"Open-Carry" gun nuts VIDEO + Jim Webb WAS For Closing The Gun Show Loophole

By GottaLaff

A victory for gun control advocates today:

(CNN)– House Democratic leaders have killed a bill that would have given Washington, DC a voting representative in Congress because the measure included a provision that would have wiped out the District's strict gun laws.

Taxation with representation on the condition of lax gun laws? Not so much.

A close friend of TPC had a victory of his own. Our own Cliff Schecter (who founded this blog and happens to be my mentor), together with families of those massacred at Virginia Tech, played a roll in discouraging the D.C. powers from passing the bill.

Background on the shooting:

The Virginia Tech massacre was a school shooting that took place on Monday, April 16, 2007 on the campus of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States. In two separate attacks, approximately two hours apart, the perpetrator, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people and wounded many others^[1] before committing suicide. The massacre is the deadliest peacetime shooting incident by a single gunman in United States history, on or off a school campus.^[2] [...]

It sparked intense debate about gun violence, gun laws, gaps in the U.S. system for treating mental health issues, the perpetrator's state of mind, the responsibility of college administrations,^[5] privacy laws, journalism ethics, and other issues. [...] The massacre prompted the state of Virginia to close legal loopholes that had previously allowed Cho, an individual adjudicated as mentally unsound, to purchase handguns without detection by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). It also led to passage of the first major federal gun control measure in more than 13 years.

Now for the inevitable Big H: However...

Jim Webb was "outed", if you will, by these very same Virginia Tech families. He made a promise to them that he has broken; at least that's sure how they are feeling. And he's not exactly denying it.

Webb told the family members he was for closing the gun show loophole. He has yet to do that after 10 months.

The 3rd anniversary of the Virginia Tech massacre just passed.

The 11th anniversary of Columbine is also upon us.

Here is Webb's strong private statement to the Virginia Tech Families:

A group that includes victims of the Virginia Tech massacre and their families said Monday that Sen. Jim Webb (D-Virginia) met privately with them and gave his commitment to support a federal law requiring that buyers at gun shows undergo background checks before purchasing firearms.

Compare that to his much weaker public statement:

Will Jenkins, a spokesman for Webb, has sent the following statement. It does not directly address whether Webb supports closing the gun-show loophole: "Senator Webb is a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. He also believes that appropriate laws and procedures should be kept in place to ensure that guns should be kept out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill. He will continue to work with his colleagues in the Senate toward both ends," Jenkins wrote. [...]

Kevin Hall, a spokesman for Warner, has responded as well. Like Jenkins, he did not directly address the gun show issue. "Senator Warner has a record of supporting Second Amendment rights and he will weigh any future proposals that come before the full Senate. He also will continue to work for full funding to make sure the National Instant Criminal Background Check System is complete and up-to-date - improvements that were mandated by Congress following the 2007 Virginia Tech tragedy," he wrote in a statement.

As a result, ads have been launched in several states, taking aim (no pun) at Jim Webb and Mark Warner. Here is one:




Credit goes to Cliff Schecter, the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV), and a big hat tip to Virginians for Public Safety and Mayors Against Illegal Guns, for their efforts.

Cliff and CSGV produced this video. It made a difference:




Thank you, Cliff and Virginia Tech relatives for your push to get a bad law dumped. You showed Congress what it could look like if some very unstable people with extreme views were allowed to carry assault weapons openly in the streets.

Here is the website gun show loophole petition and a press release. Please go sign, I did.

Hill reports Dem. Caucus Chairman: "I believe we have the votes"

By GottaLaff

The Wonk Room just tweeted this, and the Hill is reporting it. House Democratic Caucus Chairman John Larson (Conn.):

"There’s tremendous anticipation, and certainly a lot of anxiety, but I believe we have the votes and that we will get this bill done this week," Larson, the fourth-ranking House Democrat, said after a caucus meeting.

While others (Nancy Pelosi, President Obama) aren't quite as optimistic, Larson sure is:

"I think that the votes are there," Larson said. "Consensus is about getting everyone to agree that this is the best that they can achieve at this time while individually they may not agree with everything that’s in the bill."

Hopefully, he's right.

Health Care Watch: Good news, bad news

By GottaLaff

Ezra Klein has some upbeat news:

That graph is from Pollster.com. It gets even tighter if you eliminate the conservative-leaning Rasmussen poll, whose founder wrote a Wall Street Journal op-ed yesterday explaining that the president can't make health-care reform popular because voters believe all sorts of untrue things about it.

