The Backbencher

Dinner With Friends

2011-04-22T20:32:00.004-05:00

For the second time in my life I had dinner with a congressman. The first was in 2007 when Rep. Jay Inslee(D-WA-1) campaigned for Hillary Clinton during the Iowa Caucuses. Tonight I, and about 20 others, had dinner with Rep. Leonard Boswell(D-IA-3). Thanks to reapportionment, Rep. Boswell's 3rd district will now include Red Oak. To represent Red Oak and the rest of the 3rd district, Boswell will have to win a competitive race with Rep. Tom Latham(R-IA-4). The new 3rd district will run roughly from Des Moines south to the Missouri line, and from Des Moines west to the Nebraska line. Boswell is using these past few days to meet party activists in the southwest Iowa counties that he has never represented.

The big topic was the budget and what to do about the deficit. Boswell, as did every other Democrat, voted against the Republican budget plan that passed the house last week. As a fiscally conservative "Blue Dog," Boswell believes that the deficit issue must be addressed soon. However, he said that he did not want to do so at the expense of traditional Democratic social programs. What was interesting was that Boswell said one of his favored means of reducing the deficit was to begin pulling out of Afghanistan. If even a moderate Democrat like Boswell is entertaining the idea of leaving Afghanistan then there is chance that the war might soon draw to a close.

The rest of the evening passed with a question and answer period covering the basic issues. Boswell appeared fully supportive of alternative fuels and especially the algae fuel plant in Shenandoah. Former Iowa First Lady Christie Vilsack's campaign in Iowa's 4th district against Republican Steve King was a topic that arnared everyone's attention. Boswell all but confirmed Vilsac's plan and said that she just bought a house in Ames so that she can live in the district. A good turnout, and the graciousness of Rep. and Mrs. Boswell, made this one of the more encouraging evening to be a Democrat in southwest Iowa. The Backbencher is fully supportive of Rep. Boswell and the push for this part of Iowa to finally be represented by a Democrat.

I Read that Book

2011-04-21T16:30:00.004-05:00

Ron Chernow's biography of George Washington won this year's Pulitzer Prize for biography. I read Chernow's book and I throughly enjoyed it. There was much about Washington that I did not know, and for filling in a lot of details that I and I suspect many others did not know, Chernow provides a valuable service. However, I thought David and Jeanne Heidler's biography of Henry Clay was the better book.

And They're Already So Good at Doing This

2011-04-17T18:31:00.002-05:00

I don't get the obsession of many in Congress to address the deficit and ignore the economic collapse and high unemployment. However, if they were truly concerned about the deficit, and not using it as a pretext for policies that favor the well off at the expense of the middle and working classes, then the best thing Washington could do is absolutely nothing.

On Deals; Budget and Otherwise

2011-04-10T14:39:00.002-05:00

There was a certain inevitability of the President and Senate leadership accepting a deal that cuts nearly 40 billion from the budget. Once the President made the inane comparison between the federal budget and a family budget the die was cast, but it didn't have to be this way. If Obama wanted to he could have made the argument that we don't have a deficit problem because we just extended tax cuts that are skewed towards the richest and most well off in our society and we are not going to cut programs that serve the most in need. However, making that argument would not have allowed the President to appear as the grown-up dealmaker that he wants to be. Sure the Republicans got much more in cuts then they initially offered but at last the Obama image and brand were protected.

Oh, the "compromise" that bans the District of Columbia from using local funds on abortions for poor women is still more proof that the deal that is too odious for Democratic leaders to make has not yet been found.

Book Review

2011-03-19T08:50:00.003-05:00

I spent a good part of the past three months immersed in the world of colonial and antebellum America. Christmas brought me Ron Chernow's biography of George Washington, David and Jeanne Heidler's biography of Henry Clay, and Joseph Ellis' Founding Brothers. All three were good reads and I would recommend any and all of them.

It is easy to lose sight of the fact that these historical figures were real people reacting to real events and while we know how the events worked out, the people involved didn't. These historical figured were capable great good, and tolerating and even advocating for serious wrongs.

The real strength of all three books is they place the lives and actions of these historical figures into a context. Everything they did or said was in response to certain realities. All 3 books put these historical figures back into the time in which the operated and it is much easier to see why they acted the why they did.

Certain historical realities dominate all three books and should influence how we look at the formative decades of American history. One is that there was no consensus on what the Constitution said and meant. Compromise and ambiguity were needed to write and ratify the constitution. and not everybody agreed with it. Somehow the constitution won the strong support of Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, James Madison, George Washington, and the reluctant support of Thomas Jefferson. Any document that can do that is by necessity full of vagueness and open to multiple interpretations. Even Hamilton and Madison, who helped pen the Federalist Papers, eventually split over the policies of the Washington administration.

It is also important to remember that slavery was always an issue and the spirit that guided the early days of the republic was to keep all discussion of slavery and abolition off the table. However, every issue was always understood in the light of slavery. This created a dynamic where discussion of the issue was viewed as a threat and as a result the U.S. twisted itself into knots over the one issue that dominated all others. The same contradiction, of course, applies to the personal views that individual founders had on slavery.

It is easy to view the founders as caricatures as noble patriots. Instead they were real people who lived in a specific time and place. All three books do a marvelous job of recapturing the the people, time, and place of the founding decades of the U.S.

Where do Backbenchers Come From?

2011-03-17T20:20:00.002-05:00

The Backbencher has been quiet in the past few months. Among the many reason is that I am going to be a new father in about month and much of my life has centered around getting ready. Anyway, while the focus of the blog may change a little I hope to get back to some more blogging.

