Dear Colorado Republicans,

by: Zappatero

Wed Feb 08, 2012 at 09:45:38 AM MST

Sincerely....

Senate Democrat Fail

by: Zappatero

Tue Feb 07, 2012 at 09:53:29 AM MST

Senate Passes FAA Authorization Bill with Anti-Union Elements
Despite fierce opposition from major transit unions, the Senate yesterday gave final approval to the FAA Authorization bill, a five-year extension that removes uncertainty from the FAA, approves a next-generation air traffic monitoring system and, in Harry Reid's telling, creates hundreds of thousands of jobs. But unions were unhappy about changes to labor law insisted upon by House Republicans, and they expressed betrayal at the hands of Senate Democrats. (Ho hum. -Ed.)

But 37 Democrats supported the bill, including Commerce Committee chair Jay Rockefeller, Majority Leader Harry Reid, and top leadership members Chuck Schumer and Dick Durbin. Here were the 15 Democrats who opposed it:

Akaka (D-HI), Blumenthal (D-CT), Brown (D-OH), Cardin (D-MD), Casey (D-PA), Franken (D-MN), Gillibrand (D-NY), Harkin (D-IA), Klobuchar (D-MN), Leahy (D-VT), McCaskill (D-MO), Merkley (D-OR), Mikulski (D-MD), Sanders (I-VT), Stabenow (D-MI)

But the pattern is clear and well-established with our 2 Democratic senators. And it is nothing to write home about. Though Mark Udall writes, and tries, he continues to be a milquetoast who compares quite poorly to his blood-relation senator from New Mexico. Bennet, like his political benefactor Bill Ritter, has shown a complete disregard for labor and unions.

This was yet another failure of Democrats in the Senate. Failure is the only way I can describe Bennet and Udall's unrequited bipartisanship, their double-dealing against the base, and downright tepid attempts at legislating. And if they think constantly playing the "middle" against everyone else is the safest way to win reelection, then there's a quarterback in Denver who can explain how that really works to these veteran politicians who currently represent us.

In case you don't trust this Cheetoh-stained blogger, take a peek at Ed Schultz, former Republican and expert on Upper Midwest values, discussing on the tube:

House Republicans arrest journalist at fracking hearing

by: wade norris

Wed Feb 01, 2012 at 14:07:23 PM MST

In a stunning break with First Amendment policy on Capitol Hill, House Republicans directed Capitol Hill police to detain a highly regarded documentary crew that was attempting to film a Wednesday hearing on a controversial natural gas procurement practice. Republicans also denied the entrance of a credentialed ABC News news team that was attempting to film the event....
Approximately 16 officers entered the hearing room and handcuffed Fox amid audible discussions of "disorderly conduct" charges, according to Democratic sources present at the arrest.

Republican Voters of South Carolina

by: tjwalker

Wed Jan 25, 2012 at 13:26:32 PM MST

"Thank you, thank you, and thank you.  We couldn't have done it better ourselves! You have just voted for a candidate who is viewed unfavorably by 60% of American voters according to the non-partisan Public Policy Polling organization! If there is less popular American politician not currently serving time in prison, we are not aware of one. We are hoping and praying that other Republican Primary voters follow your example and vote for Newt "open marriage" "grandiose" "dump your wives as soon as they get sick" Gingrich in future primaries.

We believe voters selected Newt for Two Reasons: 1. By calling Obama the "Food stamp President" Gingrich let voters know that he shares their belief that a black man should not be allowed to be in the White House unless he is a butler. 2. When Newt showers liberals and the media with contempt, he's damn good at it. You really get the idea that Newt hates and resents liberals. Whereas voters get the feeling that Romney personally likes liberals and the media and gets along with them most of the time.

If the GOP does nominate Gingrich, Obama's re-election is virtually guaranteed. Obama could appoint Willie Horton as Secretary of Defense and turn Camp David into a crack house and still easily beat the cartoonishly detestable Newt Gingrich in a general election."

