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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: FJB who wrote (569839)	6/3/2010 12:07:19 AM
From: tejek	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1578815

Connie Mack: Rand Paul is wrong U.S. Rep. Connie Mack of Fort Myers is shaping up as a voice of dissent among the harder edges of his Republican Party. First it was Arizona's illegal immigration law. Today, the Republican discusses Rand Paul. “Late last week, Dr. Rand Paul, a candidate for the U.S. Senate in Kentucky, said, 'We’re the only country I know that allows people to come in illegally, have a baby, and then that baby becomes a citizen … And I think that should stop also.' “Certainly, it is Dr. Paul’s and others’ right to express their opinion, but as a candidate who strongly believes in the Constitution, Dr. Paul is wrong on this issue. "As we all know, the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution explicitly states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States … The Constitution was created to limit government, protect liberty, and safeguard individual rights. Ignoring the plain meaning and written word of the Fourteenth Amendment – and indeed, the entire Constitution – disrespects the Constitution itself and discredits the candidate.” blogs.tampabay.com

To: FJB who wrote (569839)	6/3/2010 12:21:35 AM
From: tejek	Respond to of 1578815

AZ Gov. Jan Brewer lies ... about her father's death by kos Wed Jun 02, 2010 at 11:26:03 AM PDT Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer is so upset that some have invoked Godwin's Law when discussing her state's new Latino ethnic cleansing law. "The Nazi comments . . . they are awful," she said, her voice dropping. "Knowing that my father died fighting the Nazi regime in Germany, that I lost him when I was 11 because of that . . . and then to have them call me Hitler's daughter. It hurts. It's ugliness beyond anything I've ever experienced." Compelling! Except that she's pulling a Mark Kirk. Gov. Jan Brewer said in a recent interview that her father died fighting Nazis in Germany. In fact, the death of Wilford Drinkwine came 10 years after World War II had ended. During the war, Drinkwine worked as a civilian supervisor for a naval munitions depot in Hawthorne, Nev. He died of lung disease in 1955 in California. Brewer made the comment to The Arizona Republic while talking about the criticism she has taken since signing SB 1070, the new immigration law that makes it a state crime to be in the country illegally. "Knowing that my father died fighting the Nazi regime in Germany, that I lost him when I was 11 because of that... and then to have them call me Hitler's daughter. It hurts. It's ugliness beyond anything I've ever experienced," Brewer said in the story, published Tuesday. Officials with the governor's administration said her statement should not be taken to mean that she was claiming her father was a soldier in Germany during the Nazi regime. Ah yes, claiming her father died fighting Nazis in Germany should, in no way, be construed as implying that her father died fighting Nazis in Germany. The lie has given one of her Republican primary opponents a huge opening. "While (Mills) strongly objects to those who use the Nazi label to describe (SB) 1070 and Governor Brewer, that does not give the governor the right to alter history for the purpose of an eye-catching quote." Mills is a former Marine who owns a gun school near Prescott. Crazy year.

To: FJB who wrote (569839)	6/3/2010 12:23:23 AM
From: tejek	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1578815

Another GOP Congressman, another lie about military service by Joan McCarter Wed Jun 02, 2010 at 10:46:03 AM PDT Here's a thought for any member of Congress or candidate to be one: If you've ever exaggerated your military service exploits in public, now would be a really good time to set the record straight. Case in point, Ken Silverstein's report on GOP Rep. Gary Miller. According to his bio page at Congress.org, which is published by the CQ-Roll Call Group, Miller served in the military between 1967 and 1968. The same information about Miller appears on a variety of other websites, including at the American Legion and Project Vote Smart, where it specifies that he served in the U.S. Army. The Vietnam War was at its peak during the 1967-1968 period; to claim that you served during that period offers the suggestion that you saw combat or were at least deployed overseas, in the same way that saying you served in the Army in 1943 to 1944 would suggest World War II experience. Miller never got anywhere near Vietnam. According to his military record, he spent about seven weeks in boot camp at Fort Ord, California between early-September and late-October 1967, at which point he was discharged. After that story ran yesterday, Miller began correcting the record, but didn't take responsibility for the errors. Miller told a local paper that "he didn’t know how the incorrect information got out," even though a number of the publications I cited — Congress.org and Project Vote Smart — use biographical information provided by the offices of elected officials. A lot of politicians lie about a lot of things. But in the case of military service, it's kind of crazy, given that the military tends to keep extensive records. Update: To clarify, Miller got a medical discharge after seven weeks in bootcamp.