Backbencher of the Week

2010-12-19T21:21:00.005-06:00

For the last Backbencher of the Week of 2010, we choose to recognize a Congressman who is soon to leave the House. Rep. Patrick Murphy(D-PA-8) lost his seat in last month's election but he has saved his best work for the lame duck session.

Murphy was the first Iraq War veteran to serve in Congress and he made the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell a top priority. Earlier this week , Congressman Murphy introduced the bill that repealed Don't Ask Don't Tell. The bill passed the House on Wednesday and yesterday the Senate voted to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell. President Obama will sign the repeal into law this week.

Even though they are too high profile to qualify as backbenchers, we recognize the work of Senate majority leader Harry Reid(D-NV) and Sen. Joe Lieberman(I-CN) who shepherded the bill through the Senate.

For serving the cause of justice to the very end of his term, we are proud to award this week's Backbencher of the Week to Rep. Patrick Murphy.

Doing the Double

2010-11-03T21:01:00.011-05:00

During the first week of May 1979, Arsenal won the FA Cup and Margaret Thatcher became Prime Minister. Noted Arsenal fanatic, and political left winger, Nick Hornby, admits that he was willing to accept a Conservative victory in the general election if it meant that Arsenal would win the cup. Arsenal goes on to win the cup in miraculous fashion, and the Tories won the general election. Reflecting on this week years later, Hornby ponders if this bargain of a Conservative win was worth the bargain of an Arsenal cup victory. Looking back on 11 years of Thatcher, and a total of 18 years of Tory rule, Hornby concludes that he wouldn't settle now for anything less then the double(FA cup and league title in the same year).

I find myself in a similar position. Yesterday, Democrats suffered a large defeat in the midterm elections. The defeat of many politicians(Russ Feingold, Alan Grayson) that I admire saddens me, and the result of the elections here in Iowa leave me on the verge of being despondent.

However, the biggest event of the week was the San Francisco Giants winning the World Series. I have been a Giants fan since I was a toddler in the late 1970's. The very first sporting events I ever attended were Giants games at Candlestick Park and as I boy I would fall asleep listening to Giants games on the radio. I celebrated the hum-baby season of 1987 and I was devestated by 87 NLCS series against the Cardinals. I took great joy in the 89 pennant, and watched with horror and humiliation the 1989 earthquake World Series. I enjoyed the summer of 93 and watched with uncomprehending dread the fall of 93 as the Giants managed to win 103 games but still miss the play-offs by 1 game. In 2002 I thought the Giants were finally going to win it all but with 5 outs remaining the whole season fell apart. Along the way there have been numerous minor heartaches and frustrations.

All of that changed on Monday night as the Giants finally won the World Series and they did it in a season in which no one expected them to make a serious run. Earl Weaver's adage that pitching, defense, and the three run homer are the keys to victory held true for the Giants. 30+ years of devotion and heartache were justified during this magical run.

For me, the elation of a Giants championship makes even last night's election results bearable. For I have been a Giants fan longer then I have been a political junkie, and I have learned that Giants baseball is much more dependable then the electorate. However, unlike Hornby, I did get my double. The college team that I pull for, the University of South Carolina Gamecocks, won the College World Series and I even attended a game. Even the minor league team in my hometown, the Jacksonville Suns, won the Southern League title.

So I thank the Gamecocks for a foretaste of the joy that was to come throughout the summer. Most of all I thank the San Francisco Giants who made every night of dressing in layers to attend a ball game June, and every year of being a long distance fan worth it. Mostly I thank the Giants for redeeming every season of heartbreak and frustration in one joyful and exciting play-off ride. Thank you and always Fear the Beard.

Election Predicitions

2010-11-01T20:29:00.007-05:00

Here are my predictions for tomorrow's elections:

House: I predict a Republican gain of 48 seats.

Senate:

Republican Wins: North Dakota(John Hoeven), Arkansas(John Boozeman), Indiana(Dan Coats), Wisconsin(Ron Johnson), Florida(Marco Rubio), Pennsylvania(Pat Toomey), Kentucky(Rand Paul), Alaska(Lisa Murkowski).

Democrat Wins: Nevada(Harry Reid), California(Barbara Boxer), Washington(Patty Murray), West Virgina(Joe Manchin), Illinois(Alex Gianoulias), Delaware(Chris Coons), Connecticut(Richard Blumenthal), Colorado(Michael Bennett)

This would lead to a Republican gain of 5 seats

Iowa:

In Iowa I see Republican Terry Branstad defeating incumbent Democrat Chet Culver to win the Governor's office, Republican Senator Charles Grassley defeating his Democratic challenger Roxanne Conlin, and all 5 congressional incumbents winning

There will be lots of talk that the Democrats overreached and this is why they suffered such a massive defeat. I disagree. It is virtually impossible to overreach in politics. The window for getting things done is so small that you get as much done when you can. Democrats had once in a generation majorities and they got everything passed that I think they could have passed.

The real explanation is that the country was in such bad shape that the voters elected many more Democrats than Republicans in 2006 and 2008, and voters put Democrats in charge of returning the country to the right track. The return to the right track has not happened fast enough and so voters are going to show their displeasure by electing more Republicans than Democrats. It really is as simple as that.

Running, Not Walking, to the Left

2010-10-23T12:23:00.002-05:00

Doug J, the business and economics editor of Balloon Juice, has post up about how he moved to the left. In the that spirit here is the brief narrative of how I moved leftward.

Ten years ago I was a moderate above the fray type. Three things moved me to the left. The first was the war on terror. Everything from the idiocy and petty abuses of the TSA and Homeland Security, to the wholesale torture and destruction of our values that went on in Abu Ghraib and Gitmo, to the murderous delusions of Iraq led to realize the peaceniks and hippies are right

The second event that moved me to left was taking a job in the healthcare industry. Once I saw how the patchwork system of private insurance and for-profit healthcare hindered caring for the sick as much, if not more, then it helped then I wanted a system of universal healthcare.

