On Wednesday July 11, 2007, Senate Dems unanimously voted for Joe Lieberman’s amendment (SA 2073 – H.R. 1585) to the Defense Appropriations bill. While seemingly innocuous, I believe the Dems were wrong to support an amendment that clearly could be used to justify an attack on Iran. The amendment is essentially a requirement that the commander of forces in Iraq and the US Ambassador to Iraq report to the Congress on Iran’s support of attacks on coalition forces in Iraq. Contrary to how it was described at Think Progress, the amendment did not “censure Iran.” However, the amendment is disturbing and should have been rejected because it essentially asserts that Congress has found that Iran is at war with the United States.
The bottom line is that, at this point, Dems should reject any proposal that could conceivably be used by this administration and its neocon allies in and outside the Administration and the Congress to justify an attack on Iran. There are several reasons why Dems should have voted against this amendment (or at the very least prevented a vote from occurring):
1. As Dover Bitch wrote at Hullabaloo, consider the source. Does anyone believe that after he has already declared that the US needs to use force against Iran, that Mr. Lieberman simply wants a fact-based report on Iranian activities in Iraq? The simple fact that Lieberman proposed the amendment should raise red flags about how it might be used.
2. There are grave and serious indications that members of this administration have been and are still hell-bent on attacking Iran.
* Exhibit A: Seymour Hersh, Scott Ritter, and others have reported and attempted to document the fact that the U.S. is already at war with Iran and is conducting covert operations inside the country and engaging in other activities to destabilize the regime.
* Exhibit B: The Guardian newspaper reported that the U.S. offered to take one of several military actions against Iran in response to the detention of 15 British soldiers back in March of this year.
* Exhibit C: More recently, the Guardian reported that Cheney is pressuring Bush and other administration officials to take military action against Iran and quoted a “well-placed” Washington source as saying that: “Bush is not going to leave office with Iran still in limbo.”
* Exhibit D: We know that the administration previously sought the authority to attack Iran in the 2002 authorization to use force in Iraq.
3. The Democrats must not have learned the lesson of the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force, which the Bush administration has used as a justification for Guatanamo, torture, and anything else it wants to do in the name of the global war on terror. Clearly, this administration is willing to use whatever it can to justify the actions it wants to take. In this instance, Bush would not even have to argue that the amendment "authorized" taking military action against Iran, he could simply point to the findings section as evidence that Iran is taking killing members of the U.S. armed forces as a justification for attacking Iran and could paint all the Democrats as having agreed to this fact by their unanimous support for the amendment.
4. It is important to note the questionable validity of the “findings” to which the Senate Dems agreed as fact. There have been conflicting reports and statements about the quality of the evidence and the level of confidence that the U.S has about reports of Iran’s involvement in attacks on U.S. soldiers in Iraq. To concede that the government of Iran is sponsoring attacks on U.S. forces without better intelligence is potentially dangerous. Most disturbingly, however, the findings in support of the amendment, and specifically those citing the explicit knowledge and tacit support of the highest levels of the Iranian government, are from Brig. Gen. Kevin J. Bergner. Via sourcewatch we learn:
Kevin J. Bergner was named February 3, 2006, by President George W. Bush as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Iraq. Brigadier General Bergner recently served as Deputy Director of Political-Military Affairs (Middle East) at the Department of Defense. He received his bachelor's degree from Trinity University and his master's degree from City University of New York.
Berger left the White House and became spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq in early June, giving every indication that his statements on the role of Iran in attacking U.S. forces in Iraq come from the White House.
So what could the Dems have been thinking?
It is possible that they assumed that the amendment was a transparent call for up-to-date information on Iran’s actions and intentions with regards to Iraq. However, such an assumption clearly gives too much credit to Lieberman and most Senate Republicans who would not shy away from an attack on Iran, and it is extremely dangerous for all the reasons cited above.
Quite possibly, they feared more Republican attacks on their national security credentials and repeated claims that they are so weak on defense that they would not even authorize reports on Iranian attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq. If this is the case, it would be awfully lame that they could be so fearful and that they would find it too tough to fight off such criticism over a vote on this amendment.
Perhaps they figured that Bush is likely to do whatever he wants to with regards to an attack on Iran and that whatever justification he could find in this amendment would be irrelevant. Or perhaps they took solace in the section of the amendment that declared that “Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize or otherwise speak to the use of Armed Forces against Iran.” The former is too cynical and the latter to naïve to even contemplate.
Finally, I guess it is not out of the question that Dems voted for the amendment because they plan to use section (C), which requires that the report also include information on counter-strategy and US efforts to counter Iran, as a means of exposing any clandestine U.S. operations inside Iran as a means of preventing an attack on the country. That couldn’t be it, could it?
