Advice for Contacting Congress

post from Docudharma - Front Page on 04 May 2009 09:27:20 PM. © Docudharma - Front Page

This essay was inspired by an interesting exchange in the Dog's Weekly Torture Action Letter. The Dog's work is excellent and we should continue to support his efforts. However, there was a bit of a discussion about the best tactics for contacting your[...]

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Maximizing the Base

post from MyDD on 04 May 2009 09:14:09 PM. © MyDD

Dropping today over at Swing State Project is an excellent analysis of PVI vs. Voting Habits for the House in 2008. There are tons of excellent charts over there breaking down both Dems and Republicans who under or over perform the PVIs of their[...]

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Palin may be snubbing GOP effort to repackage
itself

post from AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth on 04 May 2009 09:11:00 PM. © AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth

Of course, it's not entirely clear that she was invited at first, so she may have good reason to snub back. The number of stories in which Republicans are sniping at each other seems to not be abating.

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Confirmation Hearing Schedule

post from DemConWatch on 04 May 2009 09:06:32 PM. © DemConWatch

Here are the Obama Cabinet and non-cabinet confirmation hearing dates coming up. Shown are date, nominee, department, and Senate committee.

Our list of key Presidential Appointments requiring Senate confirmation is here.

Hearings Scheduled:

May 5: Energy and Natural Resources, Daniel B. Poneman, to be Deputy Secretary, David B. Sandalow, to be Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and Domestic Policy, both of the Department of Energy, and Rhea S. Suh, to be Assistant Secretary, and Michael L. Connor, to be Commissioner of Reclamation, both of the Department of the Interior.
May 6: Veterans' Affairs, Roger W. Baker, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology, William A. Gunn, of Virginia, to be General Counsel, Jose D. Riojas, of Texas, to be Assistant Secretary for Operations, Security, and Preparedness, and John U. Sepulveda, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary for Human Resources, all of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
May 7: Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, Seth David Harris, of New Jersey, to be Deputy Secretary, and M. Patricia Smith, of New York, to be Solicitor, both of the Department of Labor.
May 7: Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, Margaret A. Hamburg, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of Food and Drugs, Department of Health and Human Services.
May 7: Indian Affairs, Larry J. Echo Hawk, of Utah, to be Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs.
May 7: Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, Krysta Harden, of Virginia,and Pearlie S. Reed, of Arkansas, both to be an Assistant Secretary, Rajiv J. Shah, of Washington, to be Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics, and Dallas P. Tonsager, of South Dakota, to be Under Secretary for Rural Development, all of the Department of Agriculture.
May 8: Finance, Neal S. Wolin, of Illinois, to be Deputy Secretary of the Treasury.

Committee Votes Scheduled:

May 4: Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Business meeting to consider the nominations of Ivan K. Fong, of Ohio, to be General Counsel, and Timothy W. Manning, of New Mexico, to be Deputy Administrator for National Preparedness, Federal Emergency Management Agency, both of the Department of Homeland Security.
May 5: Finance, Business meeting to consider the nomination of Alan Krueger, to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy.
May 5: Foreign Relations, Business meeting to consider the nominations of Harold Hongju Koh, of Connecticut, to be Legal Adviser, and Johnnie Carson, of Illinois, to be Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, both of the Department of State, Ivo H. Daalder, of Virginia, to be United States Permanent Representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Susan Flood Burk, of Virginia, to be Special Representative of the President for Nuclear Non-Proliferation, Luis C. de Baca, of Virginia, to be Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, and routine lists in the Foreign Service.
May 7: Environment and Public Works, Business meeting to consider the nominations of Mathy Stanislaus, of New Jersey, to be Assistant Administrator, Office of Solid Waste, Cynthia J. Giles, of Rhode Island, to be Assistant Administrator for Enforcement and Compliance, and Michelle DePass, of New York, to be Assistant Administrator for International Affairs, all of the Environmental Protection Agency.
May 7: Judiciary, Business meeting to consider the nominations of William K. Sessions III, of Vermont, to be Chair of the United States Sentencing Commission, and John Morton, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security.