The final event was the economic crisis and the exposure of what thirty years of conservative ad neo-liberal policies did to the middle and working classes moved me even further to the left.

These three events, plus my theological liberalism leading me to oppose and detest evangelical fundamentalism, is what led me to move firmly to the left

That Took a Bit Longer then We Expected

2010-10-03T16:19:00.004-05:00

Today Germany paid the last payment related to the reparations imposed by the Treaty of Versailles and thus closing and balancing the books on World War 1. Ninety seven years after the war started, the lamps are coming back on all across Europe.

The costs of the war include 9 million soldiers, sailors, and airmen killed and 6 million civilians killed during Europe's four years of murderous insanity. The fighting cost the combatant nations about $180,000,000,000 in 1918 money. The Ottoman and Austrian-Hungarian empires disappeared forever, and the Russian empire was replaced by the Communist Soviet Union.

While today marks an ending, of sorts, of World War 1, we do well to remember how the war began. Capt. Edmund Blackadder explains the origins of the war in this clip from Blackadder Goes Forth(yes, that is Hugh Laurie).

Sibling Rivalry

2010-09-26T17:46:00.003-05:00

Some sets of siblings, like my brother and I, play out our sibling rivalry by putting on football helmets and playing tackle football. Others, like Ed and David Miliband play their rivalry out by running against each other for the leadership of a major political party.

The former Energy Minister Ed Miliband won a narrow victory to be elected Leader of the Labour Party and become Leader of the Opposition in Parliament. Coming in second was former Foreign Secretary, and Ed's brother, David Miliband.

It is unclear which brother Mama Miliband loves the most but the love that trade unions have for Ed provided the 1% margin of victory. The big questions are whether David will serve in the shadow cabinet and does Ed's election represent a shift to the left for the party?

The Distingushed Bigot From Georgia

2010-09-26T16:20:00.002-05:00

Can anyone be surprised that on the day the Senate voted on Don't Ask Don't Tell a computer in Sen. Saxby Cambliss'(R-GA) office was used to send a homophobic message? It's not like Sen. Chambliss has a history of bigoted statements.

Obit

2010-09-25T11:05:00.003-05:00

The Backbencher considers Jacksonville, Florida to be his hometown. So, we have to note the passing of the man who lent his name to the greatest band ever named for a gym teacher.

Put on Your Rally Caps

2010-09-25T09:52:00.006-05:00

Democrats in southwest Iowa met recently for an election rally. Since the event involved 5 countries, and attracted people from a total of 7 Iowa counties, we were able to arrange for several candidates and politicians to attend.

Lt. Gov. Patty Judge attended, and on behalf of Governor Chet Culver, outlined the incumbent party's strategy for the November election. The Lieutenant Governor said that events out of the Governor's control, like record flooding and a national recession, are making times difficult in Iowa but the state in government is in good shape because of the work of the incumbent Democrats. However accurate, this line of argument will be a hard sale, but I am glad to see that Culver and Judge are ready to fight to defend their record.

Matt Campbell, the Democratic party's nominee for the 5th Congressional district, made another appearance in Southwest Iowa. I had mixed feelings about Campbell. I want so badly to see Rep. Steve King(R-IA-5) defeated that I will support anyone running against him. However, I was worried about Campbell's self description as a "fiscal conservative" and describing his philosophy as being in line with the Blue Dog faction. However, Matt Campbell gave a stirring defense of social security and I left much reassured by Campbell's willingness to fight for the pillar of the Democrat's domestic achievements.

The headliner of the night was Sen. Tom Harkin(D-IA). Harkin took great pride in the fact that he won Mills and Montgomery counties for the first time in his 5 elections to the Senate. Harkin spoke about his service as the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions(HELP) Committee. Taking each of the letters in HELP, Sen. Harkin described how Democrats were making life better for Americans. Harkin even grew tearful when talking about succeeding Ted Kennedy as chair of the HELP committee.

I know it is going to be a rough year for Democrats in Iowa and across the nation. However, the rally was a reminder of why I am a Democrat and I find so much enjoyment in being involved in politics.

What Exactly is Going on in this Passage

2010-09-07T21:56:00.002-05:00

Another Baptist preacher has claimed that Mohammed was a pedophile. Last time it was Jerry Vines at First Baptist Jacksonville and now Robert Jeffress of First Baptist Dallas is making the same claim.

I have often wondered how these preachers explain away what happened between the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary; who most scholars believe would have been a teenage girl.

Book Review

2010-09-06T18:02:00.002-05:00

Good fiction will often open up a previously unknown world and make you care about characters that you might not even like. That is exactly what Sara Gruen's Water for Elephants does. The world that Gruen opens up is the traveling circus of the 1930s and it is the circus itself that becomes the star of the novel.

Gruen's circus is world of brutality, vice, sex, and humanity and she renders this world is such great detail that you can almost smell the popcorn. Told through flashbacks by the show's vet, Gruen's novel is the story of a man trying to get come to terms with his life.

About halfway to 2/3 of the way through the novel, the direction of the narrative is clear but the precise the daily life of a traveling circus will keep you hooked until the last page.

An End in Iraq

2010-09-06T17:36:00.002-05:00

The war in Iraq is just about over. At least that is what we are often told as the last "combat" troops leave the country; conveniently forgetting that there are still 50,00 U.S. soldiers still in Iraq.

Nevertheless this is something of a milestone and there have been no shortage of people talking about what this milestone means. President Obama gave a speech from the Oval Office while others have offered various explanations and justifications for what has gone on in Iraq since 2003.