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Monday, July 16, 2007
Dems and the F-word; I guess Harry Reid got the memo.
Just the other day I wrote a message to some of the democratic strategists I know asking why the Dems, and Senate Dems in particular, were not making a bigger stink about the Republicans obstructing business in the Senate.
Mind you, I was not the only one beginning to make this argument. But in any case, the message went something like this:
Would someone tell the Democrats (especially in the Senate) to start using the F word. No, not that F word, I'm talking about FILLIBUSTER.
McConnell is over there preventing the Senate from conducting any business. Even the most routine piece of legislation is being put to a cloture vote.
Americans are critical of the Congress for not getting anything done, but they don't know that it's because Senate Republicans are being obstructionists. The favorability ratings for the Democratic Congress are in the tank and they need to do something about it ASAP.
1. Dems cannot rely on the press to call this BS what it is. Now that the Dems are in control, the press has forgotten the word filibuster. Dems need to be making a big stink out of Republican obstructionism and letting people know they are essentially filibustering every piece of legislation that comes before the Senate.
2. Reid needs to stand tall and force Republicans to actually filibuster a bill, rather than kill it in a cloture vote. Obviously, he can't do this all the time, but if McConnell wants to filibuster, actually make him do it. Keep debate open and make Republicans be on the floor all through the damn night reading from the phonebook or the bible or whatever. Let's create some nice visuals to show the people what is going on in the Senate.
3. This doesn't have to be the job of just the Senate Dems either. House Dems should be shouting from the roof tops that they’ve have passed several important pieces of legislation that they can't get an up or down vote (remember that phrase!), because of Republican's obstructionism and their filibustering every bill.
Well, it appears Harry Reid got the memo or at least the message. Earlier today he announced his intention to keep the debate open and force the Senate to remain in session on Tuesday (and into Wednesday or presumably longer if need be) to force an up or down vote on the Reid/Levin Iraq withdrawal legislation.
From Reid’s speech:
Republicans are using a filibuster to block us from even voting on an amendment that could bring the war to a responsible end. They are protecting the President rather than protecting our troops.
They are denying us an up or down — yes or no — vote on the most important issue our country faces.
I would like to inform the Republican leadership and all my colleagues that we have no intention of backing down.
If Republicans do not allow a vote on Levin/Reed today or tomorrow, we will work straight through the night on Tuesday.
The American people deserve an open and honest debate on this war, and they deserve an up or down vote on this amendment to end it.
Given that the Republicans have all but declared that they plan to continue to use cloture votes to prevent the Dems from passing any meaningful legislation (more on that later), it looks like this won’t be the last time Reid will want to resort to this measure.
Mind you, I was not the only one beginning to make this argument. But in any case, the message went something like this:
Would someone tell the Democrats (especially in the Senate) to start using the F word. No, not that F word, I'm talking about FILLIBUSTER.
McConnell is over there preventing the Senate from conducting any business. Even the most routine piece of legislation is being put to a cloture vote.
Americans are critical of the Congress for not getting anything done, but they don't know that it's because Senate Republicans are being obstructionists. The favorability ratings for the Democratic Congress are in the tank and they need to do something about it ASAP.
1. Dems cannot rely on the press to call this BS what it is. Now that the Dems are in control, the press has forgotten the word filibuster. Dems need to be making a big stink out of Republican obstructionism and letting people know they are essentially filibustering every piece of legislation that comes before the Senate.
2. Reid needs to stand tall and force Republicans to actually filibuster a bill, rather than kill it in a cloture vote. Obviously, he can't do this all the time, but if McConnell wants to filibuster, actually make him do it. Keep debate open and make Republicans be on the floor all through the damn night reading from the phonebook or the bible or whatever. Let's create some nice visuals to show the people what is going on in the Senate.
3. This doesn't have to be the job of just the Senate Dems either. House Dems should be shouting from the roof tops that they’ve have passed several important pieces of legislation that they can't get an up or down vote (remember that phrase!), because of Republican's obstructionism and their filibustering every bill.
Well, it appears Harry Reid got the memo or at least the message. Earlier today he announced his intention to keep the debate open and force the Senate to remain in session on Tuesday (and into Wednesday or presumably longer if need be) to force an up or down vote on the Reid/Levin Iraq withdrawal legislation.
From Reid’s speech:
Republicans are using a filibuster to block us from even voting on an amendment that could bring the war to a responsible end. They are protecting the President rather than protecting our troops.
They are denying us an up or down — yes or no — vote on the most important issue our country faces.
I would like to inform the Republican leadership and all my colleagues that we have no intention of backing down.
