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Stevens Expulsion Vote Postponed

Democrats Let Lieberman Keep Senate Chairmanship

It’s the world’s most exclusive kleptocracy. There is nothing a United States Senator can do, apparently, that will cause his fellow senators to hold him accountable. A regular person sneezes wrong at work they might get fired. A United States Senator gets convicted seven times over, or actively helps the competition try to ruin his own side’s chances, and oh well.

Get the figurative pitchforks. As if our country doesn’t face enough challenges, we have to contend with this Bozo the Clown “leadership” in Congress.

You enable crooks and liars, the people don’t respect you. It’s pretty simple.

I’m guessing Harry Reid is not faring too well in the Daily Kos leadership poll. (Note: the poll is not scientific and is only a rough gauge of the sentiments of people who chose to participate because they were so fucking pissed.)

I haven’t written much about last week’s “stakeholder meeting” on Internet lobbying, because I came away confident that the PDC had listened to our concerns, and is unlikely to make the mistake of attempting to regulate the political blogosphere.  In fact, my hope is that in any new rule making, the PDC actually clarifies its current stance by explicitly exempting from reporting requirements bloggers like me.

The PDC’s current media exemption reads as follows:

“Persons who are working members of the print or broadcast media preparing news reports, feature articles or editorial comment.”

Obviously, both times and technology have changed to the point where this definition needs to be expanded to included “print, broadcast or electronic media,” and I doubt there would be any opposition to such a change.  But there is also a need for the PDC to clarify what they mean by “working members,” and I would hope that they would construe this term as liberally as possible, for to do otherwise would create an untenable and unfair legal disparity between traditional and new media.

For example, consider my dual role as both an independent blogger and a paid talk radio host.  Does it make any sense that my direct advocacy in one medium would be exempt from PDC reporting requirements while the same advocacy in the other might result in a reporting violation and a fine?  No, of course not.  But unless the PDC explicitly grants bloggers a media exemption, our status will eventually be challenged via a complaint, or before the courts.

The PDC can avoid this hassle and expense for all parties, by proactively expanding the old media exemption to fit the new media reality.  And my hope is that this is exactly what they will do.

I wonder if the Bush administration and their Republican allies in Congress would be more supportive of bailing out the US auto industry, if it wasn’t such a union stronghold?  Hmm…

The Seattle Times has a new(ish) blog. It replaced Postman on Politics. It’s called  NW Politics or Politics NW.  

There hasn’t been a post up there since November 10. 

The first rule of blogging: Blog.

After a knock-down drag-out fight over I-1000, I’m still pretty amazed by the margin of victory bestowed to the initiative I worked to pass:

58% to 42%

I-1000 won in every country west of the mountains, and won 11 out of 20 counties on the east side.

You know, for such a “controversial” issue, voters seemed be able to cut through the baloney pretty easily. Campaign-types like myself would like to take credit for this, but I think the credit belongs to my friend Nancy and others:

Nancy’s husband Randy died an awful death. His allergy to morphine, combined with a particularly nasty manifestation of brain cancer, resulted in one of the five percent of deaths that can’t be eased with palliative care. Nancy’s husband knew he was going to die a painful, undignified death, and there wasn’t anything anyone could do for him. Until now.

Folks have been talking past Nancy for most of the past year, arguing that I-1000 is a basic human right, or that I-1000 will result in full-scale euthanasia. It’s easy to bash Booth Gardner, or to slam the Catholic Church. Nobody wants to talk about Randy and the humiliation he went through.

Whatever. For 57.77% of the voting public, some issues are less complicated than the headlines would suggest.

The Western Washington Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists is holding a training session today, “Blogging 101 – what you need to know to blog effectively and get read.”  And the instructors?  Why, two of the state’s leading bloggers… um, Nancy Leson and Jerry Brewer of the Seattle Times.

Hey Nancy and Jerry… here’s a tip from a rank amateur you might want to share with your paper’s own political bloggers/reporters:  if they want to “blog effectively and get read,” they might want to post a little more often than say, once a week.

I’m just sayin’…

State Senator and noted right-wing nutjob Pam Roach is seriously considering a run from the newly created elected position of King County Elections Director… or at least, that’s what the TNT’s Joe Turner is reporting.  But don’t you worry, because the Elections Director is officially a non-partisan position, so we can expect whoever wins it to operate it in a completely non-partisan manner, regardless of their established record as a right-wing nutjob.  Um… right?

The new elections director will be chosen in a February 4th special election.  Here’s hoping only one qualified Democrat files for the office lest Roach win on name recognition alone.

Nearly two weeks after the election, Commissioner of Public Lands Doug Sutherland still has not conceded the race to Democrat Peter Goldmark.

Sure, Goldmark only leads by about 18,000 votes, and with aproximately 63,000 ballots left to count statewide, I suppose a Sutherland victory isn’t quite a mathematical impossibility.  But more than half the remaining ballots come from King County, where Goldmark has won nearly 62% of the vote, so Sutherland is more likely to see monkeys fly out of his ass than pull off a come from behind win.

Oh, and with the race this close, I think it is fair to claim that HA’s coverage of Sutherland’s sexual harrassment scandal was a definite difference maker.  Without a vibrant, progressive blogosphere this story never would have appeared on the front pages and the evening news.  So score one for the good guys.

Very, very sad…

A 6-year-old girl who was shot in the head while her father was cleaning a gun has died, the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office reported.

Whenever I post a link to one of these tragic stories, I usually get a bunch of angry comments in the thread accusing liberals of wanting to take away everybody’s guns.  But I’m just trying to make the point that under most circumstances, guns don’t make you and your family safer, especially if you have young children in the house.

