Too Wingnutty For The Wingnuts

Michelle Bachmann is so out of her mind that the guy who called Barack Obama uppity and the Billy Zabka of the GOP are telling here to pipe down a bit:

Three Republican congressman have publicly chastised fellow Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) for declaring that she would not fill out her census form.

"Boycotting the constitutionally mandated Census is illogical, illegal and not in the best interest of our country," said Reps. Patrick McHenry (N.C.), Lynn Westmoreland (Ga.) and John Mica (Fla.), members of the Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census, and National Archives in a statement Wednesday.

Even conspiracy-theorist Fox News host Glenn Beck found Bachmann's anti-census stance baffling.

They apparently tried to approach Bachmann privately, and she wouldn't budge, so they decided to publicly embarrass her.

If the rightward drift of the Republican Party continues, I think she's a leading 2012 candidate now.

Chipping Away

It may be weird to have a member of the Republican leadership say out loud that their goal as a party, in a time of crisis, is to lower Democratic approval ratings, but come on, we all knew this, right? Their public statements are carefully crafted to nitpick elements of spending bills that sound more outrageous that they actually are. When those examples of "wasteful spending" aren't in the bill, they make them up. And then they offer amendments on them anyway.

Interestingly enough, all three of Kyl's amendments deal with U.S. policy towards Palestine at a time when signs are pointing to a possible unity government by Fatah and Hamas. The most eyebrow-raising of the three, however, is a bid to prevent any government money from being used to resettle Palestinian refugees from Gaza to America.

As the Mondoweiss blog explains, an Internet rumor making the rounds on the right has accused President Obama of signing an order to resettle hundreds of thousands of Hamas sympathizers in the U.S. ... without a grain of truth to it.

Heck, the entire conception of starting a firestorm around earmarks is self-evidently ridiculous. The elimination of earmarks doesn't reduce spending by one penny - all an earmark does is direct appropriations to a specific project. Without them, money would be appropriated by an executive branch bureaucrat. And Republicans know that.

“I voted to take all earmarks out, but I will come back in the new process and put that back in,” Graham insisted, saying that the convention center is important to stimulate the local economy. “I think I should have the ability as a United States senator to direct money back to my state as long as it’s transparent and it makes sense.”

So of course the entire GOP game plan is to embarrass Democrats. Unfortunately, so far it has succeeded only in embarrassing themselves. But those are only the short-term ramifications. Over the long term, all they are doing is chipping away at the notion that government can perform its core function, demonizing the activities of the Congress, evoking mistrust in elected officials, and poisoning the whole notion of federal spending. That's their REAL project.

The Continued Ignominy Of Billy Zabka

Patrick McHenry, Congress' Billy Zabka, continues to feel the sting of his battlefield video segment, where he breached operational security by detailing the force and location of enemy rocket attacks in the Green Zone. Apparently the Pentagon is slapping him on the wrist:

Rep. Patrick McHenry, a Republican, traveled to Iraq with other lawmakers for the first time on March 22. The video was the second incident stemming from that trip that has drawn unwanted attention to McHenry. Earlier, he was criticized for berating a guard in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone for not allowing him into a gym there because the congressman did not have the proper identification credential.

The new criticism stems from a video that was featured on his Web site last Friday. Shot in the Green Zone, it showed McHenry gesturing to a building behind him and saying that one of 11 rockets “hit just over my head.” Then he named two other places struck by the rockets.

On Monday, a veterans group called VoteVets.org accused McHenry of giving away intelligence information that could have aided terrorist organizations in targeting the Green Zone.

“The bottom line is that whoever launched that strike could take the information McHenry provided and use it to kill Americans in the Green Zone,” wrote Brandon Friedman, vice chairman of VoteVets.org, a veterans advocacy group that has called for troop withdrawal and promoted veterans for political office. “This is why professionals operating in a combat zone are trained not to reveal any battle damage after an attack.” [...]

A Pentagon spokesman said he didn’t know what McHenry was told, “but we routinely brief our operational rules to our visitors in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

This is especially amusing because McHenry is often the attack dog trotted out to demand investigation into Democratic lawmakers or press reports that "threaten our security." The irony is rich.

