Do you know what the House of Representatives did today????

[housewolf]

They passed HR 418, the "Real ID Act."

What's that? you ask?
Well, it's the so-called Immigration Bill that the House set aside in December so that Congress could get the new Intelligence Director bill passed.


Here's a piece of what that means to us...

The House gave the HS Sec unlimited powers to bypass any and all laws and judicial oversight in order to complete the border fence.

I mean, the bill the House passed today not only sets federal guidelines for state driver licenses and refuses them to illigal immigrants, but grants to the Homeland Security Secretary the power to completely, utterly, bypass and ignore (i.e., BREAK) any and all laws and restrictions - federal, state and local - that might hinder the completion of the border fence. And for the same purposes, it exempts the Homeland Security Secretary from any sort of judicial oversight.

There are also issues around national standards for drivers' licenses,
granting of asylum, and the barrier fence that are of concern.

The bill passed the House, it will now go to the Senate. They will likely ammend the legislation. I don't believe they have it scheduled yet but keep your eyes out for this.

To be fair, this is not Bush-initiated legislation. The Republican House of Representatives did this all on their own. They claim it is in response to the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. You might want to research your representatives involvement and support in this legislation. If they are willing to give the HS Sec unlimited powers to break ANY law and no judicial oversight, what else might they be willing to do?


For more information,
http://rawstory.com/news/2005/index.php?p=56

[GetTheRightVote]

1. Where is the country going allowing such bills to pass ?

:kick:

[mattclearing]

45. To hell in a handbasket, so to speak. n/t

[Sliverofhope]

2. kick

kick

[liveoaktx]

3. The only way I can see to fix this is to get more REAL Dems in office

Period. I look at this and see my House Rep (Dem) in Texas that voted for this. He (Edwards) also voted against Bernie Sanders Patriot Act amendment some months back and also was FOR the DOMA. When he ran for office, he wouldn't say on his literature that he was a Democrat, but called himself an independent. Do I believe that he represents me? No, but he definitely represents the nutjob fundies and warmongers in his district.

When this goes to the Senate, the 2 Senators in my state include Cornyn, who INTRODUCED and LAUDED Torture Pimp Gonzales. Does it seem likely he will vote against this? No. Nor will his cohort, Kay Bailey Hutchison. Do I think it's worth it to tell them what I think? Yes. Do I think they give a shit? Nope.

[RBHam]

5. Yeah, right...

You gonna VOTE them in???

Hahahahahahahaha!

http://www.organicconsumers.org/corp/voting111804.cfm

[liveoaktx]

7. With you. And it's even more than that, as far as I'm concerned

as long as money controls who can run for office, and whether that person might be beholden to corporate interests as opposed to the populace, good people aren't gonna run or are gonna be forced out by the rich. AND on the television side, the ads that allow SLANDER need to be stopped, so that only those who truly have something to fear get trashed on television and other media outlets.

I'm not starry-eyed enough to believe that will happen, though.

[Tigress DEM]

13. Don' be starry-eyed - get pissed!

These neo-cons are so right wing minded they are addled. It's like playing chess with a crazy person. What the hell do you do when he eats your Knight?

However, if you look closely, most of them are following so close to the ass ahead of them whenever we trip up one, the rest fall in line.

They haven't got 3 and a half brain cells between them and if we fight this smartly and watch out for their shennagians, we can beat them.

The thing is EVERYONE needs to know their liberty is at stake. It isn't just a DEM thing. Republicans with a love of the real America they think they are fighting for are being lied to as well. NO ONE I know would approve of where this bill can go and what it could do to the Constitution - if they knew about it.

Whining isn't going to get the job done. We have to stand up and be proud of the fact that dammit, this is still America and they will have to bulldoze through REAL Americans to get this assinine bill passed.

Find your courage man and do something. Anything.

[liveoaktx]

14. Insult someone else before you call me on courage or call me a whiner

There's a difference between being realistic about what you can or can't do and looking for other ways to fight. I said I was NOT starry-eyed, and I AM pissed. I'm pissed that the person who purports to represent me is a piece of shit that pretends to be a DEM but votes on constitutional issues with the Republicans. I'm pissed that the senators in this state (Texas) vote with Bush, just because they tow the Republican line. You don't have a clue what I have done or not in order to turn this tide, but insulting me isn't going to warm me up to your cause.

