Friday, June 7, 2013

Advocating Progress

thepeoplesrecord: Hey Tumblr family, friends &...



thepeoplesrecord:

Hey Tumblr family, friends & followers,

We're arriving in the bay area tomorrow and we still don't have sleeping arrangements for the first few days. It looks like we probably have some gaps filled in but we'll be in the area from June 7-19th. Even one night of hosting would be greatly appreciated. We've taken to couchsurfing, among other websites, but it's summer and so many couchsurfing hosts are booked full with requests, especially in a destination as popular as the bay area.

These are events that we're likely going to in-between our interviews, so please join us if you're interested. Write us & let us know what you'd like to meet up with us to attend and we'll try & make it happen:

San Francisco/Oakland Events:

PLEASE reblog if you don't mind. It's not 'an emergency' per se but there is definitely a sense of urgency as we still don't know where we're sleeping tomorrow evening. Posted on June 6th. Tumblr messages are fine but email is better: thepeoplesrec@gmail.com

There are two of us. Male/Female platonic if it makes a difference. 

House Republicans Booed As They Vote To Deport DREAMers

House Republicans Booed As They Vote To Deport DREAMers:

To a chorus of boos from the gallery, House Republicans voted 224-201 on Thursday to approve an amendment that defunds the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The amendment, from Rep. Steve King (R-IA), undercuts the flexibility that allows the Department of Homeland Security to halt deporting DREAMers and instead focus on people convicted of crimes.

After the vote, the House Hispanic Caucustweeted,"House Republicans just voted to treat DREAMers and undocumented spouses of servicemembers in the same way as violent criminals." Only six Republicans voted against the measure.

As King's amendment passed, the House gallery erupted in boos.

changewalmart: "I cannot believe I got to actually take a...



changewalmart:

"I cannot believe I got to actually take a picture with the actual Norman Rockwell oil on canvas painting of 1943, Rosie the Riveter. It is so ironic that one of the symbol of labor icons sits in this museum funded by one of the most anti-labor Walton family"

Photo



thepoliticalfreakshow: The GOP's Gameplan: In case you were...



thepoliticalfreakshow:

The GOP's Gameplan: In case you were still unclear, Texas Tea Party leader, Ken Emanuelson clears it up for you.

No, seriously, tell us what you really think.  A Texas Tea Party leader admitted recently what most of us already knew, the Republican party doesn't want African-Americans to vote.

When asked at a meeting of Texas Republicans "what can Republicans do to get black people to vote," a Texas Tea Party leader, Ken Emanuelson, gave the following answer:

"I'm going to be real honest with you, the Republican Party doesn't want black people to vote if they're going to vote 9-to-1 for Democrats."

Ruh roh.

Vote by Shutterstock.

Vote by Shutterstock.

The Tea Party, for all of its short years, already has a long history of racism.  Remember when Tea Party protesters spat on civil rights hero Rep. John Lewis and called him the n-word?  Or Tea Party darling Rand Paul's opposition to the Civil Rights Act?  Or just the other day when a Tea Party leader, and former GOP party chair in Texas, accused Republican anti-tax activist Grover Norquist of being a stealth Muslim because he has a beard?

Not that the GOP is any better (and honestly, let's stop the facade of pretending that the Tea Party is anything more than a group of conservative Republicans). The Republican party has its own checkered past of trying to impede the black vote, especially in the south.  And in recent years, the GOP has doubled up its effort to disenfranchise voters from all walks of life:

As the nation gears up for the 2012 presidential election, Republican officials have launched an unprecedented, centrally coordinated campaign to suppress the elements of the Democratic vote that elected Barack Obama in 2008. Just as Dixiecrats once used poll taxes and literacy tests to bar black Southerners from voting, a new crop of GOP governors and state legislators has passed a series of seemingly disconnected measures that could prevent millions of students, minorities, immigrants, ex-convicts and the elderly from casting ballots. "What has happened this year is the most significant setback to voting rights in this country in a century," says Judith Browne-Dianis, who monitors barriers to voting as co-director of the Advancement Project, a civil rights organization based in Washington, D.C.Republicans have long tried to drive Democratic voters away from the polls. "I don't want everybody to vote," the influential conservative activist Paul Weyrich told a gathering of evangelical leaders in 1980. "As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down." But since the 2010 election, thanks to a conservative advocacy group founded by Weyrich, the GOP's effort to disrupt voting rights has been more widespread and effective than ever. In a systematic campaign orchestrated by the American Legislative Exchange Council – and funded in part by David and Charles Koch, the billionaire brothers who bankrolled the Tea Party – 38 states introduced legislation this year designed to impede voters at every step of the electoral process.

