Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine will become chairman of the Democratic National Committee later this month, serving as the top political messenger for Barack Obama's administration even while he finishes his final year in the governor's mansion, several sources said.
Kaine, who emerged as one of Obama's vice presidential finalists this summer, will operate from Richmond in a part-time capacity until January 2010, when he will become the full-time DNC chairman. Kaine is constitutionally barred from running for reelection.
A personal friend of the president-elect, Kaine is a gregarious chief executive who is known to relish political combat and helped put Virginia in the Democratic column for the first time in almost 50 years.
All told, Franken gained a net of 176 ballots from the 952 under review according to The Uptake's unofficial count, putting him 225 votes ahead in the recount overall. Excluding disqualified ballots, Franken won 53.7 percent of the votes counted today, Coleman 34.1 percent, and other candidates 12.4 percent. Franken's 225-vote advantage is now slightly larger than the one Norm Coleman held before the recount began, when he led by 215 votes based on the certified Election Night tally.
“Even those who voted against him, like me, say ‘We’re very thankful this has happened. This is the consolation prize’,” he said. “If you look at America - which I believe is a great nation… one of the terrible marks against us is slavery and racism, and I think that’s a great thing for America to have overcome.” He said of Obama’s victory:
I believe that will gain us a tremendous amount in the world community. We can now be an honest nation and not a hypocritical one.
That was not out of the kindness of his heart. I believe Rudy has his eyes on something much bigger than throwing around a few meaningless compliments after he trashed Obama during the general election. Caroline Kennedy is being mentioned as a possible choice to fill Hillary's seat in the Senate. She was a big supporter of Obama and came out with an op-ed called: A President Like My Father.
Mr. Kennedy’s message, according to Democratic aides who were not authorized to discuss the conversations, is that Ms. Kennedy — backed by the Kennedy family’s extensive fund-raising network — would have the wherewithal to run back-to-back costly statewide races without having to seek help from Mr. Paterson or Mr. Schumer. The ability to raise significant money is a key concern for Mr. Paterson, who has been deluged from every direction by politicians interested in the seat, which the governor is expected to fill early next year. Whoever is chosen will have to run in 2010 and again two years later.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg gave a boost to Caroline Kennedy as a possible Senate candidate, saying she is experienced and "can do anything." "Caroline Kennedy is a very experienced woman, she's worked very hard for the city. I can just tell you she's made an enormous difference in New York City," Bloomberg said after meeting on Capitol Hill with other mayors to seek stimulus spending from Congress.
There's been a lot of talk about handing Caroline Kennedy the Senate seat from New York being vacated by Hillary Clinton. Here Wolf Blitzer gives the rundown on The Situation Room. It certainly sounds as though she will get serious consideration.
I'm mostly with Jane Hamsher on this; given the importance of that seat, and the importance of having an effective legislative fighter in that position, it doesn't make a lot sense to give it to an untested rookie who's never passed a bill in her life.
However, I think we all understand what's going on here, and it's not simply the oligarchical politics of dynasties. Kennedy brings real star power to the position. Caroline is not like the other Kennedy offspring; she's managed to maintain a certain mystique that, like it or not, will be a tremendous fundraising draw on the stump. Of course, we have no idea if she'd be any good at all with a crowd, though her appearance at the DNC this summer was impressive.
The problem is the flip side of the reclusiveness that has kept her persona as the Princess of Camelot intact -- namely, we really have no idea who she is: what her positions are, her values, her vision for Democratic leadership and effective legislative craftsmanship.
She may in fact possess all these, and previously unglimpsed leadership qualities as well. Or she may not. We just don't know.
So if Kennedy is serious about the job, the first thing she needs to do is open herself and let the public see who she is and what she is about. Until then, it doesn't make sense to even think about handing her this job.
It's up to the liberal blogosphere and some members of Congress to shift the narrative away from bipartisanship after Obama enacts his agenda so the country will know that it was liberal and or progressive values that has saved our country from Conservative ruin.
