LCV "Dirty Dozen" w/poll (Pombo Diaries #27)
Wed Jun 14, 2006 at 01:08:53 PM PDT
The League of Conservation voters has updated its Dirty Dozen (pdf) a list of vulnerable legislators who are bad for the environment.
It shouldn't surprise anyone that elected officials who serve cronies, industries, and corporations are the ones who have been chosen. Which is to say, the list is made up of names that DailyKos users would like to send home anyhow - for their environmental stands and for so many more reasons.
Cross-posted to ePluribusMedia
Hurricanes 2006: TS Alberto up & running
Sun Jun 11, 2006 at 08:01:49 AM PDT
It's official. The first named storm of the season. We're only running a few days behind 2005. Last year's first tropical storm - Arlene - was active from June 8-14. Whereas this year's first just got upgraded - June 11. Predictions are for 16-18 named storms this year. Well short of last year's 28.
CA-11: Pombo's in Trouble (#26 in series)
Thu Jun 08, 2006 at 09:15:06 AM PDT
We've got past the June 6 primaries. Since I've been following Richard Pombo, (R, CA-11) for awhile, here's my reflections on the results.
Democrats
- 18,859 Jerry McNerney
- 10,398 Stephen Nigel Filson
- 6,884 Stevan Thomas
Republicans
- 28,574 Richard W. Pombo
- 14,568 Paul N. "Pete" Mc Closkey, Jr.
- 2,635 Thomas (Tom) A. Benigno
Pombo barely topped a third of the votes (34.9%) in the primary. This is not the "catbird seat" for a powerful incumbent seeking his eighth term in the house. More on the numbers...
Ready for some Good News?
Tue Jun 06, 2006 at 07:49:59 PM PDT
A few weeks ago, I diaried that a gigantic "conventional" bomb test originally scheduled for the Nevada Test Site for this week had been postponed until at least June 23. After ongoing skirmishes in the courtoom and on the ground (including the arrest of 45 protesters over Memorial Day weekend), that test has now been halted indefinitely.
Excellent Movie from Al Gore's College Roommate
Sun Jun 04, 2006 at 09:45:05 PM PDT
You may think you know all you need to know about immigration along the US-Mexico border. But Tommy Lee Jones' movie, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, might just change your mind. Jones's feature film directorial debut will be released on video this week. Don't miss it! An extremely timely story in light of the current national debate on immigration, it premiered at Cannes last year, where it was well received - earning best writer recognition for screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga (21 Grams) and best actor honors for Jones.
Source: National Park Service
Filmed in the wide open spaces of West Texas, you'll see a border crossing at the above location: Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park. (And boy oh boy, do I feel sorry for anyone who's not had the good fortune to visit that national treasure.)
SoS Races: Who runs our elections?
Sun Jun 04, 2006 at 08:56:08 AM PDT
I voted yesterday, early for the June 6 New Mexico primary. New Mexico was the closest of swing states in 2000 & 2004 (by absolute numbers of votes). There was litigation against the current SoS over numerous "irregularities" the 2004 election. And legislative activists succeeded in passing election reform at the State House since then.
So, I researched the candidates a little, and decided to vote for Stephanie Gonzales for Secretary of State in New Mexico.
But what about the other states? We all know enough about Katherine Harris (FL) and Kenneth Blackwell (OH), to know that these are elections which matter.
Let's Play Jeopardy! Freep This Poll! (Pombo Diaries #25)
Fri Jun 02, 2006 at 03:27:56 PM PDT
I was a Jeopardy contestant once. Lost by a dollar to a belly dancer. Won a trip to Switzerland, where a good time was had by all. (So glad they didn't give me a dining room set!) Jeopardy's that TV game where they give you the answer, and you have to come up with the question. Sometimes they're silly: Seven (What's the number that's one more than six?) And the terminology's a little confusing, because the answer is the question. Or is the question the answer?
Anyhow, here's the clue: His lips are moving
The question/answer: How can you tell when Richard Pombo (R, CA-11) is lying about the Endangered Species Act?