The State of the Republican Party

by: tjwalker

Tue Jan 24, 2012 at 14:03:57 PM MST

Instead, the Republican Party is left with the greatest collection of four clowns since Shemp joined the original Three Stooges.

Witness the following:

1.    Mitt Romney. Romney is so awkward and politically tone death that he makes Michael Dukakis and John Kerry look like Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan.  Before our eyes, Romney is morphing from a leading candidate for president into a leading candidate to star in a remake of the "Grey Poupon" mustard commercials. Romney might not be a low-IQ, homophobic bigot like some candidates, but he makes Louis the XIV seem like a man of the people. It seems only a matter of time before Romney announces in a debate that the person who had the greatest impact on his life was Leona Helmsly when she said "only the little people pay taxes.

2.    Newt Gingrich. Where to begin? Newt isn't the most detestable politician you can think of; he is the most detestable human being you can imagine. Period! Newt is the sort of person who if he asked for your permission to marry your daughter or sister, you would offer him a large sum of money to leave quietly and move to another state, or else. If you close your eyes and try to imagine a politician who is utterly repugnant at every single intellectual, moral and even physical level, you would not be able to come up with something worse than a Newt Gingrich.

3.    Rick Santorum. Rick Santorum has all the wit, charm and class of that guy in high school who threw your gay cousin in the dumpster behind the cafeteria. The more you get to know Santorum, as the good voters of Pennsylvania did, the more you want to kick him out of office by nearly 20 points, as the good voters of Pennsylvania did.

4.    Ron Paul. Ever meet a Ron Paul supporter, and not just at a Klan rally or Hitler reenactment party? Have you ever talked to a Ron Paul supporter for 10 minutes? Case closed.

While we at AmericanLP are working tirelessly to support President Obama and all Democratic candidates at the Federal level and we are pulling for every tactical advantage we can get, we have to confess that something doesn't seem right here. This is starting to seem too easy. It's almost like the Republicans are throwing away the election needlessly. The four remaining GOP Presidential candidates is the greatest collection of political losers ever assembled with the possible exception of when David Duke dines alone.

We don't need no stinkin' EPA?

by: Zappatero

Sat Jan 21, 2012 at 17:16:28 PM MST

And if the free market is so virtuous, he could also explain why SUNCOR Energy shouldn't use any of its enormous profits to contain the toxic fluids still leaking into Denver's waterways.

Suncor Energy Inc., Canada's largest energy company, said second-quarter profit rose 4.1% as higher oil prices countered a decline in output.

Net income climbed to $562 million, or 36 cents a share, from $540 million, or 35 cents, a year earlier, Calgary-based Suncor said Thursday in a statement.

The Free Market, as defined by Republicans, let's you extract energy at low cost with minimal safety requirements. It gives free license to take the profits of your efforts without taxation and with no further responsibilities to anyone but your shareholders and Board, nevermind the Benzene at 48 times its normal accumulation in you and your family's drinking water.

A request for political researchers - McGraw Hill campaign contributions

by: Angela Engel

Tue Jan 17, 2012 at 15:40:08 PM MST

Angela Engel

Americans for a Better Tomorrow Tomorrow: Mitt Romney is a serial killer

by: Zappatero

Sun Jan 15, 2012 at 10:35:25 AM MST

Mitt Romney said corporations are people, and Stephen Colbert has taken the statement to its logical conclusion.

I'm thinking Colbert is the smartest candidate around this year.......for either side.

Both sides do it: "Unprecedented"

by: Zappatero

Wed Jan 04, 2012 at 14:55:10 PM MST

President Obama raised quite a few eyebrows this morning when the White House announced a recess appointment for Richard Cordray to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It was an unusual display - congressional Republicans abused the rules and told the president to just accept it, and Obama effectively responded, "No."

As it turns out, this more combative attitude goes beyond the CFPB. Greg Sargent has this scoop this afternoon.

Obama is also set to use recess appointments to install his picks to the National Labor Relations Board, according to White House officials and others familiar with ongoing discussions.

