RIP Coretta Scott King

The widow of civil rights leader Martin Luther King has died at the age of 78.

Justice Alito

It is now official

Total Yes: 58 (CONFIRMED)

Total No: 42

Dems voting Yes (4)

Robert Byrd of West Virginia
Kent Conrad of North Dakota
Ben Nelson of Nebraska
Tim Johnson of South Dakota

Republicans voting Yes (54)

Lamar Alexander of Tennesee
Wayne Allard of Colorado
George Allen of Virginia
Robert Bennett of Utah
Christopher Bond of Missouri
Jim Bunning of Kentucky
Sam Brownback of Kansas
Conrad Burns of Montana
Richard Burr of North Carolina
Saxby Chambliss of Georgia
Thad Cochran of Mississippi
Norm Coleman of Minnesota
Tom Coburn of Oklahoma
John Cornyn of of Texas
Larry Craig of Idaho
Mike Crapo of Idaho
Susan Collins of Maine
James DeMint of South Carolina
Mike Dewine of Ohio
Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina
Pete Domenici of New Mexico
John Ensign of Nevada
Mike Enzi of Wyoming
Bill Frist of Tennessee
Lindsey Graham of South Carolina
Charles Grassley of Iowa
Judd Gregg of New Hampshire
Chuck Hagel of Nebraska
Orrin Hatch of Utah
Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas
James Inhofe of Oklahoma
Johnny Isakson of Georgia
Trent Lott of Mississippi
Richard Lugar of Indiana
John Kyl of Arizona
Mel Martinez of Florida
John McCain of Arizona
Mitch McConnell of Kentucky
Lisa Murkowski of Alaska
Pat Roberts of Kansas
Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania
Jeff Sessions of Alabama
Richard Shelby of Alabama
Gordon Smith of Oregon
Olympia Snowe
Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania
Ted Stevens of Alaska
John Sununu of New Hampshire
John Talent of Missouri
Craig Thomas of Wyoming
John Thune of South Dakota
David Vitter of Louisiana
George Voinovich of Ohio
John Warner of Virginia

Republicans voting No (1)

Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island

Dems voting No (40)

Daniel Akaka of Hawaii
Max Baucus of Montana
Evan Bayh of Indiana
Joe Biden of Delaware
Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico
Barbara Boxer of California
Maria Cantwell of Washington
Thomas Carper of Delaware
Hillary Clinton of New York
Mark Dayton of Minnesota
Christopher Dodd of Connecticut
Byron Dorgan of North Dakota
Richard Durbin of Illinois
Russ Feingold of Wisconsin
Dianne Feinstein of California
Tom Harkin of Iowa
Daniel Inouye of Hawaii
Jim Jeffords of Vermont
Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts
John Kerry of Massachusetts
Herbert Kohl of Wisconsin
Mary Landrieu of Louisiana
Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey
Patrick Leahy of Vermont
Carl Levin of Michigan
Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut
Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas
Robert Menendez of New Jersey
Barbara Mikulski of Maryland
Patty Murray of Washington
Bill Nelson of Florida
Barak Obama of Illinois
Mark Pryor of Arkansas
Jack Reed of Rhode Island
Harry Reid of Nevada
Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia
Ken Salazar of Colorado
Paul Sarbanes of Maryland
Charles Schumer of New York
Debbie Stabenow of Michigan
Ron Wyden of Oregon

Alito Confirmation Assured

Cloture has passed with all 55 Republicans and 17 of 45 Democrats.

So the only issue is the final vote

We now have just 2 unannounced members

Snowe of Maine (R)

Landrieu of Louisiana (D)

Snowe is up for re-election this year in a blue state but she is fairly secure.

Landrieu is up in a red state, and could be in trouble.

I would guess Snowe Yes and Landreiu slightly leaning No.

Canada Goes Conservative, Sort Of

With polls closed in our neighbor to the North it looks like the Conservatives are back in power, albiet with a minority government.

Given that they were once down to just 2 out of 300 seats, this is a pretty decent comeback.

Now let us see how well they govern, and if they can last in a 4 party system.

The Military

The average age of the military man is 19 years. He is a short haired, tight-muscled kid who, under normal circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy.

Not yet dry behind the ears, not old enough to buy a beer, but old enough to die for his country. He never really cared much for work and he would rather wax his own car than wash his father's; but he has never collected unemployment either.

He's a recent High School graduate; he was probably an average student,pursued some form of sport activities, drives a ten year old jalopy, and has a steady girlfriend that either broke up with him when he left, or swears to be waiting when he returns from half a world away.

He listens to rock and roll or hip-hop or rap or jazz or swing and 155 mm howitzer.