[Tigress DEM]

20. Saying whining doesn't get the job done isn't calling you a whiner.

And telling you to find the courage implies that you have it to begin with, so relax.

As for living in Texas, my condolences and kudos to you. Molly Ivins is my hero.

[liveoaktx]

21. Already have it, don't need to find it.

[Tigress DEM]

23. If you insist on taking offense you can have it. None intended.

[Tigress DEM]

12. Vote Fraud will be PROVED in Ohio because Blackwell got greedy.

It wasn't enough for him to subvert justice and deliver the vote to Bush, he wanted his ass to smell like a rose, so he went out to squash the lawyers who sued him. Now all this shit is in the legal record.

VOTE reform takes guts. The Legal 4 in Ohio have them, DO WE?

www.freepress.org
February 3, 2005
Ohio Attorney-General's attack on election protection attorneys draws mountain of documentation on state's stolen election, including new study on exit polls
by Steve Rosenfeld and Harvey Wasserman

<snip>
In filings that include well over 1,000 pages of critical documentation, attorneys Robert Fitrakis, Susan Truitt, Peter Peckarsky and Cliff Arnebeck have counter-attacked. Their defense motions include renewed assertions that widespread irregularities threw the true outcome of the November vote count into serious doubt. That assertion has now been lent important backing by a major academic study on the exit polls that showed John Kerry winning the November vote count.

Petro's suit is widely viewed as an attempt at revenge and intimidation against the grassroots movement that led to the first Congressional challenge to a state's Electoral College delegation since 1876. The attorney general's action was officially requested by Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell, who administered the Ohio presidential balloting while serving as co-chair of the state's Bush-Cheney campaign. Petro and Blackwell have labeled as "frivolous" the election challenge filing. Their demand for sanctions will be reviewed by the Republican justice of the Ohio Supreme Court.

Though Petro's filing was aimed at backing down further challenges to the Ohio vote, it has allowed the election protection attorneys to enter into the official archives critical documentation detailing dozens of problems with Ohio's presidential balloting. Among the documents now made part of Ohio's legal archives is a congressional investigation report from Rep. John Conyers that seriously questions the November 2 outcome.

[RBHam]

4. You are now truly a Police State...

Keep your head down, watch your back and don't trust anyone.

[Tigress DEM]

25. What's the fun in that?

Seriously, wouldn't that mean they had already won?

However, I think you meant this in a caring concerned way, so thanks for the word to the wise.

[WLKjr]

6. I know what they did, it's what they have been doing for a few years now

Getting up in the morning and taking a shyeet on the constitution and wipping thier arse with the bill of rights.


And then they go pick up thier paycheck from the handlers.

[PunkPop]

8. Don't need to research it

My rep was right there in living color on Scarborough country advocating for it in a debate with some college prof from CA. What a complete and utter dipshit Pete Sessions is. Professor made him look like an idiot but that's not too hard.

[NEOBuckeye]

9. Stupid Paranoid Republicans

I hate these guys. I really hate these guys.

[Tigress DEM]

10. Scream Like Hell until WE THE PEOPLE ARE HEARD!

OK People - We HAVE to SCREAM like HELL until we are heard. Here is a list of all Democratic Senators. Tell them all.

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?OrderBy=party&Sort=ASC

In fact I think I am going to tell Sensenbrenner and his other Republican weenies too. Course that will be an annonymous letter, not ready to die just yet.

And the Representatives that failed us, should get buckets of emails and be told off for letting this go through at all.

http://www.house.gov/writerep

Here is a story with the most offensive section #102

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/2/5/15448/41910

Pound the media with this - NEWspapers, TV, Radio - everyone should be told WE THE PEOPLE WILL NOT BE SILENT AND ALLOW a BULLDOZER to be DRIVEN through our CONSTiTUTION.

Oh, and celebrate by the way, Vote Fraud is very likely to be proved in Ohio - all the more reason to FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT to get OUR Country back. THIS IS MY COUNTRY and YOURS —- It is only on LOAN to the Politicians and they had better damm well remember that!!!!!

[Cleita]

11. These days I'm afraid to look and

I don't want to know. I hope someday all this can be reversed. If we ever prove that every election since 2000 has been fraudulent, maybe we can scrap all the laws passed during that time as being null and void. Unfortunately we won't be able to resurrect all the lives lost and ruined during this period.