We've seen GOP voter suppression in countless states.  Ohio was one, just this past November.  Arizona is another, where the GOP is challenging the Voting Rights Act itself.  As our own Gaius Publius has explained, that's the Republicans' ultimate goal in all of this, taking down the Voting Rights Act, which was put in place specifically because racists didn't want blacks to vote.

But it's not just African-Americans they're targeting, Republicans are also trying to stop college kids from voting, since college kids tend to vote Democratic.  And even on the issue of voting rights for felons, when we see movement on the GOP side, it's done in a way that's only half sincere.

The Republican party has a long history of voter suppression, so it's no surprise that they still want to suppress the black vote in 2013.  It is surprising, however, that they'd actually admit it.

[AmericaBlog]

quickhits: America's unending epidemic of gun tragedy continues...



quickhits:

America's unending epidemic of gun tragedy continues to take its toll.

Raw Story: A Texas girl died on Tuesday night after being accidentally shot with an AK-47 assault-style rifle while her stepbrother was "making the weapon safe by pulling the trigger," authorities said.

In a press release on Wednesday, Johnson County Sheriff Bob Alford explained that deputies responded to a call Tuesday night about 8 p.m to find 13-year-old Emilee Bates shot in the stomach.

According to KSAX, Lt. Tim Jones told how the girl's 19-year-old step-brother, Austin McCord, accidentally fired the weapon while cleaning it.

The sheriff's office said that McCord had ejected two "dummy" rounds from the AK-47, but he had forgotten about other live rounds in the magazine.

"He believed he was making the weapon safe by pulling the trigger to drop the bolt on an empty chamber," Jones noted in the news release. "However, the chamber wasn't empty and discharged."

Anyone else sick of this shit yet?

mothernaturenetwork: Facebook billionaire hit with $2.5 million...



mothernaturenetwork:

Facebook billionaire hit with $2.5 million fine after Big Sur wedding runs afoul of conservation rules
The Internet mogul's lavish $10 million wedding featured movie-set-like installations, a rich and famous guest list — and a massive fine for stepping all over ecologically sensitive areas of California's Big Sur.

firstbook: Stories For All Project



firstbook:

Stories For All Project

The Split Between the States

The Split Between the States:

wisconsinforward:

On health care, education and other issues, many states are abandoning their responsibilities:

Wisconsin and Minnesota are neighboring states with long traditions of caring for the least fortunate, but, at the moment, only one of them is concerned about the health of the poor and uninsured.

In February, more than 130,000 Minnesota residents who lack health insurance became eligible for coverage when the state expanded its Medicaid program under the health care reform law. That will save the state $129 million in the first two years alone.

Wisconsin, however, has chosen to take the path of indifference. On Tuesday, the Republicans who control the State Legislature's Joint Finance Committee voted to reject the expansion of Medicaid, even though it would have covered 85,000 people at less cost to the state. The committee was marching in lock step behind the governor, Scott Walker, who claims to be worried that federal financing will run out. What's really going on, of course, is that state Republicans have made poor people the victims of their ideological resistance to President Obama and his health care law.

thepoliticalfreakshow: The Blame Game: Here's Exactly Who To...



thepoliticalfreakshow:

The Blame Game: Here's Exactly Who To Blame In Congress For Authorizing Government Spying…Here's A Hint, It's Mostly Republicans (And Both President George W. Bush and President Obama)

The National Security Agency and the FBI don't bear all the responsibility for the revelation that Verizon is turning phone records over to the government. That responsibility lies with the members of Congress who voted for the PATRIOT Act, as well as extensions of it and the provisions related to collecting those records. Over 100 people currently serving in the House and Senate voted for the original Act in 2001. Last year, over 300 voted to extend a key provision.

