Daily Kos: Parliamentary Procedure: What the hell are they doing in the House?

Daily Kos: Parliamentary Procedure: What the hell are they doing in the House?:

"What you were watching was the result of bringing those appropriations
bills to the floor under 'open' rules -- that is, a special rule controlling
debate, adopted by the House before consideration of the bill itself (called the
'underlying bill'), which essentially allows for an unlimited number of
amendments to be considered. When the opposition party is feeling feisty, they
can gum up the works with literally hundreds of amendments, calling for a vote
on each one. This sometimes leads the majority to consider legislation under a
closed rule, which allows no amendments, or only those pre-approved by the Rules
Committee (usually at the suggestion of the Chair of the committee that wrote
the bill). In between, there are varying types of rules. Modified open rules,
modified closed rules, plus wacky hybrid rules like the King/Queen of the Hill,
which are ridiculous enough that we'll set their discussion aside for
now."

Read this whole post by clicking on the link. It deals with some of the workings of the Congress, something that I think everyone should have some understanding of.

Crooks and Liars » OVP: Our Fourth Branch of Government?

Crooks and Liars » OVP: Our Fourth Branch of Government?:

"On Countdown, Keith Olbermann talks about the startling and deeply disturbing
assertions that the Office of the Vice President is making regarding oversight."

Some great video from Countdown on this.

Crooks and Liars » Guiliani’s SC Campaign Chairman Indicted

Crooks and Liars » Guiliani’s SC Campaign Chairman Indicted:

"The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division has just announced that State
Treasurer Thomas Ravenel has been indicted by federal jury on cocaine
distribution charges. Ravenel, who was elected last fall, was named the
Chairman of presidential candidate Rudy Giualiani’s (R-N.Y.) South Carolina campaign in
April. "

Remember how many times Nixon ran for the White House, and remember what he did with the power once he got it. I see Guiliani failing in this run for the White House, and attempting again in a couple years. His stand on the issues is not right for those on the right, or those on the left. Now it looks like his staff is falling apart as well.

Stephanie Miller: Operation Arrowhead Ripper!!!

Schooling Michael Moore

American Thinker: Prepare to be Sickened by SiCKO

American Thinker: Prepare to be Sickened by SiCKO:

"From start to end, SiCKO, the latest “documentary” from notorious writer
and filmmaker Michael Moore, is a stunning example of the Big Lie. Almost
shockingly devoid of fact and context, it's instead based on highly selective,
emotionally-driven, and deeply flawed anecdotes, strung together by
writer-director-producer Moore's trademark folksy, soft-spoken, whimsical
personal narrative. SiCKO (the unusual capitalization is Moore's conceit)
is not a documentary at all, but a naked propaganda exercise on behalf of
full-bore socialism. A better title for it would be Pinko. "

This is a well written review of the movie and a discussion of the premise of the movie. It is much longer than I have shared, so click on the link to read it all.

Lieberman becomes liberal cash cow - AMERICAblog: A great nation deserves the truth

Lieberman becomes liberal cash cow - AMERICAblog: A great nation deserves the truth:

"This is actually kind of funny. Lieberman is appearing at a fundraiser for
pro-Bush GOP Senator Susan Collins of Maine. As a result, tons of money is
pouring into Collins' opponent, Tom Allen. Hopefully Lieberman will attach
himself to more GOP members this election cycle - he's a walking ATM for our
side."

I think that the targeting of Lieberman is a poor sign of the health of our democracy. There needs to be room in the middle of the political spectrum, I have to say that Lieberman has some courage to attempt to move into the middle. I question how many others are going to be bold enough to take a stand to the extremes.

r blog » weekend fix

r blog » weekend fix

So Rosie is still video blogging, she talks about the roll that she swallowed that is still stuck in her neck. Proclaims that she has no goals for her life and babbles about Broadway show.

Obama’s Challenge | Air America Radio

Obama’s Challenge Air America Radio:

"Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama has revealed 113 earmarks that he has requested while in the Senate. He has called for his challengers to do the same. Click
here to view Obama’s
earmarks."

When you work for a corporation, and you spend their money they want to know where and how each penny was spent. I don't see why it should be any different with the American peoples money. The information should be available to everyone who is asking for how much money to buy what. This is something that the American people want to know, well if you can slip it in between American Idol and Dances with Stars, or add it to your MySpace profile.

Cheney Power Grab: Says White House Rules Don't Apply to Him

The Blotter: Cheney Power Grab: Says White House Rules Don't Apply to Him

"Vice President Dick Cheney has asserted his office is not a part of the
executive branch of the U.S. government, and therefore not bound by a
presidential order governing the protection of classified information by
government agencies, according to a new letter from Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif.,
to Cheney.
Bill Leonard, head of the government's Information Security
Oversight Office (ISOO), told Waxman's staff that Cheney's office has refused to
provide his staff with details regarding classified documents or submit to a
routine inspection as required by presidential order, according to Waxman.
In pointed letters released today by Waxman, ISOO's Leonard twice questioned
Cheney's office on its assertion it was exempt from the rules. He received no
reply, but the vice president later tried to get rid of Leonard's office
entirely, according to Waxman."

Ok if he is not a part of the presidents office, why does he use the defense of executive privilege when it suits his needs to do so. This is a simple and blatant abuse of power, I think the Cheney took the office of Vice President with this sort of abuse of power in mind. He knew that the office operated with little public attention, which would allow him to exercise broad authority without oversight. I don't know if it can be done, or how it could be done,but I think steps should be taken to limit the power of the office of Vice President. Cheney has run a parallel administration, which is wrong.