Posted on 10/09/2006 9:01:33 AM PDT by SmithL
Not long ago, "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi" sounded to many like little more than the rosy rhetoric of partisan Pollyannas.
But Republican House leaders' scramble to control Rep. Mark Foley's sexual messaging fiasco has stoked already-burning fires of discontent over both congressional corruption -- two GOP congressmen have resigned in the past year, with the first now in prison -- and the party's support of the Bush administration's Iraq war effort.
A 15-seat Democratic gain in the House no longer seems such a long shot.
"It would be stunning if this (Foley) scandal were not reducing social conservative turnout in November, which can only hurt one party -- the Republicans," said professor Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics, a political scandal expert and a renowned election handicapper.
If Democrats retake the House, Pelosi, D-San Francisco, most likely will become its first female and first Californian speaker, just behind the vice president in the presidential line of succession -- the most powerful elected woman in American history.
Some conservatives have used the specter of "Speaker Pelosi" as an ultra-liberal bogeywoman to scare their base into voting. But as a mother of five with no apparent moral blemishes on her public record, "maybe she's the one to clean up the mess," Sabato said. "Who would you trust the (congressional) pages to?"
Meanwhile, other California House Democrats could become committee chairs if their party retakes the House. Those include the Bay Area's George Miller and Tom Lantos. And while the state's 20 Republicans now make up about 9 percent of their party's majority, its 33 Democrats -- or more, if embattled Republicans Richard Pombo and/or John Doolittle fall -- would be at least 15 percent of that party's majority, giving the state a stronger voting bloc.
Yet the Golden State might not sit much prettier than it does now.
The state long has griped it does not get enough federal money for homeland security, Medicare spending, HIV/AIDS treatment, education, border protection, illegal immigrant felons' incarceration and other costs. That is unlikely to change anytime soon, said professor Bruce Cain, director of the University of California, Berkeley's Institute of Governmental Studies.
"There's not a lot of wiggle room for California, and the reason is that many of the federal grants for California are set by formula," he said.
Many of those formulas are re-examined only every six years, and many others only upon overwhelming demand.
"There's not a hell of a lot you could do to fix the fact that we get back only 70 percent of what we send out to the feds," he said.
And Speaker Pelosi would have other priorities, Cain said, such as balancing Democrats' desire to rein in President Bush's power and policies with their need to position the party moderately for 2008's congressional and White House races.
"Her focus is going to be on trying to find a way to bring a very disparate party together, given everyone in the more conservative areas of the country thinks Nancy is a raving liberal loony," he said. "She won't keep her speakership very long if she keeps California at the top of her list of things to do."
Tim Ransdell, executive director of the California Institute for Federal Policy Research, said committee chairs could be a wash for the state.
California Republicans now chair six committees: Jerry Lewis, of Redlands, on Appropriations; Duncan Hunter, of El Cajon, on Armed Services; Howard "Buck" McKeon, of Santa Clarita, on Education and the Workforce; Pombo, of Tracy, on Resources; David Dreier, of Glendora, on Rules; and Bill Thomas, of Bakersfield, on Ways and Means.
Thomas is not seeking re-election, and Dreier already has had one waiver of GOP rules limiting a chair to six years.
Five California Democrats now are ranking members and could become chairs: Miller, of Martinez, on Education and the Workforce; Tom Lantos, of San Mateo, on International Relations; Henry Waxman, of Los Angeles, on Government Reform; Jane Harman, of El Segundo, on the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; and Juanita Millender-McDonald, of Torrance, on House Administration.
The Select Intelligence Committee churns its membership periodically, and Harman -- a member since 1996 -- might or might not remain. But Veterans Affairs Committee ranking member Lane Evans, D-Ill., didn't seek re-election, and Rep. Bob Filner, D-Chula Vista, is the next Democrat in line.
Ransdell also noted Ways and Means, Appropriations and Rules are perhaps the most influential committees -- controlling how the House raises and spends money and considers bills -- and probably won't be up for California Democrats' control.
But California need not fear, Sabato said: "When you come from a state that has by far the largest House delegation, you really don't have to worry all that much -- if you're going to have the speaker, it makes up for a loss of committee chairs."
Some Democratic national priorities could benefit California -- especially its high-poverty areas, large youth population and huge stake in immigration policy -- even if helping the state "is not something that's actively pursued in an overt fashion, as a stated goal unto itself," Ransdell said.
The Democrats' "New Direction for America" involves phasing troops out of Iraq; adopting the 9/11 Commission's homeland security recommendations; raising the minimum wage; making college tuition tax-deductible, cutting student loan interest rates and expanding Pell Grants; reducing foreign-oil dependence by pursuing alternative energy while ending tax giveaways to oil companies; letting the government negotiate lower Medicare prescription prices; promoting stem-cell research; and preventing Social Security's privatization while protecting workers' pensions from corporate corruption.
They also want to roll back President Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy and use that money to pay down the deficit.
How effective Pelosi would be in implementing all this remains to be seen, Sabato said.
"We're headed for a period of gridlock and everybody knows it -- you can't judge her on that basis," he said, adding that she has held her party together admirably as Minority Leader but "it's easier when you're out of power."