You want to protect your kids?  Get a dog.  They tend not to blow your head off while cleaning them, and they’re a helluva lot more fun to play with.

The Seattle Times editorial board thinks a buck an hour increase in downtown parking meter rates is too much, to which I say:  damn commies!

I mean, whatever happened to supply and demand?  If the city leased out these spots to a private company, what do you think they’d be charging an hour?  Buck fifty?  Two bucks?  Two-fifty?  I don’t think so.

Even at $2.50 and hour, downtown parkers will drive around in circles looking for a street spot rather than paying two to four times that rate for a short term spot in a private lot.  So quit your grousing and stop trying to force your decadent, free-parking, Plateau values on the rest of us.

Don’t mess with the new White House. Seriously. All Democrats are like this. It’s not worth it.

Shorter John Laird, editorial page editor for The Columbian: it’s all George W. Bush’s fault.

Still, if Clark County is red, how do we explain Barack Obama carrying the county by 6 percentage points? That question is easy to answer. This result doesn’t say nearly as much about Obama or about Clark County as it says about President George W. Bush. In fact, I suspect a lot of America’s breathless infatuation over Obama might actually be — deep down — an opinion about Bush.

If my theory is correct, then Bush’s drop in local popularity has been dramatic, almost pathetic. He carried the county by 5.4 percentage points in 2004 and by 4 points in 2000.

For what it’s worth, there is likely a kernel of truth there, as “Brand Republican” has been severely damaged, not only by Bush but by Republican extremism up and down the ticket. This is a hard blow for some Republicans, who seem to invest an inordinate amount of psychic energy in being perceived as the dominant tribe. A lot of the rash and uncivil statements emanating from the conservative noise machine are likely the product of this slightly strange fetishization.

For several cycles now a prominent local Republican Party activist has been repeatedly quoted in the newspaper saying, essentially, that Clark County is a Republican county. This was never all that true, as effective Democratic candidates like Brian Baird and Craig Pridemore, and many others, were elected to office. Candidates with good name ID (especially incumbents) always do well most places, especially here in a county dominated by media from another state. There’s a good reason the landscape is dominated by 4 x 8 political signs during election season.

Clark is a suburban swing county overall, with predictable party trends in the more urban and rural areas. Incumbents are hard to beat, meaning most of the big battles are over open seats. In that regard, the Democrats picked up a state House seat in the “swingy” 17th LD with the victory of Tim Probst, and might or might not pick up a county commissioner seat pending a likely recount. The more rural 18th LD is completely a lost cause as it is currently drawn, and the opposite is true in the urban 49th LD.

So the real issue for Democrats here is how to continue recruiting quality candidates who will be in position to take advantage of open seats.

Correction– Technically, Democrats would not be picking up a county commission seat in Clark County if Democrat Pam Brokaw defeats Republican Tom Mielke after a recount, as the retiring incumbent is Betty Sue Morris, D-BIAW. But in real world terms it would be a pickup for Democrats if Brokaw won.

Yesterday’s rally against Prop 8 was a really amazing event. I especially liked the hand made signs. Here are as many slogans as I could capture excluding signs that were just quotes, duplicates, and the professional ones. If I left yours out, sorry.

1st class taxpayer 2nd class citizen
1847: persecuted 2008: persecutor
A “Happily Ever After” belongs to EVERYONE
“Always a Bridesmade Never a Bride” Should not be Law
And the pursuit of happiness…unless gay
Ban Republican Marriage
Being 2nd Class is Sooo Gay!!!
Canada H8’s Prop 8
Church of Later Day Snakes
Class 2nd
Civil marriage is a civil right
Civil unions are not enough
Divorce at least you get a chance
Don’t make my family illegal (jerks)
Don’t tread on us.
Don’t Worry My Gay Marriage Won’t Affect Your Straight Divorce
Ending racism is a gay fight – freedom from racism is a gay right
Enough Already!
Equal Rights 4 All
Equal Rights Now
Equality is my right
Equality is not a religion
Focus on your own family
Gay Straight Black White Marriage is a CIVIL right
Get Mavricky Vote for Equality
Get on the Love Boat
Human rights are universal
I DO believe in the sanctity of love
I Support love
Jesus had two dads
Jesus Practiced Acceptance & Love… Why Can’t You?!
Just married in CA 10/6/08
Keep your religion out of my marriage
Lady Liberty is my lesbian mother! I’m her gay son!!
Lady Liberty is not a social conservative!
Legislating discrimination sucks
Love, Commitment & Family are HUMAN RIGHTS!
Love in all forms
Love makes a family!
Marriage is a civil right
Marriage strengthens society
Married July 31, 2008
Missionary accomplished
Mormon cash lied. A nation cried
No discrimination in the constitution
NO H8
No majority vote on minority rights
No more Mr. Nice Gay
Our love and commitment are here to stay…
Olympia! Give us our rights
Right to love
Save me from the Christian Taliban
Separate is not equal
Stand on the side of LOVE
Stand up you may be NEXT!
Stop the H8!
STR8 Against H8
Tax the Church!
This is about basic human rights
We are all equal
We don’t shit in your toilet…Don’t piss on our Civil Rights
Welcome to America where everyone is created equal – restrictions apply where prohibited
What’s Next? Our Wedding Gifts?
When Do We Vote On Your Marriage?
When will love conquer hate? (just asking)
White anti-racist queers for JUSTICE- not just us
Yes we can have equal rights

How are your fantasy teams looking?

Last week’s winner was waguy. It was main street in Saugerties, NY. Here’s this week’s, and check out some additional views that have recently been added.