DEMS LIKE GOP LIKE NEPOTISM

DEMS LIKE GOP LIKE NEPOTISM

Anyone who wonders why Congress has a job approval rating of 23 percent, seven points lower than even Bush’s, need only look at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) failure to change the ethics of the Congress. Having pledged to make Congress full-time and put the lackadaisical members to work, she then announced a schedule for 2007 in which House members will have 20 weeks off (and when they work, it’s Tuesday to Thursday most of the time).

Now Pelosi has come up with her own version of the No Child Left Behind program by asking the Defense Department to allow adult children of members of Congress to accompany them on their taxpayer-funded travel abroad if their spouses can’t make it. Such heartfelt concern for the lonely congressman on a publicly paid junket may be her version of family values, but it is a waste of tax money.

To understand the depth of the abuse of taxpayer-funded travel, look at one of Pelosi’s favorites, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.). Miller has been to the following places for free on the taxpayer’s dime between 2000 and 2006:

Mexico, Lebanon, Cambodia (twice), Israel (twice), Vietnam (twice), Jordan, South Africa, Iraq, France, Italy (twice), Hong Kong, Sudan (twice), Taiwan, Ghana, Laos, Liberia, Egypt and Cape Verde.

And Miller does not belong to any congressional committee that deals with foreign relations! During the same period, he has been to 20 other countries for free, paid for by the Aspen Institute. In all, Miller has spent 161 days traveling courtesy of Aspen.

Pelosi’s proposal and the abuse of free travel by members like Miller explains why voters can’t stand Congress and illustrates how little improvement there has been under the Democrats.

When his dad became Speaker of the House, Joshua Hastert, son of
Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), moved to Washington, closed his record store back
home and joined a lobbying firm. He found latent skills at lobbying members
like his dad that he never knew he had. Google, recognizing these mythical abilities, hired him as their lobbyist. The Democrats went crazy criticizing
abuses like these.

Now that Sen. Harry Reid (Nev.) is the Democratic floor leader, he has not just one but three sons and a son-in-law who are lobbyists. One of Reid’s sons,
and his son-in-law, has lobbied in Washington; a second son lobbies for
the same interests in Nevada; and a third son is an attorney who litigates for them in court. Reid’s lobbyist-sons worked to promote federal land swaps, mining interests and the University of Nevada at Reno.

Not to be outdone, House Minority Whip Roy Blunt’s (R-Mo.) wife, Abigail Perlman, is director of federal government affairs for Altria the former Philip Morris corporation. Their relationship is one that was hatched in lobbying. While
Blunt was dating Abigail, he quietly drafted language to benefit
Altria/Philip Morris and tried to sneak it in the bill that established the Department of Homeland Security without alerting the Republican leadership. Blunt’s mission was to minimize the sale of cigarettes on the Internet,
a thorn in the side of Altria/Philip Morris. Fortunately, Hastert killed the amendment.

Of the 100 senators, the sons, daughters, husbands or wives of 20 of them are registered as lobbyists, whose job often boils down to lobbying Mom or
Dad. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) is typical of the conflicts that can arise in such a situation. His son Scott Hatch lobbied for the makers of ephedra while his
father sponsored legislation to exempt the diet supplement from federal
regulation. Scott got paid $2 million in lobbying fees, while Dad got more than $137,000 from the diet supplement industry.

While Pelosi is working on cleaning up Congress, here are a few suggestions for her:

Ban anyone who is an immediate relative of a member from lobbying Congress.

Ban members from hiring spouses and other immediate relatives on their official, campaign committee or political action committee payrolls.

Ban taxpayer-paid travel by anyone but the member himself.

Get Congress to stay in session full time, not just 32 weeks a year.

If she adopted measures like these, perhaps the American voter would respect her and her party more than they apparently do.


By DICK MORRIS

Published on TheHill.com on June 20, 2007.

Hillary Clinton Booed, Again

Hillary Booed, Again

Hillary Booed, Again





The Nation -- Last summer, when she criticized the idea of setting a
timetable
to withdraw US forces from Iraq, Hillary Clinton was met with a chorus of
boos at the annual Take Back America conference.


This year was supposed to be different. Hillary now pledges to end the war
on her first day in office. But yet again she experienced boos at Take
Back America when she put the blame on the Iraqi government for the mess
in Iraq.

"The American military has succeeded," she said midway through her speech.
"It is the Iraqi government that has failed." That line has become a
standard talking point for politicians of both parties, especially
Republicans. But the disingenuousness of the argument didn't sit right at
TBA.

The reception caused Hillary to go off-script for a moment. "I like
speaking here every year," she said. "I see the signs that say get
us out of Iraq. That is what we are trying to do."

That seemed to mollify the crowd. And the rest of the speech, where she
ticked off a laundry list of Democratic priorities--like achieving universal
healthcare, cleaning up government and strengthening unions--played well.

All in all, she did better compared to last year. But it was no honeymoon,
either.

www.mccainalert.com


http://news.yahoo.com/s/thenation/20070620/cm_thenation/15206661_1

how to email that shithead Senator Mccain

how to email that shithead Mccain. hopefully this will be his last term in any public office

http://mccain.senate.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=Contact.Home

www.mccainalert.com

Arizona How to register as an independent or "no party preference"

Arizona How to register as an independent or "no party preference"



see sec of state for arizona at

http://www.azsos.gov/election/How_to_register.htm


How can I register to vote?

Answer:

Online : You may register online using Service Arizona EZ Voter Registration by clicking ( here) and follow the instructional steps. Note: In order to use this link you must have an Arizona Driver License and/or an Arizona non-operating Identification Card issued by the Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) on or after October 1st, 1996. Upon successful completion of the online EZ Voter registration, you will receive a confirmation number. The confirmation number is your receipt the information you entered has been accepted and changed.

Print a Form: You may obtain a printable form online, fill in the form, print the form, sign and date it, affix the proper postage and mail the form to the County Recorder of the county in which you are a legal resident.

By Mail : You may request an Arizona Voter Registration form from the County Recorder in the county in which you are a legal resident.

In Person : You may visit the County Recorder in the county you are a legal resident and complete an Arizona Voter Registration form.

Q: What are the qualifications to register to vote?

Answer:

Must be a Citizen of the United States of America
Must be a resident of Arizona
Must be 18 years of age or more on or before the day of the next regular General Election
Must not be a convicted felony, unless your civil rights have been restored
Must not been adjudicated incompetent

Senate can't deliver on simple passports, now they want to do more?

Senate can't deliver on simple passports, now they want to do more?

no wonder popular opinion is in the shitter.


register independent next time to remove some of the shitheads.


www.mccainalert.com