And The Hill has some downbeat news:

More than two dozen Democrats are expected to vote against the healthcare reform bill that will hit the House floor in the coming weeks.

At least 25 House Democrats will reject the healthcare reform legislation, according to a survey by The Hill, a review of other media reports and interviews with lawmakers, aides and lobbyists. Dozens of House Democrats are undecided or won't comment on their position on the measure.

Not sure how reliable that is. Time will tell, and way, way too much time has passed. I agree with Ezra's piece: Had we passed it sooner, the Dems would be in much better shape today.

Note: If the charts fail to show up properly, you can view them here.

AUDIO: Rep. Eric Massa on His Naked Rahm Run-In

By GottaLaff

No love lost here:



Via Roll Call:

[Massa] recounts running into Emanuel in the House gym, where the shower curtains had inexplicably been removed. “I’m ... naked as a jay bird, and here comes Rahm Emanuel, not even with a towel wrapped around his tush, poking his finger in my chest, yelling at me because I wasn’t going to vote for the president’s budget,” Massa said. “Do you know how awkward it is to have a political argument with a naked man?”

No, my arguments with naked men are rarely about politics... but I can imagine....

Massa's Resignation Helps Pelosi Pass Health Care

By GottaLaff

I've been reading this and hearing this, so now I'll write about it:

[I]f the vote were to come next week, the threshold for passage of health care reform would drop back to 216 from its current 217.

Recall that Republicans delayed the retirement of Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA), simply to boost the vote threshold for health care to 217. Massa's retirement cancels that out.

And remember, too, that Massa voted against health care reform the first time around. [...]

In other words, the resignation actually improves the situation for Pelosi.

And at this point, we need all the help we can get.

Think positive.

TPM has more here.

William Delahunt (D-Mass.) will not seek reelection

By GottaLaff

Via an e-mail alert from Politico:

Representative William Delahunt (D-Mass.) will not seek reelection, the Boston Globe is reporting. "It's got nothing to do with politics," Delahunt told the Globe.

Another one bites the dust....

UPDATE:

"It's got nothing to do with politics," the Quincy Democrat said today. "Life is about change. I think it's healthy. It's time."

The 68-year-old lawmaker said he has been considering leaving the House for several years, but was talked out of it two years ago by the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, who convinced his friend he should stay and help President Obama with his first-term agenda. [...]

Once Kennedy died last year, Delahunt said he grappled with whether to stay and work on the issues Kennedy held dear. [...]

But the congressman said he concluded that after nearly four decades in public service, the grueling House schedule was taking its toll on his personal life. [...]

But the congressman -- while declining to name a favored successor -- said he is "confident it will stay Democratic."

Intel bill pulled over torture provision

By GottaLaff

Mustn't ever try to punish the torturers, tsk tsk:

House Republicans charged Democrats with trying to sneak a provision into the intelligence authorization bill that would establish criminal punishment for CIA agents and other intelligence officials who engage in “cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment” during interrogations.

Seriously, who would object to that? Wait, don't tell me. Rhymes with Shmepublicans?

Damn those ethical types who refuse to allow interrogators to murder, destroy lives, inflict pain, and damage psyches!

The provision, previously not vetted in committee, applied to “any officer or employee of the intelligence community” who during interrogations engages in beatings, infliction of pain or forced sexual acts. The bill said the acts covered by the provision would include inducing hypothermia, conducting mock executions or “depriving the [detainee] of necessary food, water, sleep, or medical care.”

The language gave Congress the discretion to determine what the terms mean, and it would have imposed punishments of up to 15 years in prison, and in some cases, life sentences if a detainee died as a result of the interrogation.

Republicans criticized the language and the way it was introduced.

I find it so amusing that, when the Rushpublics are in power, procedural tricks, sneaky late night changes, and secret meetings are perfectly acceptable.

If the Dems try to throw something into a bill, fugettaboutit:

“I’m hearing from Republicans that we are somehow sacrificing our national security” through this bill, said Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.). She said the language underscores existing law and enhances national security.

Because Reyes included it in his manager's amendment, Republicans were not able to try to strike it from the bill before passage. The only recourse they had was to try to excise it during the House-Senate conference. The Senate version does not contain similar language.

More details here.

Pelosi: House Dems can support Obama healthcare proposal

By GottaLaff

Medicare extension. Medicare extension. Medicare extension. Listen to Howard Dean...

Speaker Nancy Pelosi said House Democrats can support the major parts of the healthcare proposal released by the White House. [...]

Pelosi also didn’t object to the lack of a public insurance plan in Obama’s bill. Liberals in the House have pled for Obama to support the public option, and had included it in their bill as a way to ensure competition with private insurance and to drive down healthcare costs.

