Wednesday, October 9, 2013

"And If It Was A Secret Vote..."

Peter King (R) of New York says 150 house republicans would vote for a clean CR "If it was a secret vote."

Voice of the Mountain

by Shawn K. Inlow

The Mountain doesn't often agree with U.S. Representative Peter King (R) of New York.  But in recent comments, King has reiterated something that you, dear reader, need to appreciate.

In the October 6 New York Times article, Boehner Hews to Hard Line in Demanding Concessions from Obama, Rep. King said this:

“I’m positive that a clean C.R. would pass ... If it went on the floor tomorrow, I could see anywhere from 50 to 75 Republicans voting for it,” he added. “And if it were a secret ballot, 150.” 

Let's think about this for a moment, shall we?  King is saying that 50 to 70 republicans are brave enough to openly support a "clean" continuing resolution to end the government shutdown.  "Clean" meaning a resolution that didn't come with any Tea Party demands about defunding the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as "Obamacare."

With 200 democrats ready to vote for a clean CR, the vote would pass with only 18 republicans standing up for common sense.  Yet Speaker John Boehner (R) of Ohio says those votes don't exist and will not bring such a vote to the floor.

But here's the good stuff, and it's the thing The Mountain has been pointing to for the last two days:  King continues to say that 150 republicans would vote for a clean CR to fund the government "If it were a secret ballot."

Snorting Koch: Douche-Bags Trying to Purchase Government
King is admitting the obvious.  House republicans, including John Boehner, are afraid of these guys: Charles and David Koch.  The Super Koch Bros.  The billionaire funders of all things Tea-Party and the emissaries of the downfall of respectable conservatism.

Any republican caught off the Tea Party farm can expect a wholly owned Koch Bros subsidiary with unlimited funding in his next primary.  This IS happening.  This is not your dad's republican party anymore.

What we are dealing with here, and what we've been talking about this week... I promise tomorrow we're going to talk about something else... is that Charles and David Koch are literally overthrowing the government with unlimited money.  And the fight that has to happen is inside the republican party.  Either the Kochs win or the dying breed of republican moderates who used to be able to WIN elections without rigging them will out.  Someone needs to grow some balls and have that fight.

So let's go ball-hunting by looking at the U.S. House of Representatives from the area around The Mountain.

I saw Glenn Thompson from Pennsylvania's 5th district on CSPAN this morning.  Maybe Glenn would show some balls.  But looking at his campaign funding over at Open Secrets.org one quickly notes that Glenn lives in the fossil fuel sector and lookie there, Koch Industries is among his top ten donors.

Glenn got up on the floor of the House this morning and spewed some shit about being a good scout and leaving the world better for those who come later.  Then he read two letters, one from Jefferson County and one from DuBois about the evils of Obamacare.

Super.

I was looking at Bill Shuster's page and see that the leaf doesn't fall too far from the tree.  He's setting himself up nicely as the chair of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and he's raking in contributions from the transportation sector.  He's got it too good and I don't think we're gonna see Congressman Shuster pick a fight with the Super Koch Bros.

You just can't get good help these days.

I wonder if Mr. Thompson or Mr. Shuster would vote in secret for a clean continuing resolution to fund the government.  What would their position be if they knew the Koch Bros wouldn't find out?  I wonder if they'd care about the damage to my savings and pension as the market tanks because of the Koch Bros greedy aims.  I wonder, is Pennsylvania's republican delegation a pack of men or cowards?

I'm betting on cowards.  Or henchmen.  Each and every one of them.

10 comments:

  1. The ax wings in both directions. The Republicans have the Koch brothers and the Democrats have George Soros and the result has been the elimination of most moderates in both parties. Both parties now spend more time concerned on how something will affect the voters than on doing what is best for the country.

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    1. JAL. Pleased to meet you. And you're correct about all the money. But I really don't see someone like Soros going as hard at the game as the Kochs. I see these guys as taking full advantage of Citizens' United. I am a left leaning independent and have split my ticket more often than not, especially locally. But at this rate, if they're gonna threaten every sensible man in their party, their party is going to get harder and harder to the right until - and we're nearly there - there is no room to compromise. I see democrats generally open to compromise. Not so much on the republican side.

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    2. interesting reply shawn, you are ecactly what is wrong with this country. as long as soros is doing the same thing for your party it's ok, but wrong for the other side to do the same. as for your attack on the tea party, do you know what the tea party stands for? ( i don't want to hear the chris matthews version, i want your personal experience version). have you been to a local tea party meeting? these people are your friends and neighbors, people who want nothing more than the us government to abide by the constitution and its rules for running this country. if you studied the constitution and actually believed in it you would be screaming at this administration (as well as the past administrations) for pissing all over it. the 2 party system has ruined this country and caaused a great division. if you step back and look at both parties, they are the same. when in power they both raise taxes, grow government, start wars and reduce our liberties as well as raid our pocketbooks. the 2 parties compromise very well, their goal is to enslave the working class and they are doing so with our blessing.

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    3. Interesting reply, Anonymous. You know, your words have more credibility when you put your name to them.

      Yes. I am what's wrong with this country. Of course. Who ARE you? A troll? A paid lobbyist? And since when is billionaire George Soros standing for me. And MY party? Soros, I'm sure, gives lots to lefty causes, but he is still a super rich capitalist. What the Super Koch Bros. are doing is actually purchasing the democracy so they can have freedom FROM the democracy.

      And let's face it. If you don't know who is behind the Tea Party funding and all the fake "astro-turf" citizens' groups, then you're either a dupe or one of the people funding and driving the operation.

      I have many good friends of all political stripes that I agree and disagree with. I have many friends who admire the ideas that go into tea partying. I go to church with dear friends for whom, for instance, their vote is uniformly pro-life. Yet we walk a mile together and appreciate and love one another.