We looked at seven Congressional actions generally and five in particular to assess how the government's power to collect data has evolved. From October 2001 to last December, Congress continually voted to expand or continue the government's power to collect private data, ostensibly to bolster efforts to stop terrorist activity. In addition to the PATRIOT Act, Congress has also renewed provisions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA — the law that established the court which issued the Verizon order.

The seven votes were:

(The "Medicare" bill, above, was gutted and re-written to accommodate three PATRIOT-related measures.)

There have been attempts to revise or curtail the rules, from their inception. In 2011, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky tried to amend the PATRIOT Act to limit its power. Last year, senators attempted to halt FISA data collection. In neither case did the rules pass.

We looked at votes by sitting Congressmembers on five bills critical to the existing governmental security tools. At the bottom of this post is a spreadsheet showing those votes — with names. But here's how they broke out.

The first graph for each bill shows the vote breakdown: red for those supporting increased surveillance tools; blue for opposed. The second graph shows the vote in both chambers by party.

The PATRIOT Act

Total current members who voted: 153
Total current members who supported the bill: 118

No sitting Republicans who were in Congress in 2001 voted against the PATRIOT Act. More sitting Democrats supported it than opposed.

Votes by sitting members

21.6%77.1%

Support and opposition by party

36.4%41.7%21.9%

PATRIOT Act Reauthorization, 2005

Total current members who voted: 260
Total current members who supported the bill: 151

Currently sitting Democrats were more likely to oppose the extension than to approve it. Several Republican House members opposed the extension, but no Senators did.

Votes by sitting members

41.2%58.1%

Support and opposition by party

12.8%45.7%39.1%

FISA Amendments, 2008

Total current members who voted: 304
Total current members who supported the bill: 191

Only one Republican voted against the amendments, which authorized the government to conduct sweeps like the one in the Verizon case.

Votes by sitting members

34.9%63.2%

Support and opposition by party

19.1%45.3%35.2%

PATRIOT Act Extension, 2011

Total current members who voted: 430
Total current members who supported the bill: 265

A larger number of sitting Republicans opposed the extension than any of the other three. That includes Senators Murkowski, Paul, Heller, and Lee. Nineteen Democrats who opposed the FISA amendments in 2008 voted in support of it under the new president.

Votes by sitting members

33.5%61.6%

Support and opposition by party

16.1%28.6%48.7%

FISA Extension, 2012

Total current members who voted: 437
Total current members who supported the bill: 303

Three Republican senators opposed extending FISA: Lee, Murkowski, and Paul.

Votes by sitting members

28.8%69.3%

Support and opposition by party

18.2%27.3%52.4%

If it's easier, we've put together a list of every sitting member of Congress who has voted for the continuation of these surveillance tools every time they had an opportunity to do so, with special mention for those that have done so all five times. There are 56 of those — and 247 who've never voted no.