He is 10 or 15 pounds lighter now than when he was at home because he is working or fighting from before dawn to well after dusk.

He has trouble spelling, thus letter writing is a pain for him, but he can field strip a rifle in 30 seconds and reassemble it in less time in the dark.

He can recite to you the nomenclature of a machine gun or grenade launcher and use either one effectively if he must.

He digs foxholes and latrines and can apply first aid like a professional.

He can march until he is told to stop or stop until he is told to march.

He obeys orders instantly and without hesitation, but he is not without spirit or individual dignity. He is self-sufficient.

He has two sets of fatigues: he washes one and wears the other.

He keeps his canteens full and his feet dry.

He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth, but never to clean his rifle.

He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes, and fix his own hurts.

If you're thirsty, he'll share his water with you; if you are hungry, his food.

He'll even split his ammunition with you in the midst of battle when you run low.

He has learned to use his hands like weapons and weapons like they were his hands.

He can save your life - or take it, because that is his job.

He will often do twice the work of a civilian, draw half the pay and still find ironic humor in it all.

He has seen more suffering and death then he should have in his short lifetime.

He has stood atop mountains of dead bodies, and helped to create them.

He has wept in public and in private, for friends who have fallen in combat
and is unashamed.

He feels every note of the National Anthem vibrate through his body while at rigid attention, while tempering the burning desire to 'square-away' those around him
who haven't bothered to stand, remove their hat, or even stop talking.

In an odd twist, day in and day out, far from home, he defends their right to be disrespectful.

Just as did his Father, Grandfather, and Great-grandfather, he is paying the price for our freedom. Beardless or not, he is not a boy.

He is the American Fighting Man that has kept this country free for over 200 years.

He has asked nothing in return, except our friendship and understanding. Remember him, always, for he has earned our respect and admiration with his blood.

And now we even have women over there in danger, doing their part in this tradition
of going to War when our nation calls us to do so.

As you go to bed tonight, remember this shot..

A short lull, a little shade and a picture of loved ones in their helmets.

"Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. Amen."

Please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our ground troops in Afghanistan, sailors on ships, and airmen in the air, and for those in Iraq.

Of all the gifts you could give a US Soldier, Sailor, Coastguardsman, Marine
or Airman, prayer is the very best one

24

So far it looks like a really good season of 24, I only hope that they keep it up.

Ford In Hospital

Ford

Although it sounds like he's doing alright he is in his 90's and pneumonia is never a minor thing at that age.

Delay But No Filibuster

It now looks like the Democrats will drag out the vote on Alito but will not filibuster. With Alito likely to get over 60 votes, the Dems couldn't block him but they will drag things out to satisfy the hard liner interest groups.

It will be interesting to see how the votes pan out.

Judiciary Vote Prospects

With the hearings all but over we now look to a vote in the Judiciary committee on January 17th. The question arises of how the members will vote.

Based upon comments by Specter and Brownback it seems likely that all 10 Republican members of the committee will vote for Alito.

Also based upon their comments, it's clear than Kennedy, Schumer and Durbin would vote against their own mother if she were nominated by Bush.

So that gives us a 10-3 vote with 5 Dems unsure.

Of those five Leahy, Kohl and Feingold all voted for Roberts while Feinstein and Biden voted no.

So initially you'd have to put the 2 no on Roberts votes as leaning no on Alito.

Given the liberalism of Vermont, and the abortion mantra, I'd make Leahy leaning no, but still in play.

Since Feingold wants to run for President, I think he leans no to balance out Roberts vote with the Democrat base.

Kohl I might make leaning yes, he seemed firm but impressed with Alito's testimony.

So while Roberts got a 13-5 vote out of committe, so far I see only one Dem leaning yes, the others solid or leaning no. That would make vote 11-7.

But any comments made by members tomorrow could change things...

Democrats Won't Give Up On Alito

The Democrats just won't give up on Alito.

He has clearly shown himself to be very qualified, well reasoned and has answered their questions.

Having failed to 'Bork him' in the 2 normal rounds of questioning, they are now pushing for 3rd and possibly 4th rounds of questioning.

I will post a more detailed review of his performance later.

Did Anyone Proofread It ?

Senator Ted Kennedy has announced the publication of a childrens book that he wrote. The book focused on his pet dog as he follows the path of a bill through Congress.

I have no problem with this, it seems like a good idea to give children a view of how our government works.

But the dog is named.... Splash.

Given Senator Kennedy's background, you would think someone could have suggested a different name ?

Economy and Media

The year is only 9 days old but we've already gotten several bits of good economic news.

1. Unemployment continues to fall, now down to just 4.9%. When you consider that the Clinton low was 4.1% and that most experts think 3% is the lowest possible, you get an idea of how good it is.

