Ken "Nighthorse" Campbell
Well, now we know what Ken Salazar's penchant for wishy-washy moderation gets us: stomped on the throat by a Republican majority determined to reverse the liberal tide of the courts. Yes, I will say that courts have had an inherently liberal (notice the small "l", wingnuts) bias over the course of our country's history - this is as unstoppable as it is undeniable.
The desire of each and every human being to determine their fate and expand their individual freedoms is irrepressible; the courts have always been either ahead (Brown vs. Board of Education) of or bringing up the rear of this natural societal force. Nothing will stop it, no matter the hopes of the far-right wing that we return through the fuzzy lens to yesteryear when men did the work and ruled the house, women raised the children who said nothing unless spoken to.
Ken Salazar felt Samuel Alito, though not qualified for the Supreme Court, should get an easy pass to his confirmation - so Salazar voted to end debate on this hightly debatable nominee. Ken Salazar also ignored the thoughts and strategies of two of the finest and most moral Senators of our time: Ted Kennedy and John Kerry, who just so happened to receive 50 millions votes 400 days ago.
Ken's unabated flimsiness came at a time when the President's approval ratings are rising in reverse, when more and more Republicans are calling for and end to llegal spying on American citizens, and when more and more Republicans are calling for full disclosure of Jack Abramoff's meetings and photos with White House "staff". How can this president be given a pass by a man who was elected at the same time as Bush's re-election? A man whose clarion call was to counter the President's actions. Coloradoans are dumb, but we are not that dumb, Senator.
Senator Salazar has cemented his status as a milquetoast Dem. He voted yes on Gonzales for AG. He voted yes for Condi as Secretary of State. He may even turn into a Fox News Democrat down the road. Believe you me this is no compliment.
He needs to show the guts that all of us showed in working for him, voting for him, propelling him to office -- he must think we were fools, because now he only heeds the call of the far right Christian-Industrialists and the social Luddites. Doesn't he have Gary Hart's number? To get some common-sense, bedrock-progressive advice from his elders. He can erase this image as a patsy and he can regain the trust of his constituents. But he has done much damage to his base. And it's going to take some serious thought on his part. He must learn that Dobson and the right and Mike Rosen and all the yapping-mini-Limbaugh's will never support him in a million years.
But until then, I will call Ken Salazar "Nighthorse" for his remaining 5 years in the Senate. He reminds me of the man he replaced, a man who sold out his root, a man who betrayed his constituents, and a man whose own self-ineterest overcame that of his nation and his party. Please make me take it back, Ken.
posted by Zappatero @ 5:19 PM
1 comments
1 Comments:
Don't forget his "yes" vote on the bankruptcy bill. IIRC his given reason for that was that he had not read the whole bill. One of his staffers simply looked embarassed when asked about this and muttered something about Salazar having had "good reasons" (but not good reasons anyone could actually talk about) for voting yes on that. Shades of Bush, or maybe 'Dr. Science' - He Knows More Than You Do.
What's really hilarious to me is that all this Republican Lite crap is not getting him Republican repeat votes - I was listening to "Gunny Bob" a couple of nights ago (I listen so you don't have to!) and a guy called in telling GB that he was a Republican moderate who would never vote for Salazar again because he's proven himself to actually be a liberal (in this guy's universe, anyway). So Ken, if you were expecting support from Those People, forget it, they will take you out as quickly as they can field someone centrist from their own party. They will not turn a hair about the nice things you have done for their cause. But we see the nice things you are doing for their cause, and to stay honest, we will have to turn our backs on you. It's been your choice; sad that it worked out this way, but we gave you the chance - we trusted you.
======== Background ==========
From the Democratic dissent (clearly, Sen. Salazar was not a party to that):
"While some people abuse the bankruptcy system, more than 90 percent of debtors file for bankruptcy due to unemployment or underemployment, an illness or accident, or divorce. The bulk of the remainder suffered from other legitimate difficulties, including activation for military service, being a victim of crime or natural disasters, or a death in the family .... an independent study on the subject found that less than four percent of debtors who filed under Chapter 7 (where unsecured debt is discharged) could possibly repay any of their unsecured debt under Chapter 13. ...
In the eight years since the credit industry first came to Congress seeking relief from the rising rate of personal bankruptcy filings, the extension of credit has not been curtailed nor have the industry’s profits been diminished due to bankruptcy filings. Instead, credit card solicitations have doubled to five billion a year. The bill still ignores the problem of the abuse of consumers by credit card companies.
While bankruptcy filings have increased 17 percent in the last eight years, credit card profits have increased 163 percent – from $11.5 billion to $30.2 billion. The cost of late and other penalty fees assessed by credit card companies have doubled in the last decade and now are more quickly levied (payments arriving after a certain hour on the due date are now considered late). Even more damaging have been the accompanying penalty rates. These rates jump from usually zero percent to a range of 22-29 percent, are retroactive to the entire balance, and, thanks to “universal default” policies, now create a domino effect on the consumer’s financial situation. Additionally, the average late fee in 2003 for a late payment on a credit card was $29."
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