Looking at all these justifications for Iraq I think all for should take heed of Frederick Ebright's admonition to advertisers making money of World War 2 and realize "There is dignity in silence."

I Don't Want to Work Late

2010-09-06T16:32:00.003-05:00

As someone who likes what they do for a living, and often finds meaning in my profession, but who is ambivalent about the aspects that make what I do a job then I recommend Ezra Klein's column opposing rising the retirement age of Social Security.

What is this over here?

2010-08-22T18:16:00.002-05:00

A Civil War prison camp.

I know exactly where this is at because when I lived in Augusta I would drive down to Millen for work and Millen was on the way to Florida. Unlike other places in Georgia, Augusta emerged from the Civil War relatively unscathed and unlike Savannah or Atlanta I never got the sense that Augusta was defined, in part, by a connection the war.

When I heard this story reported on the radio, I almost froze. It's always a weird feeling when you here about some obscure corner of the world that you think only you know about being talked about world wide. It makes the world seem a little smaller.

Muslims in Lower Manhattan

2010-08-19T19:33:00.004-05:00

The most disheartening aspect of the debate on the Islamic cultural center in lower Manhattan is that much of the debate is focused on turning American Muslims into a scary other who are undeserving of the full rights granted under the Constitution.

Muslim Americans are part of the fabric of New York and the U.S, and they have been a part for a long time. Muslim Americans have also been apart of the American story that began on 9/11. Approximately, 50 Muslims were murdered in the 9/11 attacks and the majority of people murdered by Al Qaeda and it's associates are Muslims. American Muslims volunteered to serve in our government's response to 9/11 and some died. Muslims in other countries have made the decision to side with the U.S. and many of those who allied themselves died as a result of that decision.

Muslim victims are part of the story of 9/11, they are part of the story of the response to those attacks, and Muslims Americans will continue to be a part of the story of this nation's recovery from that day.

Not only do Muslims have the Constitutional right to have space in Lower Manhattan but they are every bit as deserving as any other group.

Book Review

2010-08-10T20:01:00.003-05:00

This summer I decided to see if reality really does match the hype and so I read all three volume of the Steig Larsson trilogy. In a period of about 10 days(that often included staying up late) I read The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl who Played with Fire, and The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. After finishing all three, I can definitely say that the all three books are worthy of the hype.

Lisbeth Salander is the main character and most interestingly she is also the moral fulcrum of the trilogy. If a charcter is good then they will, directly or indirectly be on Salander's side and like wise if they are bad then the person is antagonistic to Salander. Making such a complex character the focal point and moral focal point gives the books their drive. There should be a couple of warnings attached: there is some sex and violence and a combination of the two that make you uncomfortable. The other warning is that you should be prepared for a few late nights and a few late nights is a small price to pay for three great reads.

Dear Robert Gibbs:

2010-08-10T19:17:00.002-05:00

As the press secretary for a Democratic President, you are by definition a member of "the professional left."

Many of us who push President Obama from the left do so not because we are paid to do so but because we are passionate; often times more passionate about the President's agenda then many of his professional supporters.

Marriage and Smokies for All

2010-08-04T21:59:00.003-05:00

As evidenced by the presence of little smokies, the marriage of my moms-in-law was, is, and will be eternally valid because the presence of little smokies at a wedding is what makes the marriage valid and legitimate.

However it is good to know that with today's court ruling in California, legal recognition for all marriages is a little closer to being a reality in the U.S.

It's What is on the Inside that Matters

2010-08-04T21:19:00.003-05:00

George Packer wrote a great article detailing how the internal rules of the Senate allow a minority to obstruct everything in that body. In his analysis, Packer overlooks one major issue that causes the Senate to behave the way it does.

The external political world that sends senators to Washington has changed. The greater political world is more polarized then it was a few decades ago and the two parties are now aligned based on their ideologies. The problem with the Senate is not that senators are a mediocre bunch or that they are more partisan then in the past. The problem with the Senate is the world outside has changed and the Senate has not adjusted it's internal rules and norms to reflect that change.

This is How We Do It

2010-07-27T21:52:00.001-05:00

Ezra Klein explains how the filibuster can be changed or ended

Follow this Blog

2010-07-18T14:27:00.002-05:00

My friends Tim and Emily are spending a year in Israel doing archaeological work. They are chronicling their year at a blog called Following Arrows. Read it.

A Bit of Political Wisdom

2010-05-18T20:09:00.002-05:00

If you are a politician who gets caught lying about your military service then it is a good idea to get caught on a day when a Congressman has to resign because he gets caught having an affair with an aide he made a pro-abstinence video with.

Book Review

2010-05-17T20:09:00.002-05:00

Reading Bob Woodward's Maestro: Greenspan's Fed and The American Boom is an exercise of reading about the pride that goes before the fall. The book only covers up until Greenspan's reappointment in 2000 and doe not cover the events leading up to the economic collapse.

This is not Woodward's most engaging book and it is good thing it is one of his shortest. Unless you are just enamred with in depth reporting on the Fed meetings and the debates over 1/4 percentage points in the interest rates.

The past couple of years have not been kind to Greenspan's record and if Woodward had been willing to engage more deeply we might have a book that could serve as a record of penetrating foresight. Woodward explains Greensapn's upbringing as an acolyte of Ayn Rand and often talks about his belief in an almost unregulated market as the answer to almost any problem Woodward's weekness comes in exploring those ideas; he treats his intellectual roots as a fact of his life.

Woodward also fails to examine the American boon he mentions in his book's subtitle. What was the American boom like? Woodward never explains except in terms of the stock market. During this period the gap between wealthy and poor increased and much of the boom was financed by debt. Woodward also goes to great lengths to explain that one of the great conundrums of Greenspan's time dealth with an increse in productivity. By eventually figuring that workers were producing more but not getting paid more, Greenspan effectivly managed the changes in the encomy and helped Wall Street and U.S. Treasury but Woodward never explains how boom that fails to increase worker's wages is really a boom. Woodward's title builds the expectation that there will be a telling of the story of the boom but their is no indication how average Americans experienced the boom.