Brandon Friedman has more:

...frankly, at this point, members of the military are tired of covering for these chickenhawk wannabe-heroes who go around looking for glory the easy way. We're tired of them starting wars they can't finish and we're disgusted with their enthusiasm to use a military which they don't understand in the slightest.

To be quite honest, it's only because McHenry is a Congressman that the Pentagon and MNF-Iraq spokesmen were so lenient with him.

If Patrick McHenry wants to tell war stories so badly, he should resign his Congressional seat and go enlist. He's only 32. That way, he could get some training--so that next time he's in a combat zone trying to be a tough guy, he won't be such a bumbling, self-promotional fool about it.

LOL.

Graceful Republicans Under Pressure

VetVoice is having a lot of fun today with Patrick McHenry (R-NC), the wingnut from North Carolina who I always like to call the Republican version of Billy Zabka, a cartoonish villain who is always defeated and humiliated in the end. This time, Zabka... McHenry got caught saying on video his location in the Green Zone after a rocket attack, violating operational security and putting the lives of Green Zone soldiers at risk. In fact, two soldiers died just a couple days after McHenry posted this really ignorant video. McHenry obviously knows that this was a big no-no, since he took the video down and tried to scrub his website of any trace of it. VetVoice was able to get a screen grab, though:



Sorry, Zabka. And thanks for endangering our troops.

Joining McHenry in the "frightened Republicans who don't know how to get out of their own messes" department is Sen. David Vitter (Diapers - LA), who suffered not only from a tough town hall meeting with constituents, who battered him with questions about his links to the DC Madam story, but whose staffers were so rattled by the affair (pun intended) that he backed into a stop sign on his way out of the area. Crooks and Liars has the video and it's pretty darn good. We may get some more choice moments like this, as Vitter is scheduled to maybe even take the stand in the DC Madam case.

Dropping Like Flies, Republican Edition

Jim Ramstad is retiring.

In another blow to House Republicans, Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-Minn.) is expected to announce his retirement this afternoon, according to Republican sources and media reports in Minnesota.

Almost all of the retirements in the House and Senate have come from Republicans, and the two in the House that have come from Democrats are only because Tom Allen and Mark Udall are running for higher office. Ramstad's seat is very much a swing district, giving the Dems another pickup opportunity. There are going to be a lot of them in the House.

In the Senate, Jeanne Shaheen is in the race for John Sununu's seat, and considering she already polls 20 points higher than Sununu without doing one bit of campaigning, that puts Democrats in a strong position. And then there's the continuing saga of Ted Stevens.

Under cross-examination by defense attorney James Wendt, representing former state Rep. Pete Kott, Allen acknowledged that the more than $400,000 he admitted spending in the bribery charge was for other legislators - and including for work done at the Girdwood, Alaska, home of Stevens, the longest serving Republican in the U.S. Senate.

"I gave Ted some old furniture," Allen said. "I don't think there was a lot of material, There was some labor."

The workers were VECO employees, probably one to four at a time, Allen said. He said the work on the home lasted for "probably a couple of months." Later, he said it might have been as much as six months.

That's an admission to bribery. I don't know how Stevens keeps from being indicted now, honestly. I don't care how many low-energy light bulb bills he signs on to.

UPDATE: Also, a Navy hero is going to run against the Congress' version of Billy Zabka, Patrick McHenry. I might personally go work in that race.

Fraud At Polls!

While the Justice Department chased rainbows and fired any federal prosecutor who wouldn't prosecute bogus voter fraud cases...

Of the 12 U.S. attorneys known to have been dismissed or considered for removal last year, five were identified by Rove or other administration officials as working in districts that were trouble spots for voter fraud -- Kansas City, Mo.; Milwaukee; New Mexico; Nevada; and Washington state. Four of the five prosecutors in those districts were dismissed [...]

The Justice Department demanded that one U.S. attorney, Todd P. Graves of Kansas City, resign in January 2006, several months after he refused to sign off on a Justice lawsuit involving the state's voter rolls, Graves said last week. U.S. Attorney Steven M. Biskupic of Milwaukee also was targeted last fall after complaints from Rove that he was not doing enough about voter fraud. But he was spared because Justice officials feared that removing him might cause political problems on Capitol Hill, according to interviews of Justice aides conducted by congressional staff members.

...that doesn't mean that voter fraud isn't a problem in some districts. Why, there was a high-profile arrest just a few days ago!

