and airplanes, too.” Instead, they focus on producing better tractors.

John McCain and other Republicans across the country were defeated by running on conservative platforms. So, to use the Governor’s metaphor, the problem isn’t that the GOP has deficient tractors; the problem is that nobody wants to buy a tractor anymore. Nobody wants what the GOP is selling, so no matter how good they make it, people still won’t buy it.

I make that point because there’s a real temptation in Republican circles right now to try and be all things to all people. We tried that already — it was called “compassionate conservatism,” and it got us nowhere.

Actually, “compassionate conservatism” was the only reason Bush even had a fighting chance in 2000. And if he had remained a “compassionate conservative” these past eight years, we would probably be living in a vastly different–and probably better–country.

There needs to be a high standard for our franchisees. In other words, I believe Republicans and conservatives must agree on our core principles. St. Augustine called for “unity in the essentials, diversity in the nonessentials, and charity in all things,” and while I believe there should always be a big GOP tent, there must also be a shared agreement on the essentials — including expanding liberty, encouraging entrepreneurship and limiting the reach of government in people’s everyday lives.

Well, there’s your problem, Governor. The GOP has been preaching those same core tenants for 28 years, but you’ve never delivered on them. There are only so many times you can break the same promises made to the same people before you lose all credibility. Some new ideas–and a belief in competent government–would be a good start for the GOP.

I am struck by how many of my colleagues around the country were quietly advancing the kinds of reforms and conservative principles that Washington politicians would do well to emulate.

In Louisiana, Bobby Jindal is making market-based reforms to his state’s Medicaid program, while over in Georgia, Sonny Perdue is tackling health care affordability with a Health Savings Account program. Sarah Palin has cut spending and fought corruption in Alaska. Rick Perry in Texas has balanced the budget while cutting taxes, creating more than a million jobs in the process. Mitch Daniels in Indiana is innovating when it comes to building infrastructure.

This doesn’t make any sense. State governments are good but the federal government is bad? State governments can solve our problems but the federal government can’t? It stands to reason that, if state governments can do some good, the federal government can do even more good. Too bad the Republican Party believes that government is always the problem and never the solution, otherwise they could be using the power of the federal government to improve a lot of people’s lives and win a few elections here and there.

It’s not only imperative that our party returns to its fiscally conservative roots but that we do so soon. As a nation, we’re on the hook for $52 trillion, and that represents an invisible $450,000 mortgage owed by every household in America.

We’ve thrown $2.3 trillion toward bailouts and a stimulus this year with little to show for it in the way of results, with seemingly hundreds of billions more being contemplated by Congress each day. Borrowing from Medicare, Social Security, our grandkids and the Chinese to remedy a problem created by too much borrowing strikes me as odd, and hardly the “change” Americans really want.

There’s a lot of “we” in there, Governor. The truth is, our nation’s problems didn’t just materialize out of nowhere; they happened because a Republican President and a Republian Congress spent six years governing poorly or not governing at all. “We” are not responsible for this mess; you are, Governor, and so is the rest of your political party. That’s why you’ve lost the past two elections, and that’s why–until you come up with some new ideas and prove you can do a good job when trusted with power–you’re going to continue losing elections.

Anyone But Steele

Posted on November 28, 2008 by Democrashield

Former Maryland Lieutenant Governor and failed Senate candidate Michael Steele is facing some serious opposition in his campaign to become the next Chairman of the RNC:

Republicans, reeling from another election defeat, have taken to arguing over whether their national leader should come from the elected ranks of the Republican National Committee or be a political celebrity such as former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele.

“For this association of members to choose to outsource its leadership would, I believe, be an abdication of our responsibility,” Curly Haugland, an RNC member from North Dakota and the former North Dakota Republican Party chairman, wrote in an e-mail to Mr. Steele.

Mr. Haugland called on Mr. Steele to quit the contest for Republican national chairman because he is not an RNC member.

“In my estimation, 168 committed members of the Republican National Committee are a powerful army of qualified advocates for Republican principles; certainly much more threatening to the Democrats than one celebrity spokesman,” Mr. Haugland said.

[…]

“Your chosen path to leadership of the Republican National Committee exemplifies the problem we should immediately seek to resolve, that being the practice of allowing nonmembers to exert undue influence in the process of selecting our leaders” Mr. Haugland wrote Mr. Steele. “Getting the Republican Party back on the right ‘track’ is a job rightfully left to the Republicans who have been elected to run this railroad.”

First, it’s pretty hilarious that Haugland is arguing that the same people who have been in charge of the Republican Party should remain in charge of it. If I were a Republican, I would be pushing to replace as much of my party’s leadership as possible because, clearly, something is terribly broken.

