Democratic party’s conference chairman and neocon extraordinaire holds America hostage.
Showing posts with label Rahm Emanuel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rahm Emanuel. Show all posts
Monday, March 26, 2007
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Rahm Emanuel: Colbert 'Unsafe'
Emanuel tells freshmen to avoid Stephen Colbert
By Jonathan E. Kaplan
March 15, 2007
Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), the Democratic Caucus chairman, has told new Democratic members of Congress to steer clear of Stephen Colbert, or at least his satirical Comedy Central program, “The Colbert Report.”
“He said don’t do it … it’s a risk and it’s probably safer not to do it,” said Rep. Steve Cohen. But the freshman lawmaker from Tennessee taped a segment that last week was featured in the 32nd installment of the “Better Know a District” series. Colbert asked Cohen whether he was a black woman. He isn’t.
Eyes (but thankfully, not heads) roll in Emanuel’s office when other freshmen stumble, such as the time Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) got into a debate about the merits of throwing kittens into a wood-chipper, or when Rep. Zack Space (D-Ohio) explained that he is not his predecessor, convicted felon Bob Ney (R).
The freshmen respect Emanuel, but they don’t always follow his orders. On the other hand, avoiding the kind of publicity that only “The Colbert Report” can confer on a lawmaker may be the only advice from Emanuel that freshman Democrats are ignoring.
Last year, as the House Democrats’ chief election strategist, Emanuel engineered the party’s takeover of the House by capitalizing on a nationalized midterm election. Now, as the House Democratic spokesman, Emanuel is working to keep freshman Democrats in office. His thoughts on how to manage casework, campaign for reelection, and win favorable press coverage are rooted in former Speaker Tip O’Neill’s (D-Mass.) maxim that “all politics is local.”
“Pay attention to your district, don’t go Washington, go home every weekend,” is a message Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) said Emanuel has drilled in. “He’s encouraging people to stay local and focus on change, change, change. He and [Speaker Nancy] Pelosi (D-Calif.) both say to renew your commitment to change every day … be local, be practical and maintain that connection to the district.”
Rep. Paul Hodes (D-N.H.) said of Emanuel, “He has been helpful and a pain-in-the-you-know-what, to my great benefit … he’s an advocate for making sure folks in the district know what you’re doing … Of course, he keeps a close watch on doing what we need to do to get reelected.”
Emanuel also understands that what works in a traditional Democratic district won’t necessarily work in a more conservative district, Rep. Chris Carney (D-Pa.) said.
If lawmakers are doing their jobs and staying out of trouble, chances are Emanuel won’t say anything. If they stumble, he speaks up. Hodes considers Emanuel a mentor who understands the value of “tough love.”
One freshman who has been on the receiving end of Emanuel’s “tough love” is Rep. Steve Kagen (Wis.), who boasted to a group of anti-war activists that he had dressed down President Bush’s top political adviser, Karl Rove, during a White House reception. The administration denied the story.
But Emanuel threw a fit. Kagen’s staff was hauled into the Democratic Caucus’s office for lessons on how to handle the media, Democratic sources said.
Rep. Nancy Boyda (D-Kan.) said, “It took [Emanuel] three weeks to come down off of the ceiling” after she refused to accept the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s (DCCC) assistance in her bid to win reelection in 2008.
Boyda said Emanuel would “worry until November 4, 2008, but he says it in a very caring, grandmotherly way.”
Emanuel is not the only House leader advising first-term Democrats. Pelosi hosts a weekly breakfast for freshmen and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) guides them through the legislative process. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), chairman of the DCCC, tells new lawmakers that the first 100 days is the time to cement their relationship with voters by ably handling constituent service requests and pushing a positive legislative agenda.
Victory won’t be easy in 2008. Democrats may have opportunities to defeat GOP incumbents or pick up open seats, but they first must defend 33 new incumbents of their own. In 1994, House GOPers gained 52 seats and had to protect 73 new freshmen. In 1996, Democrats defeated 12 GOP freshmen and picked up nine seats.
Some first-term Democrats can breathe a bit easier because former GOP lawmakers and conceivably strong GOP candidates have demurred, including former Reps. Richard Pombo (Calif.) and Rob Simmons (Conn.). Reps. Ron Klein (D-Fla.) and Brad Ellsworth (D-Ind.) also have had opponents decline to run.
Despite Emanuel’s energetic style of browbeating and worrying, freshman lawmakers esteem him.
“He’s the Al Davis of Congress,” said Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Pa.), referring to the legendary owner of the Oakland Raiders who coined the phrase, “Just win, baby.”
By Jonathan E. Kaplan
March 15, 2007
Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), the Democratic Caucus chairman, has told new Democratic members of Congress to steer clear of Stephen Colbert, or at least his satirical Comedy Central program, “The Colbert Report.”
“He said don’t do it … it’s a risk and it’s probably safer not to do it,” said Rep. Steve Cohen. But the freshman lawmaker from Tennessee taped a segment that last week was featured in the 32nd installment of the “Better Know a District” series. Colbert asked Cohen whether he was a black woman. He isn’t.
