...said Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, is "quintessentially an enemy combatant" and should be tried before a military tribunal.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian man accused of trying to set off an explosive aboard a flight to Detroit, also should be put on trial before a military tribunal, he said.
I came across a Ted Mann blog post that mentioned Merrick Alpert's twitter feed. It's... intersting. Lots of mentions of food, Bella, who seems to be a dog, and deep contemplations on nature and weather. Check it out for yourself, I don't know what to make of it. Is he angling to be the first Zen Senator (Zenator?)
(This is crossposted from dKos, where I stupidly helped a flamewar break out in comments. Won't make that mistake again. I recognize this is looking backward when most of today's traffic is looking ahead, but the truth must out.)
This will be long, because this lie has taken deep roots that are hard to pull up. Is there any media outlet that cares about getting this story right? This bullshit about the Dodds getting a "sweetheart" deal from Countrywide needs to stop. It needs to stop on NPR, Cable news, and print media (but I'm not going to hold my breath). At least we can stop the nonsense here.
If you believed this garbage, then you fell victim to the power of suggestion and you owe it to yourself to reclaim your mind by pursuing the facts. And if you remained skeptical, and you consider yourself a progressive, then you owe it to Senator Dodd to try to help get the real story out.
Public Policy Polling has just released their new numbers for CT-Sen. A stark contrast to what they had been.
When Chris Dodd retired last night his seat went from one of the most vulnerable to one of the safest for Senate Democrats. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal leads all three of the Republicans in the race by at least 30 points in polling we conducted Monday and Tuesday night before Dodd's announcement.
Blumenthal is unusually popular, especially in hyper partisan times when voters like few politicians. 59% have a favorable opinion of him to just 19% who see him negatively. It's no surprise that he's liked by 71% of Democrats and 60% of independents, but even Republicans view him favorably by a 37/35 margin. It doesn't take a lot of hands to count the number of Democratic politicians with positive numbers among GOP voters these days.
Blumenthal leads Rob Simmons 59-28, Linda McMahon 60-28, and Peter Schiff 63-23. It would take an epic collapse for him not to be Connecticut's next Senator.
There's little good news in this just released Quinnipiac poll for Chris Dodd. He's been trending in the high 30's for the last seven months now, while Rob Simmons is back up to near his high.
Of some interest though is that there now seems to a race among the Republicans. Linda McMahon's millions in ad buys have put her on the map, as have to a smaller extent Tom Foley, both at the expense of Rob Simmons.
Counting on your opponent/s to weaken themselves and deplete their resources is not a winning strategy though, as eventually Chris Dodd or someone else will have to win the seat, not expect someone else to lose it.
Dan Michak of The Journal Inquirer digs up some dirt, literally, on the questionable ethics of Rob Simmons. It's behind a pay-wall but here is a lump of coal for your stocking:
Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Robert R. Simmons on a single day last summer accepted a bundle of nearly $105,000 in campaign cash from contributors associated with the coal industry, Federal Election Commission records show.
The money, which amounted to 11 percent of the $967,907 Simmons collected in the third quarter, came from 108 individuals and three corporate political action committees linked to coal companies and businesses that service the coal mining industry in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia, and Utah.
About two months after his big payday, Simmons wrote in his campaign blog that he had concluded "I was wrong" about his previous support for what some environmentalists say would be critical regulation to fight global warming.
The so-called "cap-and-trade" concept, which the coal industry strongly opposes, would limit emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gasses, in part by requiring fossil fuel power plants to pollute less.
The former 2nd District congressman reportedly has called it a "cap-and-tax" system that amounts to "a dangerous way to govern."
Simmons, who along with four other Republicans is seeking to unseat five-term Democratic Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, said in announcing his third-quarter fundraising results last month that Connecticut's Senate seat "cannot be bought."
The entire piece is eye-opening for those of us who thought Simmons was simply trying to impress the Teabag crowd by taking some far right positions on the environment. Now we have some damning evidence he did so for financial gain for his campaign.
