Congress

Yarmuth Turns up the Heat

Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Louisville) gave Condi Rice the what for during today’s House Oversight and Government Reform Committee meeting.

According to The Arena, Yarmuth accused Rice and the Bush Administration of what amounts to b-s-filled lies.

“…Isn’t it fairly obvious that you’re afraid of concealing negative information, and that any person with half a brain would understand that the situation is not good, or else you’d want to talk about it?” Yarmuth asked Rice.
…
Yarmuth told her that he and others were elected to Congress last fall because the American people were convinced “that they weren’t leveled with about the conduct of this war, and that…if the administration had been more candid, then maybe the approval rating for what we’re doing over there would be of reasonable levels.”

“And, unfortunately, this total stonewalling and lack of candor is what’s contributing to a lack of confidence in the American people,” the Louisville lawmaker said.

Nice to see a Democrat holding someone accountable, isn’t it? Strange in this day and age, that’s for sure, because most Democrats in D.C. are an absolute waste of a vote. Yarmuth is one of only a few who aren’t raging cowards like Nancy Pelosi and Ben Chandler.

Source: Davis Under Investigation

It’s no secret that Rep. Geoff Davis (R-KY4) has strong ties to disgraced Jack Abramoff, Bob Ney and Tom DeLay. He has taken $30,000 from DeLay’s ARMPAC, $4,000 from Ney and $11,000 from Duke Cunningham. It’s also no surprise that he’s been a strong supporter of weakened House ethics rules.

So is it surprising to learn that Davis is currently involved in an investigation for possibly accepting laundered campaign contributions?

An impeccable source close to the federal investigation tells us that while Rep. Davis hasn’t officially been accused of any wrongdoing, it “doesn’t look pretty.”

We haven’t been able to get anyone to speak on the record. What we did get, however, is a big fat “there’s no way we’ll discuss an ongoing investigation.”

Cold Weekend Briefing Dept

Sliming Graeme Frost. Paul Krugman chimes in on Mitch McConnell’s role in trashing a 12-year-old boy as the downfall of health care. How is $45,000 in combined income a lot of money? McConnell’s wife and her tight family ties to Chinese shipping probably makes more than that each week. [NYT]

Too little too late? McConnell comes out of hiding to appear with Ernie. Everyone blinks. [H-L]

Seeking injunction. Greg Stumbo’s office seeks an injunction to block a Fletcher-appointed “ethics” panel from investigating the merit hiring scandal. Who in their right mind would let something like that go on, anyway? The “complaint” was filed by an anonymous “concerned citizen.” [PolWatchers]

Congressional Fashion Statement. Rep. John Yarmuth tries to get the Congress to, you know, understand who the heck they are and what they do. We’re shocked (shocked!) that several members of the House have no idea what Article 1 is. Not as shocked that Nancy Pelosi was afraid to wear a button. [NYT The Caucus]

New taxes. City employees campaigned on city time for the new Louisville library tax. Heads explode, library director Craig Buthod afraid to come out of hiding. Still, no one knows where their money will go. We just want to know where Beavis is. [C-J]

Need a paranormal break? The Applegate Landing bed & breakfast in West Point is apparently just the place to unwind. And it’s haunted. Should be an interesting place to check out in a neat little town. [News-Enterprise]

Sodrel’s Doing it AGAIN

Tying the congressional record for four back-to-back races, Mike Sodrel (R) is once again running against Baron Hill (Usually D) for Southern Indiana’s U.S. Congressional seat. For the past week Sodrell has made announcements about making announcements about making announcements. All right for free press.

Peep part of the press conference:



Taking up the failing flat tax? What is this “fur tax” he speaks of? Preventing the wealthy from paying their fair share? Yeah, sounds like the plan to draw out all the middle class voters currently screwed by the tax “cuts.” Keep it up.

We’re just guessing here, but… Baron Hill has this one in the bag. Wealthy Republicans just don’t fit the voters’ bill in Southern Indiana any longer.

Fabricated Support of Hypocrites

By now you’ve all see the Freedom’s Watch ads which use fear in an attempt to drum up support for the death trap that is Iraq. At the end of the 30-second spot you’re urged to call your elected officials in Washington with a number provided on the screen. It turns out that number rings at a call center (contracted by Freedom’s Watch) which exists to transfer your calls to Congress. The catch? They only transfer callers who support the war.

Americans United for Change recorded one of the calls and is sharing it with the world. See for yourself.

If the ads themselves weren’t filled with enough hypocrisy for you, this should break the bank.

Credit to Open KY

Slipping by the Wayside

Is anyone following this? Attorneys for the fen-phen case in Kentucky stole $46million from their clients. Now they’re whining about being in jail. Maybe we could give this money to Peabody. [C-J]

No friend of the working man? Organized labor takes a jab at Fletcher. [AFL-CIO]

Blue dog or Bush dog? Ben Chandler gets added to the list after voting in favor of warrantless wiretapping. [DemocratsDotCom]

From the Wasted Opportunity Dept. Gallup Poll shows that for the first time since 1974, the Congressional approval rating has hit rock bottom. Only 18% of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing. Staggering 76% disapprove. And Nancy Pelosi eats babies. [Gallup]

Doling out dollars. Fletcher spends nearly $2million in Perry County for road paving (they call it asphalt rehabilitation). Which stretch of road, you wonder? Why, the Hal Rogers Parkway. Project is scheduled for completion on October 15. [KY]

Keeping them poor and sick. In case you didn’t know: Kentucky children who already don’t have health care will never get it. [WaPo]