If Republicans do not allow a vote on Levin/Reed today or tomorrow, we will work straight through the night on Tuesday.
The American people deserve an open and honest debate on this war, and they deserve an up or down vote on this amendment to end it.
Given that the Republicans have all but declared that they plan to continue to use cloture votes to prevent the Dems from passing any meaningful legislation (more on that later), it looks like this won’t be the last time Reid will want to resort to this measure.
Coming Attractions
Expect to see posts soon about Iraq, the F-word (filibuster), the L-word (lying), the I-Word (impeachment), Dems and the media, framing science, and the political brain.
Inaugural Post – If You Are Not Outraged, You Are Not Paying Attention
Welcome to Pol-Em-Ical and the first ever post at this site. Referencing the aforementioned slogan seemed appropriate, as it is the numerous and continuous outrages of the Bush Administration (and often the lack of an effective Democratic response) that compelled me to launch this blog. I am outraged, usually on a daily basis.
Never has there been such a time in my recent memory, where the need to express outrage so great, where the need to speak truth to power so urgent, and where the need to stand up and hold people to account and to demand change so important. The list of affronts to what’s right and what’s best for this country perpetrated by the current Administration is so long as to be mind boggling. This group’s failures would be funny if they weren’t so tragic and so serious. Unfortunately, for all of us and for future generations, a list like the one below is deadly serious not only for the health and well being of Americans, but for the heart and soul of America. Just look at what is by no means an exhaustive list of the outrages of the last 6 years----
The lies, distortions, and manipulation of public debate that lead us into an illegal, immoral, and unjust war with Iraq.
The criminal incompetence and dereliction of duty in preparing for and managing the post war conflict, which all but guaranteed Iraq’s slide into chaos and the current sectarian civil war.
The current occupation of Iraq, which fuels the insurgency and guarantees more dead and wounded Amerian soldiers as well as innocent Iraqi civilians.
The litany of actions that have made America LESS SAFE. The invasion and occupation of Iraq; the abuses and coverup at Abu Grahib; the dention facility at Guantanamo; the authorization of torture; the use extraordinary rendition and secret prisons; and the indiscriminate bombing of civilians in Afghanistan, which have served as a rallying cry for jihadists, served a recruiting boon for new terrorists, and are partly responsible for the increase in global terrorism in recent years. Combine these factors with administration’s failure to ensure victory against the Taliban in Afghanistan; the failure to capture or kill Osama Bin Laden and senior al Qaeda leadership; the failure to secure our ports, borders, railways and chemical facilities; the weakening of our standing with allies and our moral authority in the international community; and the fact that our military is stretched to the breaking point in Iraq, and it becomes obvious that the Bush administration has made America much more vulnerable to terrorism for decades to come.
The disregard for American values and principles through vastly expanded surveillance authorities in the Patriot Act; illegal, warrant-less, domestic wire-tapping; extensive use of national security letters; the suspension of habeas corpus; the authorization of torture; the indefinite detention of American citizens without being charged with a crime; and the commuting of Scooter Libby’ sentence.
The politicization of every single aspect of government, including the disclosure of intelligence and the leaking of the identity of covert CIA agents; the refusal to fire the dishonest and inept Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, the firing of the US Attorneys, the gutting of the Civil Rights division, and the pursuit of bogus voter fraud cases; the silencing of government officials and scientists from James Hansen at NASA regarding climate change to Surgeon General Carmona regarding stem cells, emergency contraception, and sex education; the manipulation of scientific reports and information on global warming, stem cell research, the air at ground zero, endangered species, second-hand tobacco smoke, etc; the packing of federal agencies with loyal Bushies and the ideological and personal loyalty litmus tests for appointees; and the election-time political “briefings” to employees at federal agencies by Karl Rove and other members of the White House political office
The arrogance, hubris, and willful defiance of the law, the separation of powers, and Congressional oversight including, the unitary theory of the executive and repeated attempts to place the President above the law; the domestic spying in violation of FISA; Bush’s presidential signing statements that allow him to ignore laws or parts of law that he doesn’t like; Cheney’s refusal to follow the executive order on classified materials; Cheney’s creation of a special “secret” designation for mundane government and political materials; the assertion of executive privilege over everything, including the firing of US Attorneys, the testimony by former White House employees, and even the facts about the death of Pat Tillman; the commutation of Scooter Libby’s sentence; and Cheney’s refusal to disclose information on the energy task force.
The debasement of our political discourse, including the cultivation of fear amongst the public as a singular electoral strategy; the shameless and manipulative exploitation of 9/11 to rally support for a failed "stay the course" strategy and to deflect substantive questions about the best strategies to combat terrorism; the branding of anyone who disagrees as a traitor; the blatant lying; and the insistence on spinning absolultey everything.
