Political Heat

The year 2009 was definitely a lot of things: a year of change (the first non-white president and a near-filibuster-proof Senate majority), a year of denial (with many refusing to believe the president was indeed born American to refusing the democratic mandate for health reform), and a year of frustrations (health care compromises, bank bailouts, and much much more). Most of all, 2009 was a year of obstruction -- mostly from the conservative side of things, with a few surprises from the center-left as well. TEA Party protesters rose up to call for an end to government growth (albeit in an extremist sort of way), and Republicans continued their unprecedented number of filibusters. Centrists (like Joe Lieberman and Ben Nelson) joined their conservative colleagues at times, stopping important legislation from holding any significance. Sure, there were some progressive "victories" as well that deserve recognition, that were hard-fought by Democrats who knew the importance of sta...

An interesting debate is raging on the internet involving the frustrations associated with the U.S. Senate rule on filibusters. As it stands now, a filibuster can only be ended by a vote of 60 Senators in favor of cloture. Though in the past it had been significantly harder to break a filibuster (at one time requiring 67 votes), the practice of stalling and effectively tabling measures through the filibuster has risen significantly, used in recent years by obstructionist Republicans an unprecedented number of times . There are some who are calling for an all-out abolition of the practice, saying that a majority voice in the Senate should be sufficient enough to pass legislation. There are others who believe that it should remain intact but with substantial reform. Still others believe that it should remain as is, citing that liberals used the filibuster when conservatives were in power just three years ago (though significantly less frequent). The filibuster, it's interesting to no...

Joseph Lieberman is one influential U.S. Senator, despite having no official party allegiance. A former vice presidential candidate for the Democratic Party, Lieberman lost a primary challenge in 2006 but won as an independent in the general election of that year. As an independent, Lieberman still caucuses with the Democratic majority -- though you wouldn't know it judging from some of the controversial stances he takes against the party's main policies. His latest escapade involves his stance on health care reform. Though a lifelong Democrat, Lieberman opposed the idea of a public option, and in recent weeks suggested that he wouldn't oppose a Republican-led filibuster to oppose it. When other moderate Senators suggested the same idea, a group of ten Democratic Senators devised a compromise that would allow Americans to buy-into non-profit but private health insurance plans, with people over 55 but under 65 being able to buy-into Medicare, the national insurance program ...

With Christmastime fast approaching, most Americans have dedicated their time towards finding gifts for loved ones, decorating the house, and making preparations for the all-important Christmas dinner. For many conservative pundits, however, Christmastime signals a time of desperation, of placing blame on those dirty liberals who like to ruin the holiday season, and of inciting fear among otherwise decent Americans who don't want their religious rights violated. Even Congressional Republicans, who earlier this year railed Democrats for frivolous bills, are pushing a resolution in the House calling for the holiday of Christmas to be respected (as if it hasn't had the past month and a half dedicated towards it already). One conservative mayor even mused that Barack Obama's speech on Afghanistan was purposefully scheduled to knock Charlie Brown's Christmas Special off the air . Though quieter than previous years, the campaign against the supposed "War on Christmas...

Ten (maybe) Senate Democrats late Tuesday night came to a consensus on health care reform, with major compromises and deals worked out including the removal of the so-called public option. The group of ten settled on a proposed deal with several broad components. First, a not-for-profit private exchange would be set up for those without health care (replacing the public option plan), and would be managed and heavily regulated by the Office of Personnel Management (which currently overseas a similar program for federal employees' insurance plans). Second, those between the ages of 55 to 64 would be able to buy into Medicare coverage, greatly expanding the program for those who represent the age-group most affected by the health care crisis today. Third, the public option would reportedly remain in the bill but would only go into effect through a trigger -- that is, only if private insurers don't fix things themselves within a set number of years (this might not be the case, how...

Republican Sen. Jim DeMint is holding up the confirmation of Errol Southers to head the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), leaving the agency without a leader. An important post that ensures the security of all Americans traveling across the country and abroad, scrutiny over who will run the TSA is well-deserved...except over something as mundane as collective bargaining rights for TSA employees. That's right -- your security is being held hostage by a Republican who has a beef with unions. DeMint believes that, by allowing TSA employees to organize and bargain collectively their contracts, security at airports and other areas prone to attack could be put at greater risk. "Collective bargaining would standardize things across the country, make it much less flexible, much harder for the agency to adapt to changing threats around the world," DeMint said recently . But other agencies that deal with issues of national security -- such as Border Control and the Fede...

