The Discerning Texan

Labels: Democrat Sabotage, Sedition, Treachery, Treason, Unbridled Partisanship

A Washington source writes:

An outrage was committed on the House floor tonight. I still can't quite believe what happened.

While voting on a motion to recommit for the agricultural appropriations legislation, the presiding chair (who is a Democrat member) gaveled the vote closed. The tally was clear and the vote was over. The Republicans had won. Then, realizing what had happened - the Dems allowed just their people to keep voting to change the result. Let's be clear, this wasn't holding the vote open - they changed the results of a vote that was legally declared over.

Rep. Eric Cantor wrote a blog post describing what happened.

This is an insult to our democracy, something that Stalin would recognize. It is an unprecedented violation of our democracy that can not be allowed to stand. Do we live in a democracy or a dictatorship?

And, what was so important that the Dems went to all this trouble -- it was a vote to ensure that illegal immigrants couldn't get taxpayer funding in the agriculture bill. The Dems are so opposed to this, that they would violate our democracy.

We need to spread the word. The American People need to know what is happening in their government.

As Drudge would say--Developing...

In a massive flare-up of partisan tensions (video link courtesy Breitbart.tv), Republicans walked out on a House vote late Thursday night to protest what they believed to be Democratic maneuvers to reverse an unfavorable outcome for them.

The flap represents a complete breakdown in parliamentary procedure and an unprecedented low for the sometimes bitterly divided chamber.

The rancor erupted shortly before 11 p.m. as Rep. Michael R. McNulty (D-N.Y.) gaveled close the vote on a standard procedural measure with the outcome still in doubt.

Details remain fuzzy, but numerous Republicans argued afterward that they had secured a 215-213 win on their motion to bar undocumented immigrants from receiving any federal funds apportioned in the agricultural spending bill for employment or rental assistance. Democrats, however, argued the measure was deadlocked at 214-214 and failed, members and aides on both sides of the aisle said afterward.

One GOP aide saw McNulty gavel the vote to a close after receiving a signal from his leaders – but before reading the official tally. And votes continued to shift even after he closed the roll call - a strange development in itself.

Whatever the final tally, acrimony quickly exploded between lawmakers on either side of the aisle as Democratic leaders tried to plot a solution, while parliamentarians on either side argued over protocol.

Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) eventually offered a motion to reconsider, according to floor staff on either side, ostensibly giving members a chance to recast their votes. But the maneuver sparked a chorus of angry protests from the Republicans, yelling “shame” on Democrats, while they returned fire with angry volleys of their own.

When Democrats finally moved to consider the spending bill as the last vote of the night, furious Republicans left the chamber en masse to protest the maneuver. The House eventually recessed at 11:18 p.m. But Republicans quickly discovered that there was no longer any record of the controversial vote and immediately charged Democrats with erasing the bad result.

“Obviously, the Democrats don’t want to stand up against illegal immigration – so much so that they’re willing to cheat in order to win a vote,” Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) said in an e-mail. “They’re desperate – and it shows.”

The official House website did not show a record of the vote as of 1 a.m. Friday.

Labels: Congress, Democrat Sabotage, Illegal Immigration, Unbridled Partisanship

While my wife and I watched news footage of the Minneapolis bridge collapse last night, many thoughts went through my mind. One thought that never occurred to me, however, was "How could I make political hay out of this tragedy?"

Not so with Nick Coleman, the loyal Democratic party hack who writes a column for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Less than twelve hours after the bridge went down, Coleman had in print a column blaming the collapse on Governor Tim Pawlenty and all others who oppose tax increases. (No one but Pawlenty was mentioned by name.) How was the governor responsible for this tragedy? A few months ago, he vetoed a five-cent a gallon tax increase. Of course, Coleman has to admit that this veto had nothing to do with the bridge collapse:

And yes, it would have fallen even if the gas tax had gone through....

Indeed. There was never any money in any transportation bill to replace the 35W Mississippi River Bridge, because no one ever thought it was necessary. And this year's budget is obviously irrelevant to a bridge that would take years to design and build, even if that had been considered appropriate.

Read the whole thing. Disgusting.

Labels: Democrat, Media Bias, Minneapolis bridge tragedy, Unbridled Partisanship

HUME: There was, of course, also a hearing in the House today on the Scooter Libby sentence commutation, in which the likes of Joe Wilson, whose role in this is well known, testified. Did either of these hearings go anywhere?

KONDRAKE, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, ROLL CALL: No. And, you know, the public looks at Washington and sees nothing getting done. No immigration bill, none of the other problems being solved. But what it does see is more partisan harangues, and this was more partisan haranguing. The Democrats are using their subpoena power to try and their power to hold hearings to try to treat the Bush administration like a pinata.