Senate Votes Scheduled:

See below for previously held hearings

Held:
Jan 8, 10 AM - Tom Daschle - Secretary of Health and Human Services - Health, Education, Labor & Pension (Also Finance)
Jan 9, 9:30 AM - Hilda Solis - Labor - Health, Education, Labor & Pension
Jan 13, 9:30 AM - Hillary Clinton - Secretary of State - Foreign Relations
Jan 13, 10 AM - Arne Duncan - Education - Health, Education, Labor & Pension
Jan 13, 10 AM - Steve Chu - Energy - Energy & Natural Resources
Jan 13, 10 AM - Shaun Donovan - Housing and Urban Development - Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Jan 13,- Peter R. Orszag, Director, Office of Management and Budget, and Robert L. Nabors II, Deputy Director, Office of Management and Budget, Budget
Jan 14, 10 AM - Lisa Jackson, EPA; Nancy Sutley, Chairman, Council on Environmental Quality - Envronment & Public Works
Jan 14, 10 AM - Eric Shinseki - Veteran Affairs - Veteran's Affairs
Jan 14, 10 AM - Tom Vilsack - Agriculture - Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry
Jan 14, 2 PM - Peter R. Orszag, Director, Office of Management and Budget, and Robert L. Nabors II, Deputy Director, Office of Management and Budget, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Jan 15, 9:30 - Eric Holder - Justice - Judiciary
Jan 15, 9:30 - Ken Salazar - Interior - Energy & Natural Resources
Jan 15, 10 AM - Janet Napolitano - Secretary of Homeland Security - Homeland Security & Government Affairs
Jan 15, 9:30 AM - Susan Rice - UN Ambassador - Foreign Relations
Jan 15, 9:30 AM - William Lynn, Deputy Secretary of Defense; Robert Hale, Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) and Chief Financial Officer; Michèle Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy; and Jeh Charles Johnson, General Counsel, Department of Defense - Armed Services
Jan 15, 10 AM - Honorable Mary Schapiro , Chairma, The Securities and Exchange Commission, Dr. Christina Romer , Chairman, Council of Economic Advisors, Dr. Austan Goolsbee , Member, Council of Economic Advisors, Dr. Cecilia Rouse , Member, Council of Economic Advisors, Mr. Daniel Tarullo , Member, The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System - Banking
Jan 21, 10 AM - Tim Geithner - Treasury - Finance
Jan 21, 2 PM - Ray LaHood - Transportation - Commerce, Science & Transportation (postponed from 1/14)
Jan 22, 9:30 AM - James Steinberg, Jacob Lew - State - Foreign Relations
Jan 22, 10 AM - Dennis Blair, Director of National Intelligence - Intelligence
Feb 5, David Odgen, Deputy Attorney General, Judiciary
Feb 5-6, Leon Panetta, CIA, Intelligence
Feb 10, Elena Kagan, to be Solicitor General of the United States, and Thomas John Perrelli, to be Associate Attorney General, both of the Department of Justice.
Feb 12, Jane Lubchenco to be Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, and John P. Holdren to be Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, both of the Department of Commerce.
Feb 25: Gary Gensler, to be Chairman and Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Feb 25: Dawn Johnsen, and David Kris, Assistant Attorney General
Mar 9: Finance - Ron Kirk, United States Trade Representative
Mar 10: Judiciary - Lanny A. Breuer, to be an Assistant Attorney General, Christine Anne Varney, to be an Assistant Attorney General, and Tony West, to be an Assistant Attorney General.
Intelligence - David S. Kris, to be an Assistant Attorney General, National Security Division. (Kris has already been approved by the Judiciary Committee)
Mar 12: Energy and Natural Resources: David J. Hayes, to be Deputy Secretary of the Interior
Mar 18: Gary Locke - Sec Commerce - Commerce, Science & Transportation
Mar 24: Richard Rahul Verma, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, Melanne Verveer, of the District of Columbia, to be Ambassador at Large for Women's Global Issues, and Esther Brimmer, of the District of Columbia, to be an Assistant Secretary for International Organization Affairs, all of the Department of State. , Foreign Relations
Mar 24: Thomas L. Strickland, of Colorado, to be Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife, Department of the Interior, Energy and Natural Resources
Mar 25: Christopher R. Hill, Ambassador to Iraq, Foreign Relations
Mar 26: Jane Holl Lute, of New York,Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security. Homeland Security Cmte.
Mar 26: Ashton B. Carter, of Massachusetts, to be Under Secretary for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics, James N. Miller, Jr., of Virginia, to be Deputy Under Secretary for Policy, and Alexander Vershbow, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary for International Security Affairs, all of the Department of Defense, Armed Services
Mar 26: Karl Winfrid Eikenberry, of Florida, to be Ambassador of the United States of America to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Department of State, Foreign Relations
Mar 26: Jonathan Z. Cannon, of Virginia, to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and Thomas L. Strickland, of Colorado, to be Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife, Department of the Interior, Energy and Natural Resources Cmte.
