Senate posturing vs. State sovereignty

First of all, let me apologize in advance for any misapplication of constitutional law that I may make over the next few paragraphs. I am not a constitutional scholar, or pretend to be one, however, I am somewhat familiar with the document… at least familiar enough to write a blog entry.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) stated that Blagojevich’s pick of Roland Burris “unacceptable” and that Burris would not be seated by the Democratic caucus. While that may be a political deterrent to the State of Illinois to approve the nomination for Burris to be seated, it does not mean that Burris will not be a member of the United States Senate.

The 17th Amendment states “When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.” What this means is that it is up to the state to fill the open seat; it is NOT at the whim or the pleasure of the members of the United States Senate.

Constitutionally, it does not matter what Harry Reid or the other 49 members of the Democratic Caucus want. I researched the Senate Rules for appointment to the body and it does not stipulate that the Senate can deny the right of the state to seat its’ own chosen representative. The Great Compromise of 1787 was the agreement that allowed the state legislative body (or Governor) to appoint the members of the upper house of the Congress.

I may be wrong (and correct me if I am) but Reid has very little wiggle room here. He can choose not to seat Burris in the Democratic Caucus; that may mean he might be listed as an Independent like Joe Lieberman and Bernie Sanders. With Democrats being close to sixty votes with the possible Al Franken victory in Minnesota, and that there is currently no African American in the United States Senate, state sovereignty may overrule Senate posturing by the middle of January.

This should be an interesting confrontation between states’ rights and the power vested by the states to the national legislative body… Supreme Court here we come!

Rush’s New Lease on Life

Last week, the talk show radio circuit was ablaze with the beginning of the anti-Obama message before President-elect Barack Obama is even sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. Several months ago, I predicted that Obama’s win would be the best possible scenario for Rush, Sean Hannity and the other fire breathers on the right:

“If Obama is elected Limbaugh has a new target in the White House. Limbaugh will be relevant once again as he regains his status as the leader of the ‘vast right-wing conspiracy.’ On a side note, maybe he will even resurrect his failed TV career; probably not.

The bottom line is that Limbaugh does not care if McCain wins in November, in fact, it would be counter-productive to the possibility of revitalizing his career. If Obama wins Limbaugh will have better ratings and earn more money. So, congratulations ‘ditto heads’, you have achieved Rush’s goal…the only cost to you is victory in November.”

I wouldn’t put much stock in the reaction of Rush because he and his talk show brethren have the most to gain from an Obama presidency – more listeners, better ratings and a hefty pay raise. More importantly, Rush will be back in his environment in taking on the Democrats as he did in the Clinton years, instead of serving as a apologist for George W. Bush and a failed gig on ESPN Sunday Night Football.

The next four years will be a new lease on life for Rush’s career. So, to Rush Limbaugh I say, welcome back to the land of political relevance. The bombastic showman (Limbaugh) vs. Mr. Cool (Obama)…this is going to be fun to watch.

John McCain – A Prisoner of W

The presidential campaigns of John McCain can be defined by the statement – Prisoner of W

1) Prisoner of George W. Bush

In 2000 and 2008, John McCain has been dealt a severe blow by George W. Bush. In 2000, W sunk McCain’s chances for the nomination in South Carolina. In 2008, the administration of W handed McCain an uneven playing deck that McCain has not been able to overcome.

2) Prisoner of Wasilla

In his pick of Sarah Palin as his running mate, John McCain became a prisoner of the right wing ideological segment of the Republican Party. The campaign, and its tactics, are being directed by the number two candidate on the national ticket. John McCain has become invisible and irrelevant in his own campaign. The final nail in McCain’s coffin will be when the Palin-led campaign re-introduces the Jeremiah Wright story.

3) Prisoner of War

John McCain’s experience in a P.O.W. camp is a study in courage and devotion to his country. Unfortunately, it also has defined his worldview. As Governor Palin has said numerous times, “John McCain is the only person in this race that has fought for us.” The only problem is that John McCain is still fighting battles that are no longer necessary in the 21st century. Our foreign policy should not be an “us v. them” scenario. We should work to find common ground with our allies and our adversaries. Obama’s unique heritage will be helpful in displaying a new direction in foreign policy, especially in dealing with the Middle East.

“This is the time for outreach,” Colin Powell said, saying the next president would have to “reach out and show the world there is a new administration that is willing to reach out.” In particular, he said, he welcomed Obama’s president to “talk to people we haven’t talked to.”

On October 21st, 2008 – John McCain is still a Prisoner of W… he has got two weeks to find a way out of captivity to become the next resident of the big W – The White House.

Republicans Who Endorse Obama – Add Your Name to the List!!

