Todd Akinon is either completely ignorant or a bald-faced liar (although I wouldn’t rule out both being the case.) Here he is on the floor of the House:

For those of you too impatient to load the video, or would rather avoid seeing Akin speak at all costs:

I rise to call attention to a tragedy of our own making.

In May of this year, a U.S. soldier, Alex Jimenez, along with several of his friends, were captured by al Qaeda. As our intelligence officers wanted to tap into wires to try to find his whereabouts, they were hobbled and had to wait ten hours for lawyers to get through the FISA court, to allow them to get the critical information they needed. That information lost, this soldier and his compatriots have never been found, although the bodies of one or two have been found.

You won’t be surprised to find out that it’s complete BS. Think Progress debunked the story yesterday; the delay was caused by the Bush Administration’s own bungling interagency process and a missing Alberto Gonzales. The FISA court had nothing to do with it, which makes sense. The FISA law actually empowers the government to wiretap in advance of getting a warrant (up to 72 hours), so how could the court delay the wiretap in the first place?

So have you called your representative yet to make sure that individual warrants are preserved?

As the SCHIP bill comes up for debate Thursday, and that will be tomorrow folks, expect plenty of righteous indignation to emanate from the Republican side of the aisle. They will snort and stamp and say that the Democrats are trying to insure rich kids at the expense of poor kids.  And the Do-Right Republicans, of course, definitely want to do right by the poor. 

This argument has its base in the hypothetical figure of 83,000 dollars. This figure is the amount of income that a SCHIP recipient’s family might earn if New York’s proposal for funding for families earning 400% of poverty level were to be honored.  It will not be honored. The White House has rejected the request stating that it may pull children out of private insurance plans to put them in SCHIP programs.  Right now, New York’ s program is capped at 250% of poverty level.  Currently the only state with an income cap of over 300% of poverty level is New Jersey, at 350%, but children from higher earnings families are often charged premiums and co-pays via sliding scale. 

Although the Republicans will try to punch through the impression that the bill will allow families earning up to 83,000 dollars per year into the program, it is, in fact, a baseless argument. That would only happen if a State wanted to insure kids at 400% of poverty level.  But states must receive approval from the Secretary of Health and Human Services before they can expand income eligibility.  A recent survey by the Congressional Research Service found that 32 states had capped at 200% or less of poverty level and that 17 states had caps of 200% to 300%.  Missouri has been a 300 per center in the past. 

According to Krugman in a BuzzFlash interview.

“The reason that Bush is so opposed to SCHIP is the same reason he was so determined to privatize Social Security, which is that they’re both programs that work.  You have to understand, that is the point of view of somebody who really wants to undo the New Deal — and if possible … get things back to the way they were before Teddy Roosevelt and the ‘Socialists’ came in.

“The worst thing is a government program that actually does help people, so the SCHIP is a really bad thing, from Bush’s point of view, because it works so well. It might lead people to say, well, if we can do this for lower-income children, why can’t we do it for lots of other people who need guaranteed health care? So it’s the determination, on his part, to do this veto, even though there’s a short-term political cost, because they’re deathly afraid that people will look at SCHIP and say, gee, actually the government can do some good.”

So everything boils down to the role of government.  The Decider and his cohorts are radically and shamelessly anti-government.  Recall if you will the Decider on taking the office of president stating “this would be easier if this was a dictatorship and I was the dictator.”  Neither Freudian slip nor joke, the Decider uses manipulation and exploitation with skill to further his ambition to dismantle our government.  He was stopped dead on the privatization of Social Security, but managed to cut funds enormously for Medicaid and slide through a shady Medicare Part D program that gives more to Big Pharma that it does to older adults. 

Support for the bill and now for veto override has been quite unprecedented. We still  need to keep up the furor going into the vote.  In addition to calling your reps, I will add a listing of web sites to access to suppport the bill asap.  It’s never too late!
Here are the contacts:

[ http://capwiz.com/am… ] for the AMA veto override campaign.

[ http://www.catholics… ] for Catholics United  ad campaign pressuring Republican holdouts.

[ http://pol.moveon.or… ]  for a MoveOn.org SCHIP vigil in your town.

[ https://secure.truem… ] for Ben and Jerry’s True Majority campaign.