Sitting members who voted for surveillance every time

  • Rep. Robert Aderholt (Alabama, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Spencer Bachus (Alabama, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Jo Bonner (Alabama, Republican)
  • Rep. Mo Brooks (Alabama, Republican)
  • Rep. Martha Roby (Alabama, Republican)
  • Rep. Mike D. Rogers (Alabama, Republican)
  • Sen. Jeff Sessions (Alabama, Republican)
  • Rep. Terri Sewell (Alabama, Democratic)
  • Sen. Richard Shelby (Alabama, Republican)
  • Rep. Ron Barber (Arizona, Democratic)
  • Sen. Jeff Flake (Arizona, Republican)
  • Rep. Trent Franks (Arizona, Republican)
  • Rep. Paul Gosar (Arizona, Republican)
  • Sen. John McCain (Arizona, Republican)
  • Rep. David Schweikert (Arizona, Republican)
  • Sen. John Boozman (Arkansas, Republican)
  • Rep. Rick Crawford (Arkansas, Republican)
  • Rep. Tim Griffin (Arkansas, Republican)
  • Sen. Mark Pryor (Arkansas, Democratic)
  • Rep. Steve Womack (Arkansas, Republican)
  • Rep. Ken Calvert (California, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Jeff Denham (California, Republican)
  • Sen. Dianne Feinstein (California, Democratic)
  • Rep. Duncan D. Hunter (California, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Darrell Issa (California, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Kevin McCarthy (California, Republican)
  • Rep. Howard McKeon (California, Republican)
  • Rep. Gary Miller (California, Republican)
  • Rep. Devin Nunes (California, Republican)
  • Rep. Ed Royce (California, Republican) - all five times
  • Sen. Michael Bennet (Colorado, Democratic)
  • Rep. Mike Coffman (Colorado, Republican)
  • Rep. Cory Gardner (Colorado, Republican)
  • Rep. Doug Lamborn (Colorado, Republican)
  • Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut, Democratic)
  • Sen. Tom Carper (Delaware, Democratic)
  • Rep. Gus Bilirakis (Florida, Republican)
  • Rep. Vern Buchanan (Florida, Republican)
  • Rep. Kathy Castor (Florida, Democratic)
  • Rep. Ander Crenshaw (Florida, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Ted Deutch (Florida, Democratic)
  • Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (Florida, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. John Mica (Florida, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Jeff Miller (Florida, Republican)
  • Sen. Bill Nelson (Florida, Democratic)
  • Rep. Rich Nugent (Florida, Republican)
  • Rep. Tom Rooney (Florida, Republican)
  • Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Florida, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Dennis Ross (Florida, Republican)
  • Sen. Marco Rubio (Florida, Republican)
  • Rep. Steve Southerland (Florida, Republican)
  • Rep. Daniel Webster (Florida, Republican)
  • Rep. Bill Young (Florida, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. John Barrow (Georgia, Democratic)
  • Rep. Sanford Bishop (Georgia, Democratic) - all five times
  • Sen. Saxby Chambliss (Georgia, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Phil Gingrey (Georgia, Republican)
  • Sen. Johnny Isakson (Georgia, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Jack Kingston (Georgia, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. David Scott (Georgia, Democratic)
  • Rep. Austin Scott (Georgia, Republican)
  • Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (Georgia, Republican)
  • Sen. Mike Crapo (Idaho, Republican)
  • Sen. Jim Risch (Idaho, Republican)
  • Rep. Mike Simpson (Idaho, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Randy Hultgren (Illinois, Republican)
  • Rep. Adam Kinzinger (Illinois, Republican)
  • Sen. Mark Kirk (Illinois, Republican)
  • Rep. Dan Lipinski (Illinois, Democratic) - all five times
  • Rep. Mike Quigley (Illinois, Democratic)
  • Rep. Peter Roskam (Illinois, Republican)
  • Rep. Aaron Schock (Illinois, Republican)
  • Rep. John Shimkus (Illinois, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Larry Bucshon (Indiana, Republican)
  • Sen. Dan Coats (Indiana, Republican)
  • Sen. Joe Donnelly (Indiana, Democratic)
  • Rep. Marlin Stutzman (Indiana, Republican)
  • Rep. Todd Young (Indiana, Republican)
  • Sen. Chuck Grassley (Iowa, Republican)
  • Rep. Steve King (Iowa, Republican)
  • Rep. Tom Latham (Iowa, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Tim Huelskamp (Kansas, Republican)
  • Rep. Lynn Jenkins (Kansas, Republican)
  • Sen. Jerry Moran (Kansas, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Mike Pompeo (Kansas, Republican)
  • Sen. Pat Roberts (Kansas, Republican)