The CBS News Investigative Unit has learned a man who was a field coordinator in Congressman Patrick McHenry's (R-NC) 2004 campaign has been indicted for voter fraud in North Carolina.

The indictment charges that Michael Aaron Lay, 26, illegally cast his ballot in two 2004 Congressional primary run-offs in which McHenry was a candidate. The charges indicate that Lay voted in a district where it was not legal for him to vote.

At the time Lay was listed as a resident in a home owned by 32-year-old McHenry but campaign records indicate Lay's paychecks were sent to an address in Tennessee. McHenry won the primary by only 86 votes. According to Gaston County, North Carolina District Attorney Locke Bell, Lay was indicted on Monday, May 7 by a local grand jury.

And none of this came to light until the new district attorney, Bell, was elected in November. Before that, the previous DA for Gaston County, Mike Lands, sat on the case.

Paging Mr. Rove, if you have any openings in the future, I found a guy who'll play ball...

The other thing about this is that this isn't the only young man who has listed their address at Rep. Zabka's McHnenry's house. What kind of game is he running there?

McZabka Gets Zabka'd Again

Rep. Anthony Weiner sticks it to McHenry on the floor. I'm almost starting to feel sorry for this guy.



Republic Party. Hahahahahaha.

Patrick McHenry as Billy Zabka

Patrick McHenry, the 31 year-old right-wing attack dog who's the front man for anything the Republic Party wants to put out that's outrageous, is kind of a fascinating figure. Whether it's ambition, or a true belief in wingnuttery, he's willing to put himself out in front as the alternately smug and persecuted face of the GOP. He reminds me a lot of Billy Zabka.



McHenry



Zabka

Zabka was the designated bad guy in 80s movies from The Karate Kid to Just One of the Guys to Back To School. He had the flipped-back preppy blond haircut, the smug look of self-satisfaction, and the attitude and style you love to hate. And he was willing to typecast himself into that role, so much so that once the 80s ended, so did his career.

That's McHenry. He doesn't mind being hated, doesn't mind making himself look ridiculous. In fact, this Washington Monthly article nails it perfectly:

No political movement can survive on talking points alone. It requires an endless succession of faces, flesh and bone, elected officials willing to impose their smiling mugs in front of the camera even when the talking points are ridiculous. In the nine months since he came to Washington, McHenry has cultivated a role as a kind of fraternity pledge for the House leadership, willing to do the dirty work on behalf of crusades that the rest of his caucus will no longer touch. He was still pumping Social-Security privatization this summer, months after the GOP leadership had given up on the bill. He was still attacking Terri Schiavo's husband after other Republicans, with an eye toward opinion polls, clammed up. And in June, he was summoned by the cable networks to defend Karl Rove after it began to appear likely that the president's chief strategist had identified Valerie Plame as a CIA agent while talking to reporters.

McHenry is perhaps the most successful and precocious of the endless string of those guys, the youngish Republican representatives who show up on cable television to defend the indefensible.

This has continued in the 110th Congress. He started by embarking on a two-day whine-a-thon about minority rights, which is embarrassing, given how the Republicans treated Congress like they were crowned emperor.

Then he was taken behind the woodshed by Barney Frank while trying to make a point about American Samoa (which has been amply covered on this site).



I would appropriate this to when Keith Gordon zings Zabka in Back To School:

Chas: [limping off the diving board] I have got a really bad cramp. I've been having really bad cramps all week.
Jason Melon: It's probably menstrual.
Chas: Screw you, Melon!

Then we saw McHenry claiming that contracting in Iraq is the Clinton Administration's fault at a Government Reform Committee hearing (I wish I could find video of this, but I covered it here), and calling the whole hearing a partisan show trial. Rep. Waxman responded by saying "You can't just look under every rock for partisanship, and I suggest the Congressman return under his rock." This pissed McHenry off more, and he made his little Zabka face when saying "I am offended that you would tell me to crawl under a rock!" You get the mentality here.

This is no different than when Zabka gets the business in this memorable scene:

Rick: [Rick gets on the table in the high school cafeteria to make an announcement] "Ah, excuse me, could I have your attention please!", your attention. Every day at lunch, we get a very special treat from a very special guy, a guy who has dedicated his life to building his body, pushing his muscles to the limits of human endurance,why you ask?, why?, well to be strong enough to lift tables and spill food, Greg Tolan!