Last night, President Barack Obama announced his official plan for the war in Afghanistan . In his remarks, Obama told the nation (before a live audience of West Point cadets) that 30,000 more troops were needed to stabilize the region, with the goal being a complete withdrawal of forces beginning July of 2011. " I do not make this decision lightly ," the president told the cadets. "I make this decision because I am convinced that our security is at stake." His plan is likely to draw complaints from both the left and the right, though it may appeal to centrists. It contains elements that both sides would want -- and that both sides will undoubtedly hate. Many liberal Democratic lawmakers are sure to be displeased with the troop buildup. Most of those on the left opposed the buildup of forces during the Iraq war (commonly known as the "surge"); many felt that policy prolonged our presence in the beleaguered nation. A buildup in Afghanistan, then, is only gu...

Ask anyone who has ever met him, and you'll be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn't think Scott Walker is a "nice guy." Even progressive writer John Nichols has said that he "liked Walker from the start," though he doesn't agree with his politics. Walker's amiable attitude has allowed him to be seen as a personable politician, the rare breed of politician who many believe actually works to help those he represents. But make no mistake: a state managed by Scott Walker would be a horrible disaster. The front-runner for the Republican nomination for Governor, Walker is a strict right-wing ideologue, the kind that is obsessed with privatizing government to its fullest. It's his hope to make Wisconsin more hospitable towards corporations, with the idea that more benefits to big companies will trickle down to the people in need. We all know how that philosophy works out: it's that kind of thinking that has led to a wider wealth gap and an incr...

At a recent town hall event in Illinois held by Rep. Dan Lipinski, several members of the Chicago Tea Party Patriots attended in order to publicly heckle the Democratic representative. They booed his comments, chanted "USA!" over his statements, and appeared to care very little for actually listening to what the member of Congress had to say about health care reform. When a supporter of health reform stood up to talk about her daughter's personal story of a system gone wrong, it didn't seem to matter . Midge Hough, whose daughter and unborn granddaughter died partly due to lacking health insurance, spoke candidly about the need for a public option and other reforms necessary to help this country. She spoke of her daughter's tragic ordeal, of having to leave one hospital to enter another, of having to lie to that second hospital about having insurance simply so they could be seen by a doctor. If there was any sympathy for Hough and her family in that room, it was ...

Former TV teen idol Kirk Cameron has been on a crusade for years to discredit the theory of evolution. As a born-again Christian, Cameron's beliefs compel him to speak out against the theory of how specie gradually evolved through genetic mutations over millions of years, resulting in the diverse population of animals and plant life we see today. In recent years, Cameron's mission has had several setbacks: several school boards and state departments of instruction have rejected the teaching of Creationism and/or "intelligent design" alongside evolution in schools across the nation. Intelligent design believes that, "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." However, intelligent design lacks one basic element: scientific backing. While evolution isn't perfect -- there are several "holes" in the theory, critics would contend -- it does ...

The American public is desperate for health care reform. Already passed in the House (with a public option included), the fight for reform now moves to the Senate. But do Americans want reform that was passed? Recent polls can shed some light on this question. Most Americans in a recent CNN survey are unsatisfied with the bill the House has passed. 46 percent of Americans support the bill while 49 percent find it unsatisfactory. But that doesn't mean that Americans don't want reform -- in fact, that same poll shows just the opposite. The poll was broken down further by CNN. Of those who responded, 46 percent did support the bill -- but 10 percent (of the 49 percent who opposed the bill) thought it didn't go far enough. That means that 56 percent of Americans either like the bill passed by the House or want it to be even more liberal than it already is; only 39 percent of Americans think it's too liberal. Though most thought that the bill passed wasn't perfect, the ...

Former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's new book, Going Rogue , is already a best-seller. In a tell-all account of her life (as well as her time as VP candidate), Palin makes several claims that have been disputed by several prominent politicos and members of the media. "Everything is someone else's fault," says one insider , who believes Palin failed to take responsibility for her miscues during the campaign. "There's no accountability. [Her book] is mean-spirited. But if you look at the record, it is what it is." Perhaps that sort of critique should be expected at this point -- Palin is a very divisive person, and many from the left would love nothing more than for her political career to be over. But the comments from above don't come from the left. Instead, they come from the very people she worked alongside during the 2008 campaign, from a McCain campaign aide who says Palin's new book is full of lies. That aide is not alone -- ...

Earlier this week, the Republican National Committee was embarrassed when Politico reported that the party had been providing its employees with insurance that covered abortion services. After all the hubbub that the RNC and Republican lawmakers had made over the public option covering such services, it seemed quite hypocritical that the GOP would pay for abortion through its insurance plan. So the RNC opted out of that portion of the plan so that they would no longer be funding abortions ( sort of ). But later this week, another startling discovery was made about the RNC's health insurance provider. It covers end-of-life counseling services. But by Sarah Palin and TEA Party protesters alike, those services are better known as "death panels." Of course, end-of-life counseling is not anything remotely close to what a death panel would be. Within the health care bill passed by the House, as well as the RNC's insurance plan, there is no one asking elderly patients to ...

