Regardless of what the Republicans say, they are the ones creating a dangerous precedent with their obstruction. Their treatment of EPA nominee Gina McCarthy is simply ridiculous. First, they loaded her down with 1,100 written questions. Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana submitted 600 of those questions. Then they seized on five of those questions which they said had been inadequately addressed, including a request “That all private email accounts of Regina McCarthy are exhaustively reviewed.” That sounds more like a demand than a question, don’t you think? And it’s not exactly a reasonable demand. Next, they boycotted the Enivironment & Public Works Committee hearing on McCarthy’s confirmation, and they only gave Chairwoman Barbara Boxer thirty-minutes notice. Because the Senate rules normally require at least two members of the minority to be president to have a committee quorum, the Democrats had to delay a vote on McCarthy’s confirmation. There is a loophole that Boxer intends to use, but it requires all of the Democrats to be present, and that’s a problem because Sen. Frank Lautenberg is battling cancer, is confined to a wheelchair, and has been at home in New Jersey in recent weeks. He will now head to Washington so that the committee can get McCarthy’s nomination to the floor of the Senate. You’d think someone on the Republican side would have the courtesy to say that Sen. Lautenberg’s trip is unnecessary, but no one has stepped forward, yet, to do the only decent thing under the circumstances.
Instead, we get this:
Republicans warn that Ms. Boxer would be setting a dangerous standard by disregarding the concerns of the minority party, and they point to the likelihood that the same tactic could be used in reverse if Republicans gain control of the Senate.
The Senate Republicans are also blocking the confirmation vote for Thomas Perez as Labor Secretary. Last week, they objected to allowing committees to meet while the Senate is in full session, which is almost never done. So, now the HELP committee has to meet early in the morning before the Senate convenes to get around their stonewalling.
It’s unclear to me whether they are using these tactics to avoid filibustering or merely as a supplement to filibustering. Or, perhaps, they are setting things up so that the Democrats’ maneuvers to get around their stonewalling become the casus belli to filibuster since the nominees themselves are unobjectionable.
I’m getting close to point of recommending that we just take up arms against each other. My patience for this crap is nearly exhausted.
The Constitution states, Article 2 S 2, that “and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, ” There is no leeway. “by and with the advice and consent” – there is an up-or-down vote on the offices.
Other officers to what level? Seems to me that there is a heck of a lot of leeway in that. Some agency heads never have to go before the Senate for confirmation.
A meme going around FB a few months ago pointed out, correctly, that if Obama really WAS acting like a dictator, FOX News and the GOP would have been rounded up and shot LONG ago.
Yeah, if he was a Huey Long-ish dictator. But he’s not.
I miss Huey Long.
Do you also miss Theodore Bilbo? No progressive should long for white supremacists like Huey Long.
White supremacists? I see little difference between Long and FDR in regards to racial issues. They were men of their time.
Huey Long was nothing like Bilbo. Huey Long was pretty enlightened for his day on racial matters.
he’s not a dictator at all.
I know. I just meant someone that would be the nearest thing, besides Bernie Sanders, to Socialism.
I would be all for splitting the country up – but peacefully.
Then, we Blue States can remain The Remaining United States of America, and they can have their ConferateGodFearingJesusLovesUsThisWeKnowCauseHeToldUs-SoGunTottingBamBamBammityBamBamBAMWeHateLibta
rdsistan.
We can exchange our Northern rural crackers for good Southern Liberals, over a few years.
Then, build a big fence along the Mason-Dixon line, to keep the ever increasing numbers of impoverished Secesh morons, desperate to move out of the hell of their own creation.
This ignores the fact that “blue states” have vast red areas. And major liberal cities like Chicago, NYC, SanFran, DC are home to the plutocrats fucking everyone over and have the worst income inequality. It also ignores that blue states have things like the tech industry, which is the major force behind outsourcing exporting our jobs to make a quick buck. They also have Wall Street, the major source of screwing the poor and working class.
To think this is simply a regional or red vs blue issue is nuts.
Look, I’m well aware that we have a lot of red areas even in blue States.
I live in Upstate NY, in a blueish-purple area. If you go further north, like beyond Albany, and/or west, between Albany and Buffalo, outside of the urban areas, NY is a sea of rural deep red.
And there are blue(r) areas in Red States.
Most of the urban areas of this country are some shade of blue to purple – North and South, East and West.
And they are surrounded by blue to purple suburbs.
Most of the nation’s rural areas are a deep shade of red.
And I know we’ll probably always have some level of income inequality.
The only thing you can do is minimize it. And the best way to do that, is a graduated income tax, with a top end of 91% on the highest level of income. Or, at least 70%, like it was until Regan too office.
That money could be spent, not on The Cold War, or defense, or Korea, or Vietnam, but on improving conditions here, and on the environment, and space exploration.
Let the Plutocrats and Oligarchs spend any spare couch or car seat change left over after taxes, on finding better CPA’s and Tax Attorney’s to find and defend tax-loopholes, instead of buying up politicians, and/or spending money on PAC’s, and Super PAC’s, to influence elections.
