Catch Up!

We've got a debate tonight (#20, and maybe the last one of the race)! I'm pretty excited, as anything might happen -- there will be no opening or closing statements, and no time limits. It'll be chaos! Whoo-hoo!

I've also got a backlog of news and links, since I took a day off, and it was a very newsy day! I'll be adding to his list as the evening wears on, so reload the page for more -- I'll probably keep at it until around midnight. I'm not planning to live- blog the debate, but who knows!?! If things get really wacky, I might have to make a comment or two!

Chris Dodd, the first of the Democratic presidential contenders to endorse, has stepped into Obama's camp. Will Richardson be next to pick a team? (Also, progressives note: Russ Feingold has endorsed Obama.)

People keep talking about how Barack Obama is at a higher risk for potential harm than other candidates/presidents might be, but I'm not worried. Our Secret Service has an awesome record. If they weren't so good at what they do, I'm sure someone would have taken W out by now. If they can keep that unbelievably incompetent, reviled idiot safe, they can protect Barack Obama from a few stupid racists.

Is Peggy Noonan drunk? Or off her meds?

Who is Hillary running against? Which Hillary will show up tonight? The one who hates speeches and rallies? She criticizes Obama for a lack of foreign policy experience, but I'm pretty sure Barack has more foreign policy cred (as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee) than Bill Clinton had when he was running for president in 1992. Besides, look where her supposed experience got her. And while we're at it, which Clinton is running?

Oh, Mark Penn. You're so ugly. But who are you really rooting for? Are you really in this primary race?

Dear John McCain... it's the lobbyists, stupid! Oh, and that pesky law that you wrote! Hypocrisy does not become you (and btw, John, the surge didn't work).

Dear Ron Paul supporters... you won't get anywhere if you don't vote!

The SCLM is at it again. Will they get away with it (Rachel's on it!)? There's a poll here. (And btw, why does CNN suck so much these days?)

One of Romney's valiant warrior sons says that Mitt may flip flop himself back into the race! Maybe he needs to get rid of some more of that pesky money...

... and in non-presidential politics, Chattanooga still has the worst mayor ever! How's this for a hamfisted and stupid attempt at humor?

Minimum Wage Bill Killed

Yes, those Republican do-gooders in the Senate have never failed to vote themselves a raise, but they have once again decided that they are the only ones who have to contend with the rising cost of living. So, they killed the minimum wage hike, and it will stay at $5.15. In case you're wondering which Senators were in on the deal, here they are (for Tennessee -- the rest of the list follows below):

Bob Corker: voted against raising the minimum wage -- this is the little weasel who used the Chattanooga mayor's office to enrich his portfolio. Just one one of the sweet scams he ran through the city's offices was good for $4.6 million, wetlands be damned. Now that he's bought himself a Senate seat, his income is sure to go up, especially if he gets some tips from Tennessee's other Senator:

Lamar Alexander: voted against raising the minimum wage -- this is the guy who somehow managed to get rich while earning a relatively modest salary in "public service." Doug Ireland wrote an article about him titled "Politics for Profit: The Rich Rise of Lamar Alexander" (if I can find an online source for the text, I'll add the link).

Oh, and Alexander is also, amazingly enough, one of 28 Republican Senators who voted to eliminate the minimum wage completely (note that at least a couple of presidential wannabes are on the list, too). No, I'm not kidding.

"Gosh," Corker and Alexander reason, "the downtrodden can just pull themselves up by the bootstraps like we did!" However, unlike Mr. Corker and Mr. Alexander, a lot of honest, hard-working Americans aren't willing and able to screw over the US taxpayer in order to make a buck.

Here's a simple bit of math:

A person working 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year at minimum wage ($5.15 per hour) -- before any taxes, insurance, uniform fees, parking fees, day care, transportation costs, or any other expenses are deducted from the gross -- will make $10,300 a year.

40 x 50 x $5.15 = $10,300

OK, first stop for a minute and imagine trying to make ends meet on $10,300 a year. How would you manage? Could you?

Now, consider this:

The current poverty threshold for a single person living in the contiguous US is $9,800. For two people (say, a single mother and her child), the poverty threshold is $13,200. If a man works industriously all year long in a minimum wage job, it's impossible for him to earn enough to support a wife and one child, because the threshold for three people is $16,600 (of couse, the right wingnuts and holy rollers are always shrieking about how women should stay home with their children, but when Republicans are called upon to require their corporate patrons to pay a living wage, those same conservatives suddenly don't seem to remember a thing that Jesus said).

The math tells the story, and it is unconscionable. The richest nation on earth, a supposed Christian nation, should be ashamed of such a failure to take even basic steps to combat poverty. We won't be a great nation for much longer if we continue to neglect our most vulnerable citizens.

So there you have it, folks. A complete list of how our Senate voted follows after the bump. Remember these names when your Senators come calling -- if they ask you for money or for your support, remind them of this vote.

Roberts Confirmation

Just for the record, every Republican voted for confirmation. The Democrats split, and Jeffords voted yes.

Democrats who voted in favor of confirmation: Baucus, Bingaman, Byrd, Carper, Conrad, Dodd, Dorgan, Feingold, Johnson, Kohl, Landrieu, Leahy, Levin, Lieberman, Lincoln, Murray, Nelson, Nelson, Pryor, Rockefeller, Salazar and Wyden.

Democrats who voted against confirmation: Akaka, Bayh, Biden, Boxer, Cantwell, Clinton, Corzine, Dayton, Durbin, Feinstein, Harkin, Inouye, Kennedy, Kerry, Lautenberg, Mikulski, Obama, Reed, Reid, Sarbanes, Schumer and Stabenow.

Feingold in TN

Russ Feingold's appearance at the Belcourt Theater in Nashville was a great way to end what was a fun and informative inaugural convention of the DFT. After an introduction by Bob Tuke, Feingold introduced his Progressive Patriots Fund; spoke about a number of issues, including the Patriot Act, Iraq, healthcare, education, scotus, campaign finance reform and strategy for leading up to the midterm elections next year; and generally got the crowd feeling rowdy.

As things turned out, I didn't make it home until late this afternoon -- I was busy having too much fun with friends in Nashville -- so I haven't had much of a chance to chase down reports of the event, but Sharon Cobb promises coverage tomorrow and already has a small bit up on TN Indy Media (with Chris Lugo). I'll try to track down some other reports in the morning...

Feingold '08?

Via Kos comes this tidbit from USN&WR's gossip column, Washington Whispers:

Fresh face, new voice
Keep a lookout for Sen. Russ Feingold, the second half of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance duo, who just won a third term from Wisconsin voters. He's on a nationwide mission to test out his progressive message that's liberal on some issues, like universal healthcare, and conservative on others, like the deficit. Fans think he can bridge the blue-state-red-state divide, making him not just a voice for a changing Democratic Party but a possible '08 presidential candidate. He's not the only one: Republicans are keeping an eye on Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who's on his own message tour.

Russ Feingold for president? Wow! A real progressive candidate is almost too much to hope for. But will the new chair of the party be interested in dealing with a maverick? Stay tuned!!!!