Progressivism needs progressive rhetoric to match policy if it wants to be around long enough to make a real impact. If Democrats make things better without making it clear that their ideology (I know that's a bad word) is superior, the country will simply continue to treat politics like entertainment and vote for whoever puts on the best show and makes them feel good about themselves at a particular time, irrespective of their policies. It would be foolish to think the Republicans will never again be able to compete in that arena. They have shown themselves to be very adept at that kind of politics.
Now, if their ideas could be so discredited that nobody wants to ever be associated with them again it wouldn't matter if they ran the reanimated Elvis, nobody would want to vote for them. But that's not going to happen if progressives believe that it doesn't matter if our politicians distance themselves from progressivism simply because it's easier than challenging the myth that the country is center-right.
This is a two party country. You can say you aren't "ideological" and that you are a pragmatist, as Obama does, but polarity is the norm. This isn't just semantics --- it matters in a very prosaic, practical way if the country identifies itself with the party that has staked out the conservative side of the line. You can see from the two different responses to presidential victories by Gergen how that plays itself out politically.
There's a reason why armies wear identifiable uniforms and it's so their own fellows will recognize them.
And Gerson has a secret plan to save the GOP. He's going from the phony "Compassionate Conservative" to the "Heroic Conservative." Comedy Gold...I can see him now---Red Cape at his back as he swoops down on the evil Sylar---sucking the powers out of him that he has stolen from all the other Heroes!
Sit back and watch the show. "Heroic Conservatives" is idiotic, but what would you expect from a former Bush speechwriter?
So give me your best shot.
What do you think Conservatives will come up with as a new label? Or will they just try to turn back the clock and be run-of-the-mill, "Old Fashioned Conservatives?" I know the media would lap that one up in a heartbeat.
Al Franken's campaign announced on Wednesday that, for the first time since the Minnesota recount began, the Democrat has actually pulled ahead of Republican Sen. Norm Coleman. Speaking on a conference call with reporters, Franken's chief counsel Marc Elias said the campaign's own internal count showed them up 22 votes, a jump from the 13 vote deficit that they faced on Tuesday.
"We have approximately 138,000 ballots left to count," said Elias. "94.3 percent of the state has now been counted... Obviously that number is going to change, but we are pleased thus far with how things are going."
Nate Silver's math is a little tricky for me, but he is predicting a Franken win by 27 votes...
I obviously want Franken to win for many important reasons, but if he does, watching BillO's never ending freak out would be an extra added bonus too..
My last AOL Hot Seat poll was in response to the Republican talking points generated by the John Meacham's from the Village who are trying to make the case that America is a center-right nation.
The vote is very even at this point which is pretty amazing considering the AOL readership leans much more to the right. Please click here and vote...
What is really cool about the AOL Hot Seat is that you can get a state by state break down just by taking your mouse and clicking on any state after you vote. Anyway, it's for fun and for free....
California Rep. Henry A. Waxman on Thursday officially dethroned longtime Energy and Commerce Chairman John Dingell, upending a seniority system that has governed Democratic politics in the House for decades.
In a secret ballot vote in the Cannon Caucus Room, House Democrats ratified an earlier decision by the Steering and Policy Committee to replace the 82-year-old Dingell with his 69-year-old rival. The vote was 137-122 in favor of Waxman.
The ascension of Waxman, a wily environmentalist, recasts a committee that Dingell has chaired since 1981 with an eye toward protecting the domestic auto industry in his native Michigan. The Energy and Commerce Committee has principal jurisdiction over many of President-elect Barack Obama's top legislative priorities, including energy, the environment and health care.
By a three-vote margin, the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee today recommended that Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman be given the chairmanship of the Energy and Commerce Committee.
If it's true that the freshmen are breaking heavily for Waxman, and older baron committee chairs are going for Dingell, this adds a lot of firepower to Waxman's case. Dingell is a vindictive guy, so his case rests on the notion that if you don't vote for him you're going to have problems with the person who will naturally be the Chair of Energy and Commerce. Cracking the image of inevitability is key to letting members know it's safe to go against Dingell.
Here's a very important story. How great has Waxman been since '06? I think he needs our backing in this fight for the Chairmanship. I'm here for you Henry.