But he does have a point–it’s going to take more than a “celebrity” (to use Haugland’s terminology) to fix the GOP. The Sarah Palin debacle taught us that political celebrity isn’t enough–you actually have to have good ideas in order to have any chance of winning. Like I’ve said before, despite all of the support Steele has (inexplicably) amassed, it’s difficult to tell what–if anything–he would improve at the RNC.

From what I’ve seen, it looks like the RNC would be in for a few more years of rudderless Mike Duncan-style leadership under Steele. It’s not enough to just put someone new at the top of the RNC–the Republican Party needs a leader who will change the fundamentals of conservative politics in America. Without that, 2010 and 2012 are on track to be a repeat of 2006 and 2008.

Which is why I’m not surprised to see some Republican asking for anyone but Steele.

Five Members Of Congress Under Investigation

Posted on November 28, 2008 by Democrashield

That’s what the Washington Post is reporting:

Mitchell Wade, the former defense contractor who pleaded guilty in February 2006 to bribing former representative Randall “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.), has assisted the government in investigating five other members of Congress, numerous government employees and several private contractors, according to a memorandum filed by his attorney on Wednesday.

[…]

Wade’s cooperation, which was important in the Cunningham trial, “has led to the guilty pleas or conviction at trial of seven other individuals,” said the memorandum, which was first publicly disclosed by Seth Hettena on his blog.

Hettena wrote that Wade supplied a searchable electronic database of 150,000 documents, including the “bribe menu,” which described how much money Cunningham wanted for each act that he undertook.

As we saw with soon-to-be former Senator Ted Stevens, the Republican culture of corruption is alive and well; I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few more Republican Congressman go down by the time every government investigation runs its course.

The question is, who is under investigation? And from those five, who will end up indicted? We’ll have to wait and see, but I doubt this is the last we’ve heard of this story.

Chris Matthews For Senate?

Posted on November 28, 2008 by Democrashield

Looks like the MSNBC host is considering challenging Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) in 2010:

According to multiple sources, who confirmed the Tip O’Neill staffer-cum-MSNBC host has negotiated with veteran Obama staffers to enlist in his campaign, Chris Matthews is likely to run for United States Senate in Pennsylvania in 2010. Matthews, 62, would run as a Democrat. Arlen Specter, the aging Republican incumbent, will be 80 if he chooses to run for re-election.

Preliminary public polling suggests Matthews would start at a deficit, in part because Matthews’ name recognition is lower than Specter’s.

As a commentator, Matthews’ history is checkered–sometimes he’s on the ball and other times he’s completely off the mark. If he runs, I expect some of the things he’s said on-air will to cause him some difficulty (though, as Al Franken has shown in Minnesota, that might not necessarily be a disqualifier).

Of course, it all depends on how the political landscape shapes up in the next two years, as well as who else runs in the Democratic primary and whether or not Specter chooses to retire. Until then, it’ll difficult to tell whether or not Matthews has a real shot at this seat.

Thanksgiving (UPDATED)

Posted on November 27, 2008 by Democrashield

In honor of the holiday I’m reposting one of my most popular posts, entitled Thank A Democrat:

If you’re not a wealthy landowner and you vote, thank a Democrat: Andrew Jackson got rid of laws that discriminated against working-class Americans by restricting voting to wealthy landholders.

If you’re a woman and you vote, thank a Democrat: Woodrow Wilson supported the 19^th Amendment, which was passed and ratified during his Presidency.

If you have ever voted while between the ages of 18 and 21, thank a Democrat: Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic Congress passed the 26^th Amendment, lowering the voting age to 18.

If you never experienced racial segregation, thank a Democrat: Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, which outlawed racial segregation in public schools and public places.

If you never had to take a literacy test or pay a poll tax to vote, thank a Democrat: Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic Congress passed the Voting Rights Act, which outlawed literacy tests as a requirement for voting, as well as the 24^th Amendment, which outlawed poll taxes.

If you earn a fair wage, get paid overtime and/or was never subjected to child labor, thank a Democrat: Franklin Roosevelt and the Democratic Congress passed the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act, which set the first national minimum wage, created requirements for overtime compensation and outlawed child labor.

If you have ever received benefits through Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid, thank a Democrat: Franklin Roosevelt and the Democratic Congress passed the Social Security Act, while Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic Congress passed Medicare and Medicaid.

If you or your child has ever benefited from Head Start or SCHIP, thank a Democrat: Head Start was passed by Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic Congress, while SCHIP was championed by Ted Kennedy and signed into law by Bill Clinton.

If you have ever worked in a clean, safe workplace, thank a Democrat: in 1970, the Democratic Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which created national standards for workplace cleanliness and safety.

If you or anyone in your family has taken time off work due to a serious illness, accident, or birth of a child, thank a Democrat: Chris Dodd championed the Family and Medical Leave Act, which required employers to provide paid time off for their employees due to sickness, injury or to care for a newborn child. The Democratic Congress passed FMLA, which was signed into law by Bill Clinton.