[Everyone starts clapping]

Rick: Let's take a moment to find out a liitle bit about the man behind the mess,Greg, May I call you Greg?, Now tell us greg how you got into spilling food?, were a messy baby?, did you hate your strained peas?, Well you know how most psychologists tell us that guys get into bodybuilding to compensate for a lack of IQ, or a small weinie, which is it Greg?, well those of us in Greg's gym class certainly know the the answer to that one.

Greg Tolan: I'm going to beat the shit out of you Morehouse!

Rick: Isn't he great, muscles and a sense of humor, well let's thank Greg for the lunch time thrills and spills he's given us, OK EVERYBODY GET UP!, GRAB AN END OF YOUR TABLE!,

[the kids in the cafeteria go to an end of their table]

Rick: A trubute to you Greg, LIFT!

[Everybody in the cafeteria lift their table and spilling food]

Then TODAY, he got slammed by Rep. Bart Gordon and Rep. Barney Frank, who pretty much calls him a midget here, no?



I mean, by the end of that, can't you see McHenry going up to Frank and telling him "you win" like Zabka to Daniel-san at the end of the All-Valley Karate Tournament?

McHenry really is a fascinating figure. He seems to think he's going to be Majority Leader someday, and he apparently has cultivated some good inside sources. But he comes off perpetually looking like a clown, a square, an 80s teen movie villain come to life. I really want to check birth records to see if he's related to Zabka. The resemblance is uncanny.

Cheney: Sweep the leg.
[McHenry stares at him in shock]
Cheney: Do you have a problem with that?
McHenry: No, Sensei.
Cheney: No mercy.

CA-30: Waxman Trying to Skate on Iraq

I watched a little of today's hearing on Iraq war profiteering and contracting. It's really nothing short of amazing. It's like watching the movie Iraq For Sale in Congressional hearing form. They're focusing on Blackwater Securities today, whose contract for Iraq couldn't even be found until today, and who were sending out truck drivers without proper equipment to save money, while pocketing hundreds of millions of dollars through overcharging the government. It's great to see these bastards nailed to the wall.

And the man who's putting this all together is my Congressman, Henry Waxman. He is nothing short of heroic for bringing the spotlight to this war profiteering in his House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. And he's a dogged investigator and questioner. He painted the picture in yesterday's session with Paul Bremer of the Federal Reserve packing 363 tons of cash in palettes onto military aircraft to be sent to Iraq to simply be passed out. Today, Waxman repeatedly asked a spokeswoman from the Army how many security contractors they have hired, and she dodged and dodged and finally had to answer that she didn't know the precise number. And finally, there was his brilliant smackdown of GOP attack dog Rep. Patrick McHenry, who spent the entire session trying to blame profiteering on the Clinton Administration and calling it a show trial: he said "I suggest the Congressman return under his rock."

Waxman deserves a lot of credit for his pursuit of lawbreaking and official corruption. And his reputation in this district is gold sterling. He was right there on the front page of the New York Times the other day. And he's a great, longtime champion for liberal values. He took on the cigarette companies. He wrote the Clean Air Act. And on and on.

However, it's important to note that Waxman voted for the war, is not part of the Out of Iraq caucus, and while he has finally come out against the escalation, is "on the fence" about de-funding the war and bringing the troops home.

He keeps this incredibly quiet. You would be hard-pressed to find anyone in this district that knows this. I was talking to a few friends about this very topic recently, and they looked at me like I was nuts. They actually couldn't believe it.

You have to dig, but you can find Waxman's statement about Iraq at his website.

On October 10, 2002, Rep. Waxman voted for resolution H.J.Res. 114, authorizing the use of military force to ensure Iraq's disarmament of weapons of mass destruction. He did so with the expectation that a strong bipartisan stand in Congress would pressure the United Nations to carry out its responsibilities to enforce its own resolutions and because he believed it was necessary to send a tough message for Saddam Hussein to understand he would have to comply.

On March 17, 2003, Rep. Waxman called for an investigation of the revelation that the President relied on false intelligence sources to present the case for war with Iraq to the American people and the United Nations. On June 26, 2003, he introduced H.R. 2625, which would establish an Independent Commission on Intelligence about Iraq - modeled after the September 11 Commission - to examine pre-war intelligence and the representations made by executive branch officials about Iraqi efforts to develop and deploy weapons of mass destruction.