[Tigress DEM]

16. I hear ya. But unless we want the people 50 years from now...

to look at us and say HOW could they have just LET this happen?

We HAVE to do something. GO to a Democratic Meet Up, bring this information. DU has people digging up more dirt... but someone has to get out there and spread it around.

If you are afraid for your life because these are scary times, send letters to all the Democratic Senators annonymously. It's ok. Just get the word out about injustice and there will be people who get fired up and do something about it. You might eventually find the courage too, but for now, just start with any little thing.

Revolutions begin with whispers and then shouts and then action. We may yet have a chance to talk this through and get OUR Country back, but the longer we shiver in silence about how awful it is, the less likely it is that we will have the chance to get this job done.

[Cleita]

19. I'm very active in my local Dems club, but

we keep running up brick walls. Right now I am on a committee to fix our voting problem. But it's shoving a boulder up hill and Kevin Shelley resigning didn't help.

[Tigress DEM]

22. Good for you!! What kind of brick walls have you been hitting?

I'm getting together information for my Fight Big Media group and since this whole system the repubs have going seems to replicate in an errily simular fashion, maybe putting their tactics out here on DU will lead you to someone with a solution.

I'm setting up a website and I plan an "alerts" section and I want to highlight simularities or MO's so we can start beating these guys to the punch when we see where they are headed.

[Cleita]

24. Well, the fact is that we really can only make changes in our county.

Until people get together nationwide, our efforts only are effective locally. Also, it doesn't help that the youngest members of our club are in their sixties, and many of the members have the medical problems of old age. We can't seem to get any younger members. I guess young families are busy, but........

[Tigress DEM]

28. Is this helpful?

http://blog.democrats.com/node/3266

Hillary Clinton and Barbara Boxer are co-sponsoring a Federal Election reform bill. Maybe getting people on board for that would bring in younger voters - because it could make a BIG difference.

http://www.friendsofhillary.com/CountEveryVote

Next week, I will introduce the Count Every Vote Act of 2005,
co-sponsored by Senator Barbara Boxer. This comprehensive election
reform bill will:

Provide a verified paper ballot for every vote cast in electronic voting machines.

Set a uniform standard for provisional ballots, so that every qualified voter within the state will know their votes are treated equally and will be counted.

Require the Federal Election Assistance Commission to issue standards that ensure uniform access to voting machines and election personnel in every community. It's outrageous that some people in predominantly minority communities had to wait up to 10 hours to vote, while people in other communities often voted in minutes!

[Cleita]

31. We are already working with Boxer on this.

I know the head of my committee has been busy with this and also with circulating a petition to make sure Ahnold doesn't appoint one of his Republican buddies as SOS to replace Shelley. There's a whole lot that stinks with the election issue here in California even in our own county. It still doesn't change the fact that the most we can fix is our county and other committees in other counties are going to have to step up to the plate and fix their own problems.

[Tigress DEM]

35. I just heard about it, but it figures you would know because of Boxer.

How is the California board here on the DU?

Do you guys have "meet ups" listed? MN does and I think our state Dems can get information out to a broader group.

[K-W]

15. Please dont fence me into America. Please! EOM

[Tigress DEM]

17. Tell it to the Senate!

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?OrderBy=party&Sort=ASC

[Tigress DEM]

18. Kick!

[housewolf]

40. Kick

[Rex]

26. Interesting - I saw Bush talking about letting immigrants come here

and "do the jobs that Americans don't want to do". Now he is wanting to clamp down on the border? This is all about controlling you and I. About late night abductions of so called "terrorists", about flying them to other countries so they can be tortured. I wonder when it will be my turn in the barrel?

[Tigress DEM]

30. That was out of the other side of his mouth.

[housewolf]

32. There's a difference between what GWB wants & what the Repub Congress want

GWB says he supports immigration reform and talks about the "guest worker" program and all... but this bill is what the Repub Congress wanted. This particular issue is not a GWB agenda item. (Just want to be clear about where the responsibility for this lies - I'm not defending GWB in the least, he has plenty of atrocious plans of his own.)