Politico and WisPolitics.com have reported that Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett will indeed run for governor in 2010, ending months of speculation. Barrett is expected to make the formal announcement Sunday. Though highly speculated he would seek the highest office in the state, it still wasn’t known for sure what the Milwaukee mayor and former member of Congress would do. But word leaked out earlier this evening from his own office. Barrett told city staff that he was preparing a run for governor, a Democratic insider said, and asked that his staff continue to work hard while he sought the office. With Barrett in the race, it becomes a battle of Milwaukee-based politicians. Republican frontrunner Scott Walker (no relation to the author) is the current Milwaukee County Executive. A hard-line conservative, the two share very little in common besides proximity. It should be an interesting race to watch. Be prepared, Wisconsin.

Religion should never put a stranglehold upon a government or a government entity; nor should a government place unreasonable burdens upon a religious organization. But the Catholic Church in Washington D.C. is trying to do just that, effectively blackmailing the district in order to get its way. The Catholic Church provides services to tens of thousands of people within D.C. through contracts it has established with the district. But because the city might pass an ordinance that would legalize same-sex marriage and other protections for gay and lesbian couples, the Catholic Church is considering opting out of the contracts , leaving the city and thousands of people who depend on the services the Church provides in the dark. To be sure, the Catholic Church has some legitimate concerns. The city would exempt the Church from having to perform marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples. But the Church is concerned because, should the ordinance become law, it might mean that the Church would...

Is there no decency left in this country? Is everything that was once "off-limits" now fair game? The Westboro Baptist Church, a religious organization notorious for staging protests outside of fallen soldiers' funerals (with signs like, "God Hates Fags!"), has come to Washington D.C. to protest outside of the schools where the president's daughters attend . Known for holding extremist views (such as believing that all the nation's ills can be traced to homosexuality, abortion, and the acceptance of other religions as acceptable within society), the WBC refers to the Obama children as "satanic spawn" of a "murderous bastard" in its most recent protests. The church is also protesting at various locations in D.C. including the White House and the World War II Veterans' memorial. To be sure, the WBC has the right to hold these protests, as protected by the U.S. Constitution. The right to free speech protects the rights of those the ...

At a recent TEA Party protest in Washington DC, House Minority Leader John Boehner stood before a crowd of thousands. Encouraging him to stand against the proposed health care bill in the House ( which is now endorsed by the AARP ), he spoke of a great founding document, the U.S. Constitution . Holding his personal copy of the document in his hand, Boehner recited the Preamble to the crowd: " We hold these truths to be self-evident ," Boehner said, "that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights..." Without a doubt, many TEA Party protesters at the event felt a sense of pride in hearing those words. Some, however, probably felt a bit confused. Indeed, the document that Boehner was quoting was not the Constitution -- it was the Declaration of Independence . That someone in today's world may confuse the two (both documents date back over two hundred years ago) is not surprising. Equally as unsurprising is tha...

Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), the Congressman who in late September cried out "You lie!" during President Barack Obama's speech to a joint session of Congress, has come up with a brilliant idea in order to make Democrats look stupid on health care reform. If they want to make a public option available to the American people, Wilson argues, then they should back it up by being required to have it, too . "If this public option is so good, then why don't the congressmen take the plan?" Wilson stated, repeating a line that he says was asked of him several times by his constituents. It's great political maneuvering by Republicans: if Democrats want a public option, their argument goes, then they should have to give up the insurance they have now through their employer (the federal government); if they aren't willing to do that, then the American people will undoubtedly have some misgivings about the public option plan. There's only one problem with Wilson...

A year has passed since the election of President Barack Obama. In that time, many things have happened, each a noteworthy piece of the president's short history in office thus far. But I'd like to take a moment here to discuss what hasn't happened, to alleviate the concerns of some out there who may have been worrying... The rule of law has held true; the president has not disregarded any law or conducted himself or his office in a way unbefitting of the office he holds. In fact, the president and his Justice Department have kept in line with laws they themselves find to be distasteful, such as the Defense of Marriage Act . Despite Obama and his administration finding this law to be reprehensible and unjust, the president has made it clear that it will be enforced (perhaps, in a way, to push Congress to repeal it themselves, the legal way it should be done). Democracy is still going strong in our nation -- today's elections are clear signs of that. A strong example of ...