Eyes (but thankfully, not heads) roll in Emanuel’s office when other freshmen stumble, such as the time Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) got into a debate about the merits of throwing kittens into a wood-chipper, or when Rep. Zack Space (D-Ohio) explained that he is not his predecessor, convicted felon Bob Ney (R).
The freshmen respect Emanuel, but they don’t always follow his orders. On the other hand, avoiding the kind of publicity that only “The Colbert Report” can confer on a lawmaker may be the only advice from Emanuel that freshman Democrats are ignoring.
Last year, as the House Democrats’ chief election strategist, Emanuel engineered the party’s takeover of the House by capitalizing on a nationalized midterm election. Now, as the House Democratic spokesman, Emanuel is working to keep freshman Democrats in office. His thoughts on how to manage casework, campaign for reelection, and win favorable press coverage are rooted in former Speaker Tip O’Neill’s (D-Mass.) maxim that “all politics is local.”
“Pay attention to your district, don’t go Washington, go home every weekend,” is a message Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) said Emanuel has drilled in. “He’s encouraging people to stay local and focus on change, change, change. He and [Speaker Nancy] Pelosi (D-Calif.) both say to renew your commitment to change every day … be local, be practical and maintain that connection to the district.”
Rep. Paul Hodes (D-N.H.) said of Emanuel, “He has been helpful and a pain-in-the-you-know-what, to my great benefit … he’s an advocate for making sure folks in the district know what you’re doing … Of course, he keeps a close watch on doing what we need to do to get reelected.”
Emanuel also understands that what works in a traditional Democratic district won’t necessarily work in a more conservative district, Rep. Chris Carney (D-Pa.) said.
If lawmakers are doing their jobs and staying out of trouble, chances are Emanuel won’t say anything. If they stumble, he speaks up. Hodes considers Emanuel a mentor who understands the value of “tough love.”
One freshman who has been on the receiving end of Emanuel’s “tough love” is Rep. Steve Kagen (Wis.), who boasted to a group of anti-war activists that he had dressed down President Bush’s top political adviser, Karl Rove, during a White House reception. The administration denied the story.
But Emanuel threw a fit. Kagen’s staff was hauled into the Democratic Caucus’s office for lessons on how to handle the media, Democratic sources said.
Rep. Nancy Boyda (D-Kan.) said, “It took [Emanuel] three weeks to come down off of the ceiling” after she refused to accept the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s (DCCC) assistance in her bid to win reelection in 2008.
Boyda said Emanuel would “worry until November 4, 2008, but he says it in a very caring, grandmotherly way.”
Emanuel is not the only House leader advising first-term Democrats. Pelosi hosts a weekly breakfast for freshmen and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) guides them through the legislative process. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), chairman of the DCCC, tells new lawmakers that the first 100 days is the time to cement their relationship with voters by ably handling constituent service requests and pushing a positive legislative agenda.
Victory won’t be easy in 2008. Democrats may have opportunities to defeat GOP incumbents or pick up open seats, but they first must defend 33 new incumbents of their own. In 1994, House GOPers gained 52 seats and had to protect 73 new freshmen. In 1996, Democrats defeated 12 GOP freshmen and picked up nine seats.
Some first-term Democrats can breathe a bit easier because former GOP lawmakers and conceivably strong GOP candidates have demurred, including former Reps. Richard Pombo (Calif.) and Rob Simmons (Conn.). Reps. Ron Klein (D-Fla.) and Brad Ellsworth (D-Ind.) also have had opponents decline to run.
Despite Emanuel’s energetic style of browbeating and worrying, freshman lawmakers esteem him.
“He’s the Al Davis of Congress,” said Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Pa.), referring to the legendary owner of the Oakland Raiders who coined the phrase, “Just win, baby.”
Monday, February 12, 2007
Stop Him Before He Gets More Experience: FRANK RICH - Obama Got It Right
Reposted
THE COMPLETE ARTICLE WITH ALL HYPERLINKS
The New York Times
OP-ED COLUMNIST
OP-ED COLUMNIST
Stop Him Before He Gets More Experience
By FRANK RICHPublished: February 11, 2007
If time in the United States Senate is what counts for presidential seasoning, maybe Barack Obama’s two years’ worth is already too much.
As the official Barack Obama rollout reaches its planned climax on “60 Minutes” tonight, we’ll learn if he has the star power to upstage Anna Nicole Smith. But at least one rap against him can promptly be laid to rest: his lack of experience. If time in the United States Senate is what counts for presidential seasoning, maybe his two years’ worth is already too much. Better he get out now, before there’s another embarrassing nonvote on a nonbinding measure about what will soon be a four-year-old war.
History is going to look back and laugh at last week’s farce, with the Virginia Republican John Warner voting to kill a debate on his own anti-surge resolution and the West Virginia Democrat Robert Byrd seizing the occasion for an hourlong soliloquy on coal mining. As the Senate pleasured itself with parliamentary one-upmanship, the rate of American casualties in Iraq reached a new high.