The steadfast refusal to take any meaningful action on global warming while signing an energy bill loaded with massive tax breaks for the oil companies during a time when they are earning record profits.
And let’s not forget the failure to protect Americans from natural disaster and the stunning and tragic incompetence in addressing the threat posed by the Gulf Coast Hurricanes, and the inadequate and unjust response that continues to this day.
Never has there been such a time in my recent memory, where the need to express outrage so great, where the need to speak truth to power so urgent, and where the need to stand up and hold people to account and to demand change so important. The list of affronts to what’s right and what’s best for this country perpetrated by the current Administration is so long as to be mind boggling. This group’s failures would be funny if they weren’t so tragic and so serious. Unfortunately, for all of us and for future generations, a list like the one below is deadly serious not only for the health and well being of Americans, but for the heart and soul of America. Just look at what is by no means an exhaustive list of the outrages of the last 6 years----
The lies, distortions, and manipulation of public debate that lead us into an illegal, immoral, and unjust war with Iraq.
The criminal incompetence and dereliction of duty in preparing for and managing the post war conflict, which all but guaranteed Iraq’s slide into chaos and the current sectarian civil war.
The current occupation of Iraq, which fuels the insurgency and guarantees more dead and wounded Amerian soldiers as well as innocent Iraqi civilians.
The litany of actions that have made America LESS SAFE. The invasion and occupation of Iraq; the abuses and coverup at Abu Grahib; the dention facility at Guantanamo; the authorization of torture; the use extraordinary rendition and secret prisons; and the indiscriminate bombing of civilians in Afghanistan, which have served as a rallying cry for jihadists, served a recruiting boon for new terrorists, and are partly responsible for the increase in global terrorism in recent years. Combine these factors with administration’s failure to ensure victory against the Taliban in Afghanistan; the failure to capture or kill Osama Bin Laden and senior al Qaeda leadership; the failure to secure our ports, borders, railways and chemical facilities; the weakening of our standing with allies and our moral authority in the international community; and the fact that our military is stretched to the breaking point in Iraq, and it becomes obvious that the Bush administration has made America much more vulnerable to terrorism for decades to come.
The disregard for American values and principles through vastly expanded surveillance authorities in the Patriot Act; illegal, warrant-less, domestic wire-tapping; extensive use of national security letters; the suspension of habeas corpus; the authorization of torture; the indefinite detention of American citizens without being charged with a crime; and the commuting of Scooter Libby’ sentence.
The politicization of every single aspect of government, including the disclosure of intelligence and the leaking of the identity of covert CIA agents; the refusal to fire the dishonest and inept Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, the firing of the US Attorneys, the gutting of the Civil Rights division, and the pursuit of bogus voter fraud cases; the silencing of government officials and scientists from James Hansen at NASA regarding climate change to Surgeon General Carmona regarding stem cells, emergency contraception, and sex education; the manipulation of scientific reports and information on global warming, stem cell research, the air at ground zero, endangered species, second-hand tobacco smoke, etc; the packing of federal agencies with loyal Bushies and the ideological and personal loyalty litmus tests for appointees; and the election-time political “briefings” to employees at federal agencies by Karl Rove and other members of the White House political office
The arrogance, hubris, and willful defiance of the law, the separation of powers, and Congressional oversight including, the unitary theory of the executive and repeated attempts to place the President above the law; the domestic spying in violation of FISA; Bush’s presidential signing statements that allow him to ignore laws or parts of law that he doesn’t like; Cheney’s refusal to follow the executive order on classified materials; Cheney’s creation of a special “secret” designation for mundane government and political materials; the assertion of executive privilege over everything, including the firing of US Attorneys, the testimony by former White House employees, and even the facts about the death of Pat Tillman; the commutation of Scooter Libby’s sentence; and Cheney’s refusal to disclose information on the energy task force.
The debasement of our political discourse, including the cultivation of fear amongst the public as a singular electoral strategy; the shameless and manipulative exploitation of 9/11 to rally support for a failed "stay the course" strategy and to deflect substantive questions about the best strategies to combat terrorism; the branding of anyone who disagrees as a traitor; the blatant lying; and the insistence on spinning absolultey everything.
The steadfast refusal to take any meaningful action on global warming while signing an energy bill loaded with massive tax breaks for the oil companies during a time when they are earning record profits.
And let’s not forget the failure to protect Americans from natural disaster and the stunning and tragic incompetence in addressing the threat posed by the Gulf Coast Hurricanes, and the inadequate and unjust response that continues to this day.
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