[ http://www.americans… ] for SEIU, AFSCME and Americans United for Change campaigns.

Rodney Hubbard is not only unapologetic about his pro-voucher stand for the St. Louis city schools, and not contrite about taking $30,000 from Rex Sinquefield, he is passionately ready to defend his ideas. 

I interviewed him by phone on Monday about his candidacy for Maida Coleman’s state senate seat.  As soon as I explained that I represented a progressive state news blog, where many of our readers would disagree with his stand on school choice, Rodney went on the offensive.  He was fortunate enough to be a deseg student, able to get a decent education, he said.  Today’s students in the city don’t have that option, what with superintendents in all the surrounding districts refusing to take city students at their schools.

So the city’s poor have no other option than to attend substandard schools.  Those who aren’t poor can move or send their kids to private schools.  As proof that people who aren’t poor flee the schools, he pointed out that 58 percent of the city population is African-American, but 90 percent of the students are.

He asked me how I and others could call ourselves progressives and not deal with the travesty going on in the city, where 70 percent of African-American males drop out before graduation.  Rodney would like to take such progressives on a tour of inner city schools and streets to show them what really goes on.

Hubbard is concerned about the high rate of incarceration in the African-American community and points out that 65 percent of those in prison have no high school diploma or GED.  Obviously the crime and the failure of education are linked, and we ALL–whether we’re Republicans, progressives or indifferent to politics–pay the price of neglecting this segment of society.

Because of the lack of educational options for city students, Hubbard is sponsoring a bill that will ask for tax credits–but credits that are narrow in their scope.  To qualify for the tax credit, a student’s family would have to live within the city limits of St. Louis or Kansas City–in those two locations only.  The student would have to qualify for free or reduced lunch and have a G.P.S. lower than 2.5.

I’m sure some of you will respond to what Rodney said.  I hope he will find the time to answer some of your comments.

I’ll write tomorrow about other topics we covered in the interview, but I didn’t want to bite off too big a chunk today.  This posting isn’t long, but there’s plenty of food for thought and comment in it.

(Next week, I’ll interview Robin Wright-Jones.)

Oh sure, Matt “baby” Blunt won’t live in the Governor’s Mansion, but he’ll do fundraising there? Push the panic button.

From Detailed Summary of Expenditures And Contributions Made in the October campaign finance report filed by Missourians for Matt Blunt, Inc. on 10/15/07 available from the Missouri Ethics Commission:

MO Mansion Preservation PO Box 113 Jefferson City, MO 65102-0113 9/28/2007 Fundraier Exp
$799.50
Paid

From Detailed Summary of Expenditures And Contributions Made in the Amended April – Committee Quarterly report filed by Missourians for Matt Blunt, Inc. on 10/15/07 available from the Missouri Ethics Commission:

MO Mansion Preservation PO Box 113 Jefferson City, MO 65102-0113 3/31/2007 Fundraiser Expenses
$10,300.00
Incurred

MO Mansion Preservation PO Box 113 Jefferson City, MO 65102-0113 3/31/2007 Fundraiser Expenses
$725.00
Incurred

MO Mansion Preservation PO Box 113 Jefferson City, MO 65102-0113 3/31/2007 Fundraiser Expenses
$8,482.00
Incurred

Note that these expenses are “incurred”.

At the end of a February 7, 2007 press release from Melanie Blunt’s state web site:

….Incorporated in 1974, the Missouri Mansion Preservation is a statewide, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to the Mansion’s restoration and educational programs.

There’s more:

Blunt campaign denies raising money at mansion

By David A. Lieb
ASSOCIATED PRESS
10/17/2007

….The September expense of $799.50 was for several dozen 2006 Mansion Preservation Christmas ornaments, which featured Blunt’s young son, Branch, crawling up the mansion stairs, Hancock said.

A $725 expense listed in March was for a Feb. 19 mansion luncheon for members of the St. Charles County Republican Committee, Hancock said.

Abele said an $8,482 expense listed in March was for a pair of Christmas parties. Both were held Dec. 2 — one for members of the Missouri Republican State Committee and their friends; the other for Blunt’s friends and supporters in general, Hancock said.

The March expenses also included $10,300 for a mansion barbecue for Blunt’s political supporters and friends that occurred in Aug. 23, 2006, Abele and Hancock said….