I am not really impressed with Greenspan even though Woodward really wants me to be as enamored with Greenspan as he is. Woodward makes it clear that Greenspan is not the all knowing oracle that myth makes him out to be. He often does not understand what is going and sometimes appears to have gotten lucky at times with the economy. This, of course, is Woodward's biggest failing. He mistakes luck for expertise and minuta for in depth understanding.

Backbencher of the Week

2010-05-16T21:36:00.003-05:00

The Backbencher is a fan of the rumpled socialism(ahem, Liturgygeek) of Sen. Bernie Sanders(I-VT) and for the third time he is the Backbencher of the Week. Ever since TARP and the bank bailouts, members of Congress from across the spectrum have wanted to take a closer look at the actions of the Federal Reserve. Even though the Fed is an independent agency it is still a political actor whose actions impact everyone from the very rich to the poor.

Sen. Sanders initially proposed an amendment to completely audit the Fed but the White House, the Fed, and the Wall Street all strongly opposed the measure. Sen. Sanders then negotiated a compromise that allowed for an audit of all of the Fed's actions during the economic crisis. Among the provisions is one that will make public the name of who received emergency assistance from the Fed and in what amount. On Tuesday, the Sanders Amendment passed 96-0. Rep. Alan Grayson(D-Fl-8)who, along with Rep. Ron Paul(R-TX-14), authored a House bill to completely audit the Fed called the Sander Amendment "a significant step."

Former Fed Chair Alan Greenspan once said in a speech(ironically the one in which he coined the phrase "irrational exuberance") "The Fed must be as transparent as any agency of government. It cannot be acceptable in a democratic society that a group of unelected individuals are vested with important responsibilities, without being open to full public scrutiny and accountability."

For taking a step towards making Greenspan's words a reality, we award this week's Backbencher of the Week to Bernie Sanders.

Christmas Should be Interesting

2010-05-15T14:38:00.000-05:00

at the Milibrand house.

Thinking About Elena

2010-05-13T22:11:00.006-05:00

I have been thinking about President Obama's nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to be on the Supreme Court and why I feel skeptical about the nomination. My thinking has been shaped by some comments made by Matt Yglesias and by Kevin Drum.

I don't think that Kagan is a stealth candidate and I think that she will undoubtedly be a consistent liberal voice on the coourt. In the same way I believe that President Obama is a mainstream Democrat and will constantly move the country in a more progressive direction.

However, I also know what kind of Democrat Obama is turning out to be. He is the type who makes labor unions accept an excise tax to get healthcare passed but refuses to do much to push for labor's most important agenda items like the Employee Free Choice Act. Obama is the type of Democrat who is pushing for the closing of Guantanamo Bay but who also believes in issuing an executive order to assassinate a U.S. citizen. He is the type of Democrat who consistently gives away liberal positions in hopes of courting conservatives who have no intention of supporting him. Obama is the type of Democrat who signed some of the most progressive legislation in a generation into law but still seems enthralled by the consensus, elite economic opinion that got us into the mess and seems to think that the way out is to inflict pain on the middle and lower income classes.

My uncomfortableness with Kagan ultimately has less to do with her then with the President who nominated her. While I am broadly supportive of President Obama and his agenda, I am fully aware of what objectionable positions and actions he is able to take. I have the same worry that Kagan will be a mirror image of the President in that regard.

The Conundrum of the Stupak

2010-05-13T19:37:00.004-05:00

I found this story while reading John Cole at Balloon Juice. I want to focus on this little fact:

"In a devastating review of the blowout preventer, which BP said was supposed to be "fail-safe," Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's subcommittee on oversight, said Wednesday that documents and interviews show that the device was anything but."

I found Bart Stupak’s anti-choice efforts on the healthcare bill to be damaging and reprehensible. However, he has done some good work investigating corporate malfeasance. It was his sub-committee that did much of the work of bringing the practice of health insurance rescission to light and now he is investigating the criminally negligent behavior of the off-shore oil companies. He is a perfect example of why I am a Democrat and why I find being a Democrat so frustrating

Who's at No. 10?

2010-05-11T21:17:00.002-05:00

David Cameron

Backbencher of the Week

2010-05-09T15:04:00.004-05:00

This week we recognize a Senator who actually failed to get his amendment passed. Sen. Ted Kaufman(D-DE) served as a longtime and trusted aide of Vice President Joe Biden. He was appointed to fill Biden's seat and hold until Beau Biden could win election. However, the younger Biden decided not to run and Republian Congressman Mike Castle looks likely to win the seat in November.

During his time in the Senate, Sen. Kaufman has focused much of his efforts on financial reform. Kaufman, unlike the administration and much of Congress, supports a more comprehensive type of reform that restructures Wall Street firms. Partnering with Sen. Sherrod Brown(D-OH). Sen. Kaufman proposed an amendment to the financial reform bill that would have limited the size of lage banks. This week the Kaufman-Brown amendment failed by a vote of 33-61.

Even though his amendment failed, we recognize Sen. Kaufman for not just filing a seat in the Senate but using his time towards productive ends and for willingness think big in response to the financial crisis. Congratulations to Sen. Ted Kaufman for being Backbencher of the Week.