The move, which is arguably as important as the Cordray appointment, will ratchet up opposition from Republicans and make this an even bigger fight, since they have been attacking the NLRB regularly for its moves to streamline union elections and inform workers of their rights.

Obama is set to appoint Sharon Block, Terence Flynn, and Richard Grifin to the board - something unions have made a big priority for them in the new year.

"This is an extraordinary and entirely unprecedented power grab by President Obama that defies centuries of practice and the legal advice of his own Justice Department."

"Breaking from this precedent lands this appointee in uncertain legal territory, threatens the confirmation process and fundamentally endangers the Congress's role in providing a check on the excesses of the executive branch."

The Other Half of that Famous Quote

by: Zappatero

Wed Dec 14, 2011 at 19:45:26 PM MST

"I don't want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub."

"Bipartisanship is another name for date rape."

And our wonderful President, The Weekend at Bernie's of Bipartisanship, while sorta talking tough, is getting ready once again to cave to ruthless and soulless Republicans as our economy is in a death stall, has forgotten the key part of the quote of his most recent lecture subject in that small Kansas town:

"Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far"

Quit quoting and start doing.

And that's my quote for the day.

Who will report this but NPR and Lefty blogs?

by: Zappatero

Sat Dec 10, 2011 at 11:21:49 AM MST

From the article:

NPR put out a request to Republican offices and the business groups that have been lobbying against the surtax to find business owners who'd be affected. Unsurprisingly, Republican leadership and the business groups came up empty:

We wanted to talk to business owners who would be affected. So, NPR requested help from numerous Republican congressional offices, including House and Senate leadership. They were unable to produce a single millionaire job creator for us to interview.

So we went to the business groups that have been lobbying against the surtax. Again, three days after putting in a request, none of them was able to find someone for us to talk to. A group called the Tax Relief Coalition said the problem was finding someone willing to talk about their personal taxes on national radio.

As the President said last week: Trickle Down does not work.

Springs Repubs invite Grover Norquist to their Con-fab

by: Zappatero

Mon Nov 14, 2011 at 10:15:01 AM MST

The El Paso County Republicans are incapable of throwing a par-tay, even in honor of the greatest Republican who ever played father to a chimp, without kicking off some sort of internal squabble, protest, riot, flame war, or party purging.

Into the fray comes this latest missive:

Dear El Paso County Republicans:

There has been much controversy surrounding the Reagan Gala and its guest speaker Grover Norquist. It is my responsibility to investigate these matters and decide the best course of action as I fulfill my obligations as Vice-Chairman. It is also my duty to be honest and straight forward with the republicans (sic) that elected me.

After being presented with much information and conducting my own meticulous research I have decided that I cannot, in good conscience, attend the Reagan Gala on November 12th, 2011. I say this not to condemn our local party, but rather to affirm my own personal integrity. At best, Grover Norquist has too many leftist, radical Islamic ties that make him a poor choice to be honored at one of our events. In my opinion, his associations and dealings bring into question his commitment to our conservative ideals and beliefs.

Love even more how Grover Norquist is called a "leftist" by a Springs Repub -- Only in Colorado.

The thrill of MIC checking this creep would be sublime. But no, I will not be giving one red cent to El Paso County Republicans. No how, no way, Jose........

And P.S. to Democrats who are witnessing this intra-party frack-up: There are many Colorado independents who do think Grover Norquist is a lefty. I hope those are not the independents you are constantly striving to impress, because I'm not so sure you understand the difference among Colorado's self-described political free-marketeers.  

Has Scott Gessler tried to steal your vote today?

by: Zappatero

Mon Oct 03, 2011 at 09:58:33 AM MST

(OH, almost didn't see this from Jason Salzman - who seems to have taken up the dirty job of listening to the endless crazy on Denver's airwaves. I thank you, Jason, for your guts and conscience.)

Coffman, Lamborn and Associates to cut education even further

by: Zappatero

Thu Sep 29, 2011 at 11:14:42 AM MST

WASHINGTON-House Republicans have announced plans to cut heating subsidies for the poor, job training and President Barack Obama's "Race to the Top" program providing grants to better-performing schools, as they unveil a massive spending bill for labor, health and education programs.