“There are other ways to do that,” Pelosi said. “We intend to do that in the bill. [The public option] seems to me the best way to us, but that will depend on what the Senate can pass on the Senate side.”

Just. Do. Something.

Cooked

By GottaLaff

Via Greg Sargent:

Cook Political Report revises a bunch of ratings and concludes that 54 Dem-held House seats stand a reasonable chance of flipping, versus only six GOP seats. Conclusion: Dem control of House at risk.

Massachusetts' Delahunt Won't Rule Out Retirement

By GottaLaff

Another one?

Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.) did not rule out retirement in an interview with the Boston Herald published Saturday.

Massachusetts is getting more depressing by the day.

PayGo: How the vote went

By GottaLaff

For your consideration:

The debt ceiling vote passed, 217-212, while PAYGO passed, 233-187. Not a single Republican voted for either measure. [...]

[T]here were 24 House Democrats who voted for PAYGO but against raising the debt ceiling -- giving us an idea of the Dems who are certainly thinking about their re-election prospects in November.

Here they are:

Adler (NJ)
Boccieri (OH)
Childers (MS)
Donnelly (IN)
Driehaus (OH)
Ellsworth (IN)
Foster (IL)
Halvorson (IL)
Hodes (NH)
Kirkpatrick (AZ)
Kissell (NC)
Kratovil (MD)
Markey (CO)
Massa (NY)
McIntyre (NC)
Murphy (NY)
Murphy (PA)
Owens (NY)
Perriello (VA)
Schauer (MI)
Space (OH)
Teague (NM)
Titus (NV)
Wu (OR)

Thanks again, GOP. Thumbs up!

Never mind- Pelosi: No Hope For Public Option At This Time

By GottaLaff


Earlier I posted about some optimism in the House about the public option.

Never mind:

But on a conference call today, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi put a second set of nails in the public option's coffin--saying it would not be part of any grand bargain to push ahead with health. And in so doing, she took a veiled swipe at the White House for not standing enthusiastically behind the proposal. [...]

"And so I think that what you might see coming out of some reconciliation would be those areas of agreement that all three--the White House, the Senate and the House--had already agreed to...more than two weeks ago."

As I said in the previous post about this, I chose that particular Peanuts image on purpose.

House Momentum for the Public Option

By GottaLaff

Do you love that DKos headline as much as I do?

An incredible 98 House Democrats have signed the Polis-Pingree letter since last week -- calling on Harry Reid to pass the public health insurance option through "reconciliation," which only needs a simple majority to pass the Senate.

This momentum is thanks in large part to tens of thousands of people who called their local House Democrat and asked them to sign.

I've called more times than I can count. Have you done that? It does make a difference, as you can see.

Never give up.

And yes, I chose that particular Peanuts image on purpose.

Arkansas Rep. Marion Berry to retire

By GottaLaff

You know what's coming:

Arkansas Rep. Marion Berry is expected to announce his retirement tomorrow morning, according to three sources briefed on the decision.

Berry will become the sixth Democrat in a competitive seat to leave in the last two months but the first to announce his retirement since the party's special election loss in Massachusetts last Tuesday.

Here it comes:

"The message coming out of the Massachusetts special election is clear: No Democrat is safe," said National Republican Congressional Committee communications director Ken Spain.

There it went.

House Democrats Target 36 Races

Offense is very good. Huge thanks to Taegan for getting behind the Roll Call wall and gathering this up.

"In an effort to show they are playing offense in what is expected to be a tough year politically for the party, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee released a list Thursday of more than two dozen "Races to Watch" in 2010," Roll Call reports.

Said the DCCC's Jon Vogel: "These strong candidates are getting the attention of folks back home because of their willingness to be independent voices for their districts and prevent a return to the same failed Bush policies that drove America into an economic ditch."

"As these strong candidates continue building excitement for their campaigns to create jobs and help middle class families back home, the DCCC will help them become even more competitive in November."