Clear as the Thames

2010-05-07T17:04:00.008-05:00

Yesterday's election obscured as much as it cleared up. David Cameron and the Conservatives won 306 seats but that is still 20 seats short of what is needed for a majority. After a day of jockeying, the Tories and the Liberal Democrats are working on some type of deal; either a coalition or some type of informal power sharing arrangement. Gordon Brown and Labour lost 91 seats and are currently on the sidelines. If the Tories and Lib Dems can't form a government then Brown as offered to work with Nick Clegg and for a Lib Lab government.

In a strange election, nobody can claim they did great. The Tories fell short of a majority, labour lost 91 seats, the Liberal Democrats momentum faded and they actually lost seats. Labour, as the current party of government, has the right to be the first to try to form a government. However Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said that the Conservatives deserve to get the first crack because they won the highest portion of the popular votes and the most seats. Cameron earlier today offered the deal to the Liberal Democrats that is currently under discussion.

That is the big news but there were several smaller stories about the election that we should note. Both former Home Secretaries, Jacqui Smith and Charles Clarke along with several other ministers lost their seats. In Northern Ireland, both of the unionist leaders lost their seats in Westminster. The Speaker was able to hold his seat and Rory Stewart won in Penrith and the Border. History was made when Caroline Lucas won the Green Party's first ever seat in Parliament when she won Brighton Pavilion.

The other big story was the confusion that reigned in some polling places. Some polling places were not prepared for the hight turnout and some voters were turned away and not allowed to vote. One of the constituencies involved was Sheffield Hallam, which is represented by Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg. Clegg, and his party, are the biggest supporters of electoral reform and some type of referendum on electoral reform might be their asking price.

Whatever happens, the election is sure to stretch into the weekend and possibly until the new Parliament convenes later this month.

UK Election Viewing Guide

2010-05-05T17:56:00.006-05:00

Tomorrow voters all across the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland will go to the polls and vote. Voters will vote for their local MP and the party that means a majority of seats forms the next government. To help follow the election, here are some of the seats that whose results I will be watching for. Some of these are bellwether and threshold constituencies that will give hints about the trend in the election and some of these are constituencies that I am just interested in. Much of my understanding comes from the good people at ukpollingreport.

The first seat to watch is Houghton and Sunderland South. This constituency, when it was known as Sunderland South, was the first to declare the winner and did so every election since 1992. Chris Mullin, the outgoing MP, used to joke about forming his own government during the brief minutes when he was the only elected member of Parliament.

Based on uniform nation swing, Labour will lose its majority if they lose Stourbridge. If the Conservatives win in Dudley South then they will be in the largest party in the Commons and if the Tories are victorious in Derby North then they are assured a majority.

If you are looking for some Bellwether seats then look to see who wins Dartford and Chorley. The winning party has won both of the these seats since 1964. Luton South, and its predecessor seats, are the most reliable bellwether seats. The victorious party has won this seat in every election since 1951.

Since all 3 major parties are significant players in this election there are 3 seats in which all 3 parties poll within 10% of each other. Ealing Central and Acton, Watford, and Filton and Bradley Stoke are the seats to watch get an idea of which of the three parties can expect to have a good night.

Since ministers are member of Parliament, most general elections see a minister or two lose their seats. The Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy in East Renfrewshire and Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling in Edinburgh Southwest are both considered somewhat vulnerable. However, the most likely to lose their seat is the Minster of Culture, Sports, and Media Ben Bradshaw in Exeter and Children, Families, and Schools minister Ed Balls(who is a close ally of Gordon Brown) in Morley and Outwood. Two former Home Secretaries could also lose their seats. Jacqui Smith in Redditch will almost certainly lose her seat and Charles Clarke in Norwich South could be vulnerable.

It's always good to watch the leaders and how they do. Gordon Brown is in the Scottish constituency of Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, David Cameron represents Witney, and Nick Clegg represents Sheffield Hallam.

I am also interested in seeing if the Green Party can win in Brighton Pavilion and win their first ever seat in Parliament. As Speaker, John Bercow is a non-partisan figure and the major parties don't run candidates against a sitting speaker. However the UK Independence Party is running against Speaker Bercow in the traditional Tory seat of Buckingham. I am also watching to see if the Tories can win back Margaret Thatchers old seat of Finchley and Golders Green.

Finally, I am interested in Penrith and the Border because former army officer, diplomat, best selling writer, Harvard don, and critic of U.S. and UK efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq Rory Stewart is the Conservative candidate and the heavy favorite to win.

Enjoy election day and I hope to join you some tomorrow night to share some of my immediate observations.

Book Review

2010-05-02T19:00:00.003-05:00

My reading has focused on the recent history of the Supreme Court. Reading Bob Woodward's The Brethren followed by Jeffrey Toobin's The Nine gives a reader a pretty complete history of the Supreme Court over the past forty years. If there is a theme of both books it is how the center held throughout the past forty years of jurisprudence. For Woodward this means a focus on the work of Justices Potter Stewart(Woodward's main source), Byron White, and Lewis Powell. For Toobin this means celebrating Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. This two books combined tell the story of how a liberal court became a moderate one and a moderate one became a court with conservative leanings.

An underrated figure in this book is Richard Nixon. Soon after his inauguration, Nixon had the opportunity to replace Chief Justice Earl Warren with Warren Burger and Justice Abe Fortas with Henry Blackmun. Later in his administration, Nixon was able to appointment two more justices, including future Chief Justice William Rehnquist. The Court went in a very short time from a liberal one to a more moderate one.

The next big change came when Samuel Alito replaced Justice O'Connor. A court that had stayed pretty moderate became a court with strong conservative leanings. Some of this is O'Connor's responsibility and the fact that she was a very political creature while on the court and she continued to hold to her Goldwater type Republican leanings. Through Toobin tries to obscure her role, and engages in some unwarranted pox on both houses interpretation, it is clear that O'Connor along with Justice Kennedy played a decisive role in placing George W. Bush in the White House. This allowed Bush to eventually replace O'Connor with the hardcore conservative Justice Alito.