The controversial GOP measure also seeks to block implementation of Obama's signature health care law, cut off National Public Radio from federal grants and reduce eligibility for Pell Grants to low-income college students.

The President I voted for

by: Zappatero

Thu Sep 08, 2011 at 17:10:34 PM MST

The policy needs are beyond obvious. Though they've failed this basic test before, it would be politically brain-dead for Democrats, especially Colorado's Wimpy Senators Udall and Bennet, to not fully support the goals behind this speech. (I'm looking at you too, me!)

Republicans will bitch and moan about every fine point, but cannot refudiate the President's challenge that America's greatest leaders have never hesitated to invest in a future that would help their progeny at every turn. Republicans will not and cannot do what's right in today's environment. Democrats will hesitate to do what's right and might fritter away the opportunity while the economy continues to suffer. That is truly the most disconcerting part of this drama.

But I have been waiting for this President Obama for three years. I hope his team in DC sees the light and supports him in this critical plan for our economy. If they don't, then once again his eloquent words will be the narration to an empty dream. This is the dream that was expected by the millions who voted for him in November, 2008. They will never see it without unwavering support from those citizens and leaders who also said "Yes, we can" that election day.

That's the day I voted for President Barack Obama, the president we saw flashes of again last night.

The Tea Party Tax Assessment

by: Zappatero

Mon Aug 08, 2011 at 08:09:40 AM MST

The resulting S&P downgrade of our credit rating has caused stock markets around the world to lose value and start invoking panic rules.

Your personal finances, your home values, your pensions and 401k's and IRAs have just been assessed those losses and you will most likely never make that money back.

You can thank reactionaries of The Tea Party, including local Geniuses like Doug Lamborn, almost entirely for this loss of wealth.

Doug Lamborn: Idiot Extraordinaire

by: Zappatero

Tue Aug 02, 2011 at 06:43:03 AM MST

"Even if some people say, 'Well the Republicans should have done this or they should have done that,' they will hold the president responsible. Now, I don't even want to have to be associated with him. It's like touching a tar baby and you get it, you're stuck, and you're a part of the problem now and you can't get away," Lamborn said Friday on the Caplis and Silverman Show on 630 KHOW talk radio.

Where does the expression "tar baby" come from? And who uses it anymore? Maybe it's a no-brainer for those who grew up in lily white Kansas and now live in lily white Colorado Springs? But it should be a no-brainer not to use the ignorant and racist expression.

On Running Your Own Government, Or, Why Pay The Military?

by: fake consultant

Sat Jul 30, 2011 at 04:15:31 AM MST

You will hear a lot of conversation about the consequences from others; today, however, you are going to get the chance to be both the President and the Secretary of the Treasury, and you will get to decide for yourself exactly what bills the Federal Government should and should not pay as the cash runs out if a deal is not made by the time borrowing authority runs out.

At that point you'll be able to see what's coming for yourself - and once you do, you won't need me to tell you what ugly is going to look like.

The Greatest Tax hike in human History

by: Zappatero

Fri Jul 29, 2011 at 11:06:58 AM MST

Republican refusal to lift the debt ceiling and their continuing threat to default on our obligations could cause the largest loss of capital, increase in interest rates, and loss of home values in history.

Therefore, Republican failure to raise the debt ceiling, and their threats to cause America to default on its debts, could lead to the greatest tax hike in Human History, and they will have done this all in the name of "cutting spending". This is just one more way Republicans' hypocrisy will hurt the average American they always claim to support.  

Hitler Holds News Conference, Blames Balanced Budget Amendment For U.S. Defeat

by: fake consultant

Tue Jul 26, 2011 at 09:03:01 AM MST

"All those ideas Mr. Roosevelt spoke of", said Hitler, "Lend-Lease, modular shipbuilding, War Bonds, secret weapons...in the end, all of them were just words, since the Americans' Congress was never willing to allow the country to fully fund its war effort."