By comparison, most European nations are at or in double digits.

Figures for 2005 show a gain of 2 MILLION jobs.

2. Economic growth continues, with a rate of 3-5% predicted for 2006 and a net growth near 5% for 2005.

3. Today the stock market closed over 11,000 for the first time since 9/11. Experts predict a growth rate of 6-8% for 2006 which would result in the highest market ever.

Yet the media acts as if none of this is really happening. In reporting the jobs numbers, they call them 'weak' because it wasn't as big an increase in jobs as some thought would happen (but they ignore the much higher growth in October and November).

The economic growth numbers are reported as 'weak' in the 3-5% range. Again, the Clinton numbers were similar.

The stock market gains are given short reporting, if any at all.

Now before my economist readers chime in, I will agree that this is not everything. The deficit is too high and there are other figures to worry about. I have no problem with the media reporting this.

But the above figures ARE good news and should be reported as such.

Let's imagine if Kerry had won in 2004. And we had the exact same economy right now.

How do we think the NY Times, Washington Post and CNN would report his economy ?

Denzel Washington, A Great Man

Got this in an e-mail and wanted to post it for all to read

Denzel Washington and his family recently visited the troops at Brook Army Medical Center, in San Antonio,Texas (BAMC) the other day. This is where soldiers who have been evacuated from Germany come to be hospitalized in the United States, especially burn victims.

There are some buildings there called Fisher Houses. The Fisher House is a Hotel where soldiers' families can stay, for little or no charge, while their soldier is staying in the Hospital. BAMC has quite a few of these houses on base, but as you can imagine, they are almost filled most of the time.

While Denzel Washington was visiting BAMC, they gave him a tour of one of the Fisher Houses. He asked how much one of them would cost to build.

He took his checkbook out and wrote a check for the full amount right there on the spot.

The soldiers overseas were amazed to hear this story and want to get the word out to the American public, because it warmed their hearts to hear it.

I don't recall any of the liberals in Hollywood doing something like this for the troops 'they support'.



























A true American and friend to all in uniform!




This needs as wide a distribution

as we can create.


GOD BLESS YOU DENZEL

FOR YOUR PATRIOTISM

Robertson Contracts Athletes Tongue

Pat Robertson has put his foot in his mouth again. He does it so often these days that he's gotten a bad case of athletes tongue.

He has previously declared 9/11 to be the result of Americas sinful nature, the hurricanes in Florida to be a response to Disney giving health benefits to gays and the tsunami in Asia was punishment against Muslims.

His latest winner is to declare that God got vengeance on Ariel Sharon by giving him a stroke. This is because he is negotiating with the Palestinians and that is against God's will (as seen by Robertson).

Now I am not a Biblical scholar and perhaps (big perhaps) there is some valid basis for what Robertson said. I doubt it, but you can interpret things a lot of different ways, so I give him the benefit of the doubt.

But that does not justify going on television and announcing this 'wrath' while a man fights for his life in the hospital. It's not like we've got Osama out there dying, by all accounts Sharon is a basically good person.

So speaking as an Christian I would be very happy if Mr. Robertson would consider taking a vow of silence.

Sharon Critical

Latest news reports do not sound encouraging for Israeli PM Sharon. Even if he lives, it seems doubtful he will be able to stay in office.

How this will affect the peace process largely depends on his eventual successor.

Bias in Abramoff Reporting ?

As has been well reported, DC lobbyist Jack Abramoff has pled guilty to charges of conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion charges in a federal court in Washington.

The media is happy to report the many ties he has to top Republicans, but they seem to be ignoring a few parts of the truth.

Like most lobbyists, he has close ties to members of both parties. Although he is a big GOP lobbyist, he has given plenty to Democrats as well.

According to the Christian Science Monitor, hardly a GOP cheerleader, during the period last four election cycles (2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006) he has given a total of 4.4 million in campaign donations.

Of that amount 2.8 million went to Republicans and 1.6 million to Democrats. So almost 40% of his donations were to Democrats, including top leaders like Daschle and Pelosi. Yet to hear the press reports, you'd think he gave 50 million and all of it to one or two Republicans.

Do you think that if the scandal tipped the other way that the press would ignore the real numbers ??

It's also worth noting that this big GOP donor is being prosecuted by a Republican Justice Department. Those who point to alleged corruption seem to forget who is doing the prosecuting.

Again, do you think the Clinton adminstration would have gone after a top Democrat ?

Sorry

Sorry for the slowness in posts this week but the weather out here denied me power for a couple days and then Blogger site wouldn't open for me until today.

I will post today or tomorrow though.