Friday, April 18, 2008
Impeach, Bush, Cheney, Strike, Immigration, Election 2008, and a BIG (?)
Posted by ed. dickau at 1:06 PM
Impeach, Bush, Cheney, Strike, Immigration, Election 2008, and a BIG (?)
IMPEACH OR STRIKE - ILWU & National Truckers to Strike
By inyourfaceradio
... our government is taking us, before we can even hope to bring sufficient pressure upon the heads of Congress to compel our representatives to do the will of the people and impeach Bush/Cheney and scrap their aggressive war policies. ...
In Your Face Radio - http://inyourfaceradio.wordpress.com
MPEACH OR STRIKE - ILWU & National Truckers to Strike
With the International Longshore and Warehouse Workers Union passing the resolution to oppose the war by stopping work on May 1, 2008, and doing so by a 90% margin, PTI finally has a solid and powerful partner in forging solidarity between labor and activist organizations.
It is clear that we must build solidarity among the millions of Americans who oppose the current direction our government is taking us, before we can even hope to bring sufficient pressure upon the heads of Congress to compel our representatives to do the will of the people and impeach Bush/Cheney and scrap their aggressive war policies.
The ILWU action is an opportunity for us to begin building that solidarity, and one we must not squander.
PTI will be submitting our statement of solidarity to the ILWU by April 4th. We would like this statement to include every peace and impeachment group in America, all pledging to advise their members and anyone within earshot to participate in staying home from work and shopping on May 1, 2008. Though the one day of action is the extent of the ILWU action, PTI sees it as an initial warning to Congress, that if we can do it for one day we can do it again, and for as long as it takes to win back our democracy.
As anyone familiar with PTI will know, our organization has always refused to endorse actions we felt did not hold promise of success, or we felt were not sincere. After speaking to persons at the ILWU National office in San Francisco and the locals in Los Angeles, we are confident that this event will take place, and have determined that unless we learn something different, we will call our strike for that day as well. This means that the thousands of people across the country who have signed PTI pledges to strike, will now make plans to stay in their home on May 1. Our job between now and May is to expand that number to include every American who wants to preserve the free American way of life by returning a balance to power.
If you plan to participate in this day of national solidarity sign a pledge on the home page and contact every activist list and group organization leadership urging them to join the campaign to build unity through this action. Time is running short and we may not get another chance like this to prove to this government that the people are united and it is time for the traitors to get out of our White House and Congress.
To learn more about the PTI guidelines for the strike - go to The Plan.
And This Is What Really Happens To All The “TALK” About Immigration Reform!
LAWMAKERS PLEAD FOR MORE FOREIGN WORKERS
By SUZANNE GAMBOA –
WASHINGTON (AP) — Three House members pleaded Wednesday for more visas for seasonal workers they said are needed immediately by seafood processors, resorts and other businesses in their districts.
Some of those operations could close or lose a lot of money this spring and summer because there are not enough visas, known as H-2B visas, for the temporary nonagricultural workers they need, the lawmakers told the House Judiciary immigration subcommittee.
"Not having H-2B workers will significantly affect the businesses within my district and their ability to keep a professional, trained and dependable work force," said Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich. He was joined by Rep. Tim Bishop, D-N.Y. and Rep. Wayne Gilchrest, R-Md.
Prospects for relief are uncertain. Attempts to increase H2B visas are trapped in the debate over immigration reform.
House negotiations on the issue and a pending immigration enforcement bill broke down before the Easter recess. Supporters of a more sweeping immigration bill oppose the piecemeal approach, while opponents of guest worker programs argue it would hurt American workers.
Passing any bill raising foreign workers' numbers also is a prickly undertaking in an election year.
The hearing occurred on the same day Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers raided Pilgrims Pride poultry plants and Shipley Do-Nuts in Houston in search of undocumented workers.
"This issue is collapsing on us," said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas. "This is one of the most difficult times to move (on the businesses) because we are in a fragile economic state."
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., said Congress has not shied away from fortifying U.S. borders, including providing $3 billion emergency border security funding last year.
"This Congress has acted quite a bit on border security and interior immigration enforcement, but has not yet acted much in the area of addressing immigration policy fixes," she said.
Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers suggested policy fixes may have to come piecemeal.
"I am thrilled that some people are still talking about comprehensive reform," said Conyers, D-Mich. "If I can figure out how that is going to happen, before we start breaking this thing down, I will be a developed and dedicated student to whomever is still arguing that."
There He Goes Again… “Talk, talk, talk!”
http://www.lawnandlandscape.com/news/news.asp?ID=6223
Democrat doubts chances for immigration reform
Houston Chronicle - Apr 16, 2008
Lawmakers grapple with visa extensions
News-Leader.com - Apr 17, 2008
Some US lawmakers plead for more foreign workers
KTEN - Apr 16, 2008
Stupak, other congressmen plead for more foreign workers
WTOL, OH - Apr 16, 2008
AP - April 16, 2008 7:44 PM ET WASHINGTON (AP) - Michigan Congressman Bart Stupak today pleaded for more visas for seasonal workers needed by seafood ..
