Power corrupts,
and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
(Lord Acton)
Today is a very sad day for our Constitution and our country. Sixty-nine Senators voted to ensconce the "Nuremberg Defense" in our legal system. You remember the defense of the Nazi bureaucrats: "I was only following orders." We moved closer than ever to an imperial presidency, toward absolute power. This is, of course, exactly what the founders of our nation were trying to protect against in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
Be sure of one thing - it's not just the telecom companies that Bush and the puppet Republicans are trying to protect, it's the people who gave the orders. Without bringing the small fry to justice the top dogs will never be put on trial for violating the law. This bill also makes legal much of what Bush did illegally.
Here are the votes:
YEAs---69 (Democrats in bold)
Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Barrasso (R-WY)
Baucus (D-MT)
Bayh (D-IN)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burr (R-NC)
Carper (D-DE)
Casey (D-PA)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Coleman (R-MN)
Collins (R-ME)
Conrad (D-ND)
Corker (R-TN)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Inouye (D-HI)
Isakson (R-GA)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kohl (D-WI)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lieberman (ID-CT)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL)
McCaskill (D-MO)
McConnell (R-KY)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Obama (D-IL)
Pryor (D-AR)
Roberts (R-KS)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Shelby (R-AL)
Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME)
Specter (R-PA)
Stevens (R-AK)
Sununu (R-NH)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)
Webb (D-VA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wicker (R-MS)
NAYs---28
Akaka (D-HI)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Clinton (D-NY)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Harkin (D-IA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Klobuchar (D-MN)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Murray (D-WA)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schumer (D-NY)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Tester (D-MT)
Wyden (D-OR)
Not Voting - 3
Kennedy (D-MA)
McCain (R-AZ)
Sessions (R-AL)
Showing posts with label Senate vote. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Senate vote. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Monday, July 16, 2007
The Bomb, Bomb Iran boys are at it again
According to Amy Gooodman on Democracy Now:
"...the Democratic-led Senate unanimously passed a resolution last week sponsored by Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman to censure Iran for complicity in the killing of U.S. soldiers in Iraq. Lieberman opened debate on the measure by saying the Senate has a 'choice between turning a blind eye to the murder of our troops and confronting those who are murdering them.' The measure passed by a vote of 97 to zero.
"Lieberman has been the leading voice in the Senate in support of a possible U.S. military strike on Iran. Last month in an interview on CBS' Face the Nation, Lieberman said 'I think we've got to be prepared to take aggressive military action against the Iranians to stop them from killing Americans in Iraq.'"
Let's just see how long it is before some of the Senators who voted to tighten the screws on Iran last week will be pleading: "if we knew then what we know now, we wouldn't have voted to target (pun intended) Iran for "the murder of our troops."
On the same broadcast Goodman also noted that:
"The Los Angeles Times is reporting that nearly half of all foreign militants targeting U.S. troops in Iraq have come from Saudi Arabia – one of Washington's closest allies in the Middle East. Of the 19,000 prisoners being held by the U.S. in Iraq only 135 are foreign-born fighters and half of them are Saudi. U.S. officials have so far refused to publicly criticize Saudi Arabia's role in Iraq. [Obviously including the Senate and Joe 'I never saw a bomb I didn't like' Lieberman]."
Once again, as in 2003, if these Senate hawks paid attention, they'd know now when it counts. Nobody elects Monday morning quarterbacks to the presidency.
"...the Democratic-led Senate unanimously passed a resolution last week sponsored by Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman to censure Iran for complicity in the killing of U.S. soldiers in Iraq. Lieberman opened debate on the measure by saying the Senate has a 'choice between turning a blind eye to the murder of our troops and confronting those who are murdering them.' The measure passed by a vote of 97 to zero.
"Lieberman has been the leading voice in the Senate in support of a possible U.S. military strike on Iran. Last month in an interview on CBS' Face the Nation, Lieberman said 'I think we've got to be prepared to take aggressive military action against the Iranians to stop them from killing Americans in Iraq.'"
Let's just see how long it is before some of the Senators who voted to tighten the screws on Iran last week will be pleading: "if we knew then what we know now, we wouldn't have voted to target (pun intended) Iran for "the murder of our troops."
On the same broadcast Goodman also noted that:
"The Los Angeles Times is reporting that nearly half of all foreign militants targeting U.S. troops in Iraq have come from Saudi Arabia – one of Washington's closest allies in the Middle East. Of the 19,000 prisoners being held by the U.S. in Iraq only 135 are foreign-born fighters and half of them are Saudi. U.S. officials have so far refused to publicly criticize Saudi Arabia's role in Iraq. [Obviously including the Senate and Joe 'I never saw a bomb I didn't like' Lieberman]."
Once again, as in 2003, if these Senate hawks paid attention, they'd know now when it counts. Nobody elects Monday morning quarterbacks to the presidency.
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