      I am what's wrong with this country. Of course. It was me all along.

      Members of my family are republicans. Members of my family are democrats. Members of my family are independent like me. Members of my family almost uniformly give a shit, one way or the other.

      What galls me is that you've got members of the Tea Party who deny climate science while our cities are drowning and the American west is literally on fire. While the ocean ice in the arctic circle is GONE. While Colorado is getting slaughtered by flooding. While ranchers in the upper west suddenly find their livestock buried alive under four feet of a snow anomaly.

      What galls me is that you've got republican members of congress on the science committee who deny science. What galls me is that folks like Rupert Murdoch and his media empire feed these untrue things in the republican mind, stoking ignorance and damaging the world for the rest of us. THEY and their ilk, like the villainous Super Koch Bros. are what's wrong with the country.

      Oh, the Constitution! Hold it up and wave it around why don't you? As if rich slave owners from 300 years ago knew it all and saw it all coming. The constitution only exists as far as the Super Koch Bros. can strangle it and change it to work for them. I worked as a journalist and as a police officer. I have actually studied the constitution. I've studied investigative thinking and objective fact. And what's happening in this country -- and we can agree on some things here -- the surveilance state, drone strikes, black site prisons, Gitmo, the electronic search and seizure of all data in our country, is only exacerbated by the kind of ignorance so many Tea Party folks seem so proud of.

      Sure the government spends too much. That needs fixed. Sure the American health care system is a fiscal nightmare. That needs fixed. But while you fiddle about it, while people like you, Anonymous, strive for a government shutdown and default, critical things are not getting fixed. The US and the perpetual war machine continue to race the globe toward environmental Armageddon, ruining the world for our kids.

      And you're worried about the debt. What these Ted Cruz types are doing is ... like the title on my prior posts indicates.. dicking with my money. They're messing with my savings. My funds that I've saved are at risk in a market collapse. And what is going to happen as the corporate world continues to suck the life out of the democracy - for profit while the world burns - will be real class warfare.

      And by then, the constitution won't even apply anymore.

      Thanks for posting. I appreciate all comments and thoughtful readership.

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    4. I didn't create a login so I just entered as anonymous. My name is john dellantonio, and you completely missed the point. If you are going to complain about the koch brothers running the tea party, then you should complain about Soros running the dems. But you don't you made an excuse for him. You still didn't answer what you thought the tea party stood for. BTW didn't you as a police officer take an oath to uphold the constitution? Funny that you should disparage it and act like you know more than those slave owners who created the constitution! BTW they were allowed by British law to have slaves it wasn't a whole american idea, plus they, in their genius, left ways to legally correct over sites or mistakes that they may have made. Youn must be related to all gore with the global warming rant. Please look up the us national snow and ice data. Since 2007 article ice has increased by 26%. Please be more careful with your journalism degree. If you weren't aware the earths climate runs in cycles. I was in Colorado hunting last year and they were in a severe drought, thin year provided much relief from that , however I'm sure they didn't want floods. If you knew the constitution then your last 2 paragraphs would be solved by simply following the constitution, it severely limits the power of the federal government and gives more to the states and most to the people. But you already knew that. Finally like I stated both parties have screwed this country up, while voters for both parties cheered for them, so if you think the dems or republican scan or will fix anything, then you are part of the problem.

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  2. Hi Shawn,

    I'm one of those who know you as Wabbit Season. I haven't had a chance to read this one yet, but the last one was right on. I also wanted to say that I've seen your blogging behavior at that other place to be complete apolitical, which is entirely appropriate in that context. It's just the way people tend to react that can be problematic.

    I also loosely coordinate a blog which features several other progressive voices but we tend to be extremely eclectic; commenting on music, movies, philosophy, politics, whatever. Stop by sometime. You'd find yourself welcome there. I go by Max, an old stage name.

    Forbes

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    1. 66. I sure will. I'm an old hand at theater and music as well. Have written and directed plays. Had many, many lead roles over the years. Have been a film critic for local newspapers. This other blog sounds great to me and I'll stop over for sure. Most of my posts are on film, or culture or other things. Some are fiction that I'm trying out to build something for publication. My poem "Dick Cheney" gets a lot of hits. From all over the world. I find using the PBC blog and straight email and facebook does a great job of getting Voice of the Mountain a lot of looks. I get, on average, 300 hits or more per post. Funny how that works. I particularly enjoy seeing where the hits come from. I have been a journalist, a state trooper for over 30 years and having retired I am relishing the newfound ability to have an opinion of my own.

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    2. In case you missed my correction over at the asylum, the url for New Worlds is http://new-worlds.org. Apparently I failed to include the protocol so that's why the link didn't work.

      Just read your wrap on the morning links. Pretty solid. Was a great season and many more to come.

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  3. Spot on, Shawn. It looks like it comes down to the almighty dollar trumping everything good and decent as usual. Only thing is, since Citizens United, the dollar is more powerful than ever, and mostly in the hands of the folks who care nothing for human decency.

    I heartily disagree with the false equivalency argument as raised by our good friend JAL above. Another reason I wish I could cleanly separate the baseball world from the one that seems to be falling to pieces right now due to greed and stupidity.

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    1. The thing that republicans have been really good at since Lee Atwater is style over substance. Look at Reagan. A B-Movie actor. Then look at the substance. And the right wing noise machine has perfected the casting of straw men. Many responding to my posts in the last few days are responding to one talking point or another. I'm talking about the potential for this manufactured crisis to crush my life savings. That's a true thing. Saw it last time with the debt ceiling stuff. So I'm talking about my self interest. And the NY Times article shows the republicans speaking honestly of wanting this to happen. In their own words. So I know, when I have to go to Walmart and work as a greeter, who I'm gonna hold accountable for that.

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