I know there are so many more people that need thanking on this — and I hate making a list like this, because I just know I’ve left someone off it — but Howie deserves some serious kudos for all of his work. :)

Howie!

fitz

I’m Peterr, and I approve this message, too.

EPU’d . . .

Angie and OFG report that Trent Lott was elected minority whip by one vote.

He’s baaaaack . . .

Rock on.

Remeber, Christy, that FDL is the fountain from which all this sprung, at least to the extent of my involvement.

Lott has just been voted Senate minority whip. HAHAHAHA!

Second what tommy said. Without fdl I would have worked for Webb of course, but not necessarily anyone else.

You know, the truly amusing thing about Lott — aside from his Thurmund baggage and all — is that he has been a thorn in the WH’s side since that whole mess and the Rove-led movement to toss Lott out on his ass in favor of the wildly unsuccessful Frist as Majority Leader. Methinks there are a bunch of folks in the GOP Senate caucus flipping a big ole finger at the WH with this vote. hehehehe

FDL! FITZ! HOWIE! MURTHA! PELOSI! And kudos to my CA Congresscritter Sam Farr for signing Murtha’s resolution early on!

Wonder if Lott (CCC) is going to wreak any revenge against the WH?

“Yo, Macaca– wanna be my chief of staff?”

2 peas in a pod… though Lott actually has some gray matter.

angie at 10 — Trent Lott does not forget a slight. Ever. And McConnell has been gunning for the Majority Leader’s spot his whole political life. This is a match made in scheming heaven…and the combustion that is about to roll forth between Rove trying to protect Junior’s flank and Lott trying to skewer Rove’s reputation? Well, pass me the popcorn…

Christy Hardin Smith @ 8

You know, the truly amusing thing about Lott — aside from his Thurmund baggage and all — is that he has been a thorn in the WH’s side since that whole mess and the Rove-led movement to toss Lott out on his ass in favor of the wildly unsuccessful Frist as Majority Leader. Methinks there are a bunch of folks in the GOP Senate caucus flipping a big ole finger at the WH with this vote. hehehehe

I can’t think of a bigger finger that they could have flipped at the WH, unless they had elected him minority LEADER again.

angie @
10

Wonder if Lott (CCC) is going to wreak any revenge against the WH?

Be ok w/me if he did. The WH NEEDS to have it’s ass kicked, from now to January 2009, several times a day, with weapons of personal destruction.

Wonder if Lott (CCC) is going to wreak any revenge against the WH?

Right after he gets that porch fixed.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 11

angie at 10 — Trent Lott does not forget a slight. Ever. And McConnell has been gunning for the Majority Leader’s spot his whole political life. This is a match made in scheming heaven…and the combustion that is about to roll forth between Rove trying to protect Junior’s flank and Lott trying to skewer Rove’s reputation? Well, pass me the popcorn…

tis the season! ooh, shish kabobs all around.

Yay Howie! Go Blue America!

Brought up from previous thread:

*xyz @
50

Lou Dobbs has an article up at CNN titled “I’m a Populist and Proud of It“. I’m not sure if this is particularly signficant, but to me it seems like a sign that we are in the incipient stages of something that may grow into a larger movement to stand up to entrenched corporate interests.

Here’s the link:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/11/.....index.html

IMO, folks should remain cautious around old Lou. He invited REAL-populist Sherrod Brown onto his program last night, and proceeded to try to reword much of what Sherrod said.
Sherrod was polite but tough, and quick, and would have NONE of that stuff. He flat-out told Lou to stop putting words in his mouth, and then restated his own positions that Lou had been trying to wrench around to Dobbsianistic babble.
Score one for Brown! Fun to watch, if you can catch a tape somewhere ;->

Interesting, that Lisa Myers last night ignored Lott Resurgent to focus on trashing Jack Murtha. (By the way, in case you were wondering: Hoyer opposes Net Neutrality. Murtha, on the other hand, backs it.)

a little off thread…

Greg Sargent has a terrific take-down of the fawning article in today’s NY Times about Holy Joe’s reception at the Capitol yesterday.