Since Toobin wrote his book, both Justice Souter and Justice Stevens retired from the court. Obama replaced Souter with Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Obama is currently working on nominating Steven's replacement.

To change the direction of the Court, the key is to replace Republican appointees with Democratic ones. Nixon and Ford replaced 3 Democratic appointees with Republican ones and George H.W. Bush replaced one Democratic appointee. Only President's Clinton's replacement of Justice Blackmun with Justice Breyer allowed a Democrat to replace a Republican appointee.

Unless there is an unexpected change, for example Justice Kennedy leaving during the Obama administration, there is little chance for President Obama to drastically change the Court's direction. However, Sotomayer and the next justice will both replace Republican appointees. Though Stevens and Souter were both considered liberals, that was more because of the change of the composition of the Court. Obama will at least be able to place younger and more comprehensively liberal justices on the Court.

Forty two years have passed since the first term chronicled by Woodward. It took that long to change a liberal Court to a Conservative Court and it will probably take just as long to fully change direction. President Obama's has the chance to begin the long march back towards a jurisprudence that pays more heed to the voiceless and those on the margins. Jeffrey Toobin describe Chief Justice Roberts, and consequently the Roberts Court, this way:

"In every major case since he became the nation’s seventeenth Chief Justice, Roberts has sided with the prosecution over the defendant, the state over the condemned, the executive branch over the legislative, and the corporate defendant over the individual plaintiff. Even more than Scalia, who has embodied judicial conservatism during a generation of service on the Supreme Court, Roberts has served the interests, and reflected the values, of the contemporary Republican Party."

President Obama has the chance to be figure as important to the Court's history as Nixon. If Obama is willing, he can seize the opportunity to moderate a conservative march and start the process of starting a liberal one.

To understand how the stakes became so important and how Obama and the Supreme Court reached this moment of history then read both Toobin and Woodward.

Backbencher of the Week

2010-05-02T15:03:00.003-05:00

The big story this week is Arizona's new law that requires police to ask people they suspect to illegal immigrants for identification of citizenship and arrest those they suspect of being in the country illegally. This law badly written, terribly vague, open to abuse, and unconstitutional. There is no criteria for how a police officer should base his or her suspicions and that will lead to profiling and harassment of latinos.

Felling like they are caught between a rock and a hold place, most Republicans have stayed quiet. The first GOP congressman to speak out was Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart(R-FL-21). Rep. Diaz-Balart, who is of Cuban descent, came out quickly and denounced the new law.

For being the first Republican in Washington to lodge criticism of the Arizona bill, we award Re. Lincoln Diaz-Balart this week's Backbencher of the Week.

Is This Thing On?

2010-04-28T20:52:00.004-05:00

Unfortunately for the Prime Minister the mic was on.

It is tough to analyze Gordon Brown's gaffe except to say it was a huge one and that it makes it very hard for Labour to gain any traction in the polls.

Andrew Rawnsley, who has written two accounts of Labour's 13 years in government, puts the episode in context of Gordon Brown's general manner of conducting himself while Prime Minister.

All I know is that Liturgygeek will be terribly upset.

The Price of Victory

2010-04-22T08:58:00.003-05:00

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg has named his price for forming a coalition with Labour and the price is apparently Gordon Brown's departure. Gordon Brown's most likely replacement would be David Milibrand, the current Foreign Secretary. A big question then would be where does Nick Clegg end up in a coalition government. The most logical place would be to replace Milibrand at the Foreign Office but does the Liberal Democrats reputation on economic matters put Clegg or Vince Cable at the Treasury?

The Liberal Democrat strategy is now clear. They are telling voters if you want a center left government, and if you want to keep the Conservatives out, but you don't want Gordon Brown then vote for the Liberal Democrats.

Lib Dems Ascendent

2010-04-17T22:24:00.006-05:00

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg won the party leaders debate and the results have shaken this election its core. Recent polling shows a strong surge in favor of the Liberal Democrats and one poll even had the Lib Dems moving ahead of Labour.

So, who are the Liberal Democrats?

They are first and foremost a fusion of two political parties. The Liberal Democrats are the heirs of the old Liberal Party that was a major party in the UK until overtaken by Labour in the first couple of decades of the 20th century. The second group was formed when a group of moderate Labour MPs, called the Social Democratic Party(SDP), split from the party in the 1980s and joined forces with the Liberals and by the early 1990s they resulting party was known as the Liberal Democrats.

The party tends to be the most left leaning party but economic issues do cause divisions and tensions within the party. Originally they were more moderate then the democratic socialism of Labour but Labour under Tony Blair moved right on economics, and now the Lib Dems might be more left than Labour. Liberal Democrats are most assoociated with pushing for reform of the political system, strong support for civil liberties, and for their opposition to the Iraq War.

Nick Clegg is the party leader but the real star is the treasury spokesman Vince Cable. Cable is popular, in large part, because of his predictions of the financial crisis and for his criticism of London's banking culture. Cable is also credited for the best insult of Gordon Brown when he said that the Prime Minister transformed himself from "Stalin to Mr. Bean."

Since the 1997 election, under the leadership of previous leaders Paddy Ashdown and Charles Kennedy, the Liberal Democrats have made gains in the number of seats in the Commons. Yet as the Lib Dem success has increased, the level of expectation also increases and many success are interpreted as disappointments when compared with the party's goals.

This year may be different. The Lib Dems may achieve their goal of becoming the official opposition party. More important they are slated to be kingmakers and Clegg is coy about how he will decide which party to support. The possible eclipsing of Labour by the Liberal Democrats and the possibility of the traditional UK two major party system become a 3 party system are two of the most important stories that will develop over the final stretches of the campaign.