If you, your parents or your grandparents were helped by the G.I. Bill, thank a Democrat: the G.I. Bill granted veterans loans to pursue higher education and purchase houses, as well as providing unemployment benefits. It was one of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal initiatives, and it was passed by a Democratic Congress.

If you’re a woman who is paid as much as your male coworkers, thank a Democrat: Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic Congress passed the Equal Pay Act of 1963, guaranteeing equal pay for workers regardless of their gender.

If you’ve never been discriminated against due to your age or physical disability, thank a Democrat: The Age Discrimination in Employment Act was passed by Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic Congress, while the Americans with Disabilities Act was also passed by a Democratic Congress.

If you enjoy clean air and water, thank a Democrat: the Clean Air Act was passed by the Democratic Congress in 1963 and signed into law by Lyndon Johnson; the Clean Water Act was passed by the Democratic Congress in 1977 and signed into law by Jimmy Carter.

If you enjoy freedom and security, thank a Democrat: James Monroe established the Monroe Doctrine, which kept Europe interfering with the free Western Hemisphere. Andrew Jackson fought against the British in the War of 1812, engineering the American victory at New Orleans. James K. Polk rebuffed an invasion from Mexico and acquired the entire American southwest in the Mexican-American War. Franklin Roosevelt mobilized America to defeat fascism, turning the U.S. into a world superpower in the process. Harry Truman created the Marshall Plan–which stopped the spread of Communism in Europe– and he took the initiative in establishing NATO. John Kennedy stood up to the USSR during the Cuban Missile Crisis and in Southeast Asia. Bill Clinton negotiated the historic Oslo Accords between Israel and Palestine, and he helped to both end the violence in Northern Ireland and the genocide in Kosovo.

Of course, this is only the tip of the iceberg. And, of course, this isn’t to say that other political parties haven’t helped people or made this country better. But I doubt there is anyone in this country who can reasonably claim that the Democratic Party has not made their lives better in some way, and I wanted to take some time to point that out.

UPDATED: Happy Thanksgiving from President-Elect Barack Obama:

Indian Soldiers Raid Hotels To Free Hostages

Posted on November 27, 2008 by Democrashield

After yesterday’s coordinated series of terrorist attacks in Mumbai, Indian soldiers are now going through the targeted buildings–most of them luxury hotels–to free the hostages trapped inside.

BREAKING: Robert Gates Will Remain Defense Secretary

Posted on November 25, 2008 by Democrashield

ABC’s Political Radar reports:

Sources tell ABC News that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will be staying on in the top Pentagon job, for at least the first year of the Obama administration. “It is a done deal” a source close to the process tells ABC News.

[…]

The former Eagle Scout is expected to be rolled out immediately after the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend as part of a larger national security team expected to include Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, as Secretary of State; Marine Gen. Jim Jones (Ret.) as National Security Adviser; Admiral Dennis Blair (Ret.) as Director of National Intelligence; and Dr. Susan Rice as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

[Emphasis mine]

First, there are some new appointments in the above team: Retired General James Jones is confirmed as National Security Adviser and Retired Admiral Dennis Blair is named as Director of National Intelligence.

Second, I think keeping Gates on a purely-temporary basis isn’t a bad idea. Early in his administration, Obama is going to push withdrawal from Iraq and re-engagement with Afghanistan; he’s going to need someone at the Pentagon who can make that happen without alienating the military commanders on the ground.

Obama doesn’t have the time to build a good relationship with the military, so he has to have someone around who already has that; keeping Gates could very well be the quickest, most effective path toward an orderly, timely Iraq withdrawal.

Of course, once the Iraq withdrawal is underway I say Gates should be replaced as soon as possible, but I don’t mind waiting and seeing how this plays out.

Count All The Votes (UPDATED X2)

Posted on November 25, 2008 by Democrashield

Looks like there are some shenanigans going on in the Minnesota Senate recount:

Al Franken’s Senate campaign called on the Minnesota Secretary of State to launch a comprehensive investigation into the possibility of missing ballots in the state’s recount election.

In a conference call with reporters on Monday, aides to the Democratic challenger said that they were growing increasingly concerned with news reports that ballots from Election Day — which by state law must be recounted — have gone missing.

“The number of votes counted on November 4th,” said spokesman Andy Barr, “exceeds the number of ballots produced for consideration during the recount.”

[…]

In a memo to the Secretary of State, David Lillehaug, another attorney for the Franken campaign, claimed that there were still five missing ballots in Clay County, three in St. Louis, and 13 in Washington County. “In an election this close,” he added, “these discrepancies should be cause for serious concern to every Minnesota voter.”