Best quote from Sargent:
“But let’s be very clear about what really happened in Connecticut: It was Lieberman who betrayed the Democrats, not the other way around. In the primary, virtually the entire Democratic establishment backed Lieberman. The Dems who backed Lamont after his primary victory weren’t betraying Lieberman; rather, they were correctly deciding not to betray Connecticut’s Democratic Primary voters. And by electing to run as an independent — a move which (a) sucked up resources and media attention; (b) handed the GOP a rhetorical device (though a fortunately ineffective one) to use against Dems across the country; and (c) imperiled Dems in other races in Connecticut — Lieberman betrayed both his own Democratic constituents and the Democratic Party at large.”

CHS-Howie…Is there going to be an outline for an action agenda for Blue America ‘08 in the near future? The antidote for Rahm and Chuck et al is fund raising and money in the bank. We need to start now.

OT: Mike Huckabee has gotten right to work trying to shoot his presidential aspirations in the foot.

Huckabee Defends “Wedding” Gift Registry

Excerpt: Gov. Mike Huckabee on Tuesday angrily defended a gift registry that was set up to help furnish his new home, and said the registry was put together by his wife’s friends for a housewarming party.

“My wife has friends; she has lifelong friends. They wanted to do something for her,” the Arkansas Republican told reporters after speaking at an event in downtown Little Rock. “It has nothing to do with who she is, other than she’s their friend.”

Gee, it never occurred to me to set up a gift registry for a housewarming party. I just bribe the movers with pizza.

Steve at 20 — yes, but it’s been a week since the election and we are exhausted. We’re working on it, but it’s going to take more than just a few days to put everything together. Howie’s already got a new BlueAmerica Act Blue page started for us, though, and there will be more details coming out shortly. But you know, we are all doing this as volunteers, and frankly, all of us could use a little patience — if not a vacation — after the last coupla months.

Phoenix Woman @ 18

Interesting, that Lisa Myers last night ignored Lott Resurgent to focus on trashing Jack Murtha. (By the way, in case you were wondering: Hoyer opposes Net Neutrality. Murtha, on the other hand, backs it.)

I soooooooooo wish Murtha would win that vote tomorrow and tell them all to go to hell.

Peterr @ 4

I’m Peterr, and I approve this message, too.

And so do we…

Wonder if Lott would support an impeachment conviction for Bush. We need a majority in the House (check!) and 67 votes in the Senate (payback is sweet!)

sorta amusing to watch the repub kids play tiddlywinks in the corner while the adults prepare for Thanksgiving.
Careful kids. Don’t put yer eye out.
Yeouch! - uh-oh -
DADDYYYYYYYYYYYYY!?!WaaaaaaHHH!?!
*g*

Having FDL, Howie, and all the fascinating commenters to be with for this election was the best. Outstanding. Thank You All, Each, and Everyone.

Tester’s ‘heh’ grin sums up how I’m feeling too.

For egregious and Ed*ard: A special Thank You for turning me on to Diane Benson, a Native American. I would love to see more Native Americans run for office and need to find out how many we do have, if any.

Rootz!

that a nice thank you gift - I especially like the last image, of Jon Testor hearing that Butte hasn’t reported yet, that lop-sided smile touches my heart, as our citizen farmer-candidate knows from his experience in the state lege that if Butte hasn’t reported yet, the final count is going to take him to the US Senate. (On election night, I could hear the whispering over some graphics on MSNBC, but didn’t know it was Testor until the next day).

CHS@22..understand..The amount of work you and the others do is amazing! Thanks for the mention of Howie’s new page, I go there and help kick the ball for ‘08.

Howard Dean’s birthday is November 17. Click Birthday Flat Howard to sign his virtual birthday card.

