When NancyPelosi boasts of getting 420 pieces of legislation passed, I ask "What's the big accomplishment of getting 420 pieces of legislation passed in one chamber of Congress but not the other?" It only becomes law when both chambers pass it.
Democrats in both chambers of Congress work as a team. And when they also hold the WhiteHouse, the president controls all of it. They identify what they hope to achieve (pro-corporate legislation) and then strategize how to get it while saving each other's hides with constituents come election time.
Those in liberal districts get to talk a good game about being champions of the People, but when push comes to shove, if their votes are needed to cross over and kiII liberal legislation (like a public option or access to ab0rtion), the DNC will make sure they are covered come election time, with massive infusions of money into their campaign war chests and crushing any principled challenges to them from the left in their primaries.
Here's an example of how they tag team us:
LynnWoolsey, head of the ProgressiveCaucus, likes to brag that she was the first to bring a resolution to end the war in Iraq. She, and congressional Democrats, and Obama, ran on ending the practice of paying for the wars through supplemental emergency spending bills, and putting the wars on budget (see why that is significant here).
Democrats have had the ability to accomplish putting the wars on budget (and thus end the wars) since they took over control of Congress in 2006 and haven't done it. They haven't needed Republicans to do this.
As the head of the ProgressiveCaucus, LynnWoolsey led 79 of the 82 members of the caucus to pledge that they would not vote for any healthcare reform legislation that didn't include a PublicOption.
Woolsey then led the 79 to renege on the pledge.
Unbeknownst to LynnWoolsey's constitutents (it was never reported in her district's newspapers): Progressive CongresswomanWoolsey Endorses ProWar BlueDog JaneHarman Over Progressive MarcyWinograd
Democrats have let Obama continue with just about all of BushCheney's policies, and wars, and let Obama go BushCheney even better, by letting Obama assert, unchallenged, that presidents have the right to k!ll Americans with no due process or oversight, push for 'preventive detention' and no transparency of anything a president asserts should be his secret.
Democrats have abdicated their Constitutionally-required role of oversight of the executive branch; they failed to perform it during the BushCheney administration, and still don't with one of their own in the WhiteHouse.
About Retirement
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