To: FJB who wrote (569839)	6/3/2010 12:46:52 AM
From: tejek	Respond to of 1578815

Did someone spike the GOP koolaid with ecstasy or is this just normal? 2nd Man Claims Affair With SC Governor Hopeful COLUMBIA, S.C. (June 2) -- A South Carolina lobbyist resigned from a rival political campaign on Wednesday and then became the second man to claim he had a tryst with a Republican lawmaker trying to become the state's first female governor. Lobbyist Larry Marchant admitted he had no proof to back up his allegation of a one-night stand with state Rep. Nikki Haley in 2008 and her campaign vehemently denied the allegation. The claim became the latest political drama for a state that was roiled when Gov. Mark Sanford made a tearful confession last summer to sneaking out of the country to rendezvous with an Argentine woman. Earlier in the day, Marchant resigned from the campaign of Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer, who is competing with Haley for the GOP nomination in the June 8 primary. "This is a false and outrageous desperate attack from a losing candidate's paid campaign consultant in the final week of the race," Haley campaign manager Tim Pearson said in a statement. "As Nikki Haley rises in the polls, the good old boys in Columbia see their taxpayer-funded fraternity party coming crumbling down, and they will say or do anything to hold onto their power," Pearson said. "This is South Carolina politics at its worst. The people of our state deserve better, and when Nikki Haley is governor, they'll get it." Marchant's claim is the second leveled at Haley in as many weeks. Last week, political blogger Will Folks said he and Haley had an "inappropriate physical relationship" in 2007. Despite dribbling out days of innuendo on his website, including some text messages and phone records, Folks has yet to prove his claims. He was not married at the time of the alleged relationship. Haley, a 38-year-old married mother of two who vows she has been faithful over 13 years of marriage, is a tea party favorite in the four-way race for the GOP nomination to succeed the term-limited Sanford. She has been endorsed by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her rivals privately say their internal polls show her with a lead. The Republican candidates were expected to appear at a forum in Charleston on Wednesday night. The three Democrats were holding a debate in Spartanburg. Even in a state renowned for its dirty politics, Haley has faced more than her share this primary season. On Wednesday, she was preparing to strike back with a television ad set to air the following day. In it, Haley references the rougher side of campaigning. "I've seen the dark side of our state's politics, and I know the bright side of our state's people," Haley says in the ad as images of her, husband Michael and their two children appear. "I have a vision of what South Carolina can be." Before the debate Wednesday night, Haley's husband said "the allegation is absolutely false." Marchant is a well-known lobbyist who has led efforts to pass school choice legislation in South Carolina. He told The Associated Press that he and Haley had a one-time sexual encounter in her room in a Salt Lake City hotel where they attended a school choice conference in June 2008. He said he decided to go public after old rumors about a liaison were rekindled by Folks' unsubstantiated claims, which have been published on his website since early last week. "I did not have any intention of going public," Marchant said Wednesday. "I kept getting calls from different people. I just felt like I owed Andre to disclose it to him. I did not do it until two days after I disclosed it to my wife." "It just happened. It was one time and one time only. It was not an affair. It was just one time," Marchant said. "It was one of those things that happened. You just want to forget about it ... We just had a one-night indiscretion." Marchant said Bauer asked for his resignation after a newspaper reporter began asking questions about the alleged tryst this week. Bauer declined to comment about it, but his campaign did take the unusual step of announcing the resignation for "inappropriate conduct not in keeping with the goals of this campaign." Pearson told The Associated Press that Marchant "has a vested and clear personal and financial interest in bringing Nikki Haley down." Bauer had paid Marchant's Black Label Strategies $21,361 since he formally opened his campaign account for governor in October. He also paid Black Label $29,099 in 2009, according to campaign finance reports. Bauer has been running ads featuring former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who says the lieutenant governor "was tea party before there was a tea party." Marchant, who was married at the time of the alleged tryst, said state Rep. Eric Bedingfield also attended the 2008 conference. Bedingfield confirmed he was there with Haley and Marchant but always in a group setting. "I saw nothing inappropriate," said Bedingfield, R-Mauldin, who is not backing any candidate in the governor's race. Associated Press writers Seanna Adcox in Columbia and Bruce Smith in Charleston contributed to this report. aolnews.com