I was wrong about two issues I supported in Congress - the Employee Free Choice Act (also known as "card check") and "cap and trade." After hearing more from the people who would be most affected by these bills, I became convinced they would cause more harm than good and I would oppose them in the Senate.
I learned of the enormous burden these two proposals would impose on job producers in the form of dramatically higher operating costs, and how those costs would be passed in turn onto workers and consumers. The net result will be an even weaker economy and fewer jobs.
Rob Simmons has long burnished his reputation as a moderate Republican in the classic New England mode: conservative on fiscal matters, liberal on social issues. He supports abortion rights, earned top grades from a national gay rights group and sits on the honorary board of Republicans for Environmental Protection.
He's also been a supporter of two bills long championed by liberals, union members and environmentalists.
The first is the Employee Free Choice Act, commonly known as "card check,'' which would permit workers to form a union if a majority sign pro-union cards, instead of voting by secret ballot. The second is a climate change bill known in political shorthand as Cap and Trade.
Simmons backed both measures when he served in Congress. But now, as a candidate for U.S. Senate, he has changed his mind.
At least one of his opponents has noticed and is calling out Simmons on his 'change of heart'.
"While Rob Simmons can spin this all he wants, he is in a primary battle and is desperate to get the support of real, principled Republicans,'' Tiffany Romero Grossman, spokeswoman for Sam Caligiuri, said in an email this morning. Both Caligiuri and Simmons are seeking the Republican nomination to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd.
"Everyone has the right to change their mind on where they stand - but doing so years later, once confronted with a competitive primary, simply stinks of political pandering,'' Grossman said in the email.
The CT Dems found some choice clips from YouTube about the smut wholesome entertainment the McMahons had been peddling. At least until very recently, that is. From a press release put out by CT Dems Colleen Flanagan:
"As WWE Chief Operating Officer, Linda McMahon presided over programming that showed simulated rape, public sex and necrophilia, and now she wants to be our U.S. Senator? People across this state, not to mention the millions of women who are the victims of sexual violence every year, would be horrified and embarrassed to know that the person who seeks to represent them condones this kind of behavior. That kind of programming has no place in our society, and Linda McMahon has no place in the U.S. Senate."
The clips as seen here (simulated rape), here (a public sex scene) and here (a wrestler having sex with a corpse) are decidedly NFSW: NOT SAFE FOR WORK, though were probably seen by your teenagers on tv. In the interests of purely investigative research I noticed one had a more revealing Janet Jackson-type "wardrobe malfunction". One suspects the WWE/McMahon campaign to have the offensive clips removed from YouTube post haste.
Merrick Alpert, the Mystic businessman who is going up against the state's Democratic party establishment by challenging U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd, reported a total of $19,619 in contributions during the third-quarter of 2009.
The campaign received 136 donations, 90 of which came from Connecticut residents. The average contribution was $144.26, according to the campaign. More than a third came online, through the candidate's website.
"I am very grateful to the 116 people who contributed to my campaign,'' Alpert said in a press release. "
Considering Alpert spent more than he raised in the second quarter from donations other than himself you do have to wonder how much money he will pour into this exercise in futility. On the one hand this campaign has raised his profile from non-existent to barely existent but will he ever get elected as a Democrat anywhere after challenging Chris Dodd? Highly doubtful.
In an interview with the Washington Post, Schiff explained how he was leaving his true career in the private sector to go into politics.
"I'm interrupting my career. It's not like I want my new career in politics," said Schiff. "But I'm willing to interrupt it the same way that somebody interrupted their career and joined World War II and went off to fight the Nazis. I don't think that I'm that heroic, and I don't think I'm risking as much as a soldier. But it's the same principle."
You have to wonder what these GOP neophytes will say and do in their would-be Senate campaigns. If this any indication just about whatever pops into their heads at the moment.
A couple of days ago, many of radio host and writer Colin McEnroe's 1,349 (!) Facebook peeps receieved a friend request from Trinity College professor and third-party candidate for U.S. Senate John Mertens.