Democratic Chairmen Join Suit Against Use of Waivers for Border Fence
CQPolitics.com - Washington,DC,USA
Several representatives, including most House members from border districts, decried the action as an abuse of power. Chertoff maintains that exercising the ...
Key House Democrats Join Suit Against Use of Waivers for Border Fence
By Karoun Demirjian, CQ Staff
It was Congress, back in 2005, that granted the Homeland Security secretary the power to void federal laws in order to build a fence along the Southwest U.S. border. And Michael Chertoff hasn’t been shy about using the power.
In fact, he has issued several waivers of federal law, including two just this month, in order to keep construction moving.
Now, though, 14 House Democrats, led by Bennie Thompson , chair of the Homeland Security Committee, are arguing that what their Republican-led colleagues did three years ago was unconstitutional. The group is expected to file a friend of the court brief Thursday asking the Supreme Court to hear a pending appeal of a case originally filed by the Sierra Club and the Defenders of Wildlife. Judge Ellen S. Huvelle ruled against the environmental groups in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., in December 2007.
The lawmakers will argue in their brief that Congress overstepped its constitutional bounds when, effectively, it granted the secretary the power to repeal laws, according to a Democratic aide.
The representatives question the constitutionality of a broad waiver, which Congress authorized under Section 102 of the REAL ID Act in 2005, that issues no further restrictions or points of guidance to the executive when it hands over the power to indefinitely waive federal statutes that could hinder the progress of a border wall.
The brief says Chertoff exercised the waiver simply for convenience, and it urges the court to hear the suit because there is no other option for judicial review of use of the waiver. In its 2005 action, Congress actually forbade appellate courts from becoming involved, apparently making the Supreme Court the only option.
Among the lawmakers joining Thompson, D-Miss., in the filing are Rules Chairwoman Louise M. Slaughter , D-N.Y.; Education and Labor Chairman George Miller , D-Calif.; and Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Bob Filner , D-Calif.
The Defenders of Wildlife and the Sierra Club first brought the suit against the Bureau of Land Management, challenging the legality of border fence construction in the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area in Arizona.
Though they eventually lost the case, the environmental groups won a restraining order from Huvelle in October 2007 that temporarily stopped border wall construction and instructed DHS to investigate the local environmental impacts of the project.
Chertoff responded by using the waiver authority; in November, he circumvented the restraining order by waiving 19 federal statutes. He followed that up this month by authorizing two waivers — involving some 30 laws — in order to complete construction of the fence and other protective measures in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.
‘I Feel an Urgency’
Several representatives, including most House members from border districts, decried the action as an abuse of power. Chertoff maintains that exercising the waiver is a necessary step to ensure that he is able to carry out the job that Congress gave him in formally mandating the construction of a border wall in the Secure Fence Act of 2006.
“Some lawyer would make an argument about [one of the laws], and we would then be in court for months arguing the process,” Chertoff, a former federal judge, told the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this month. “We are currently in a lawless situation at the border. . . . I feel an urgency to get this capital infrastructure in.”
A number of Republican lawmakers have backed Chertoff.
“The great irony here is that Secretary Chertoff is actually using the very waiver authority that a number of these chairmen voted to give him,” said the Homeland Security Committee’s ranking member, Peter T. King , R-N.Y. “He’s acting entirely within the law, and any attempts to impede the fence’s progress through frivolous litigation will only serve to lessen the security of our country.”
The petitioners counter that whether or not a congressional mandate exists is irrelevant.
“The breadth of the waiver provision is unprecedented,” said Brian Segee, legal counsel for Defenders of Wildlife.
‘Intelligible Standard’
A decision on constitutionality would most likely rely on the “intelligible standard” principle, which in past cases has been interpreted to mean that Congress must issue fairly narrow restrictions on how much legislative authority can be delegated to an executive agent.
But the Supreme Court has yet to determine whether it will even consider the petition.
“The courts in the past have shown almost no desire to review those cases, and they have accepted virtually anything as an intelligible standard,” said Douglas Kmiec, a law professor at Pepperdine University.
The deadline for the government to file its response, originally also set for Thursday, has been extended to mid-May, making it unlikely that the court will hear the case before it breaks for the summer.
In the meantime, the fence will continue to go up; DHS is projecting completion by the end of 2008.