In addition, Rep. Waxman has initiated an intensive investigation of the Bush Administration's process for awarding post-war contracts in Iraq to ensure fairness and accountability in U.S. funded projects for Iraq reconstruction. He remains deeply concerned about allegations that Halliburton, a company with close ties to Vice President Dick Cheney, has received special treatment from the Administration in the awarding of Defense Department contracts, including some related to Iraqi reconstruction.

Waxman's actions about intelligence - almost immediately after voting for the war - are noble. He also cosponsored legislation to ban permanent bases in Iraq or a "long-term or permanent" military presence. But he is not committed to stopping funding on this war, and he has been allowed to coast on his reputation and give no definitive answer on the conflict. This came to a head a couple weeks ago at the Palisades Democratic Club:

Addressing a crowd of 200 at a Palisades Democratic Club meeting in Los Angeles Sunday, Congressman Henry Waxman said he opposes the US occupation of Iraq but may continue to fund it because "I don't want to make any promises before I see what the (funding) proposal will be."

Greeted by grassroots Democrats holding a banner that read "Liberals do not fund occupation," Waxman acknowledged there were members of the audience who would like to see him support bills calling for the immediate withdrawal of troops, but said he was not sure bringing the troops home now was the answer [...]

Waxman, now Chair of the Government Reform Committee, told the standing-room only crowd he opposes the Bush troop escalation and wants to conduct vigorous investigations into the 8-billion US dollars missing in Iraq, but said he is not convinced it is time to use the power of the purse to end the war or even co-sponsor legislation that would bring the troops home within six months. Waxman said a civil war could develop when US troops leave Iraq. "But there already is a civil war,"
said one audience member, whose objection went unanswered.

And I have to add this, which gave me quite a bit of pause.

Asked if he would oppose US military use of Israel as a proxy to bomb or invade Iran, Waxman said he opposed a war against Iran, though added, "If you want to lose sleep, think of a nuclear-armed Iran." The Congressman said he favored economic sanctions over the use of force, referencing the enormous impact of world economic sanctions against the apartheid government of South Africa.

There's more here and here.

Waxman, simply put, is trying to skate on this war, and furthermore is buying in to right-wing frames about Iran which do nothing but enable war hawks who would like nothing more but to come up with any pretext to attack Iran. In fact, now is the time to stop this drumbeat toward Iran in the US Congress.

Congress should not wait. It should hold hearings on Iran before the president orders a bombing attack on its nuclear facilities, or orders or supports a provocative act by the U.S. or an ally designed to get Iran to retaliate, and thus further raise war fever.

Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has warned the administration that it had better seek congressional authorization for any attack on Iran. But we need Senate and House hearings now to put the Bush administration on notice that, in the absence of an imminent military attack or a verified terrorist attack on the United States by Iran, Congress will not support a U.S. military strike on that country. Those hearings should aim toward passage of a law preventing the expenditure of any funds for a military attack on Iran unless Congress has either declared war with that country or has otherwise authorized military action under the War Powers Act.

The law should be attached to an appropriations bill, making it difficult for the president to veto. If he simply claims that he is not bound by the restriction even if he signs it into law, and then orders an attack on Iran without congressional authorization for it, Congress should file a lawsuit and begin impeachment proceedings.

Anyone that is throwing up belligerent and fearmongering rhetoric on Iran gives the President more leeway to do the same and manufacture a conflict. Waxman may have his reasons for doing so, all of them perfectly sincere. But starting another war in the Middle East right now would be the height of insanity and would continue to fuel hatred in that part of the world for generations.

There are going to be street actions soon around this issue, to both thank Rep. Waxman for what he's doing, but to pressure him to do the right thing on denying the appropriation of funds and bringing this war to an end. Waxman seems like he doesn't want to come to terms with this issue. He'd rather do what he's very good at doing, investigation and oversight. But this vote matters and it's a major priority. If liberal lions like Henry Waxman cannot represent the views of his district and the vast majority of the American people, then I don't know what it will take. I don't want to psycho-analyze Waman and try to understand why he's being so noncommital on this issue. I just want him to do the right thing.