If it fundraises like a republican….

UPDATE: From comments, Maryb2004 points out that there is still time to call – the House is in a lunch recess. So what are you waiting for???

UPDATE II: Victory! Well, sort of. Enough votes were peeled off from both the left and the right that the leadership had to pull the bill. More on this later.

A couple of important votes are coming up this week, the SCHIP veto override on Thursday and the FISA-revising RESTORE Act today. More on the SCHIP vote soon.

Following up on this post, I got in touch with the office of my reliably progressive congressman, the Honorable William Lacy Clay, Jr. I received no clear answer on telecom immunity or basket warrants from the staffers I talked to, but today I received an e-mail from Congressman Clay’s office that concerned me. From the e-mail:

[The RESTORE Act] would create Programmatic Authorizations that would resolve the confusion over whether the intelligence community needs individualized warrants for foreign targets if there is a risk that they might be communicating with American citizens; this would be achieved through a program of collection against the foreign target, that,  upon proper application and review, would facilitate intelligence gathering for an “organization” and effectively eliminate the need for individual warrants against a “particular” terrorist suspect.[emphasis mine]

In other words, the bill would legalize warrants that did not require the government to specify at whom it is targeted, as long as the government could claim a link to a suspicious “organization”. I don’t know about you, but the thought of my government being able to spy on me, my friends, and family without being forced to name a reason terrifies me.  I don’t trust a Supreme Court with Roberts, Alito, and Thomas on it to confirm its unconstitutionality, either.

If a congressman as liberal as Clay is defending this provision, we are in trouble indeed. Get on the phone NOW and let your representative know that blanket warrants are not OK. And pass this message along to your friends!

The campaign finance report filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission by Patrick Crabtree, a republican candidate for the 23rd House District seat being vacated by Democrat Jeff Harris (who is running for Attorney General), shows another interesting side to these reports. No money (or, at least very little money).

The October quarterly report filed on October 14, 2007 for Crabtree’s committee (which was established on February 7, 2007) is a Committee Statement of Limited Activity. In it the candidate and treasurer sign the following:

I CERTIFY THAT NEITHER THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED NOR THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF EXPENDITURES MADE BY THE COMMITTEE EXCEEDED FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS.

Crabtree ran against Jeff Harris in 2006. He garnered 26.8% of the vote.

Democrat Russ Unger is an announced candidate for the seat. Unger’s campaign finance quarterly report filed on October 14, 2007 shows total receipts of $23,977.01, expenditures of $5,132.85, and money on hand of $17,398.15.

There’s enough material in the October quarterly campaign finance reports available online at the Missouri Ethics Commission to occupy hundreds of curious Internets denizens for months.

In looking at the reports for Michael Gibbons, the lone “name” republican candidate for Attorney General, I was struck by the “burn rate” of his committee, Missourian for Gibbons. That is, the amount of money his committee has already spent.

The Summary of the October report filed on 10/12/07 shows [to date] $389,439.00 in total receipts, $148,326.55 in expenditures, $21,300.00 in contributions, with $220,811.71 on hand. That’s some burn rate. 

The Itemized Expenditure Over $100 Supplemental Form which is part of these reports can also enlighten us as to what caused that hefty burn rate. In addition to the following there are staff costs, supplies, and returned contributions listed.

October 12, 2007 [report]:

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 09/13/2007 reimburse supplies
$423.95

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 09/13/2007 independent contractor-fundraiser
$2,500.00

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 07/20/2007 independent contractor-fundraiser
$2,500.00

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 07/19/2007 independent contractor-fundraiser
$8,844.70

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 07/19/2007 reimburse supplies
$614.21

July, 15 2007 [report]:

TAPAWINGO NATIONAL GOLF CLUB 13001 GARY PLAYER DRIVE SUNSET HILLS, MO 63127 06/07/2007 RENTAL FEES
$10,592.85

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 05/09/2007 IND. CONTRACTOR-FUNDRAISER
$2,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 05/09/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, POSTAGE, PRINTING
$523.15

THE ROCKET GROUP LLC PO BOX 913 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102  05/15/2007 PRINTING AND DESIGN
$2,686.11