What the election of McConnell and Lott represents is that the GOP is becoming a regional party. We need to brand them as back-water Dixiecans.

old gold at 31 — it certainly does have the feel of retreating below the Mason-Dixon line, doesn’t it?

I am so into the idea of keep Blue America PAC going throughout the next 2 years. After a long inspection and evaluation of the family budget, starting in January I will pledge a monthly contribution to BAPAC, along with upping my Democracy Bond for Dr. Dean.

Along these lines, would it be possible to help a couple of our candidates retire their campaign debt? I know Larry Kissell down in North Carolina has about $40K of debt, and there’s bound to be others who could us our help. The quicker they are debt-free, the easier it will be for them to decide if they will run again.

This video has removed the whispy sad cloud that has been following me around since Charlie Brown did not beat John Doolittle. I’ve been happy too, but incompletely. John Doolittle and Joe Lieberman are two flies on my rebirthday cake.

The look on Tester’s face at the end of this video changes all that. (He is smiling because he’s just been told which precinct has yet to be counted, one he knows will go heavily his way.)

Christy Hardin Smith @
22

Steve at 20 — yes, but it’s been a week since the election and we are exhausted. We’re working on it, but it’s going to take more than just a few days to put everything together. Howie’s already got a new BlueAmerica Act Blue page started for us, though, and there will be more details coming out shortly. But you know, we are all doing this as volunteers, and frankly, all of us could use a little patience — if not a vacation — after the last coupla months.

On this, I as a regular contributor to Blue America would not mind — no. Actually, I would prefer it if some salaries or some kind of compensation could be paid out of the PAC to you all who are putting in the time to organize and do this work. Without professional staff, Blue America — any organization — can’t last as long or as strong as I want Blue America to be.

Ha! Lott is back, and something tells me: behind that folksy drawl is a set of sharp teeth. The Bush team tossed him out like an old hanky, post-haste. He was abandoned and pretty much humiliated by his own party. And what a replacement they picked in Frist…whose bright idea was that anyway? What strange and delicious irony.

Renee in Ohio @ 30

Howard Dean’s birthday is November 17. Click Birthday Flat Howard to sign his virtual birthday card.

Do you think The People will ever celebrate Rahm Emanuel’s birthday?

Christy, we would miss you, but I think you should pack up the family and go to Florida for a week or two, and lie in the sun and recharge. Same for Jane and everybody else who worked so hard.

sofistic at 37 — thanks, but Mr. ReddHedd’s schedule doesn’t allow for us to take a chunk of time off at the moment. But we’re making plans for a getaway as soon as we can both arrange it — likely after the holidays, if the stars align properly.

Ruby Tuesday @ 33

[snip]

Along these lines, would it be possible to help a couple of our candidates retire their campaign debt? I know Larry Kissell down in North Carolina has about $40K of debt, and there’s bound to be others who could us our help. The quicker they are debt-free, the easier it will be for them to decide if they will run again.

Anyone know how you go about sending $$ to achieve this end?

Armed Services Committee hearing opening now. Warner starts his swan song: gee, he seems so low, so…beaten.

From late-nite with a question:

EvilDrPuma @ 74

OT: Jeebus, these people can’t even do incompetence right.

FEMA Homes Were Destroyed in Storage

Excerpt: Hundreds of modular homes bought by FEMA for victims of last year’s hurricanes were damaged beyond repair as they sat unused and, in many cases, unprotected from the elements, the agency said Tuesday.

The failure to protect the homes from the sun and rain while they were in storage was outlined in a report by the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general.

My question: can anyone explain to me why mobile homes would NEED protection from the sun and rain? I thot homes were to protect US from sun and rain.

Of course if they suddenly are recategorized as “damaged goods” they can be discounted and sold/stolen by enterprising people.