  • Rep. Kevin Yoder (Kansas, Republican)
  • Rep. Brett Guthrie (Kentucky, Republican)
  • Sen. Mitch McConnell (Kentucky, Republican)
  • Rep. Hal Rogers (Kentucky, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Ed Whitfield (Kentucky, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Rodney Alexander (Louisiana, Republican)
  • Rep. Charles Boustany (Louisiana, Republican)
  • Rep. Bill Cassidy (Louisiana, Republican)
  • Rep. John Fleming (Louisiana, Republican)
  • Sen. Mary Landrieu (Louisiana, Democratic)
  • Rep. Steve Scalise (Louisiana, Republican)
  • Sen. David Vitter (Louisiana, Republican) - all five times
  • Sen. Susan Collins (Maine, Republican)
  • Sen. Angus King (Maine, Independent)
  • Rep. Steny Hoyer (Maryland, Democratic) - all five times
  • Sen. Barbara Mikulski (Maryland, Democratic)
  • Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (Maryland, Democratic)
  • Rep. Dan Benishek (Michigan, Republican)
  • Rep. David Camp (Michigan, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Bill Huizenga (Michigan, Republican)
  • Rep. Candice Miller (Michigan, Republican)
  • Rep. Gary Peters (Michigan, Democratic)
  • Rep. Mike Rogers (Michigan, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Fred Upton (Michigan, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Tim Walberg (Michigan, Republican)
  • Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minnesota, Republican)
  • Rep. John Kline (Minnesota, Republican)
  • Rep. Erik Paulsen (Minnesota, Republican)
  • Sen. Thad Cochran (Mississippi, Republican)
  • Rep. Gregg Harper (Mississippi, Republican)
  • Rep. Alan Nunnelee (Mississippi, Republican)
  • Rep. Steven Palazzo (Mississippi, Republican)
  • Sen. Roger Wicker (Mississippi, Republican) - all five times
  • Sen. Roy Blunt (Missouri, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Sam Graves (Missouri, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Vicky Hartzler (Missouri, Republican)
  • Rep. Billy Long (Missouri, Republican)
  • Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (Missouri, Republican)
  • Sen. Claire McCaskill (Missouri, Democratic)
  • Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (Nebraska, Republican)
  • Sen. Mike Johanns (Nebraska, Republican)
  • Rep. Adrian Smith (Nebraska, Republican)
  • Rep. Lee Terry (Nebraska, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Mark Amodei (Nevada, Republican)
  • Rep. Joe Heck (Nevada, Republican)
  • Sen. Kelly Ayotte (New Hampshire, Republican)
  • Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (New Jersey, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Scott Garrett (New Jersey, Republican)
  • Rep. Leonard Lance (New Jersey, Republican)
  • Rep. Frank LoBiondo (New Jersey, Republican) - all five times
  • Sen. Bob Menendez (New Jersey, Democratic)
  • Rep. Jon Runyan (New Jersey, Republican)
  • Rep. Albio Sires (New Jersey, Democratic)
  • Rep. Chris Smith (New Jersey, Republican)
  • Rep. Steve Pearce (New Mexico, Republican)
  • Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (New York, Democratic)
  • Rep. Michael Grimm (New York, Republican)
  • Rep. Brian Higgins (New York, Democratic)
  • Rep. Peter King (New York, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Tom Reed (New York, Republican)
  • Sen. Richard Burr (North Carolina, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. George Butterfield (North Carolina, Democratic)
  • Rep. Howard Coble (North Carolina, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Renee Ellmers (North Carolina, Republican)
  • Rep. Virginia Foxx (North Carolina, Republican)
  • Sen. Kay Hagan (North Carolina, Democratic)
  • Rep. Patrick McHenry (North Carolina, Republican)
  • Rep. Mike McIntyre (North Carolina, Democratic) - all five times
  • Sen. John Hoeven (North Dakota, Republican)
  • Rep. John Boehner (Ohio, Republican)
  • Rep. Steve Chabot (Ohio, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Bob Gibbs (Ohio, Republican)
  • Rep. Bill Johnson (Ohio, Republican)
  • Rep. Jim Jordan (Ohio, Republican)
  • Rep. Bob Latta (Ohio, Republican)
  • Sen. Rob Portman (Ohio, Republican)
  • Rep. Jim Renacci (Ohio, Republican)
  • Rep. Steve Stivers (Ohio, Republican)
  • Rep. Pat Tiberi (Ohio, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Mike Turner (Ohio, Republican) - all five times
  • Sen. Tom Coburn (Oklahoma, Republican)
  • Rep. Tom Cole (Oklahoma, Republican)
  • Sen. Jim Inhofe (Oklahoma, Republican)
  • Rep. James Lankford (Oklahoma, Republican)