My main point here is that we need to keep a close watch on what the Repub House is up to. They are sneaky and require vigillance - remember when the omnibus bill passed in December with that rider that allowed anyone designated by the committee chair to go into IRS offices and pull information about any citizen they wanted????? That little amendment slipped into a 3,000+ page bill that was given to the senate the day before they needed to vote on it - remember that?

DeLay's House is infested with vermin and it needs constant vigilism.

And we need to somehow create a rapid response system whereby we can let them know that we're watching. These things can happen quickly and in the dead of night.

[Tigress DEM]

34. Yeah, the appropriations bill.

I still see Bush as knowing about this stuff and saying things to confuse the issue. I can not see this man really being for immigrants after he's gotten the photo op or the appearance of voter support.

Not that those beneath him aren't even worse and definately worth watching closely.

[Grey Ranks]

27. 42 Dems voted yea

Yeas Nays
Republican 219 8
Democratic 42 152
Independent 1
TOTALS 261 161

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll031.xml

42, and the bill allows pisses on states rights, and the rule of law as a whole, by allowing the Secretary of Homeland Security to waive laws. They should be expelled.

[Tigress DEM]

33. One of my DEMs is in TROUBLE! Dist 7, Collin Peterson

Here is a state by state listing:

Pick your state, but you may have to scroll way..... down to see who your state reps are

http://democrats.house.gov/state_by_state/index.cfm

[0rganism]

37. What the hell is DeFazio doing voting for this piece of shit?

Hooley I can understand, but Peter DeFazio? :grr:

[newyawker99]

47. Hi Grey Ranks!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[KharmaTrain]

29. Sennsenbrenner Is A Real Work...

I heard a portion of the "debate" this morning...with Sennsenbrenner, Drier and Sessions downplaying all the power Homeland Security would get if their version becomes law.

I just wonder what these people would really do if the border were sealed as shut as they wish. Would Sennsenbrenner drag his fat ass out and mow his own lawn? Would Drier wait and extra hour for a table at one of his tondy LA hangs since there aren't enough workers to keep the kitchen moving? Would Sessions gladly pay the higher costs for his surf & turf if it came from union farms or ones that actually paid minimum wage and benefits.

The House loves to play the race and sex cards at every turn, since this is turned into local red meat that helps these assholes get re-elected. Their own security concerns are for their own wallets.

The fun in the next two years will be the developing rivalry between the House, Senate & White House Repugnicans...all feeling they represent the "heart" of the party. The bad part is, which ever side wins, it's gonna be bad for this country and the world.

[housewolf]

38. What I want to know is this...

WHO is it that thinks up this kind of stuff???? Who has the kind of mind that can even conceive of the idea that it is appropriate to give the Sec of Homeland Security the power to BREAK ANY LAW in order to build a fence????

This is a horrid abuse of power, who is it that thinks they can abuse power in this manner? Is it Sennsenbrenner? Someone who works for him?

This is just NOT tolerable...

[Sliverofhope]

36. kick

kick

[housewolf]

39. Here's some more info on HR 418

Good post with some compelling info on the bill

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x3090945

[The Minus World]

41. Everyone Should Read Up on This Matter.

Gannon/GuckertGate is an interesting diversion, and certainly a possible catalyst for some real media reform, but we mustn't ignore the giants grappling in our midst.

Many DUers seem to believe that the Bush administration has been functioning at a level which consistently inspires maximum outrage, but such a desensitized attitude will only lead to astonishment when we realize just how devastating this bill threatens to be to our civil liberties.

One can be arrested years after participating in, what once may have been a legal activity, if new standards deem it illegal. Moral judgments for acts past, present and future, will be manipulated at the whim of a dominating political force.

[LynnTheDem]

42. HS; License to Genocide.

Murder. Rape. Whatever.

[dusty64]

43. My local rag whitewashed

this whole bill and didn't say a word about why it is evil. The People have NO idea whats going on and they like it that way.

[swag]

44. HR 418 - cause freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose

Yeas Nays PRES NV
Republican 219 8 4
Democratic 42 152 7
Independent 1
TOTALS 261 161 11

[Stop_the_War]

46. Can anybody tell me if my Dem rep Corrine Brown voted yes or no?

She probably voted NO, but I need to make sure.

[swag]

48. She voted "no"

Mouseketeer Roll-Call, Count Off Now:

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll031.xml