The original explanation of incompetence also works for me.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 38

sofistic at 37 — thanks, but Mr. ReddHedd’s schedule doesn’t allow for us to take a chunk of time off at the moment. But we’re making plans for a getaway as soon as we can both arrange it — likely after the holidays, if the stars align properly.

Well, hell, in that case how about the Bahamas, or someplace in the south pacific?

schumer has a “thank you” diary over at DKos. i wonder if i will ever get over his betrayal of ned. that one still stings…

I do appreciate everyone putting up with my slightly cranky demeanor today — The Peanut’s fever has led to bad sleep the last couple nights, and it’s catching up with me today. Here’s to an afternoon nap, if we can both grab one at the same time. :)

The Dianne Rheim show is having a Barry Goldwater love fest today. Rheim is away and you can almost hear Andrea Seabrook fellating these old fools between her giggles and softball questions.

It’s unbelievalbe.

I haven’t listened to NPR in years, got tired of the Nice Polite Republicans.

Waccamaw @39

the BA page is still up, so you could go there and drop a few coins in the bucket.

here’s Larrys’ website:

http://www.larrykissell.com/

and according to the latest post, they’re still counting the votes, with Kissell just a few hundred votes behind.

Ruby Tuesday -

Thanks much. As a Tar Heel I donated to Kissell & really have a “dog in that hunt” *g*. Don’t do PayPal but will get a check in the mail. Don’t know what we’re getting in Schuler but as a resident of the 11th, it do be nice to see the back side of Taylor.

Anybody have a handle on the out-of-cycle state level races? I believe Virginia has an election next year, but what about other states?

The Lott thing is almost too much to ask for! Of course its horrible putting an out in the open racist up front but it is an accurate representation of the Southern Republican party. These folks apparently only wan to win in the south and Texas. The G.O.P. is still imploding. It like an endangered species going extinct. Like say, an elephant.

Saw a huge flock of geese headed south this morning along the northern California coast. Funny thing, they weren’t in the usual V formation but kind of randomly scattered.

Uh, oh. Better be careful what you say, firedog. Poppy Bush is pissed enough with bloggers, already.

Big Daddy Bush Blasts Bloggers

sofistic @
51

Saw a huge flock of geese headed south this morning along the northern California coast. Funny thing, they weren’t in the usual V formation but kind of randomly scattered.

Maybe they were Republicans?

Twisted Martini @ 53

sofistic @
51

Saw a huge flock of geese headed south this morning along the northern California coast. Funny thing, they weren’t in the usual V formation but kind of randomly scattered.

Maybe they were Republicans?

Uh, headed for Paraguay?

Those geese are totally off message since the election

LindaR@34..I totally agree..I have no idea how to do it..but IMHO the nobility of uncompensated work is overrated. Jane, CHS, Howie et al work seven days a week; posting well researched and well thought-out pieces to literally save our country. The reich-wing have corporate funded think tanks and a few rich wackos paying for lies; there must be a financial model to pay for the truth.

Trent Lott was publicly humilitated by Karl Rove and Bushboy. His house was seriously damaged by Katrina.

To use a Southern expression, Lott wants to “get his licks in” with both Bush and Rove.

Just popping in here to say something incredibly girly.

I just listened to John Edwards’ recent podcast. God I love that man’s voice!

Now there is an “Address the Nation” I could listen to for days.

OK, carry on with far more meaninful political insights…

Bustednuckles @ 14

Wonder if Lott (CCC) is going to wreak any revenge against the WH?

Right after he gets that porch fixed.

Busted - I was down in Pascagoula a couple of months ago and Lott hadn’t done squat to rebuild except clear the wreckage off his foundation.
Clearly indicative of his commitment to leadership by example.

Lunchtime Tune:

Story of a Life
(Cover)

Yeecchh. Doesn’t McConnell look every bit the old perv?

And I think Lott has some surprises for us.

OT, but my head is ready to explode.