  • Rep. Greg Walden (Oregon, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Lou Barletta (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. (Pennsylvania, Democratic)
  • Rep. Charlie Dent (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Rep. Jim Gerlach (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Rep. Mike Kelly (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Rep. Tom Marino (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Rep. Pat Meehan (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Rep. Timothy F. Murphy (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Rep. Joe Pitts (Pennsylvania, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Bill Shuster (Pennsylvania, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Glenn Thompson (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Sen. Pat Toomey (Pennsylvania, Republican)
  • Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (Rhode Island, Democratic)
  • Rep. Jeff Duncan (South Carolina, Republican)
  • Rep. Trey Gowdy (South Carolina, Republican)
  • Sen. Lindsey Graham (South Carolina, Republican)
  • Rep. Mick Mulvaney (South Carolina, Republican)
  • Sen. Tim Scott (South Carolina, Republican)
  • Rep. Joe Wilson (South Carolina, Republican)
  • Sen. John Thune (South Dakota, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Kristi Noem (South Dakota , Republican)
  • Sen. Lamar Alexander (Tennessee, Republican)
  • Rep. Diane Black (Tennessee, Republican)
  • Rep. Marsha Blackburn (Tennessee, Republican)
  • Rep. Jim Cooper (Tennessee, Democratic)
  • Sen. Bob Corker (Tennessee, Republican)
  • Rep. Scott DesJarlais (Tennessee, Republican)
  • Rep. Stephen Fincher (Tennessee, Republican)
  • Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (Tennessee, Republican)
  • Rep. Joe Barton (Texas, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Kevin Brady (Texas, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Michael Burgess (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. John Carter (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Mike Conaway (Texas, Republican)
  • Sen. John Cornyn (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. John Culberson (Texas, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Blake Farenthold (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Bill Flores (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Louie Gohmert (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Kay Granger (Texas, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Gene Green (Texas, Democratic)
  • Rep. Ralph Hall (Texas, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Jeb Hensarling (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Rubén Hinojosa (Texas, Democratic)
  • Rep. Kenny Marchant (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Michael McCaul (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Randy Neugebauer (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Pete Olson (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Ted Poe (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Pete Sessions (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Lamar S. Smith (Texas, Republican)
  • Rep. Mac Thornberry (Texas, Republican) - all five times
  • Sen. Orrin Hatch (Utah, Republican)
  • Rep. Eric Cantor (Virginia, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Randy Forbes (Virginia, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Bob Goodlatte (Virginia, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Robert Hurt (Virginia, Republican)
  • Rep. Scott Rigell (Virginia, Republican)
  • Sen. Mark Warner (Virginia, Democratic)
  • Rep. Rob Wittman (Virginia, Republican)
  • Rep. Frank Wolf (Virginia, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Doc Hastings (Washington, Republican)
  • Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (Washington, Republican)
  • Rep. Dave Reichert (Washington, Republican)
  • Sen. Joe Manchin (West Virginia, Democratic)
  • Rep. David McKinley (West Virginia, Republican)
  • Sen. Jay Rockefeller (West Virginia, Democratic)
  • Rep. Sean Duffy (Wisconsin, Republican)
  • Sen. Ron Johnson (Wisconsin, Republican)
  • Rep. Tom Petri (Wisconsin, Republican) - all five times
  • Rep. Reid Ribble (Wisconsin, Republican)
  • Rep. Paul Ryan (Wisconsin, Republican)
  • Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (Wisconsin, Republican) - all five times
  • Sen. John Barrasso (Wyoming, Republican)
  • Sen. Mike Enzi (Wyoming, Republican)
  • Rep. Cynthia Lummis (Wyoming , Republican)