[Emphasis mine]

This election might come down to just a few dozen votes; every vote needs to be accounted for and every vote needs to be counted.

It’s telling that the Franken campaign–and not the Coleman camp–are the ones calling for this investigation. Democrats have always been the party more concerned about upholding the integrity of the electoral process and making sure the voices of the people are heard.

We need to keep a close eye on what’s going on in Minnesota, because there’s more than just a Senate seat at stake–the credibility of the democratic process itself might be hanging in the balance.

UPDATE: The Franken campaign is reporting that they’re down by only 84 votes:

A key new development in Minnesota: The Franken campaign is now giving an actual figure for what they think their true current deficit against Norm Coleman is — an estimated statistic that has proven elusive in this drawn-out process.

“The differential between the two candidates is 84 votes,” lead Franken recount lawyer Marc Elias just told a press briefing. “That obviously is down from the starting point of 215.”

In addition, the Franken camp is fighting so that every legitimately-cast vote is counted:

“The lists of rejected ballots contain numerous indications of error on their face, by local officials in the rejection process,” Elias said. As one example, Elias cited an instance in which election officials openly admitted, “we screwed up,” in putting a ballot on the rejected pile.

“The fact is,” Elias said, “no Minnesotan should be disenfranchised because, quote, ‘we screwed up.'”

Fight. Count every vote. Even if Franken loses, there can be no doubt that the final result completely reflects the will of the people of Minnesota.

UPDATE II: The Franken camp has uncovered 6,400 rejected absentee ballots and is now asking the the state election board to consider counting those votes. Here’s the key part:

Campaign attorney Marc Elias said Tuesday that the campaign received the rejected ballots from 66 of the state’s 87 counties, according to the Associated Press. In some instances, clerical errors or oversight caused the ballot to be improperly rejected.

In other words, these ballots were rejected not because they were improper or illegal, but because the officials in charge of processing and counting votes made a mistake.

Nobody who cast a legitimate vote should be disenfranchised because a bureaucrat made a mistake; every legitimate vote should be counted.

Prophecy

Posted on November 25, 2008 by Democrashield

They told me that, if Barack Obama and the Democrats won, conservative voices would be silenced.

And they were right !

Ann Coulter’s Jaw Wired Shut: Report

[…]

WE HEAR…THAT although we didn’t think it would be possible to silence Ann Coulter, the leggy reaction- ary broke her jaw and the mouth that roared has been wired shut…

</snark>

In all honesty, I hope whatever has befallen Coulter isn’t too serious and that she makes a full recovery.

…just not a speedy recovery.

Obama’s U.N. Ambassador Announced

Posted on November 24, 2008 by Democrashield

ABC News and the Huffington Post report it’s Susan Rice, who worked for the Clinton administration and the Brookings Institution and was a key foreign policy adviser to Barack Obama’s campaign.

BREAKING: Joe Biden’s Senate Replacement Named

Posted on November 24, 2008 by Democrashield

From The Hill:

Ted Kaufman, a longtime friend and adviser to Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), will fill the vice president-elect’s seat in the Senate, according to the Delaware TalkBlog.

Speculation has been that the governor might appoint a placeholder for the seat so that Biden’s son, state Attorney General Beau Biden (D), can run for it in two years — following his return from a deployment to Iraq.

Multiple sources told the blog that Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner (D) has chosen Kaufman to serve the two-year term. She’s scheduled to make an announcement about Biden’s seat Monday at 2:30 p.m.

Kaufman was a senior adviser to Biden during his 2008 presidential and vice presidential campaigns. He served as Biden’s Senate chief of staff for 19 years, from 1973 to 1994. He is a member of the President-elect Obama and Biden’s transition team. Kaufman is also the president of a Wilmington, Del., political consulting firm, Public Strategies, and has been a charter member of the federal Broadcasting Board of Governors.

[Emphasis Mine]

Kaufman is also a lecturer at Duke University’s law school.

Like I said a few weeks ago, Kaufman is most likely going to be a caretaker– he will probably hold the seat for two years and step down, allowing Beau Biden to run in 2010.

The younger Biden recently said he wouldn’t accept an appointment to the seat, but that of course doesn’t rule out him running for it, which I fully expect him to do.

Still no decision on who will replace President-Elect Barack Obama or future Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the Senate.

Steele Or Slag?

Posted on November 24, 2008 by Democrashield

Failed Senate candidate and former Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele has a new website up touting his campaign to become Chairman of the Republican National Committee.

It’s a shiny website, complete with custom graphics, videos, a text messaging network, links to social networking sites and interesting things like that.

But if you try to find what Steele’s ideas or policies are, well, this is what you’ll find under the “Steele Plan” section of the website:

Steele Plan

Coming Soon!