To: FJB who wrote (569839)	6/3/2010 1:09:43 AM
From: FJB	Respond to of 1578815

AP Sources: Admin talked jobs with Romanoff By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Associated Press Writer Wed Jun 2, 7:39 pm ET WASHINGTON – The Obama administration dangled the possibility of a government job for former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff last year in hopes he would forgo a challenge to Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet, officials said Wednesday, just days after the White House admitted orchestrating a job offer in the Pennsylvania Senate race. These officials declined to specify the job that was floated or the name of the administration official who approached Romanoff, and said no formal offer was ever made. They spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they were not cleared to discuss private conversations. "Mr. Romanoff was recommended to the White House from Democrats in Colorado for a position in the administration," White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton said. "There were some initial conversations with him but no job was ever offered." The new revelation of a possible political trade again called into question President Barack Obama's repeated promises to run an open government that was above back room deals. The Colorado episode follows a similar controversy in Pennsylvania. An embarrassed White House admitted last Friday that it turned to former President Bill Clinton last year to approach Rep. Joe Sestak about backing out of the primary in favor of an unpaid position on a federal advisory board. Sestak declined the offer and defeated Sen. Arlen Specter late last month for the Democratic nomination after disclosing the job discussions and highlighting it as evidence of his antiestablishment political credentials. He said last week he rejected Clinton's feeler in less than a minute. In a two-page report on the Sestak case, the White House counsel said the administration did nothing illegal or unethical. Republicans have strongly criticized the offer to Sestak and challenged Romanoff to answer questions about his own dealings with the White House. "Romanoff would be well-served to explain all of the details surrounding his discussions with the White House, the positions they proposed and the individuals who contacted him immediately," said Amber Marchand, a spokeswoman for the Republicans' Senate campaign committee. Unlike Sestak, Romanoff has ducked questions on the subject, and it was not clear how long his discussions with administration officials lasted. Also unlike Sestak, Romanoff was out of office and looking for his next act after being forced from his job because of term limits. Romanoff had sought appointment to the Senate seat that eventually went to Bennet, publicly griped he had been passed over and then discussed possible appointment possibilities inside the administration, one of the officials said. After being passed over for the Senate appointment, the out-of-power Romanoff made little secret of shopping for a political job. Romanoff also applied to be Colorado secretary of state, a job that came open when Republican Mike Coffman was elected to Congress. Gov. Bill Ritter again appointed a replacement, and again passed over Romanoff. Next, according to several Colorado Democrats speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal negotiations, Romanoff also approached Ritter about being Ritter's running mate for Ritter's re-election bid. It was only after that attempt failed, the Colorado Democrats said, that Romanoff joined the Senate contest. Romanoff still wasn't settled on the Senate race. When Ritter announced in January that he wouldn't seek a second term after all, Romanoff publicly talked about leaving the Senate race to seek the governor's office, though he ended up staying in the Senate contest. Bennet has outpaced Romanoff in fundraising and support from Washington, although party activists attending the state party assembly last month favored the challenger by a margin of 60 percent to 40 percent. The primary is Aug. 10. Bennet was appointed by Ritter to fill out the final two years of the term of Ken Salazar, who resigned to become interior secretary. Romanoff's campaign spokesman did not immediately respond to questions.

To: FJB who wrote (569839)	6/3/2010 1:11:37 AM
From: FJB	Respond to of 1578815

Senate candidate says White House discussed 3 jobs By PHILIP ELLIOTT \| Posted: Wednesday, June 2, 2010 7:57 pm \| (0) Comments One of President Barack Obama's top advisers suggested to a Colorado Democrat that he forgo a primary challenge to Sen. Michael Bennet and instead apply for one of three international development jobs. The disclosure came just days after the White House admitted orchestrating a job offer in the Pennsylvania Senate race with the similar goal of avoiding a messy or divisive Democratic primary. The back-room deals _ former President Bill Clinton led the Pennsylvania effort and White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina worked with former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff _ called into question Obama's repeated promises to run an open government. Romanoff said in a statement Wednesday night that he was contacted by Messina last fall and told that the White House would support Bennet in the primary. When he said he would seek the nomination anyway, Messina "suggested three positions that might be available to me were I not pursuing the Senate race," Romanoff said. "He added that he could not guarantee my appointment to any of these positions." Romanoff added: "At no time was I promised a job, nor did I request Mr. Messina's assistance in obtaining one." Earlier Wednesday, a White House official insisted nothing inappropriate or illegal took place but didn't provide the details Romanoff offered in his statement and a copy of an e-mail he had received from Messina. "Mr. Romanoff was recommended to the White House from Democrats in Colorado for a position in the administration," White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton said. "There were some initial conversations with him, but no job was ever offered." Yet even the appearance of trading taxpayer-funded jobs to ease an ally's political path left questions for an administration that was the most transparent in history. Messina, a tough-minded veteran of Senate politics and one of the president's best fixers, spoke with Romanoff on Sept. 11, 2009, and suggested that Romanoff might better use his time at the U.S. Agency for International Development. Messina sent Romanoff job descriptions for three positions: an administrator for Latin America and Caribbean; the chief of the Office of Democracy and Governance; and the director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency. Romanoff said he later left a message on Messina's voice mail saying he would continue his Senate campaign. The Colorado episode follows a similar controversy in Pennsylvania. An embarrassed White House admitted last Friday that it turned to Clinton last year to approach Rep. Joe Sestak about backing out of the primary in favor of an unpaid position on a federal advisory board. Sestak declined the offer and defeated Sen. Arlen Specter late last month for the Democratic nomination after disclosing the job discussions. His supporters highlighted it as evidence of Sestak's antiestablishment political credentials. He said last week he rejected Clinton's feeler in less than a minute. In a two-page report on the Sestak case, the White House counsel said the administration did nothing illegal or unethical. Republicans have strongly criticized the offer to Sestak and challenged the White House's ethics. "Just how deep does the Obama White House's effort to invoke Chicago-style politics for the purpose of manipulating elections really go?" said Rep. Darrell Issa, a California Republican who unsuccessfully sought a Justice Department investigation into Sestak and showed no sign of slowing. "Clearly, Joe Sestak and Andrew Romanoff aren't isolated incidents and are indicative of a culture that embraces the politics-as-usual mentality that the American people are sick and tired of. Whatever the Obama brand use to stand for has been irrevocably shattered by the activities going on inside Barack Obama's White House," Issa said. Unlike Sestak, Romanoff had ducked questions on the subject until issuing his statement Wednesday night. Also unlike Sestak, Romanoff was out of office and looking for his next act after being forced from his job because of term limits. Romanoff had sought appointment to the Senate seat that eventually went to Bennet, publicly griped he had been passed over and then discussed possible appointment possibilities inside the administration, one of the officials said. After being passed over for the Senate appointment, the out-of-power Romanoff made little secret of shopping for a political job. Romanoff also applied to be Colorado secretary of state, a job that came open when Republican Mike Coffman was elected to Congress. Gov. Bill Ritter again appointed a replacement, and again passed over Romanoff. Next, according to several Colorado Democrats speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal negotiations, Romanoff also approached Ritter about being Ritter's running mate for Ritter's re-election bid. It was only after that attempt failed, the Colorado Democrats said, that Romanoff joined the Senate contest. Romanoff still wasn't settled on the Senate race. When Ritter announced in January that he wouldn't seek a second term after all, Romanoff publicly talked about leaving the Senate race to seek the governor's office, though he ended up staying in the Senate contest. Bennet has outpaced Romanoff in fundraising and support from Washington, although party activists attending the state party assembly last month favored the challenger by a margin of 60 percent to 40 percent. The primary is Aug. 10. Bennet was appointed by Ritter to fill out the final two years of the term of Ken Salazar, who resigned to become interior secretary.