I'm surprised, given the amount of attention foisted on the US auto industry at the moment, how few people are actually watching the Dingell versus Waxman dogfight over the Chairmanship of the Energy and Commerce Committee. E&C is the policy-making committee that will probably have jurisdiction over a good amount of the rule-making around whatever bailout happens, since it handles CAFE standards, industrial regulation, etc. So whether it goes to the super-green but sensible Henry Waxman or the more traditional John Dingell matters quite a bit.
It's very hard to tell what's going on with the conflict. Since it's secret ballot, certain members are probably promising their vote to both, and others are lying about who they will vote for. What makes it even more difficult to suss out is that Dingell is waging his campaign through the media, and Waxman is not.
OK, I didn't want Holy Joe in either, but Obama made his decision and the Senate obeyed his wishes. This is a big one we should get involved in. Especially where we are today.
Waxman is an effective, green progressive and he knows how to get things done. Dingel is an elder who is discredited by his relationship with the auto industry and the NRA. If pragmatic change rather than milquetoast status quo bipartisanship is what people voted for, this is where the action is.
{snip}
Waxman is the right guy to be in charge of these things as we deal with this economic/energy crisis. Whatever threats there may or may not be to the seniority system by putting Waxman in charge pale in comparison to the necessity to have the House working properly on these issues.
I couldn't agree with Matt and Digby more. Let's go Waxman.
A quote from Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Jellyfish:
"Joe Lieberman is a Democrat and a member of this caucus."
Hm. Last I checked, Lieberman was officially registered as an "Independent Democrat". Last I checked, he was elected not as a member of the Democratic Party but of the [Connectictut for] Lieberman Party.
UPDATE: I notice in the video that one of the Democrats standing behind Lieberman is Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois. Funny thing: Just this summer at the Big Tent at the DNC, he couldn't name a single critical vote that Democrats had passed because of Lieberman's support. And then got nasty about it.
So Evan Bayh is leading what appears to be a growing chorus of "let bygones be bygones" Democrats who want to let Joe Lieberman keep his seat as chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee:
“We can take away his chairmanship, that’s something we have the right to do,” Bayh said on MSNBC. “What you will have at that point is someone who may very well resign, or someone is embittered ... who might not be with us on some of these key votes.”
Bayh said that Lieberman must first issue a “sincere apology” for campaign attacks warning of the perils of an Obama presidency and a large Democratic majority in Congress. He said Democrats should allow him to keep his chairmanship on the condition that he would not use his subpoena power and influence as chairman to undermine Obama’s presidency. Otherwise, Democrats would take away his gavel at any point next Congress, Bayh warned.
Bayh said Democrats should tell Lieberman sternly, “Look, we’re giving you a chance here, but if you don’t do the right things as chairman, and we see any continuation of this kind of behavior ...the game is up at that point.”
Democrats need to look beyond the mere fact of Lieberman's egregious disloyalty in the past campaign, which of course is at least an understandable reason to remove him, if not the most compelling one in a post-election season aimed at bridging rifts.
A far more compelling reason is that Lieberman in fact parts ways with Democrats on many issues besides merely the Iraq war. Think Progress has a pretty thorough rundown on just how many ways Joe is not with us when it counts: on taxes, Social Security, torture, health care, energy ... the list is long and damning.
But the ultimate reason to remove Lieberman as chair of Homeland Security is that his record as chair of that committee has been abjectly conservative, partisan, and in the end a menace to Americans' civil rights: In other words, Lieberman is antithetical to the progressive mandate Democrats have just been handed.
Steve Clemons from The Washington Note tries to explain how there are ways to at least send a message to Holy Joe by removing his chairmanships to critical committees.
UPDATE: Think Progress has a new report out today showing how Holy Joe, who once proclaimed that he was "a Democrat with a 35-year record of fighting for progressive causes" has lost his way. And BraveNewFilms has a new site and video called "Joe Lieberman Must GO"
Directed by Steven Soderbergh Part One: The Argentine written by Peter Buchman and Benjamin A. Van Der Veen Part Two: Guerrilla written by Peter Buchman
Silence is argument carried out by other means.