Former Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Colin Powell

Jim Leach, Former Congressman from Iowa

Lincoln Chafee, Former United States Senator from Rhode Island

Richard Riordan, Former Mayor of Los Angeles

Lowell Weicker, Former Governor and Senator from Connecticut

Jim Whitaker, Fairbanks, Alaska Mayor

Linwood Holton, Former Governor of Virginia

Douglas Kmiec, Head of the Office of Legal Counsel under Reagan & Bush 41

Jackson M. Andrews, Republican Counsel to the U.S. Senate

Susan Eisenhower, Granddaughter of President Eisenhower & President of the Eisenhower Group

Francis Fukuyama, Advisor to President Reagan

Rita Hauser, Former White House intelligence advisor under George W. Bush

Larry Hunter, Former President Reagan Policy Advisor

Bill Ruckelshaus, served in the Nixon and Reagan administrations

Tony Campbell, served in the Bush 43 administration. Professor of Political Science – Towson University.

Lilibet Hagel, Wife of Republican Senator Chuck Hagel

Jeffrey Hart, National Review Senior Editor

Andrew Bacevich, Professor of International Relations at Boston University

David Friedman, Economist and son of Milton and Rose Friedman

Christopher Buckley, Son of National Review founder William F. Buckley & former NR columnist

Andrew Sullivan, Columnist for the Atlantic Monthly

Wick Alison, Former publisher of the National Review

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If you would like to add you name to this list, click on the comment button.  Put your name, city and state in the response.

Powell Endorses Obama (New Worldview vs. Experience)

This is from the article I wrote on Thursday:

Well, now it is time for Powell to make his move. I expect this decision to be made public in time for the Sunday talk show circuit this weekend. Powell’s endorsement will clear the Independents and moderate Republicans from the fence post that they have been sitting on for the last six weeks.

As I listened to Colin Powell’s endorsement of Barack Obama this morning, one recurring thought came to mind: you can only have new leadership if you have a new view of the world.

From the “Meet the Press” interview with Tom Brokaw:

“This is the time for outreach,” Powell said, saying the next president would have to “reach out and show the world there is a new administration that is willing to reach out.”

In particular, Powell said, he welcomed Obama’s president to “talk to people we haven’t talked to,” a reference to Obama’s controversial pledge to hold talks with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Powell said several times that a generational change was needed. However, it is not simply defined by the age difference between the two candidates. The difference is how John McCain and Barack Obama view the world. McCain sees the world as a continuation of the “us v. them” type of foreign policy. The only change is the substitution of Terrorists for Communists. Instead of seeing enemies, Obama sees opportunity to dialogue with these nations to find common areas of understanding and cooperation.

History has a way of repeating itself. In 1969, a new U.S. President had the audacity to deal strongly with civil unrest, strengthening a struggling economy, ending an unpopular war in Vietnam while attempting to wage diplomacy through detente with both the Soviet Union and China, all at the same time. Powell stated that he believed Obama has “the intellectual curiosity and vigor” to handle any issues that may come up during his administration.

I believe Colin Powell is correct in his assessment.

The Last Real Chess Player – Colin Powell

Many of my blogging colleagues have written after-action reports on the third and final debate tonight. I agree with most of them who state that Barack Obama is clearly in the drivers seat in the presidential campaign. Three weeks is not a lot of time in politics and this was McCain’s last best chance in salvaging a close outcome on November 4th. Prediction: Obama will win by a landslide – 57% to 43%; Electoral College outcome – 315 to 223 (give or take 5 votes).

However, the most interesting news comes from Colin Powell. I wrote a piece back in April where I reported on a quote by the former Secretary of State that he was intrigued by Obama’s candidacy. In July, I wrote another piece laying out a possible endorsement of Obama from Powell. My source, a close Powell insider, told me that Powell would not endorse Obama “anytime soon…Powell is being Powell.”

Well, now it is time for Powell to make his move. I expect this decision to be made public in time for the Sunday talk show circuit this weekend. Powell’s endorsement will clear the Independents and moderate Republicans from the fence post that they have been sitting on for the last six weeks.

Powell + endorsing Obama = Checkmate.

A New Republican Party

In 1988, the Democratic Party got its proverbial head handed to them in the selection of Michael Dukakis and Lloyd Bentsen. The overwhelming rejection of their ticket caused their party to re-evaluate how they pick candidates, and more importantly, how future Democratic campaigns would communicate to the American people. The result of this lesson was the emergence of the Democratic Leadership Council to leadership positions in the party and a win for Bill Clinton in 1992.