There are the Republican Party’s problems in a nutshell–all style, no substance. All of their focus is on tactics and none of it is on their policies. As we saw with John McCain, you can’t win an election unless your campaign is based on good ideas.

Republicans lost in 2006 and 2008 because they controlled the federal government for 6 years and they implemented conservative policies that left our nation in it’s worst state since the Great Depression. Shiny new websites and better using Facebook won’t change the fact that the GOP is in dire need of new, innovative ideas that represent a drastic departure from the Bush years.

My advice to Republicans: find someone with good ideas. They might not have the name recognition or star power of Michael Steele, but you guys need a workhorse who’s going to guide your party in a new direction, not someone who’s simply going to repackage 28-year old ideas.

Monday Street Art

Posted on November 24, 2008 by Democrashield

From Blu, an Argentinean street artist:

$700B For Main St.?

Posted on November 23, 2008 by Democrashield

Democratic leaders in Congress are discussing an emergency economic stimulus package nearly as large as the Wall Street bailout:

America needs another large stimulus package of up to $700 billion to pull the economy of its current slump, Senate Democrats are saying.

Appearing on ABC’s This Week, Sen. Chuck Schumer told George Stephanopoulos that if Congress considers an additional economic recovery package, it must be “pretty big” in order to be effective, Reuters reported.

“It’s a little like having a new New Deal, but you have to do it before the Depression. Not after,” said Schumer.

Speaking to CBS News on Sunday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi echoed Shumer’s statements, calling for a broad stimulus that would be aimed at creating jobs and could contain a tax cut, BBC News reported.

“Something of several hundred billion would have to be some investment into the future, plus creating jobs immediately, and a tax cut,” she said.

Schumer added that the bill could be ready by the time President-elect Barack Obama takes office on January 20.

“Most economists say to make this work you need about 5 percent of GDP, which would be 700 billion dollars,” Schumer said. “I think we need a large one.

Republican Sen. Richard Shelby appeared on the show with Schumer and said he would support his suggestion “if it would accelerate appreciation, things like that; tax incentives for people to hire, to retool and things like that.”

[Emphasis mine]

To some extent, I balk at the high cost–this stimulus package and the economic rescue bill together will cost somewhere near $1.4 trillion.

On the other hand, I support the idea of the American people–not just banks and corporations–getting a hand up. And I agree with economists like Nobel laureate Paul Krugman, who say that the best way to fix this mess is more government spending; at this point, the federal government is the only entity large enough and with enough resources to right our wayward economy.

I don’t know the details of the legislation, but as it stands I say it’s a good idea. We’re not going to get out of this crisis incrementally; we’re going to need to take some bold moves with the potential for significant payoff in order to pull ourselves out of the pit that free market fundamentalism dug for us.

Dump Saxby, Part II (UPDATED)

Posted on November 23, 2008 by Democrashield

There’s something odd going on in Cobb County, Georgia, where thousands of RNC-sponsored ballot request forms are being mailed in without signatures:

Many of the unsigned requests came in the form of cards printed by the Republican National Committee and mailed to voters. Republican U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss is in a tight battle to retain his seat by beating Democratic challenger Jim Martin.

[…]

Cobb County received about 7,075 of the cards from voters that were not signed, about 44 percent of the cards received. ‘We’ve never seen anything near that ratio,’ registration manager Beth Kish said.

DeKalb County election officials have received 5,000 applications from the RNC mailing and rejected 2,800 of them.

[Emphasis mine]

So either the RNC is so incompetent they disenfranchised nearly 3,000 of their own voters, or they’re requesting ballots for people who don’t exist.

Meanwhile, Saxby Chambliss skipped a Senate vote to extend unemployment benefits in order to give a speech on unemployment. No, I’m not kidding. You know, Senator, instead of giving speeches about how you want to help people, you can instead go to the Senate and vote to actually help people.

Finally, far-right group Freedom’s Watch has launched a despicable ad against Jim Martin, criticizing him for being soft on crime.

Here’s the problem:

Martin’s daughter was kidnapped when she was eight years old. In a new ad, he states, “You never forget the horror of coming face-to-face with violent crime. … I never forgot the way she trembled when she faced her kidnapper in court. That’s why I fought so hard to crack down on violent crime.”

[…]

Martin’s tough-on-crime record has been praised by people such as former senator Zell Miller, who is now backing Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) in the state’s tough run-off election. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2/21/97]

[Emphasis mine]

Here’s Martin’s response:

Even though Freedom’s Watch is carrying water for Saxby Chambliss, I doubt Saxby himself will ever do the right thing and denounce this ad.

Which is just one more reason Georgia should dump Saxby on December 2nd.

UPDATE: The NRSC is also running an ad calling Martin soft on crime; clearly there’s a pattern emerging. Meanwhile, Saxby Chambliss’ silence is deafening…

White House Communications Team Takes Shape

Posted on November 22, 2008 by Democrashield

About two weeks ago, I speculated on who would head Barack Obama’s White House communications team.