After reading where some dem congress critters come down on the leadership issue, I decided to call the office of my rep, Ed MArkey of MA, to see wether he was supporting Hoyer or Murtha.

I was told by his field office that this was a secret vote and that the congressman was not planning to tell constituents where he stood. I followed up with the DC office. They were not as in-your-face, but evasive and slippery nonetheless.

WTF?

The stakes on this leadership battle are huge. I know Murtha has baggage, but I do not want to see my congressman knee-capping Pelosi’s leadership right now. Getting Murtha into the leadership is one of our best chances to get some movement on Iraq. I fear that too many Dems in Congress are trying to find a way to still stick their heads in the sand.

I felt better when I called Pelosi’s office and stated my support.

Jeez, if markey is going to support Hoyer, fine. Its the cowardice in avoiding a constituent that really bugs me.

Thanks in advance for letting me vent.

Pic of Grandpa and Grandma Pelosi with grandbaby number six:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blog.....y_id=10907

sp: Thurmond

[Mod Note; nice catch. Fixed and thanks.]

Can I just say here, since comments on the article itself are closed, that the piece a couple of days back attacking Obama for buying a house below the asking price is one of the dumbest things I’ve seen on this site, and a lot of the comments are even dumber.

I guess FDR couldn’t run as a Dem today. No money allowed.

TeddySanFran @
63

Pic of Grandpa and Grandma Pelosi with grandbaby number six:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blog
id=14&entry_id=10907

awwwww.

thanks for that, Teddy.

I think that w/ the Lott and McConnell thing combined w/ Delay’s comments about Pelosi and the Plantation that its safe to say we are entering the “Anger” faze of the recovery process. Oh this is going to get crazy. Hot Macaca lashing and thrashing about.

sofistic @ 49

Anybody have a handle on the out-of-cycle state level races? I believe Virginia has an election next year, but what about other states?

New Jersey’s another off-year state. Next year is NJ Assembly [2-year terms] and NJ Senate [4-year terms]. Currently, there are 49 Dems & 31 Repubs in Assembly, and 22 Dems & 18 Repubs in the Senate.

All of NJ’s federal incumbents won reelection. I’ll be working through Blue Jersey to get the worst of those out in 2008: Mike Ferguson in NJ-07 here in central Jersey [I did some volunteering for Linda Stender in this year’s race, and she was only down by 2%; she’ll take it in 2008], Chris Smith a right-to-life zealot in NJ-04, a district that runs from the shore to the Delaware River across central Jersey, Jim Saxton in Burlington & Ocean Counties, south of Trenton, and maybe even Scott Garrett, NJ-05, and Rod Frelinghuysen, NJ-11 [pronounced FREE-ling-high-sen, from a very old Jersey Dutch family].

pete @
43

schumer has a “thank you” diary over at DKos. i wonder if i will ever get over his betrayal of ned. that one still stings…

*g* I got a little pissed at something Schumer said the other day about Howard Dean. I wrote him a little note telling him that there would be millions of eyes watching his every move. I hope I planted the thought, and I hope it bears good fruit (like good behavior, even. I’m just saying.)

I get all the credit! Howie did nothing! It was all ME! I’m a GENIUS!

Ergh! Ack!

Must be this DC water.

Hayduke, how true. This is when the good ole boys punt the neocon ideologs. After all, why should they care about coloreds on the other side of the world when we got plenty right here.

Pachacutec @ 70

I get all the credit! Howie did nothing! It was all ME! I’m a GENIUS!

Spoken like someone whose name means “Transformer of the Universe”!

Abizaid just dissed McCain’s plan for more troops.

(Huckleberry questioning now.)

No troop withdrawals either.

Everything should remain the same wrt troops acc. to the General.

New thread, gang.

Peterr @ 72

Pachacutec @ 70

I get all the credit! Howie did nothing! It was all ME! I’m a GENIUS!

Spoken like someone whose name means “Transformer of the Universe”!

Yeah, that too.