Mar 26: John Berry, of the District of Columbia, to be Director of the Office of Personnel Management, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Mar 26: Rose Eilene Gottemoeller, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary for Verification and Compliance, Department of State and Philip H. Gordon, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs, both of the Department of State, Foreign Relations
Mar 31: Kathleen Sebelius, of Kansas, to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, HEL&P
Apr 1: W. Scott Gould, Deputy Secretary of VA, L. Tammy Duckworth to be an Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs, VA
Apr 1: Karen Gordon Mills, of Maine, to be Administrator of the Small Business Administration, Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Apr 1: David F. Hamilton, of Indiana, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit, and Ronald H. Weich, of the District of Columbia, to be an Assistant Attorney General, Department of Justice, Judiciary
Apr 1: Joe Leonard, Jr., of the District of Columbia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Civil Rights, Kathleen A. Merrigan, of Massachusetts, to be Deputy Secretary, James W. Miller, of Virginia, to be Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, and Dallas P. Tonsager, of South Dakota, to be Under Secretary for Rural Development, all of Department of Agriculture, Agriculture Cmte.
Apr 2: Kathleen Sebelius, of Kansas, to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, Finance
Apr 2: Regina McCarthy, of Massachusetts, to be an Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Environment and Public Works
Apr 22: William Craig Fugate, of Florida, to be Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and John Morton, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, both of Homeland Security. Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Apr 22: Susan Flood Burk, of Virginia, to be Special Representative of the President, with the rank of Ambassador, and Ivo H. Daalder, of Virginia, to be United States Permanent Representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization., Foreign Relations
Apr 23: Kristina M. Johnson, of Maryland, to be Under Secretary of Energy. Energy and Natural Resources Cmte.
Apr 23: Yvette Roubideaux, of Arizona, to be Director of the Indian Health Service, Department of Health and Human Service, Indian Affairs Cmte.
Apr 23: Ronald C. Sims, of Washington, to be Deputy Secretary, and Peter A. Kovar, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary, both of Housing and Urban Development, and David S. Cohen, of Maryland, to be Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing, Department of the Treasury, Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Cmte.
Apr 23: Kristina M. Johnson, of Maryland, to be Under Secretary, Steven Elliot Koonin, of California, to be Under Secretary for Science, Ines R. Triay, of New Mexico, to be an Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management, and Scott Blake Harris, of Virginia, to be General Counsel, all of the Department of Energy, and Hilary Chandler Tompkins, of New Mexico, to be Solicitor of the Department of the Interior, Energy and Natural Resources Cmte.
Apr 28: Armed Services, Raymond Edwin Mabus, Jr., of Mississippi, to be Secretary, and Robert O. Work, of Virginia, to be Under Secretary, both of the Department of the Navy, Elizabeth Lee King, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, Michael Nacht, of California, to be Assistant Secretary for Global Strategic Affairs, and Wallace C. Gregson, of Colorado, to be Assistant Secretary for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs, all of the Department of Defense, Donald Michael Remy, of Virginia, to be General Counsel, and Jo-Ellen Darcy, of Maryland, to be Assistant Secretary for Civil Works, both of the Department of the Army, and Ines R. Triay, of New Mexico, to be Assistant Secretary of Energy for Environmental Management.
Apr 28: Environment and Public Works, Michelle DePass, of New York, and Cynthia J. Giles, of Rhode Island, both to be Assistant Administrators, and Mathy Stanislaus, of New Jersey, to be Assistant Administrator for Office of Solid Waste, all of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Apr 28: Foreign Relations, Harold Hongju Koh, of Connecticut, to be Legal Adviser of the Department of State.
Apr 29: Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Ivan K. Fong, of Ohio, to be General Counsel, Department of Homeland Security; to be immediately followed by a hearing to examine the nomination of Timothy W. Manning, of New Mexico, to be Deputy Administrator for National Preparedness, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland Security.
Apr 29: Foreign Relations. Johnnie Carson, of Illinois, to be Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, and Luis C. de Baca, of Virginia, to be Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, both of the Department of State.
Apr 30: Finance, William V. Corr, of Virginia, to be Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Alan B. Krueger, of New Jersey, to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy.