Today, the senior members of that team were announced.

CNN confirms my earlier prediction that Robert Gibbs will be the next White House Press Secretary.

I had reported rumors that Dan Pfeiffer was in the running to become Communications Director, but that won’t be the case–instead, he will become Deputy Communications Director. The Communications Director will be Ellen Moran, who is currently the executive director of EMILY’s List and who previously did work for the AFL-CIO.

2.5 Million (UPDATED)

Posted on November 22, 2008 by Democrashield

That’s how many new jobs President-Elect Obama is pledging to create by January, 2011:

UPDATE: Here’s a transcript:

Good morning.

The news this week has only reinforced the fact that we are facing an economic crisis of historic proportions. Financial markets faced more turmoil. New home purchases in October were the lowest in half a century. 540,000 more jobless claims were filed last week, the highest in eighteen years. And we now risk falling into a deflationary spiral that could increase our massive debt even further.

While I’m pleased that Congress passed a long-overdue extension of unemployment benefits this week, we must do more to put people back to work and get our economy moving again. We have now lost 1.2 million jobs this year, and if we don’t act swiftly and boldly, most experts now believe that we could lose millions of jobs next year.

There are no quick or easy fixes to this crisis, which has been many years in the making, and it’s likely to get worse before it gets better. But January 20th is our chance to begin anew – with a new direction, new ideas, and new reforms that will create jobs and fuel long-term economic growth.

I have already directed my economic team to come up with an Economic Recovery Plan that will mean 2.5 million more jobs by January of 2011 – a plan big enough to meet the challenges we face that I intend to sign soon after taking office. We’ll be working out the details in the weeks ahead, but it will be a two-year, nationwide effort to jumpstart job creation in America and lay the foundation for a strong and growing economy. We’ll put people back to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing schools that are failing our children, and building wind farms and solar panels; fuel-efficient cars and the alternative energy technologies that can free us from our dependence on foreign oil and keep our economy competitive in the years ahead.

These aren’t just steps to pull ourselves out of this immediate crisis; these are the long-term investments in our economic future that have been ignored for far too long. And they represent an early down payment on the type of reform my Administration will bring to Washington – a government that spends wisely, focuses on what works, and puts the public interest ahead of the same special interests that have come to dominate our politics.

I know that passing this plan won’t be easy. I will need and seek support from Republicans and Democrats, and I’ll be welcome to ideas and suggestions from both sides of the aisle.

But what is not negotiable is the need for immediate action. Right now, there are millions of mothers and fathers who are lying awake at night wondering if next week’s paycheck will cover next month’s bills. There are Americans showing up to work in the morning only to have cleared out their desks by the afternoon. Retirees are watching their life savings disappear and students are seeing their college dreams deferred. These Americans need help, and they need it now.

The survival of the American Dream for over two centuries is not only a testament to its enduring power, but to the great effort, sacrifice, and courage of the American people. It has thrived because in our darkest hours, we have risen above the smallness of our divisions to forge a path towards a new and brighter day. We have acted boldly, bravely, and above all, together. That is the chance our new beginning now offers us, and that is the challenge we must rise to in the days to come. It is time to act. As the next President of the United States, I will. Thank you.

Grijalva For Interior Secretary?

Posted on November 22, 2008 by Democrashield

It’s a possibility:

Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., has emerged as a leading contender for secretary of the Interior.

Grijalva, 60, is Tucson native and son of an immigrant Mexican farmworker. He served as Hispanic co-chair for Obama’s presidential campaign and has been a fierce critic of the Bush administration’s environmental policies. He serves on the House Committee on Natural Resources, and chairs the National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee.

[…]

Last month, Grijalva issued a scathing report titled, The Bush Administration’s Assaults on Our National Parks, Forests and Public Lands. The 23-page critique accuses the President of carrying out “a concerted strategy” of reducing the protections for federal properties, “opening up these lands for every type of private, commercial and extractive industry possible.”

[…]

He has long been regarded as an environmental advocate, leading efforts to regulate hard-rock mining and establish a National Landscape Conservation System. He recently told The Arizona Republic that Bush’s administration sold away public resources to private interests, performing “more like real-estate agents than stewards of (public) lands.”

Everything I know about Grijalva tells me that he would be a fantastic choice; he has a strong environmental record that would lead to a complete turnaround the Bush administration’s environmental policies.

Plus, Grijalva is a dyed-in-the-wool progressive–in fact, he was just elected (along with Rep. Lynn Woolsey) to head the House Progressive Caucus. While I’ve been happy with a lot of Obama’s cabinet picks, I’m glad to see that there are some stronger progressives being considered.