Once Democratic committee chairs settle back into power, it'll be harder to keep them from going their own ways, he said.
Is this what we've come to? The least qualified member of congress as speaker? Out of 300 million Americans, this is the best we can do? The founders must be spinning in their graves.
Josh Richman has obviously NOT heard this news:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1716250/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1716253/posts
Bad news for Democrats.
She comes off almost robotic in her speech pattern, as if every word out of her mouth has been programmed by her staff, and even then she screws it up. I doubt she's ever had an original thought in her head, like so many other liberals. They just spew the talking points.
"maybe she's the one to clean up the mess," Sabato said.
And maybe she ought to go home and do some laundry or vacuum.
Hastert Has To Go
October 09, 2006 10:16 AM EST
He is Representative J. Dennis Hastert, Fourteenth District of Illinois (IL14).
He has to go just as the head of the Catholic whatevers should have been bounced as soon as the priests’ molestation surfaced.
Those who knew and covered up had to go.
The same now with the US Congress and Mark Foley-plus pages scandal.
To whittle away at the power structures that permit these sins is gross in itself. One has to strike the tree at the trunk, not branches by branch. Strike the trunk till the tree falls down. That will give a clear message that those who hold the hatchet mean what they say.
When Catholicism waffles on priests’ molestation, they cancel out their commitment to Christ. Christ said that children were welcomed into His presence during His public ministry on Earth. He said children were "of the kingdom of heaven." He said that persons who abuse children should have weights hung to their necks, then thrown into the sea.
Christ did not play safe with those who mistreated children. Christ in His tough love stated that those who undermine a child need to be held accountable and pay the penalty.
Those in Catholicism played verbal games in order to cover up, protect their own clergy, and further betray those already violated. All this was repulsive to the very One hanging upon every Catholic sanctuary crucifix.
Rome itself should have come out earlier against child molestation by its clergy.
The same can be said for any Protestant institution.
Now to Hastert: he knew. He knew about Foley and did not act swiftly and accurately. Why? Because power plays were in place.
It was the same in Catholicism. Power plays were in place. It took a lot of screaming righteousness to get the Catholic power structure finally to come to the fore in contrition.
Contrition should have been the power structure’s first response, not shielding criminals and accusing those violated of being too sensitive to pain.
To oust Hastert now would be akin to ousting the head of the Catholic power structure — at the very start. Clip Hastert now and give a zero tolerance clear note to the public that what was hidden cannot be tolerated ever again.
It’s not worth having a token political player around Congress — like Hastert. It’s not worth undercutting Congressional ethics by blaming everyone but those who knew and slimed over the facts.
Get rid of Hastert. Get rid of those close to him who knew. Get rid of those miles away from him who knew.
http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/19142.html
LOL: Yes she already has hair on her chest.
"The list of DUmmie potential Chairmen is very scary."
Indeed it is. But take heart..I don't buy this garbage that bajillions of GOP voters are going to sit out the election and allow the rats to take control. I just don't buy it.
Why else would the rats be putting out stories about "voting machine failure" in many states?
She is probably tired after spending all those hours in the mornings putting all that batter and other gook on her face.
That is time consuming and can wear a poor old soul out.
Once she has completed that task, her get up and go has already left the building.
She's bright enough to be dangerous.
Has anyone talked to any person who is not going to vote because of Foley?
Where do they get this idea??? Even the NYT couldn't find evidence of it, yet they keep repeating it as if it's a given.
Evangelicals stand by Republicans
NORFOLK, Va., Oct. 9 (UPI) -- Evangelical Christians in southeastern Virginia said they have not been discouraged from voting Republican by the Rep. Mark Foley pages scandal.
The Christian voters, interviewed by The New York Times, said the Florida Republican's sexually explicit messages to teenage male pages were the result of his own personal morality and institutionalized corruption.
"This is Foley's lifestyle," said Ron Gwaltney, a home builder, interviewed outside a Christian rock concert in Norfolk. "He tried to keep it quiet from his family and his voters. He is responsible for what he did. He is paying a price for what he did. I am not sure how much farther it needs to go."
The Democratic Party is "the party that is tolerant of, maybe more so than Republicans, that lifestyle," Gwaltney told the Times, referring to homosexuality.
However, some in the same concert-going crowd said the revelations about Foley have raised concerns about his party.
"The Republicans need to tighten up their ship," said Wade Crane, a Republican-leaning voter who told the newspaper he has soured on the party in recent months. "They need to stop covering themselves, using their power to protect themselves."
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20061009-113729-3204r
Reply to post #20
"no moral blemishes"?
How about marching with NAMBLA in the queer parades?
Naincie is pure scum!
Nancy Pelosi/National Crisis = Kathleen Blanco/Hurricane Katrina
We are going to hear this BS steady from the MSM from here to election day.
ALL BULLSH*T.........ALL THE TIME!
AMEN. Thank you for that post!
If the RNC made that into an ad and ran it night and day until Election Day, we'd have nothing to worry about.
I think if somehow the 'rats take the house, Nancy will be pushed aside. It'll be a relative unknown and the 'rats will do an extreme makeover. Dean and Reid will also be gone.
Oh God where's my pepto bismal?
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