Friday, June 16, 2006
Political Hot Topics
"ONE OF THE SHARPEST LEGISLATIVE CLASHES" OVER IRAQ: The House and the Senate engaged in angry, intensely partisan debate on Thursday over the war in Iraq, as Republicans sought to rally support for the Bush administration's policies and exploit Democratic divisions in an election year shadowed by unease over the war. It was one of the sharpest legislative clashes yet over the three-year-old conflict... In the House, lawmakers moved toward a vote Friday after more than 11 hours of debate on a Republican resolution promising to "complete the mission" in Iraq, prevail in the global fight against terrorism and oppose any "arbitrary date for withdrawal." In the Senate, lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to shelve an amendment calling on the United States to withdraw most troops by the end of this year, although Democrats vowed to revisit the debate next week. New York Times: Congress Erupts in Partisan Fight Over Iraq War

BUSH SIGNS EMERGENCY $$$ BILL: The Senate Thursday sent President Bush a $94.5 billion emergency spending bill, meeting his funding requests for America's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and providing new aid to Gulf Coast hurricane victims. The 98-1 vote on the compromise House-Senate legislation gave much-needed funds to support U.S. troops overseas. Most of the money - $66 billion - goes to the Pentagon for military operations overseas. Bush praised Congress for providing funds to "fight terrorism, defend our homeland, enforce our borders, and fulfill our moral obligation to help our fellow Americans in need." He signed the measure into law only hours after receiving it. The bill would bring to almost $320 billion the tally for the campaign in Iraq and $89 billion for the one in Afghanistan. AP via Yahoo! News: Senate sends Bush $94.5B for Iraq, Katrina

IS AL QAEDA REALLY AT "THE BEGINNING OF THE END"? The U.S. military in recent weeks has seized a "huge treasure" of intelligence materials on al Qaeda in Iraq, including a revealing document in which the terror group acknowledges its own "bleak situation" caused by losses on both the public relations and war fronts. The documents seized in the weeks leading up to the June 7 killing of Abu Musab Zarqawi also have provided intelligence that has helped direct nearly 500 allied combat operations and resulted in the killings of 104 insurgents, the U.S. command in Baghdad said yesterday. Al Qaeda's acknowledged failures and the military offensive have been so successful that Iraq's national security adviser flatly predicted that Zarqawi's group, al Qaeda in Iraq, is at "the beginning of the end." He said all U.S. troops could be out of Iraq by 2008. Washington Times: Papers reveal weakening terror group

HOUSE DEMS VOTE TO REMOVE JEFFERSON FROM COMMITTEE: Democrats voted last night to strip Rep. William J. Jefferson (La.) of a plum committee assignment while he is embroiled in a federal bribery investigation. The 99 to 58 vote followed weeks of public and private wrangling, as Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) sought to take a strong election-year stance on ethics, while Jefferson's allies -- mainly fellow members of the Congressional Black Caucus -- protested that he was being singled out for unfair treatment... If he refuses to step aside from the Ways and Means Committee, as urged by the Democratic Caucus, the next step would be a vote on the House floor to remove him from the prestigious committee. Even his allies want to avoid that. Washington Post: Party Urges Jefferson To Leave Committee

CBC VS. DEM LEADERS: Members of the black caucus who have supported Jefferson argued it would be unprecedented to force him off the committee before any criminal charges had been filed against him. Rep. Melvin Watt (D-N.C.), head of the black caucus, warned that Pelosi's push for Jefferson's removal might cause black voters to conclude that "a different standard... based on race" was being applied. The controversy pits Pelosi and other House Democratic leaders against the black caucus at a time when the clout its members exert within their districts is especially important. Turnout by black voters is considered crucial to Democratic hopes of winning control of the House in November's elections. Los Angeles Times: Black Caucus Opposes Democrats' Move to Take Jefferson Off Key Committee

A "TEST" FOR PELOSI: ...Pelosi has presided over a period of remarkable unity among members of a party not traditionally known for its harmony. Though critics warned when she became leader three years ago that a San Francisco liberal would encounter troubles leading a national party, the fault lines have not ruptured along traditional liberal-conservative lines, a friction to which Pelosi has paid careful attention. Several factors have brought attention to party differences: members flexing their muscles during this week's debate over Iraq, black members complaining about efforts to oust Jefferson and a surprise bid for the No. 2 House leadership slot by a Pelosi ally. Pelosi has personally involved herself in each of the disputes, and outside of Capitol Hill has so far kept them relatively low-profile affairs. San Francisco Chronicle: Divisions among Democrats test Pelosi as leader

PELOSI WEALTHIEST HOUSE LEADER: If the Democrats take over the House this fall, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) will bring more than different political views to the Speaker's chair. She'll be bringing a net worth that far exceeds that of the current Speaker, Rep. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.). Pelosi is worth at least $14 million, according to her 2005 financial disclosure form, which was released Wednesday. That makes her the wealthiest House leader on either side of the aisle. Hastert, by contrast, is worth a minimum of $1.3 million. Roll Call: Pelosi Tops House Leaders With $14 Million Net Worth