"I am asking you to be my friend because you are a friend of Colin McEnroe, so you must be cool :),'' Mertens writes. "I am running for U.S. Senate in CT for the Independent Party. I'm trying to build a movement for calm, rational problem-solving in government. If you would like to know more about me before accepting my friend invitation, please see my website: www.Mertens2010.com Thank you. John."
Judging from the posts on McEnroe's wall, the move was an enormous miscalculation.
"Sneaky."
"Very creepy."
"Bad move."
"Nitwit."
Those are a few of the responses. Many people boasted of ignoring or deleting Mertens' friend request and one person wondered if he violated some type of unwritten Facebook etiquette.
I've avoided signing up for Facebook because of things like this (not to mention the fact they're owned by Murdoch). But maybe Mertens may be onto something here. He could be the next Tila Tequila!
Linda McMahon has begun airing tv ads in Connecticut in her quest to secure the Republican nomination and take on Chris Dodd for the U.S. Senate next November. When she recently stepped down as the CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) it was known her approach would be a little different. And from not bothering to vote, to publicly supporting Democrats from time to time, not to mention her own wrestling antics, her entering an already crowded Republican field guarantees Connecticut politics won't be boring.
Only a few days ago, I commented on looking forward to how Linda McMahon will utilize her family business' media influence for her campaign in the coming senatorial election. I did not expect it to start so soon!
I live in Brooklyn, NY, smack-dab in the middle of the #1 media district in the US. Being a part of the tri-state area, it's not surprising to see ads targeted towards issues in NJ or CT on local news networks. (I've been keeping tabs on the New Jersey gubernatorial elections for the past few months.) With most of the political ads targeted towards New Yorkers on municipal races, it was a surprise to see this ad come up in the middle of ABC's New Wednesday Night Lineup: http://www.linda2010.com/video_15.html*.
In fact, Mrs. McMahon has a website fully up-and-running, and a page dedicated to her media mini-blitz: linda2010.com/watch
With the 2010 Republican Primary nearly 11 months away, McMahon has decided to ignore her own party's opponents and concentrate on attacking Chris Dodd straight on. A bold move this early on, but I have no doubt she'll be diversifying her ads for different targets.
I have yet to see a poll with McMahon involved, but no doubt her increased and early visibility will be a boon to her campaign. But, living in New York, my viewpoint is skewed: I only get to see ads targeted towards the Gold Coast. Is any other Republican starting ads this early? Are the ads being played in the Hartford/Springfield Media Market?
Regardless, this is a very visible first shot from a money-laden campaign.
(*I'm not 100% sure I saw the same ad she posted on her site. When I first saw it, I didn't even notice a mention of the state she is running in. Indeed, Connecticut is mentioned only once in both her ads. Could she be hoping to draw on a greater base of support in the region?)
Quinnipiac has released another poll with Senator Dodd against potential Republicans, the most likely of whom is still the uninspiring Rob Simmons. As with the Research 2000 poll released earlier this week, the gap has narrowed a bit but Chris Dodd is still only at 39%, Simmons at 44% with a higher number of undecided. Dodd beats all the other relatively anonymous Republicans, and Simmons is still in the 40's for support among R's while the others are in the single digits. I'd expect with the amount of money being put into the race for that to change rather abruptly next winter and spring.
The other interesting aspects are Barack Obama's approvals in CT down to 57% from 71% last spring. Support for a Public Option remains strong at 64% while support for the President's health care reform is rather tepid (47% approve, 42% disapprove).
In a poll to be released tomorrow the numbers for Chris Dodd seem to be inching up a little. There are several caveats with that, however. Both the Quinnipiac (July) and Rasmussen (September) polls had Dodd down by about 10 pts. Comparing pollsters directly is always an apples and oranges sort of game, and it's much better to compare the polls of the same pollster. Research 2000 hasn't polled the race since March though, when it found Dodd with a 5 pt lead. Quinnipiac a few weeks later had Dodd trailing by 16 when the nasty bank business stuff was unfolding.