But, with our nation’s “house” clearly divided, we can’t get that done.
In other words, my earlier comment was more tongue-in-cheek, than any attempt at a realistic proposal.
Vast, but empty. That’s why they’re Blue States.
You know, my only real objection to this idea is that they would insist on getting some of the nuclear weapons. And people who think Armagedden is a good idea shouldn’t be armed.
Oak Ridge is in Tennessee. The Savannah River Plant is is in South Carolina. Your point is well taken. Folks should find out what Fort Hood, Fort Benning, Fort Stewart, Fort Sill, Fort Jackson, Fort Bragg Fort A. P. Hill, Quantico, Lejeune,…do before they think that cutting loose the psychos is a smart move.
They’re practicing. They’re going to need these tactics for a long, long time, as it seems unlikely the GOP can win the presidency again past about 2016 (even that is doubtful).
So this is the only way they can properly drive the country into the ground, as is their goal.
As a practical matter, what powers does an Acting EPA Administrator lack with respect to a properly confirmed Administrator? If the differences are small or next to none, couldn’t Obama just fill up the agencies with Acting Directors? And if they’re large, involving say disbursement of money, there’s a nice political opening (“we’re sorry we’ve suspended work on your Superfund site, but until Senator Knuckledragger allows a vote on a new EPA Administrator, our hands are tied”).
Next to no differences for most items.
Just to be clear. This is not a regional maneuver. It is a fossil fuel industry maneuver–thus David Vitter’s incredible role.
The workaround in obvious. Nominate her as acting director (does not require Congressional approval) and run the leadership out of the White House.
Seeing as how the GOP has judicially attacked recess appointments.
And keep the regulations rolling out of the EPA on schedule and start being aggressive about enforcement, dotting all the i’s and crossing all the t’s.
We are getting very close to GOP meltdown IMHO. What the consequences of that are is unpredictable and not necessarily beneficial.
It is a power struggle within the elite and not in the regions, despite the tendency to try to elist a regional conflict as a chorus to the elite tragi-comedy.
But news stories of progressives arming themselves to protect against KKK-style night riders would be very beneficial right now. The right-wing thinks they have the monopoly on threats of violence because “liberals are wusses”. Time to build some deterrent perceptions to that illusion.
“And keep the regulations rolling out of the EPA on schedule and start being aggressive about enforcement, dotting all the i’s and crossing all the t’s.”
Sorry, Tarheel, I had to laugh out loud reading that.
The latest clean water regulations were, what, 31 years late? And OMB sent them back to EPA with an “over my dead body” kind of message.
There aren’t going to be any more environmental regs of consequence. The right has won this, as many other arguments. The regs will cost utilities a lot of money (not really, but the number will sound big enough to scare people). This will result in higher utility bills. And the industry economists will tell you just how many jobs will be lost, because we all know how many thriving businesses will be driven into bankruptcy by a 1% increase in their energy bills.
This just isn’t a battle anybody in Washington wants to fight anymore. People are more concerned about the economy than they are about clean water. They are way more concerned about the unemployment rate (an immediate problem) than they are about the prospect of global warming.
“So, it says here that CO2 levels in the atmosphere now exceed anything from the geological record.” “Haven’t you noticed, it’s kind of cool for this time of year, wouldn’t you say??”
Then, there are bunch of people who need to stop lying to people about what their concerns are. There’s that angle too.
“I’m getting close to point of recommending that we just take up arms against each other.”
I actually think that’s what they want. Then they can play the victim and at the same time have a “legitimate” excuse for violence. Kind of reminds me of their scenario from 150 years ago.
Another good reason not to advocate that, another is that we could lose.
“I’m getting close to point of recommending that we just take up arms against each other.”
Most of the problems of crazy I see derive from 4 people. Chuck, Dave, Rupert, and Pete.
Idea: Totally win in 2014, then Sic Democratic versions of Peter King and Darryl Issa on these “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse”. Drown them in investigations. I Betcha a lot of things would settle down if these 4 were occupied constantly defending themselves.
You forgot Michelle.
Who are democratic versions of these guys? Alan Grayson and Anthony Weiner are about the only people I could think of and Grayson only just got back in.
Man, this blog really has it out for Grayson. What did he do? Give me a fucking break.
Alan Grayson, Don’t know if he would want the job, But it is beyond my wacky imagination for him to be AG / infinite over Holder.
Actually I rather like him, I just loathe Matt Stoller.
I just mean he’s like a dog that bites and won’t let go of something, which is how it relates to the Republican investigations. At least his somethings are usually substantive as opposed to the GOP’s 99% fluff.
I loathe Matt Stoller too.
Are you suggesting that all democrats are too gentile to ever challenge a Rich Guy or a one el surrogate.
Yes.
But what’s “a one el surrogate”?
My patience for this crap is
nearlyentirely exhausted.