The only other immediate option for outraged lawmakers would be a congressional repeal of the waiver. Raúl M. Grijalva, D-Ariz., submitted legislation (HR 2593) last June to enact such a repeal. It is still awaiting review in the Homeland Security Committee’s Border, Maritime and Global Counterterrorism Subcommittee, with no plans to bring it up for a vote anytime soon.
http://www.nationaljournal.com/njonline/
One of the many annoyances about living in George W. Bush’s Washington is to read the commentaries about the Iraq War on the editorial pages of the Washington Post. Possibly never in modern times has a major newspaper been more wrong, more consistently with more arrogance than has the Post on this vital issue…. more
Documents Describe Murder And Torture Of Prisoners In U.S. Custody
http://www.aclu.org/safefree/torture/34923prs20080416.html
State Impeachment Petitions
By Daily Kos(Daily Kos)
We are checking this out with the Rules Committee chair. In the meantime, contact your own local state representative to submit a state petition to urge Congress to begin Impeachment proceedings.
Daily Kos - http://www.dailykos.com/section/Diary
http://www.shirley08.com/pelosi_afraid.mp3
We Have All The Ingredients For Impeachment
By Ed. Dickau(Ed. Dickau)
http://www.democrats.com/impeach-for-torture. Dr. Martin Luther King famously said of the Vietnam War, "A time comes when silence is betrayal." When our President and Vice President personally approve torture, that time is now. Dear ed. ...
The Impeachment Hearing Room - http://theimpeachmenthearingroom.blogspot.com/
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/
Following The Bush Administration Torture Trail: Were War Crimes ...
By Shaun Mullen
Haynes would later describe him to the Senate Judiciary Committee, during his failed confirmation hearings for a judgeship in 2006, as "an aggressive major general." The techniques were not imposed or encouraged by Washington , which ...
KIKO'S HOUSE - http://kikoshouse.blogspot.com/
http://www.signonsandiego.com/index.xml
UPDATE: Nancy Pelosi talks about receiving Communion at Papal Mass
By bspaul
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she felt very comfortable taking Communion during the Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI, who has said supporters of abortion rights should not receive Communion. ...
Blog Entries - http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla
Spontaneous Confession by Nancy Pelosi!!!
By Angela M.(Angela M.)
Nancy Pelosi: Bless me Father for I have sinned. I advocated abortion but now I know I was wrong, dead wrong. I also committed many other mortal sins by flouting the authority of Holy Mother Church. I committed ^$*#$, *&%#, and @#$^%&. ...
AND Charlie Gibson Was Doing So Nicely On The Woo Issue…
If you missed the Democratic presidential debate on ABC Wednesday night, Editor & Publisher called it "perhaps the most embarrassing performance by the media in a major presidential debate in years."
Moderators George Stephanopoulos and Charlie Gibson spent the first 50 minutes obsessed with distractions that only political insiders care about--gaffes, polling numbers, the stale Rev. Wright story, and the old-news Bosnia story. And, channeling Karl Rove, they directed a video question to Barack Obama asking if he loves the American flag or not. Seriously!
I just signed a petition to ABC and other media that says: "Debate moderators abuse the public trust every time they ask trivial questions about gaffes and 'gotchas' that only political insiders care about. Enough with the distractions--ABC and other networks must focus on issues that affect people's daily lives."
Want to sign it too? We need a bunch of signers for ABC to take this concern seriously.
Click here to sign:
http://pol.moveon.org/enoughdistractions/?r_by=12456-7684900-5veGdA&rc=confemail
What Clinton wishes she could say
http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=news-000002706520
http://news.yahoo.com/page/election-2008-political-pulse-obama-gains
CBS) Most students attending four-year colleges and universities in Pennsylvania are enthusiastic about voting in the presidential campaign, according to a poll conducted by CBS News and UWIRE, and Barack Obama is the overwhelming favorite among those who intend to vote in the Democratic primary.
Among Pennsylvania students who will vote or have voted in a Democratic primary in any state, Obama leads Hillary Rodham Clinton 71 percent to 28 percent, and among those who intend to vote in the Pennsylvania primary, Obama leads by a nearly identical margin of 71 percent to 29 percent. Support for Obama is consistent across types and sizes of schools.
The Hits Just Keep On Comin'
CNSNews.com - Alexandria,VA,USA
"Most of the super delegates said they wanted to wait for the results of at least the next major primaries -- in Pennsylvania on Tuesday and Indiana and ...
Philadelphia suburbs hold key to Pa. primary
The Associated Press -
For Obama, who leads in the number of delegates needed to secure the nomination, a victory here would pierce Clinton's claim that he can't win primaries in ...
See all stories on this topic
The First 21st-Century Campaign
National Journal - Washington,DC,USA
But Democratic operatives, watching the tidal wave of participation in the party’s primaries and caucuses, are growing increasingly confident that the ...
See all stories on this topic
Did Republicans Elect America's First Black President?
Our First Black President?
http://www.thelastminuteblog.com/2008/04/14/jon-stewart-interviews-president-bush/
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