This is pretty rich, as civil rights stories go, particularly since we now have our first black president. Recently, Florida Congressman Alcee Hastings (see photo & the letter to the public on his web site) attempted to attach H.R. 3326 to the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010. This amendment would prohibit the use of funds to investigate or discharge dedicated service men and women on the grounds of revealing their sexual orientation. In other words, it would nullify Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DA/DT). Overturning this oppressive and, frankly, stupid law was something that candidate Barack Obama made a firm commitment to. Well, apparently times have changed.
Citing pressure from the White House and other congressional colleagues, Alcee Hastings abruptly withdrew his amendment. According to our president, “next year.” Apparently, now is not the right time. And that’s a load of crap, folks. It’s not the right time for Spain to investigate Bush & Company. It’s not the right time to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). It’s not the right time to overturn DA/DT, in spite of the fact that most Americans think it is just plain wrong, and in spite of the fact that it is harming the military and our national security. It appears that our president is the judge and the jury on what our elected officials can and cannot accomplish. If he’s doing absolutely nothing that he promised, Obama will be damned if anybody else is going to pick up his slack.
Note: Be sure to click on the second link in this story and see Rachel Maddow interview Alcee Hastings on the subject.
The choice of Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions as the point man in the Republican charge against Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor has just added more garbage to the roiling, boiling GOP cesspool. Know what that stink is? In 1986, President Ronald Reagan nominated Jeff Sessions to the federal bench and he became just the second man in 50 years to fail to be recommended for confirmation. Why?
Apparently the question surrounding Michelle Bachmann’s sanity has moved from “Is she crazy?” to “Just how crazy is she?” There’s no more disputing that she is; at this point it’s simply a question of degrees. I could get detailed and go on forever here, but instead we’ll let the Congresswoman make her own insanity plea by presenting some of her more memorable quotations:
Yes, I’m more than a little ticked off here. WTF is with major league baseball? Why does Manny Ramirez still appear on this year’s all star ballot? Manny is no all star. He’s the poster boy for self-serving loathesome characters. Here’s a guy who just tested positive for using a performance-enhancing drug this season and has been suspended for 50 games. Yes, that’s right: FIFTY. Five-zero. This isn’t a question of being punished for winding up in the Mitchell report. This is right here and now.
This guy showed nothing but disdain for the media when he was our vice president, but now he can’t find enough venues in which to spew his vile, evil stew. I’m talking about none other than the original Dr. Evil, dancin’ Dick Cheney. He’s been making the rounds, telling everyone how Barack Obama’s policies are making America less safe. You know, the usual fearmongering tactics used by the Bush administration for eight years. Last week in his National Security speech, he mentioned the 9-11 terrorist attacks 23 times. Old habits die hard.
Oh, yes. A new bird has been identified in Texas. It’s called the Texas Loon, and I’ve provided you with a photo. Yes, secessionist governor Rick Perry has once again proven why he is one small step above Rod Blagojevich on the evolutionary chain (and I mean very small). I’d call it Larval.
This pack of misfits is led by Evan Bayh of Indiana, some kind of twisted Democrat. He has a pack of losers towing the line behind him, like Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Kay Hagen (D-NC), Mark Udall (D-CO) and, of course, the feckless Joe Lieberman (I(diot)-CT). There are 14 in all and poor Evan Bayh, he of little brain power, doesn’t understand why the liberals have a problem with his little group. According to Bayh himself, his little group has no agenda and has “taken no policy positions.” Well, Evan, maybe that’s the problem. This is a “duh” moment if ever there was one.
Well, never let it be said that self-described ‘moderate’ Se nator Susan Collins (R-ME) doesn’t dutifully tow the party line. During negotiations over Obama’s stimulus package, Collins managed to have the federal whistleblower protection removed. Way to go, Susan. Now it will be impossible to track whether or not the money is being used properly. That way it’s easier to make the program’s failures an issue around the 2010 midterm elections. See how that works? Oh, by the way, don’t let Senator Collins tell you it was removed because the expenditure did nothing to create jobs. If that’s what she was concerned with, she could have stripped out the $70 billion the Republicans stuffed into the bill to help the wealthiest earners avoid additional taxes.