SCOTUS OKS NO-KNOCK SEARCHES: Drugs or other evidence seized at a home can be used in a trial even if police failed to knock and announce their presence, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday in a major shift in its rulings on illegal searches by police. The 5-4 decision in a Detroit drug case undercuts a nearly century-old rule that says evidence found during an unlawful search cannot be used. The decision also offers a sign that the court might be more apt to strengthen the hand of police with Justice Samuel Alito in the place of retired justice Sandra Day O'Connor... Alito sided fully with Justice Antonin Scalia's majority opinion, which emphasized that tossing out evidence acquired in violation of the knock-and-announce rule - but with a valid warrant - could mean "releasing dangerous criminals." USA Today: Justices allow no-knock searches

DHS WON'T BUDGE ON NEW YORK, WASHINGTON CUTS: A top official at the Department of Homeland Security said the agency will not reconsider its decision to cut anti-terror grants for Washington and New York by 40 percent, despite criticism and pointed questioning yesterday by congressional representatives from those regions. George W. Foresman, DHS undersecretary for preparedness, stood by the complicated formulas used by a secret panel of reviewers to divide $711 million in 2006 funds for urban areas across the country. The result was that Washington and New York, the two areas targeted on Sept. 11, 2001, will get less than last year, while Omaha, Charlotte, Louisville and other cities will receive more. Washington Post: DHS Stands By Anti-Terror Cuts

ROCKIN' THE SUBURBS: In searching for any advantage in this year's Congressional elections, the two parties are focusing with increased intensity on those cul de sac jungles of tenuous political loyalties, the suburbs and exurbs. After years in which Republicans capitalized on rapid growth in outlying areas, Democrats now see an opportunity to make gains in close-in suburbs where changes in the composition of the population are working in their favor. In a dozen or so Congressional districts that are leading battlegrounds in the midterm elections, older, more densely packed suburbs are trending Democratic, helping to offset Republican dominance on the sprawling exurban frontier. New York Times: '06 Race Focuses on the Suburbs, Inner and Outer

MD METRO OFFICIAL FIRED OVER "DEVIANCY" REMARK: Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. fired one of his appointees to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority yesterday after the board member asserted on a local cable talk show that homosexuals lived a life of "sexual deviancy." The termination came a few hours after Metro board member Robert J. Smith, an architect and unsuccessful Republican candidate for the General Assembly from Montgomery County, was publicly confronted by a transit board colleague. Board member Jim Graham, a District of Columbia councilman who is openly gay, called on Smith to disavow his remarks or resign during yesterday's regular meeting of the panel, which oversees Metro business. Baltimore Sun: Ehrlich appointee fired over remark

NEW COUNCILMAN WILL PARTICIPATE VIA SPEAKERPHONE: While Maj. Mike McNamara was in Iraq, his family handled much of his city council campaign for him: They handed out fliers, held a campaign rally and put up signs around town. Meanwhile, he answered voters' questions from Fallujah by e-mail. The strategy paid off this week when the Marine reservist won a seat on the Grand Forks City Council. McNamara, 48, beat four other candidates with 49 percent of the vote in the city's second ward, despite serving thousands of miles away. McNamara said he will take part in council meetings via speakerphone until he returns to North Dakota in about 90 days. He said he could not have won the race without his family, and he would encourage others serving in Iraq to run for office. AP via Yahoo! News: Reservist in Iraq wins N.D. council seat

BUSH APOLOGIZES AFTER SUNGLASSES REMARK: President Bush, who often teases members of the White House press corps, apologized Wednesday after he poked fun at a reporter for wearing sunglasses without realizing they were needed for vision loss. The exchange occurred at a news conference in the Rose Garden. Bush called on Los Angeles Times reporter Peter Wallsten and asked if he was going to ask his question with his "shades" on. "For the viewers, there's no sun," Bush said to the television cameras. But even though the sun was behind the clouds, Wallsten still needs the sunglasses because he has Stargardt's disease, a form of macular degeneration that causes progressive vision loss. The condition causes Wallsten to be sensitive to glare and even on a cloudy day, can cause pain and increase the loss of sight. AP via Yahoo! News: Bush apologizes to L.A. Times reporter

TELEMARKETERS INFILTRATE GOV'S EMERGENCY HOTLINE: Ever feel there's no getting away from telephone sales calls? You're not the only one. The federal government has decided to put its own secret Homeland Security hotline to the nation's 50 governors on the federal Do Not Call Registry, according to Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner. The move came after a complaint Thursday by Minner, who said that when her line rings, chances are it's not an emergency but an unwanted intrusion. "Every time that phone rings, it's telemarketers," she said in Washington. Minner keeps the secret homeland defense hotline in her office. Governors have them for instant communication with Washington in case of a major emergency. Minner says that when her line rings, it's someone offering a time-share condominium or the latest deal on long-distance phone service. "I wonder about the security of that line," Minner said. USA Today: Sales calls push security hotline to refuge of Do Not Call list
Posted By Stephen Bach, CNN Washington Bureau: 6/16/2006 09:08:00 AM ET | Permalink
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