I suspect the weighting for Republicans is higher for both Rasmussen and Quinnipiac than Research 2000 anticipates, accounting for the difference in the polling numbers, but I'm just guessing at that.
Dodd's favorables are now good among Democrats (+72/-21), awful among Republicans (+10/-76), of course, but also still awful among Independents which is Dodd's real problem: +32/-53.
Dodd does beat all the other Republicans though, Caliguri and Schiff quite handily.
Linda McMahon, the CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, is weighing a run as a Republican against Sen. Chris Dodd (D) in Connecticut in 2010. A source close to McMahon said that she is "seriously considering" the race and touted her as a serious candidate based on a résumé that includes leading a $1 billion publicly traded company based in Stamford, Conn. The source also noted that McMahon would be willing and able to spend significant sums on the race, an x-factor that could make her competitive in a primary against former representative Rob Simmons, former ambassador Tom Foley and state Sen. Sam Caliguri. It remains to be seen how Connecticut voters will react to a McMahon candidacy; her husband, Vince, is the public face of a massive professional wrestling empire that has drawn criticism for the violence of its action and the at times lewd nature of its content. One thing is certain: a McMahon candidacy would turn what is already a fascinating race into a contest with a huge national profile.
Peter Schiff is having a Ron Paul-style moneybomb day, with the goal of getting a lot of donations in a short period of time. So far he's around $170,000 today. By way of comparison, Rob Simmons had raised about $750k this year (and spent about 200,000) to 6/30/09. Since Schiff hasn't formally announced yet he's still testing the waters with an exploratory committee. Considering he can also self-finance the waters look pretty good.
Rob Simmons must be a bit concerned, too. He likely won't raise near as much as Schiff or Tom Foley in their quest to take the seat away from Senator Dodd.
Ron Paul sends his regards.
Dear Supporter,
Our good friend in Liberty, Peter Schiff, is planning a run for Senate in Connecticut against Chris Dodd. The grassroots across the country are organizing a money bomb for him today to raise money and send a powerful message to the political elites that freedom is popular and that Liberty can.
Our country needs Peter Schiff in Washington, and you can help today. Please go to www.Schiffathon.com right now and make a contribution. Together, we can help make history.
In Liberty,
Ron Paul
A great day for the Paultards all around. Ron's son Rand declared he was running for the U.S. Senate in Kentucky, as a Republican of course.
The race to the far right is now officially on in the hotly contested Republican Senate Primary. Rob Simmons says he would oppose the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor, on the same day she will be confirmed by a huge majority of both Republican and Democratic votes in the Senate, citing only her upholding of judicial precedent in the Ricci case as his sole reason for voting against her:
"Despite Judge Sotomayor's impressive personal story, she denied justice to a group of Connecticut firefighters virtually without explanation," Simmons said in a statement. "They deserved better, and the Supreme Court agreed. Thus, I could not in good conscience reward her with a promotion at the expense of my constituents whose own promotions she unfairly denied."
So far, according to media reports, Republican Senators Alexander, Bond, Collins, Graham, Gregg, Lugar, Martinez, and Snowe have all indicated they plan to vote to confirm Sotomayor. But not the "moderate" Rob Simmons. Because he has a primary to win, and a rabid far-right Republican base to cater to.
Has anyone asked Rob Simmons whether he believes President Obama was born in the United States?
Update: A Courant editorial yesterday called the hardcore right-wing Republican opposition to Sotomayor - a group which now includes Simmons - "shameful" andd a "slap in the face to Hispanic voters":
But it's a disgrace that she received the favorable vote of only one - Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina - of seven Judiciary Committee Republicans when the panel reported her nomination to the floor last week. She is likely to receive the support of only a handful of Republicans when the full Senate votes. It's sad when a once-statesmanlike senator such as Orrin Hatch of Utah, who at one time respected executive appointment power and would vote to confirm the qualified judicial appointments of the president of the other party, has joined the partisan bushwhackers....