To: FJB who wrote (569839)	6/3/2010 1:13:50 AM
From: FJB	Respond to of 1578815

GOP Jumps on Report of Andrew Romanoff Job Talks June 2, 2010 6:54 PM Posted by Brian Montopoli Republicans are jumping on an Associated Press report that "administration officials dangled the possibility of a job for former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff last year in hopes he would forgo a challenge to Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet" as the latest piece of evidence that the Obama administration has engaged in unseemly and possible illegal manipulation of the political process. The AP report, which is sourced to unnamed administration officials, comes less than a week after the White House, under pressure from Republicans and the press corps, detailed how it enlisted former President Bill Clinton to talk to Rep. Joe Sestak about dropping out of the Pennsylvania Senate primary against Sen. Arlen Specter and taking an advisory job in the executive branch. "Is anyone really surprised that the White House's efforts to manipulate elections wasn't isolated to just Joe Sestak and Pennsylvania?," House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Ranking Member Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said in a statement. "The Obama Administration has become the very establishment they once spoke of with such contempt." The AP story notes that officials said no formal job offer was ever made to Romanoff, presumably keeping the White House on the right side of the law. The officials declined to specify what positions might be available to Romanoff if he gave up his challenge against Bennet in the Colorado Democratic Senate primary. (Romanoff stayed in the race.) Before the AP story broke, Issa, who has been pushing hard on the Sestak matter for months, released a letter he sent to White House Counsel Robert Bauer asking Bauer to provide "all records and documents created by or produced to the Office of the White House Counsel in the course of the investigation of the Sestak matter." Along with House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Lamar Smith (R-Texas) and Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), Issa wrote that Americans could only have "confidence in the legitimacy of the conclusions drawn" by the White House in the Sestak case if they have access to all related documents. The White House said Friday that it had not acted improperly in the Sestak matter, with Bauer writing that "allegations of improper conduct rest on factual errors and lack a basis in the law." Bauer's memo on the matter concluded that Mr. Clinton's raising of an uncompensated position with Sestak reflected standard political practice. "There have been numerous, reported instances in the past when prior Administrations -- both Democratic and Republican, and motivated by the same goals -- discussed alternative paths to service for qualified individuals also considering campaigns for public office," he wrote. "Such discussions are full consistent with the relevant law and ethical requirements." Sestak said he quickly dismissed Mr. Clinton's suggestion and he ultimately triumphed in the Pennsylvania primary. Romanoff has not addressed the nature of any conversations he had with the administration. He is seeking the seat now held by Bennet, who was appointed by Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter to replace Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. The primary will be held on August 10th.