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Monster Hospital: Former SERE Psychologist
Defends Torture Team

post from Firedoglake on 04 May 2009 09:00:44 PM. © Firedoglake

SERE psychologists and consequentialism.[...]

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Sarah Palin to be part of the National Council
for a New America

post from Crooks and Liars on 04 May 2009 09:00:20 PM. © Crooks and Liars

video details and more

First it was killin' a turkey and now a dead bear. You betcha!

Anyway, Sarah Palin plans to join the National Council for a New America:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will be part of the National Council for a New America, an attempt by leaders in Congress and potential 2012 presidential candidates to rebrand the struggling party.
"I am pleased to announce that Governor Palin has joined the National Council for a New America's panel of experts," said House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (Va.) today. "When NCNA was announced last week, we spoke about a dynamic organization that worked to constantly bring in new people and innovative ideas."
Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), who shared the national ticket with Palin, had hinted at Palin's involvement during a conference call last Thursday announcing the National Council's formation.
But, her office had been largely silent in the intervening days and Cantor's office made clear only that she had been invited to join not that she had accepted.
Palin's involvement in the group will help rebut the idea that the National Council is an organ of the establishment wing of the party set up to keep the Palins and Gov. Mark Sanford's (S.C.) -- both of whom are more hardline conservatives -- from taking over control of the party.

Her appearance on the panel is just window dressing -- some useful PR for Herself. I do believe she would have agreed with the dittohead who said he thought America doesn't need education. Only Rush Limbaugh.

Sarah will be right at home with the wingnut base that attends these townhalls. She was a complete failure as a VP candidate and had no ideas of any kind except to call Obama a terrorist lover. (Well, that was actually Karl Rove's idea. My mistake.) She might think about animals just a wee bit more, don't you think?

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David Shuster brings us Sarah Palin's extremely creepy turkey pardoning and post-pardoning interview from Wasilla, Alaska. The whole thing plays like something out of the Twilight Zone or the latter stages of Fargo.

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Iraq TV: Ministers To Be "Hosted"

post from IraqSlogger.com on 04 May 2009 09:00:00 PM. © IraqSlogger.com

By Daniel W. Smith and Yousif al-Timimi There was not one over-arching story on Monday night, but several medium to small ones.

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MP Al-Basri Explains Break From Allawi's Party

Last week, left the Iraqiya List, led by Ayad Allawi, after the former prime minister said that he would be willing to meet with Baathist outlaws "in the interest of national reconciliation".

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Deep Thought

Christianity Today is running an interview with "Joe The Plumber". [...]

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Research Is For The Weak!

Suppose you are the legal affairs analyst for a respected national publication. You are charged with writing a piece about the presumed front-runner for a Supreme Court vacancy. What would you do, specifically, to get a sense of this potential nominee's viability and fitness?

Apparently, "research" is not the answer.

TNR's latest on Judge Sonia Sotomayor, entitled "The Case Against Sotomayor", contains this gem near the end:

I haven't read enough of Sotomayor's opinions to have a confident sense of them, nor have I talked to enough of Sotomayor's detractors and supporters, to get a fully balanced picture of her strengths.

I mean, why ever would you want that?