And, so--and Sara Taylor was the one who got the hits today, and she didn't reveal anything. And they are not going to get anywhere unless the courts say that Executive Privilege does not apply and that these people--

HUME: Is there anything to be gotten?

KONDRAKE: Well, that, we don't know. I mean, they have discovered nothing specifically nefarious that these firings had anything to do with, except, maybe, the failure to prosecute voter fraud cases.

But we done even know--

HUME: The firings were about the failure?

KONDRAKE: Yes.

BILL SAMMON, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, WASHINGTON EXAMINER: The firings, themselves, are perfectly proper and legal, even if they were about the failure of some political--even if Bush said. Look, I don't like these people for political reasons, I'm going to fire them. There is nothing illegal about that.

There is also nothing illegal about him commuting the sentence of Scooter Libby. So both of these, the problem with these two sets of hearings is that there is no illegality.

These are sort of like fishing expeditions, and I agree with Mort in that it gives the public this impression--and, by the way, it is why the public is holding Congress in the lowest esteem in history, because they are not doing anything except investigating. ...

Labels: Democrat Sabotage, Executive Branch, President Bush, Unbridled Partisanship, US Constitution

Labels: Media War, Unbridled Partisanship, US Politics

In one controversy after another, Democrat leaders in the last 40 years have shown themselves almost wholly without any compass other than partisanship.

Nixon obstructed justice to cover up a scandal, Democrats hounded him from office; Clinton did the same thing, Democrats rallied to his defense.

G. Gordon Liddy tried to steal stuff from the DNC, he's a pariah; Sandy Berger successfully stole stuff from the 9/11 Commission, he's a hero.

Ronald Reagan says he wants to reform welfare, he's a racist; Bill Clinton says he wants to reform welfare, he's a visionary.

Sen. Robert Torricelli quits his reelection race in New Jersey, Democrats demand the party replace him with a better candidate; I quit my reelection race in Texas, Democrats demand that Republicans not be given the same opportunity.

Clarence Thomas is incredibly accused of sexual harassment, Democrats fly into a rage; Bill Clinton is credibly accused of sexual assault, Democrats play deaf.

Bill Clinton says Saddam Hussein needs to go, Democrats rattle their sabers; George W. Bush actually does something about it, Democrats howl.

Labels: Democrat Sabotage, Hypocrisy, The Left, Unbridled Partisanship

MORE ON HARRY REID, THE POLITICO, AND THE NETROOTS:

Another interesting undercurrent to this is the contempt of the left-wing bloggers for the Politico, and the Drudge Report, which often links to the site. The story was "based on unsubstantiated, third-party recollection," says Geiger, under the headline "The Politico Fails Journalism 101." "Politico, the online soul-mate to the Drudge Report, has gotten into the habit of creating news stories through innuendo, omission, outright error, and now today, out of thin air," was the line from Kos blogger BarbinMD (is that a professional opinion, doctor?). And the grand wizard of Politico haters once complained that Drudge and the Politico are "poisonously joined at the hip."

Well, for all that griping, it seems the Politico nailed this story, and Drudge just did what he always does--amplify it. Dr. Barbin still contends this is a non-story--though, apparently factually accurate despite protestations to the contrary--because it was just "a throw away line...that Harry Reid said to the unable-to-be-reconfirmed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's face." And Geiger puts off the outrageous statement Reid claims to have made to the senator's "tendency to speak like the straight-talking, former boxer that he is." If it's all true, then Reid's a brave man, but a jerk nonetheless. The other possibility, of course, is that he's full of it and never said any such thing to Pace--in which case, he's still a jerk, but not so stupid as to question the integrity of this nation's highest ranking officer to his face.

The lefty bloggers, for their part, have shown themselves to be totally inept. They failed to report the comments, then they denied Reid ever made them while making their own unsubstantiated allegations, and now they defend the comments as irrelevant--and without even the slightest doubt as to their validity. Which is worse?

Does it matter? And heck, the White House press corps wasn't much better.

Anyway, some people are savoring the madness. And Bill Ardolino has more on the merits of Reid's statements -- or rather, the lack thereof. Dave Price, too.

Labels: Democrat Sabotage, Harry Reid, Unbridled Partisanship, US Senate

Labels: Bush Derangement Syndrome, Congress, Defeatocrats, Democrat, Democrat Sabotage, Unbridled Partisanship

Labels: Democrat Sabotage, National Security, NSA Surveillance, Unbridled Partisanship

Labels: Bush Derangement Syndrome, Democrat, Unbridled Partisanship

Labels: Democrat Sabotage, Justice Department, Unbridled Partisanship, US Attorneys, US Politics