Complete list of votes

Photo: President Bush signs the FISA Act in 2008.

breakthecitysky: …It is not enough to allow dissent. We must...





















breakthecitysky:

…It is not enough to allow dissent. We must demand it. For there is much to dissent from. We dissent from the fact that millions are trapped in poverty while the nation grows rich. We dissent from the conditions and hatred which deny a full life to our fellow citizens because of the color of their skin. We dissent from the monstrous absurdity of a world where nations stand poised to destroy one another, and men must kill their fellow men. We dissent from the sight of most of mankind living in poverty, stricken by disease, threatened by hunger and doomed to an early death after a life of unremitting labor. We dissent from cities which blunt our senses and turn the ordinary acts of daily life into a painful struggle. We dissent from the willful, heedless destruction of natural pleasure and beauty. We dissent from all those structures-of technology and of society itself-which strip from the individual the dignity and warmth of sharing in the common tasks of his community and his country.

Robert F. Kennedy, Address, Berkeley Campus, University of California, October 22, 1966.  Mortally wounded 45 years ago today, he would die on June 6.

coffee-n-cats: (via Facebook) If marriage equality hurts your...



coffee-n-cats:

(via Facebook)

If marriage equality hurts your marriage, then your marriage was in trouble in the first place!

Debbie Stabenow Pledges To Oppose Monsanto Protection Act Extension Without Full Debate

Debbie Stabenow Pledges To Oppose Monsanto Protection Act Extension Without Full Debate:
WASHINGTON — Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), the chairwoman of the Agriculture Committee, pledged to oppose the extension of the so-called the Monsanto Protection Act, a victory for advocates who have been pressing for its repeal. Stabenow made her pledge in a conversation with Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), who has been pushing the Senate to vote on an amendment to the farm bill that would repeal the provision.

"You can kill a man, but you can't kill an idea."

"You can kill a man, but you can't kill an idea."

-

Myrlie Evers, after the June 12, 1963 assassination of husband, civil rights leader Medgar Evers, in Jackson, Mississippi.  A half century ago, an assassin shot Mississippi NAACP leader Medgar Evers in the back outside his Jackson home.  This year marks the 50th anniversary of this senseless, tragic event.

 

(via tumblrrinserepeat)

think-progress: African-Americans are almost FOUR TIMES as...



think-progress:

African-Americans are almost FOUR TIMES as likely as white people to be arrested for marijuana possession, even though drug use is the same.

abaldwin360: more



abaldwin360:

more

"Despite her considerable public profile, high favorability ratings and activism on behalf of..."

"

Despite her considerable public profile, high favorability ratings and activism on behalf of military families and American youth, Michelle Obama is not an elected or appointed official. Nor is she obligated to answer to anyone on matters of national politics and policy. Did Ellen Sturtz or any of her colleagues—who have defended the activist in the days since the event—really believe that hollering at the First Lady would result in anything meaningful or impactful? That there is a straight line from the ears of the chief executive's wife to the muscles of her husband's dominant hand and his fountain pen?

In addition to issues of impracticality, Sturtz's eruption also demonstrated a blindness to or nonchalance about reality and optics. The office of the first lady has long been a complex and fraught one, with its occupants unwittingly caught in a sort of limbo between private citizen and public official. And for Michelle Obama in particular, there are the longstanding racial resentments that burst forth following the historic election of Mrs. Obama's husband in 2008. Anyone who was been paying attention would have recognized in Sturtz's outburst a petulance and sense of entitlement that echoes some of screechiest, bigoted and most resentful critics of the President himself, who have spent the past 6 years questioning Mr. Obama's – and, by extension, black Americans' – legitimacy to lead, have an opinion, or even exist. (Remember Joe Wilson?) To make matters worse, Sturtz's description of Mrs. Obama's reaction – that she was "pretty aggressive," that she "got into my face" – was breathtaking bit of projection and entitlement that also tiptoed dangerously close to the "angry black woman" stereotype that Mrs. Obama has been dogged by for years. The implication by the Sturtz, a self-described "old abrasive lesbian" was this: That despite being interrupted during her delivery of a particularly passionate appeal for the support of at-risk American children, it was Michelle who was the asshole.

…Sturtz, who, along with her colleague, GetEQUAL activist Autumn Leaf, later said that she was "disappointed" in the first lady's response to her, had one chance to try to publicly engage the issue with nuance, an understanding of history and respect for the target of her displeasure. She blew it.

"

- ANNA HOLMES, writing in Time magazine, "Michelle Obama and the Delusion of Hecklers" (via inothernews)

Daily Kos: Republicans vote to deport DREAMers

Daily Kos: Republicans vote to deport DREAMers:

dailykos:

Those affected by the deferred deportation policy had to arrive in the States before they were 16 years old, be high school graduates or have served in the military. And they can't have a criminal rap sheet.

odinsblog: Not Too Shabby So Far: President Obama's Judicial...



odinsblog:

Not Too Shabby So Far: President Obama's Judicial Legacy

The diversity figures for Obama in this and the prior section include confirmed judges, those awaiting confirmation, and those who were nominated but eventually withdrew. The data are from the Alliance for Justice and can be found here.

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Republican Reboot? More Out Of Touch Than Ever

liberalsarecool:

Politico:

"Not every Republican learned Todd Akin's lesson from 2012 - and Democrats noticed. This week alone: Sen. Saxby Chambliss blamed sexual assaults in the military on hormones, conservative pundit Erick Erickson credited biology for male dominance in society and Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said working moms are making kids fail in school."

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