Dump Saxby

Posted on November 21, 2008 by Democrashield

There's a better choice.

On December 2nd, Georgians will go to the polls and decide whether they want to keep Saxby Chambliss or replace him with Jim Martin.

But before they vote, there are some things all Georgians should know about Saxby:

In February 2008, an explosion at the Imperial Sugar Factory in Savannah [Georgia], caused largely by combustible dust particles, killed 14 workers and injured 40. The whistleblower who brought the issue to light came before Capitol Hill to testify on the matter. Chambliss sat in on the hearing, though he was not part of the Senate Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety. He was accused by his opponents of verbally harassing the whistleblower. Moreover, Chambliss continued to oppose a new combustible dust standard at the plant even after the explosion. Finally, when families of the victims filed a lawsuit, the Senator refused to give evidence or testimony, citing Senatorial immunity, which doesn’t actually exist.

[Emphasis mine]

Senatorial immunity doesn’t exist because we have the right to hold our elected officials accountable, considering that we pay their salaries and put them in office in the first place.

If Saxby knows something about the Imperial Sugar explosion–or if he has some kind of conflict of interest–he needs to come clean. And if he’s innocent, well then there’s no reason for him to not testify.

When asked about the Imperial Sugar incident, this was Saxby’s response:

We deserve better than that. Politicians shouldn’t attack citizens who ask them tough questions, period. We have the right to hold Saxby accountable as an elected official, and his attempts to deny us that right are just shameful.

Fortunately, Georgia does have an alternative; they have a first-rate candidate in Jim Martin. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said it best:

Martin, the Democrat, has been a fighter for the little guy throughout his life, and he’s proved effective in that role. He served his country in the U.S. Army in Vietnam and as a state legislator, lawyer and head of the state Department of Human Resources. Throughout his public life he has been known as a workhorse not a showhorse, someone whose first concern was getting the job done well rather than trying to get the credit.

Georgians, your choice is clear. Do you want to keep a Senator who thinks he’s better than all of you, or do you want to replace him with someone who has always worked for you?

As the AJC said, “For most Georgians, the answer is Martin.” I couldn’t agree more.

BREAKING: Clinton Accepts SoS; Treasury Secretary Named (UPDATEDX3 : Commerce Secretary Named)

Posted on November 21, 2008 by Democrashield

First, the New York Times is reporting Clinton has accepted Obama’s offer to become Secretary of State:

Hillary Rodham Clinton has decided to give up her Senate seat and accept the position of secretary of state, making her the public face around the world for the administration of the man who beat her for the Democratic presidential nomination, two confidants said Friday.

Mrs. Clinton came to her decision after additional discussion with President-elect Barack Obama about the nature of her role and his plans for foreign policy, said one of the confidants, who insisted on anonymity to discuss the situation. Mr. Obama’s office told reporters Thursday that the nomination is “on track” but Clinton associates only confirmed Friday afternoon that she has decided.

In addition, Obama has apparently settled on Timothy Geithner, the head of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, to replace Henry Paulson as Treasury Secretary.

Some background on Geithner:

Barring last minute changes, the nominee for Treasury Secretary will be NY Fed President Tim Geithner — a career Treasury official under both Bob Rubin and Larry Summers — who actually had worked at the Treasury in three administrations under five Secretaries — going back to 1988.

UPDATE: Apparently the Obama transition team is pulling a Friday news dump, because Fox News is reporting that New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has been tapped to become Secretary of Commerce.

UPDATE II: An initial reaction to the Geithner pick:

“I would say the market is going to like it,” said James Awad, managing director of Zephyr Capital. “[Former Clinton Treasury Secretary Larry] Summers was more controversial. People will view it as a safe choice, an experienced guy. There’s a little bit of a question because he’s associated with the bailout, and that’s still a work in progress and not totally successful.”

UPDATE III: Here’s some more on Geithner from the American Prospect’s Robert Kuttner:

Unlike many senior Treasury and Fed officials, Geithner is not a high roller from a big bank or investment house but a public-minded civil servant. He has neither a doctorate in economics nor an M.B.A. After receiving a master’s degree in international economics from Johns Hopkins University, he worked as a research assistant to Henry Kissinger and then joined the Treasury, where he was posted as an assistant attaché in Japan. He came to the attention of both Larry Summers and Robert Rubin and quickly moved up the ladder. He was a key player in the containment of the Asian financial crisis of 1997-1998 and later went to the International Monetary Fund as a top official. Despite being a Democrat, he was named president of the New York Fed after two stronger and more conservative candidates withdrew.

Geithner’s admirers span the spectrum from Republican financial mogul Pete Peterson to liberal Democrat Barney Frank. One can infer from his broad fan base three possible conclusions: Wall Street is so clubby and politically powerful that permissible policy differences just aren’t that great; or maybe Geithner is all things to all people; or perhaps, in a deep crisis, truly talented and effective people can earn broad respect.