Today, Republicans face the same fork in the road. On November 4th, we are going to lose BIG time. Not only are we going to lose the Presidency but we are also going to lose the ability to filibuster in the United States Senate. This is my biggest fear because this means that there will effectively be no checks and balances in the policy agendas of the White House for at least two years.

In order for our party to become relevant in future elections, moderate Republicans have to take back our G.O.P. from the social conservative branch. The Democratic Leadership Council was able to wrestle control from the liberals and presented centrist policies to the voters in 1992. We need to follow their example and re-establish our Republican foundations. Instead of promoting fear, we should get back to communicating the need for individual freedom and responsibility. Instead of expecting government to bailout bad decisions of corporate greed, we should return to expecting fiscal responsibility from government.

These are the reasons why I am a proud African-American member of the Republican Party. The American people expect better from our party. We are the party of Reagan, Eisenhower and Lincoln and we have let our party become marginalized, ignored and distrusted.

A new direction for the Republican Party is needed…if we do not grow, we will be left behind and that would be a tragedy for our country.

The Undiscovered Country

In Star Trek VI, Captain Kirk meets the Klingon Chancellor Gorkon on the Enterprise. After a rocky diplomatic dinner, Gorkon says the following to Kirk, “You don’t trust me, do you? I don’t blame you. If there is to be a brave new world, our generation is going to have the hardest time living in it.”

Before I continue my post, I have to say that John Lewis was WAY out of line comparing Senator McCain with George Wallace.

Rep. John Lewis, and other leaders of the Civil Rights era, are going through similar transitional issues. For forty years, the have assumed the mythical leadership of African-Americans in this country and that is about to change. It is sad to say this but Barack Obama’s biggest hurdle to the White House may be the people who look like him.

Isn’t there a Statute of Limitations on the institutional racism of the 1960s? Lewis and others have been beating the same tired drum for the last 30 years. The problem is that no one is listening anymore because they haven’t had anything meaningful to say since “The Cosby Show” premiered on NBC.

Lewis is not helping Obama, in fact, he is probably damaging his chances for victory. My advice to John Lewis and Julian Bond, echoes fellow columnist T-Steel, “keep your mouths closed for a while” – at least for the next four weeks.

btw, I am still waiting for Jesse Jackson to make a ill-timed comment.

Let “That One” Handle McCain’s Comment

I do not know why those words were spoken by Senator John McCain last night. It could be simply that John McCain does not agree with Senator Obama on the issues or it could be as Wolf Blitzer commented that McCain has a clear disdain for Obama. It was a poor choice of words and once again the questions this morning are not about the issues that matter to the American people, but rather, if McCain’s words were racially motivated (in or out of context).

For the record, I think John McCain is an honorable man and above the bottom feeding level of politics. However, a press release from his campaign ramped up their campaign about “That One” regarding Obama’s voting record and policy initiatives. My question to the McCain campaign is the following: Have you lost all sense of reality? Your policy attacks against Obama are going to be secondary to the innuendo of race that your catch phrase is prompting in the media. If you are hoping to agitate Obama into giving you an opening to reclaim lost ground by whining, and therefore playing the race card to his advantage, DREAM ON…after all, Obama survived the Clinton machine for over a year. Obama was calm last night when McCain introduced the comment and he will remain that way.

That being said, the surrogates and the Obama campaign should follow the example of their candidate and leave the issue alone. Let the television pundits and the bloggers hash this one out. Barack Obama made the right call by ignoring the comment…it would be wise for his supporters to do the same thing.

A Red Flag for the Secret Service?

A disturbing trend may be on the rise at Republican rallies. It is one thing to state that your opponent may have character issues or may not be the best choice to serve as President of the United States. It is something else entirely to stoke a fire that may incite violence against a sitting United States Senator who is the other party’s nominee for President.

Today, in a rally in Clearwater, FL., at a speech given by Governor Palin a man reportedly said “Kill Him” in reference to Barack Obama. We have a little less than a month to go and we are well past the point of civility in this campaign. Perhaps we all need to step back and take a collective breath. I would hope that neither Governor Palin nor Senator McCain would welcome support from people who would espouse such hateful views.

Political speech is part of the 1st Amendment protection of free speech. However, free speech does not include yelling fire in a public place or speech designed to incite people to take violent action. Rhetoric such as the type heard today in Florida may be the catalyst that can fan the smoldering coals of hate and race in our country. It is the responsibility of the Secret Service to protect the nominees from threats to their person and their families. When does political speech cross the line between motivating activists and provoking individual action that can cause personal injury?

I am a registered Republican and I am sick and tired of my Grand Old Party being dragged through the mud like this.  It is past time to take it back!

Just a thought…