Che Guevara
There is a silent fragment of a scene in Guerrilla, the second part of Steven Soderbergh’s epic cinematic experience, Che that is very telling. Che Guevara, portrayed brilliantly by Benicio Del Toro, is trying to motivate a group of reluctant Bolivian peasants to join him in overthrowing their own government, but most of them are not buying it. Mario Monje, portrayed by Lou Diamond Phillips, one of only a handful of recognizable actors in this film, has also heard enough politics and leaves. Someone suggests that maybe democracy could work. Silence. In this group is a dead ringer for a young Evo Morales, the indigenous President of Bolivia, who recently won a recall election with 67.4% of the vote.
This is one of the few political messages that Soderbergh leaves even a trace of his own fingerprints on.
Last October, Che’s death was marked, in the Bolivian village where he was killed, by President Morales proclaiming his own political movement to be “100% Guevarist and socialist.”
The CIA may have killed the man, but his ideas have lived on, especially in South America today.
I attended Che-stock (4 ½ hours in length) at its Los Angeles premiere Saturday night at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. Red carpet, bright lights, flashing cameras, movie stars – the works. After a short speech by the president of the AFI, Steven Soderbergh spoke to the audience humorously about his non-Che-like ride to the theatre in an Audi (one of the sponsors for the festival). Benicio Del Toro (Best Actor at this year’s Cannes Film Festival) then spoke briefly and thanked many others, including producer Laura Bickford.
The first part of Che, entitled "The Argentine," is sharp, energetic, visceral and historic. It covers the meeting of the Argentinean doctor Ernesto “Che” Guevara with Fidel Castro as well as, many of the battle scenes and training that provided the framework for the Cuban revolution from 1956-1959 ending with the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista.
These detailed military actions have very rarely been depicted in dramatic cinema. Here for the first time we see through Soderbergh’s cinéma vérité style what it would have been like for the Fidelistas to liberate village after village while gathering the support they needed to take their revolution into Havana. In December of 1958, we see Che leading his “suicide squad” in the attack on Santa Clara.
Dana Bash at CNN reports that Holy Joe is unhappy about his looming and well-earned demotion, and is thinking about joining the Republican caucus:
A Senate Democratic source familiar with the meeting confirms that account and tells CNN that one of options Reid gave Lieberman in a private meeting Thursday is Chairman of the Veteran’s Affairs Committee.
But the aide to Lieberman says the Connecticut senator made clear that was “not acceptable” to him, and reminded Reid that he was one of the Senators who wrote the legislation creating the Homeland Security Department, and that’s where he wants to stay.
Nothing was resolved in the meeting, and the Lieberman aide tells CNN that although he still wants to caucus with the Democrats, Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell has contacted Lieberman about formally aligning with Republicans, and that Lieberman is “keeping all of his options open.”
An aide to McConnell confirms to CNN that the two men “have been talking.”
Look, Reid is offering Lieberman a very sweet deal. By some counts, much too sweet. Lieberman betrayed the Democratic Party and broke his word to his own Democratic constituents. Reid is nevertheless willing to a) let him stay in the Democratic caucus; b) keep his seniority; and c) give him the chairmanship of something else. That, by any reasonable measure, is ridiculously gracious of Reid. It's certainly more generosity than Lieberman deserves or has earned.
Joe can threaten all he likes, but fact is: He's irrelevant now. There's no reason for Dems to cave on these threats.
Before, Lieberman was hoping to privately lobby his colleagues to save him. But with the curtain pulled back, we can lobby the same potential Lieberman allies. And now they'll have to choose between personal loyalty to Joe and doing the right thing - with the whole world watching.
If they hear from enough of us, there's no way Joe keeps his position of power.
So let's get to the phones. And the emails.
The number for the Capitol switchboard is (202) 224-3121. Start with your own Senator, but call the more conservative members of the Dem caucus too. Ask whether they support Lieberman remaining as Chair of the Homeland Security committee, given his unfair attacks on President-elect Obama. Be polite, and calm. The young people who answer the phones are entry-level staffers.