Top Races:

• AZ-03 (Open-Shadegg) -- John Hulburd
• CA-03 (Lungren) -- Ami Bera
• CA-45 (Bono Mack) -- Steve Pougnet
• DE-AL (Open-Castle) -- John Carney
• FL-12 (Open-Putnam) -- Lori Edwards
• IL-10 (Open-Kirk) -- Primary
• NE-02 (Terry) -- Tom White
• OH-12 (Tiberi) -- Paula Brooks
• KS-04 (Open-Tiahrt) -- Raj Goyle
• LA-02 (Cao) -- Primary
• MN-06 (Bachmann) -- Primary
• PA-06 (Gerlach) -- Primary
• PA-07 (Open-Sestak) -- Bryan Lentz
• PA-15 (Dent) -- John Callahan
• SC-02 (Wilson) -- Rob Miller
• TN-08 (Open-Tanner) -- Roy Herron -- The only Democratic-held seat on the list.
• WA-08 (Reichert) -- Suzan Delbene

Emerging Races:

• AK-AL (Young) -- Harry Crawford
• AL-03 (Rogers) -- Josh Segall
• CA-44 (Calvert) -- Bill Hedrick
• FL-10 (Young) -- Charlie Justice
• FL-16 (Rooney) -- Chris Craft
• IL-13 (Biggert) -- Scott Harper
• MN-03 (Paulsen) -- Primary
• MO-08 (Emerson) -- Tommy Sowers
• TX-32 (Sessions) -- Grier Raggio

Pelosi: “We’re on the brink of passing healthcare reform"

By GottaLaff

Democrats have been on the brink of a lot of things, but health care reform hasn't been one of them... until now:

After a year of legislative tussling among Democrats in both the House and Senate and after an intense day of negotiating between Obama and the leaders of both chambers on Wednesday, senior House Democrats indicated they could be ready to put the finishing touches on final legislation before the beginning of next week.

“We’re on the brink of passing healthcare reform,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). “We are making progress which will get [us] closer to reconciling the House and Senate bills.”

VIDEO- Obama addresses House Dems: "That is a fight I want to have"

By GottaLaff

Prez O rallies the House Dems:

"2010 will not be a boring year."

The Hill has more:

President Barack Obama rallied House Democrats Thursday around the healthcare bill and an economy he said will improve as they head into a midterm election campaign.

Obama said that the legislation Congress passed since he became president is moving the economy forward and that Republican opposition to the healthcare bill will buoy Democrats in November.

Blue Dog House Democrat Calls it Quits

By GottaLaff

John the Quitter:

Rep. John Tanner (D-TN), a leading Blue Dog Democrat, will retire at the end of his current term, sources tell Hotline On Call.

"Tanner has begun informing key House Dems of his decision -- one that will make his seat a prime pickup opportunity for GOPers."

Dennis Moore (D-KS) announced the same thing last week.

I'm not sure there's much difference between Blue Dogs and Republicans these days, so this may be a wash.

41 House Dems Pledge To Vote Against Bill With Abortion Amendment

By GottaLaff

Via Greg Sargent, we get a peek at a no-wiggle-room letter to Nancy Pelosi has been signed by 41 House Democrats (emphasis mine):

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
H-232 Capitol
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Madam Speaker:

As members of the Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus, we believe that women should have access to a full range of reproductive health care. Health care reform must not be misused as an opportunity to restrict women’s access to reproductive health services.

The Stupak-Pitts amendment to H.R. 3962, The Affordable Healthcare for America Act, represents an unprecedented and unacceptable restriction on women’s ability to access the full range of reproductive health servicesto which they are lawfully entitled. We will not vote for a conference report that contains language that restricts women’s right to choose any further than current law.

Sincerely,

According to Greg, more signatories are expected, and he will update asap. When he does, we will.

My original post about the outrage (including Rachel Maddow's) over the Stupak amendment is here

VIDEO- Maddow: Dem. women will "sit on hands", "revolt" if abortion amendment stays in health care bill

By GottaLaff

Rachel Maddow is tops on the Tee Vee Machine when it comes to perceptive analysis, honest reporting, and investigative journalism. When she speaks, people should listen. She does her homework and she doesn't mince words.

Judging from the overall response on Twitter last night (I see thousands of tweets), she is spot on when she states that Democratic women (and men, based on what I saw), who candidates need in their corner, will withhold votes come 2010.

The Stupak amendment was a huge setback for abortion rights, as Rachel says in the video, and if it is not removed in conference, there will be a significant drop-off at the polls by the Democratic base.

Moving to the right is not the answer, in case that hasn't already been made obvious. Just ask Creigh Deeds. We didn't elect Barack Obama and our Congress members because we wanted to mimic the Republican party. We didn't celebrate 2006 and 2008 majorities just to maintain the status quo... or become GOP Lite.

Our side didn't come out in big numbers in last Tuesday's election. This kind of legislating won't exactly pump us up for 2010 either. Say bye-bye to donations, volunteers, donations, enthusiasm, donations, support, donations... Lukewarm turnout won't cut it. Blue Dogs won't cut it. Anti-abortion amendments won't cut it.

Here's Rachel:

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