Follow below the fold for more info, link to a poll to freep, some pretty & unpretty pictures, and a tasty bit from Molly Ivins.
A Good Walk Ruined (Mark Twain on Abramoff)
Thu Jun 01, 2006 at 11:20:53 AM PDT
Back in 2000, Tiger Woods won the British Open golf tournament. The tournament was played at the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland, where golf was invented. Amongst other things, Woods' performance was memorable because he completely avoided all the famous/infamous sand bunkers on the course. Woods got to St. Andrews the old fashioned way - he earned it.
Amongst serious golfers, St. Andrews is a mecca. The mecca. A round at the Old Course will be remembered for a lifetime. For those, like David Safavian, and Reps. Bob Ney and Tom Delay, who traveled there on Jack Abramoff's tab two years after Woods' millennial triumph, St. Andrews will be memorable for reasons other than the opportunity to play a round on the most venerable links in all of golf. It's one of the threads unravelling to expose a spawling Republican Culture of Corruption.
Ralph Reed has a Marianas Problem (Pombo Diaries #24)
Wed May 31, 2006 at 01:29:56 PM PDT
Why a Ralph Reed diary in the Richard Pombo series? I've got no evidence the two men have ever met. But each of them has acted to protect the slime pit of sweatshops, sex trade, and forced abortion carried on by Jack Abramoff's lobbying clients in the Marianas Islands.
Heretofore, Ralph Reed's Abramoff connections have been publicized regarding Indian gaming. Abramoff got millions from some tribes who already had casinos, with the goal of suppressing the gaming ambitions of other tribes in the region. That is, to quash the goals of potential competitors. A bunch of that money got handed over to Ralph Reed, to organize fundamentalist Christians against gambling.
Now, it has come to light that Reed was also agitating amongst the base to oppose labor and other protections for "visiting workers" in Saipan (Marianas).
Money Isn't Everything. Or is it? (Pombo Diaries #23)
Mon May 29, 2006 at 01:13:39 PM PDT
I called C-SPAN's segment on the 2006 Congressional races this morning. About Heather Wilson/Patricia Madrid (NM-1), and about my ongoing research interest: Richard Pombo (CA-11). They skipped comment on Pombo, so I followed up with an e-mail, and (surprise!) it was taken up later in the show.
Chuck Todd of The Hotline said, "Pombo's acting as if he's worried." He was refering to the Republican primary against Pete McCloskey. He added that if McCloskey gets 40%, it can be a sign of a national tide. (Not unlike the Busby/Bilbray.)
Continued below the fold, together with a case study of a small group of Pombo donors. Cross posted to ePluribusMedia
Bilbray (CA-50) Sues University of California (Pombo Diaries #22)
Wed May 24, 2006 at 03:27:07 PM PDT
Looks like the Republicans aren't having a swell time of it. Their efforts to hold onto power in the face of charges of corruption, cronyism, hypocrisy, incompetence and the like. At least that's what I see in this picture of Cheney appearing at a fundraiser for Richard Pombo (CA-11) this past Monday. Cheney's trip also featured stops for John Doolittle (CA-04) and Brian Bilbray (CA-50).
large version
Press reports don't sound like it's some kind of triumphal victory lap, either. After some talk of Bilbray below the fold, there's a few more quotes on Cheney's hit-and-run campaign stops.
Cross-posted to ePluribusMedia
Cheney visited Pombo-Land Today (#21 in Series)
Mon May 22, 2006 at 09:08:47 PM PDT
Today, Cheney's attending fundraisers for three Republican California lawmakers. Well, actually two: Richard Pombo (CA-11) and John Doolittle (CA-04). The thirds is a candidate, but not a lawmaker - Brian Bilbray, who's running against Francine Busby in CA-50 for the special election to replaced Rep. Duke Cunningham, who now spends his days in prison.
Before he hops on Air Force 2 for his return flight to an undisclosed location, he will have raised the better part of a million dollars for the 3 GOP candidates. Your tax dollars at work!