ARISTOTLE INTERNATIONAL INC. 205 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, SE WASHINGTON DC 20003 05/15/2007 COMPUTER PROGRAM/HOSTING
$2,125.00

ARISTOTLE INTERNATIONAL INC. 205 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, SE WASHINGTON DC 20003 05/15/2007 COMPUTER PROGRAM/HOSTING
$4,250.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 04/07/2007 IND. CONTRACTOR-FUNDRAISING
$2,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 04/07/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, POSTAGE
$489.91

THE ROCKET GROUP LLC PO BOX 913 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 05/15/2007 WEBSITE
$5,714.18

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 06/05/2007 IND. CONTRACTOR-FUNDRAISER
$2,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 06/05/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, POSTAGE
$1,046.40

I got invited to a golf tournament once, but I didn’t have a set of clubs and I hadn’t played in years. I didn’t get to go.

April 16, 2007 [report]:

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 03/05/2007 IND. CONTR-FUNDRAISER-JAN/FEB
$5,000.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 03/05/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, PHONE
$2,671.70

January 15, 2007 [report]

ARISTOTLE INTERNATIONAL INC. 205 PENNSYLVANIA AVE, SE WASHINGTON, DC 20003 10/10/2006 COMPUTER PROGRAM
$9,124.99

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY, MO 65109 10/13/2006 IND. CONTRACT-FUNDRAISER
$500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY, MO 65109 10/13/2006 REIMBURSE PHONE
$25.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 12/14/2006 IND. CONTRACT-FUNDRAISER
$1,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 12/14/2006 REIMBURSE PHONE
$75.00

That’s a lot of fundraising and computer stuff. Raising money is hard work. And where have we heard of Capitol Consulting before?

Juanita Head Walton and her husband Elbert have become political powers in North St. Louis city and county.  That’s a shame because, although they are Democrats, they do much to harm the Democratic Party.
Juanita is the state rep from district 81.  Elbert holds no official elected position, but is the power behind a slate of candidates who will challenge incumbent Democrats in primaries next year.  Right there, the problem begins.  It’s difficult to say at present how many candidates for various offices Elbert will promote, but word on the street has it somewhere in the neighborhood of twenty.  Juanita plans to challenge Tim Green in district 13 for the state senate.  Other Walton candidates plan, for starters, to oppose Gina Walsh (state rep, St. Louis), Tony George (state rep, Florissant), and Mike O’Mara (county council). 

Other Walton candidates are likely to run to become committemen, fire board members, school board members, and such like.  A later post will explain how Elbert has made use of putting his people in such positions.

So incumbent Democrats in the north part of town will waste time and money on primaries.  That’s money that could have been spent in the general.  Elbert and Juanita would justify running candidate after candidate against incumbent Democrats by saying that they want African-American elected officials, and I don’t doubt that that goal plays a part in their activities. 

But even if you’re inclined to excuse their assault on their own party on the grounds that they have a right to want more black representation in public office, the Waltons have other marks against them.  First,  a portion of their funding comes from the Republican party.

Before the primaries for the 2006 election, Rex Sinquefield’s Show-Me Institute and his other organization,All Children Matter (at the time headed by Ed Martin, now Blunt’s chief of staff),  made it known that they would contribute several thousand dollars to any pro-voucher candidate who would challenge Maria Chappelle-Nadal.  And they got a taker:  someone from Walton’s camp.  News of this travesty so enraged local Dems that Maria had tons of support and won the primary easily.  But still, all those Democratic dollars and all that Democratic shoe leather could have been expended elsewhere.

The Walton Unity PAC regularly receives Republican donations, and why not?  Republicans may not have the best policy ideas, but you know they always have plenty of jack to spread around.  A wise use of their extra dough is to give it to Democrats and encourage them to fight among themselves.

It does, indeed, look as if we’ll be fighting among ourselves because this time around some of the Dems have decided it’s necessary to fight back.  A group of them have convened once already–and will meet every two weeks from here on out–with the express goal of planning strategy to keep the Waltons from taking incumbents by surprise next year, as they did in several races last year.

The way their committee sees it, Democrats should work to keep incumbents in office, unless those office holders have shown they don’t deserve party support.  To regularly challenge incumbents–sometimes with Republican money, no less!–destroys our unity and sometimes hands the Republicans victories they don’t deserve.