A congressional race in upstate New York has political aficionados salivating at the drama it has created, with the outcome potentially changing the course of the Republican Party in future elections. In what should have been an easy win for any Republican running, Dierdre Scozzafava, the GOP's candidate, has stepped aside due to endorsements made by several key party leaders for one of her opponents. The Conservative Party candidate, Doug Hoffman, has received support from conservative Republicans like Sarah Palin and Tim Pawlenty, both contenders in 2012 for the GOP nomination for president, as well as other prominent party heads. Even House Minority Leader John Boehner said earlier this week that he regretted supporting Scozzafava . The schism allowed for the Democratic candidate, Bill Owens, to gain some ground and actually have a chance in this race. With the two right-leaning candidates splitting the vote, Owens could have won as a Democrat in this conservative district, a f...

The state of Wisconsin is poised to pass legislation that would require schools statewide to provide students with a complete education on sexual health, including information on contraception and other methods for birth control. Currently, schools in Wisconsin determine for themselves how far they want to teach their students about the "birds and the bees." Many school districts opt for "abstinence-only" education, which severely limits a student's ability to understand how to prevent a pregnancy or contracting a sexually transmitted disease. Under the proposed bill, titled the Healthy Youth Act, Wisconsin schools would be required to teach a comprehensive sex ed class, complete with alternative pregnancy prevention methods. Abstinence would also be included as the best way to prevent a pregnancy or an STD. Critics of the bill have called it an unwarranted attack upon the rights of local governments and school boards. Matt Sande, director of legislation for Pro...

The Obama administration has recently called out FOX News for what it really is, with some administration officials calling it " the communications arm of the Republican Party ." FOX News fans haven't taken it lightly: some conservatives have suggested that the president is behaving in a Nixonian manner, creating an "enemies list" the same way the disgraced ex-president did. Some have even suggested his administration is suppressing freedom of the press and free speech in general. Is the Obama administration doing the wrong thing here? In a way, yes -- their objections to FOX News may have distracted the public away from important issues. By creating a "war" between the network and the White House, Obama has shifted the focus away from these issues and placed himself at center-stage. But it's not entirely unwarranted. FOX News really DOES seem to operate as the media arm of the Republican Party. The loony rantings of Glenn Beck, the misinformation ...

The federal government announced this week that it will no longer seek to prosecute patients using medicinal marijuana if the practice of prescribing it is legal within that patient's state. In a memorandum to select U.S. Attorney's affected by the new policy, Attorney General Eric Holder wrote that, "Pursuit of these priorities should not focus federal resources in your States on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana." In other words, U.S. Attorneys in states where they have legalized medicinal marijuana shouldn't seek out the prosecution of individuals who are using the drugs as part of their doctor's recommendations. The illegal growing and distribution of marijuana is still a criminal offense, and individuals partaking in those endeavors should still be sought after; but as far as patients using the drug, the Obama administration has made it clear that there ar...

A common misconception of the liberal ideology is that it promotes a secular state. That's true, in part; we liberals do want a neutral government when it comes to religion, but we could care less about what the people themselves want to believe in regards to their faith. But conservatives who are pushing for a higher standard of morality in society often further believe that liberals want a moral-less society, one that abolishes faith and religion outright. Nothing could be further from the truth. What are liberalism's views on religion, morality, and society? Liberals take a stance that is common among most Americans: let the people choose for themselves what to believe. With regards to religion, a person should be free to exercise their views without restriction from the state or any other force in society, so long as their views don't conflict with the rights of others. Most liberals don't even mind when religious groups take part in ceremonies on public land or hav...

Roland Burris, a Democratic Senator from Illinois, is not someone I would suggest having as a political hero. Having received his Senate seat under suspicious circumstances -- from an appointment by Rod Blagojevich, the Illinois governor who tried to sell the seat to the highest bidder -- Burris isn't seen as the most ethical Senator within the upper house of Congress. Recently, however, Burris did something that no other Democratic Senator has done, or has had the guts to do: he openly voiced that he will not support any health care reform bill that doesn't include a robust public option. " I would not support a bill that does not have a public option ," said Burris, adding that his "position will not change" on the matter. Some may see Burris's comments as foolish or stubborn. But it's just as stubborn, if not more so, to actively say you won't support any bill WITH a public option, as some conservative Democrats and Republicans have said they ...

It may be too soon to start talking about the midterm elections, but many conservatives and Republican-leaning commentators are predicting a big win for Republicans when the 2010 midterm elections come around. They point to the large turnout at TEA Party protests as evidence of this, as well as other knee-jerk reactions to the proposed policies made by so-called " socialist " Democrats. Those "socialists," however, include a broad coalition of Democrats, ranging from the fiscally conservative Blue Dogs to the more ambitious Progressive Caucus. This "large tent" of Democrats have made it difficult for most Americans to gauge what the Democratic Party's goals and platform really are, as each Congressional Dem has a different take on every piece of legislation that comes to the Hill. Nevertheless, Republican probably will pick up a few seats come November 2010 -- but not enough to substantially change Washington. While it's true that TEA Party protes...