[Emphasis added]

Four-Star General James Jones To Be NSA?

Posted on November 21, 2008 by Democrashield

Rumors are circulating that retired four-star General James Jones is on the shortlist to become President-Elect Barack Obama’s National Security Adviser:

Marine Gen. James L. Jones (Ret.), the former head of NATO and U.S. forces in Europe, has emerged as the leading candidate to serve as the National Security Adviser for President-elect Obama.

Jones’ name has came up a few months ago as one of Obama’s potential Vice Presidential candidates; I thought it was an intriguing idea, at the time.

Some background on Jones:

Credentials: Forty years of active duty in the Marine Corps; supreme allied commander in Europe, 2003-2007; former commandant of the Marine Corps; senior aide to former defense secretary William S. Cohen.

What he offers: Jones, 64, has a lifetime of military service and in the private sector serves as an adviser on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In 2007, he advised Congress about the readiness of the Iraqi security forces. He was named as a special envoy to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Palestinian and Israeli security issues.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (UPDATED)

Posted on November 21, 2008 by Democrashield

It’s a done deal:

President-elect Barack Obama plans to nominate Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of state after Thanksgiving, a new milestone for the former first lady and a convergence of two political forces who fought hard for the presidency.

One week after the former primary rivals met secretly to discuss the idea of Clinton becoming the nation’s top diplomat, an Obama adviser said Thursday that the two sides were moving quickly toward making it a reality, barring any unforeseen problems.

[…]

The nomination would be a remarkable union between the former first lady who was an early favorite to win the presidency and the first-term senator who upset her in the primary and cruised to a general election victory. Such a high-profile seat in the Cabinet for Clinton also would be another achievement for the most accomplished former first lady in U.S. history, who has been the first presidential spouse to serve in the Senate and run for the White House herself.

[Emphasis mine]

The media loves playing up Clinton-Obama drama, but I don’t think there’s going to be very much in the new administration; Clinton and Obama worked well together during the general election and I expect to see the same productive working relationship come January.

As I said before, I think Clinton will be a great Secretary of State and a valuable addition to the Obama administration; I welcome her aboard.

UPDATED: Some thoughts from Steve Clemons (h/t Pam):

If Obama wants to change the strategic game on Iran, Israel-Palestine, Syria, Cuba, Russia and other challenges, he will need partners who are perceived as tough, smart, shrewd and even skeptical of the deals he wants to do. Clinton is all of these.

Clinton may be the bad cop to Obama’s good cop. Because she is trusted by Pentagon-hugging national security conservatives, she may legitimize his desire to respond to this pivot point in American history with bold strokes rather than incremental ones.

[Emphasis mine]

Fred Thompson Retires

Posted on November 21, 2008 by Democrashield

The man once touted as the savior of conservatism and the new Ronald Reagan is dropping his bid to become RNC chairman and leaving politics for good:

[Thompson’s] former finance chairman, B.C. “Scooter” Clippard, said Thompson told him Wednesday that he was returning to acting and dropping his RNC bid.

“He seriously considered it, but he called and said that it was not in the cards,” Clippard said.

I never understood the Thompson boomlet–Fred Thompson wasn’t a very interesting candidate nor did he offer any new ideas or innovative policies.

Thompson was, from the beginning, an uninteresting cookie-cutter conservative. Though, considering some of the other candidates who ran, maybe being a bland run-of-the-mill Republican was an advantage.

But Thompson was always a better actor than politician, and I’m glad to see him going back to what he’s best at. Plus, he’ll make a lot more money acting.

BREAKING: Attorney General Mukasey Collapses During Speech (UPDATED)

Posted on November 20, 2008 by Democrashield

Here’s the rundown from TPM :

Attorney General Michael Mukasey collapsed this evening while giving a speech to Federalist Society in Washington, DC. The only further word we’ve been able to find is from Mike Allen at The Politico, who says that as of 10:30 PM, “medical officials were still working on him on the stage.”

Late Update: From the AP, “Associate Attorney General Kevin O’Connor says Mukasey began shaking during a speech to the Federalist Society and collapsed. He did not immediately regain consciousness.”

Late Update Two: We’re still following this closely, now just minutes after 11 PM. As best we can tell no news service has any new substantive information about the AG’s health, other than the initial news that he began slurring his speech and then shaking and then collapsed. There seems to be no solid information about whether he regained consciousness.

[Emphasis mine]

UPDATE: It looks like he’s going to be okay:

According to a Justice Department statement just moments ago, doctors at George Washington University Hospital gave him various stress and cardiac tests overnight. And they all came up normal. So they appear to have ruled out a stroke or cardiac event. And they expect he’ll be released from the hospital later today.