The deep partisan divide in Washington is growing more poisonous, as Republican opposition to the Sotomayor nomination and a broad range of Obama initiatives attest. GOP rejection of Judge Sotomayor is more than a slap in the face to Hispanics. It's one more blow to the idea that people of differing views and ideologies can, when it counts, work together for the common good.
At the occasion of the release of yet another recycled, non-newsbreaking hit on Chris Dodd by the AP yesterday, Democratic Senate candidate Merrick Alpert saw it fit to respond via Twitter in what is already quickly becoming his signature, classy fashion:
VIP = RIP
"VIP," in Merrick's pithy retelling, of course must refer to the Countrywide "VIP" program that Chris Dodd has repeatedly said he knew he was enrolled in but was told at the time was "nothing more than enhanced customer service", an assertion not contradicted by any new evidence. And by "RIP", we can infer (and hope) that Merrick is suggesting that this manufactured controversy will be only the "death" of Dodd's campaign.
Still, when musing over Alpert's thoughts on Dodd's "VIP" lifestyle (and his previous criticism of Dodd over his move to Iowa), it's worth contemplating pots, kettles, and glass half-million dollar Florida country club condominiums.
On February 6th of this year, according to the Lee (FL) County Clerk's office, Alpert sold his condo at the Gulf Harbour Yacht and Country Club in Fort Myers, Florida, for $430,000, in order to move back to Connecticut. He would announce his run for Senate three months later. I guess it does help to move back to a state if you plan to run for office in it.
Tee It Up Or Sail It Out!... From Using A Full Service Gym That Has 1 Room Just For Cardio, 1 Room Just For Weight Lifting, 1 Room Just For Aerobic Style Classes, Facials, Pedicures To A Fully Staffed Tennis & Golf Shop With Pros To Answer Every Question. Come Experience What It Feels Like To Live In A Resort.
There is a championship 6,700 yard 18 hole Chip Powell designed golf course and aqua-range. Members also enjoy the Club's private island beach and wildlife habitat, which combined with the golf course, waterfront pool & Tiki Hut, fully equipped fitness center, luxurious spa, championship tennis facility, and yacht basin, provides Members an extensive array of active amenities that enhance this fantastic Gulf Harbour Lifestyle.
It must have been quite the "VIP" Florida resort lifestyle for this supposed down-to-earth Connecticut everyman.
Sam Caligiuri fires the first shot in what is sure to be a months-long culture war for the right-wing base in the coming Republican Senate primary by stating he would vote against the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court (campaign press release via Facebook):
Southington - Earlier today, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved Judge Sonia Sotomayor's nomination as our nation's next Supreme Court Justice, with a full Senate vote scheduled for early August. Despite her laudable personal achievements and years of public service, I cannot support this nomination and I ask Senator Dodd to oppose it as well.
I have come to this conclusion as many Americans have, because a judicial nomination should be measured by the nominee's approach to the law and not a personal story, however appealing it may be. How are we are supposed to trust that Judge Sotomayor will not be an activist judge after having made clear statements to the contrary?...
It will be interesting to see how Tom Foley and Rob Simmons say they will vote on Sotomayor. I wonder if either of them would even feel comfortable saying out loud that Barack Obama is a natural-born United States citizen. The battle for the Republican nomination over the next year will be a run to the right, and no candidate can afford to completely write off the most hardcore primary voters in that party, no matter how factually- or sanity-challenged they happen to be.
For more on the GOP primary circus that will soon possibly be taking over the Nutmeg state, make sure to read Colin McEnroe's hilarious column from this past weekend, wherein he auditions for the position of ringmaster Chief Senior Nationwide Analyst:
I wanted to meet Caligiuri for my own purposes, because he is one of at least three people seeking the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, in order to run against Chris Dodd in 2010. I have decided to become an expert on that election because I think it has the potential to attract national interest. If I become a knowledgeable pundit, I can probably go on CNN and touch Wolf Blitzer's beard, which is said to cure arthritis.
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