The day after the resolution debacle, I spoke with Senator Obama about the war and about his candidacy. Since we talked by phone, I can’t swear he was clean, but he was definitely articulate. He doesn’t yet sound as completely scripted as his opponents — though some talking-point-itis is creeping in — and he isn’t remotely defensive as he shrugs off the race contretemps du jour prompted by his White House run. Not that he’s all sweetness and light. “If the criterion is how long you’ve been in Washington, then we should just go ahead and assign Joe Biden or Chris Dodd the nomination,” he said. “What people are looking for is judgment.”
--MORE--
See comments
Related
Transcript of Obama campaign speech
Barack Obama's Full Announcement Speech — On Video
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Stop Him Before He Gets More Experience: FRANK RICH - Obama Got It Right
THE COMPLETE ARTICLE WITH ALL HYPERLINKS
The New York Times
OP-ED COLUMNIST
The New York Times
OP-ED COLUMNIST
Stop Him Before He Gets More Experience
By FRANK RICHPublished: February 11, 2007
If time in the United States Senate is what counts for presidential seasoning, maybe Barack Obama’s two years’ worth is already too much.
As the official Barack Obama rollout reaches its planned climax on “60 Minutes” tonight, we’ll learn if he has the star power to upstage Anna Nicole Smith. But at least one rap against him can promptly be laid to rest: his lack of experience. If time in the United States Senate is what counts for presidential seasoning, maybe his two years’ worth is already too much. Better he get out now, before there’s another embarrassing nonvote on a nonbinding measure about what will soon be a four-year-old war.
History is going to look back and laugh at last week’s farce, with the Virginia Republican John Warner voting to kill a debate on his own anti-surge resolution and the West Virginia Democrat Robert Byrd seizing the occasion for an hourlong soliloquy on coal mining. As the Senate pleasured itself with parliamentary one-upmanship, the rate of American casualties in Iraq reached a new high.
The day after the resolution debacle, I spoke with Senator Obama about the war and about his candidacy. Since we talked by phone, I can’t swear he was clean, but he was definitely articulate. He doesn’t yet sound as completely scripted as his opponents — though some talking-point-itis is creeping in — and he isn’t remotely defensive as he shrugs off the race contretemps du jour prompted by his White House run. Not that he’s all sweetness and light. “If the criterion is how long you’ve been in Washington, then we should just go ahead and assign Joe Biden or Chris Dodd the nomination,” he said. “What people are looking for is judgment.”
--MORE--
See comments
Related
Transcript of Obama campaign speech
Barack Obama's Full Announcement Speech — On Video
Thursday, December 7, 2006
The Democrats' Not-So-Secret Plan?
The Democrats' Not-So-Secret Plan
The plan is quite simple: increase the U.S. armed forces by 100,000, and use them and NATO for "collective security." 
Some are saying that congressional Democrats came to power without a plan. In fact, Rep. Rahm Emanuel, architect of the Democratic victory, co-authored a book in 2006 called The Plan. Its subtitle: Big Ideas for America. One of them, in the critical field of foreign policy, is a "new strategy to win the war on terror" by reforming and strengthening multilateral institutions. The book cites Will Marshall's call for a doctrine of "progressive internationalism" and cites the work of Anne-Marie Slaughter, dean of the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton and author of the book, A New World Order.
The plan is quite simple: increase the U.S. armed forces by 100,000, and use them and NATO for "collective security." The U.N., meanwhile, will be assigned duties in the areas of "economic and social assistance" to the rest of the world.
The military phase is actually an old plan. It was originally proposed by George Soros, who wrote Toward a New World Order: The Future of NATO, back in 1993. He figured that NATO could take on the military responsibilities of the New World Order until the U.N. was ready to do the job.
Will Marshall's book, With All Our Might: A Progressive Strategy for Defeating Jihadism and Defending Liberty, includes a chapter by Slaughter, "Reinventing the United Nations," which urges fulfillment of the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals, which will cost the U.S. $845 billion, and creation of a "more globally inclusive NATO."
Not surprisingly, Slaughter cites the views of Senator Joseph Biden, incoming chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who she notes has argued for "reorienting" the U.N. and Bretton Woods institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
He once wrote an article for the Wall Street Journal under the headline, "How I Learned to Love the New World Order." He has emerged as one of the strongest advocates of making NATO, once an anti-Communist alliance, into a military arm of the U.N. He also supported creation of the International Criminal Court.
Biden is a Vietnam War draft dodger and plagiarist who was forced out of the 1988 presidential race when his plagiarism was exposed. He supported the U.S. bombing of Yugoslavia on behalf of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), some of whose fighters were trained by Osama bin Laden. Radical Islamists are now poised to take over Kosovo and make it into an independent state, if the U.S. and the U.N. give it their final approval.
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