Manifesto Destiny

2010-04-14T21:52:00.003-05:00

The parties launched their campaign manifestos this week. A manifesto is a like a campaign platform but unlike in the U.S. the parties adhere much closer to their manifesto then American parties adhere to their platforms.

Two major issues are appearing to dominate the election. Since the UK is mired in the global recession then the parties are making a big deal out of economic and budgetary matters. The other issues deals with reform of the political system and gaining the people's trust after the scandal involving MP's expenses.

Labour addresses the budgetary issues by promising to halve the deficit in 4 years. They do so by promising to cut wasteful spending. However, Labour went to great pains to promise to not raise taxes on most incomes and to keep the Value Added Tax(a type of national sales tax) from being extended to food and children's clothes. However there is no promise to not raise the existing VAT. To reform the political system, Labour promises to end the last hereditary peers and to pursue reforming how MP's are elected.

The Conservative plan to end the deficit by the end of the next parliament and they plan on doing so by cutting 12 billion pounds in wasteful spending over the next two years. The Tories big splash came in there ideas for reforming the political system. David Cameron announced that the Tories would cut the number of MP's by 10% and also cutting the pay of government ministers. Votes would also be able to recall a sitting MP under the Tory plan. The Conservatives also plan to allow for local referendums if 5% of the population wanted one and these referendums could be used to veto tax increases.

The parties also put forth some ideas that are distinctly their own. Labour focused on household budget issues. They propose creating a 4 week period of paternity leave for new fathers and giving tax credits to families with young children. The Tories idea focusing on scrapping the plan for a nation ID card and they want to hold a referendum on lifiting the ban on fox hunting.

Gordon Brown, David Cameron, and Nick Clegg(the Liberal Democrat leader) will meet on Thursday in the first of 3 debates. Now that the parties have set the terms for the election, the real campaigning begins.

Hang 'em High

2010-04-08T09:30:00.005-05:00

The big question in this year's general election is will the results lead to a hung parliament. A hung parliament occurs when no one party garners a clear majority of seats. When voters go to the polls, 650 seats in the House of Commons will be up for grabs and the winning party will have gain at least 326 seats to form a majority. Labour will lose it's majority if losses 24 seats and the Conservatives gain a majority if they win 116 more seats then they have now.

While it is all but certain that Labour will lose the 24 seats, there are serious questions about whether the Tories can win 116 seats. For the Conservatives to win enough seats there will have to be a swing of 6.9% of the vote away from Labour and towards the Conservatives. The current polling appears to indicate a swing of less then what is needed and the Conservatives being 21 seats of the absolute majority needed.

If there is a hung parliament then the party with the largest number of seats can try to form a majority or the various parties can try to form a coalition government. Gordon Brown might have the advantage in this because as the sitting prime minister he, almost by default, will get the first crack at forming a government. The most likely possibility is that Labour will try to form a coalition with the Liberal Democrats and whatever 3rd parties can be brought into the coalition. If Brown can't form a coalition then the Conservative will probably form some type of government.

The most recent election to produce a hung parliament is 1974. Ted Heath's Conservative's lost on election day but Heath held on through the weekend trying to form a coalition before finally resigning in favor of Harold Wilson's Labour party. Peter Hennesssy tells a great story in his book The Prime Minister. During the weekend while the 1974 elections were in doubt, the cabinet secretary and the Queen's private secretary walked around St. James Park discussing all the options.

As an observer, and a person with no stake in the results, I want a hung parliament because I want to see what happens and how a hung parliament will resolve itself. Strictly as an interested observer, I am pulling for a close election and a hung parliament.

Cover It Up

2010-04-07T21:42:00.002-05:00

Two news stories about our country's wars in the Middle East have garnered a lot of attention. The first story involves wikileaks, a website that publishes confidential government information, releasing a video that shows U.S. military helicopter crew members killing civilians; including a reporter from Rueters. There is a lot of controversy surrounding the exact nature of the video and the context around which the helicopter attack occurred. The U.S. military initially claimed that all the civilians were insurgents but now there a lot people are alleging cover-up.

Which brings us to the second story. General Stanley McChrystal, the U.S. Commander in Afghanistan, admitted that U.S. soldiers have killed :an amazing number of people who were not threats." A soldier under his command asked Gen. McChrystal a question about problems with escalations of force and the general responded,

"I do want to say something that everyone understands. We really ask a lot of our young service people out on the checkpoints because there's danger, they're asked to make very rapid decisions in often very unclear situations. However, to my knowledge, in the nine-plus months I've been here, not a single case where we have engaged in an escalation of force incident and hurt someone has it turned out that the vehicle had a suicide bomb or weapons in it and, in many cases, had families in it. That doesn't mean I'm criticizing the people who are executing. I'm just giving you perspective. We've shot an amazing number of people and killed a number and, to my knowledge, none has proven to have been a real threat to the force."

There is, I believe, a conspiracy and General McChrystal gets at the reason for it in his reply. The U.S., and other western nations, put in a lot of effort to give the impression that there are rules and order to what happens in war. The reality is quite different and the conspiracy is the effort to hide that reality. You cannot make orderly what is by definition disorderly, chaotic, brutal and inhumane. The conspiracy is in place so that people who don't know better, and quite a few that do, will continue to support the war effort thinking that the means and the ends are more nobler than they really are.

To the Hustings

2010-04-06T21:47:00.002-05:00

Gordon Brown went to Buckingham Palace today and asked the Queen to dissolve Parliament, which will lead to a general election to be held on May 6. This parliament's last day is April 12 and then the campaign events really begin in earnest. The first big event after the dissolution of Parliament is the first of 3 television debates on April 15 between the leaders of the 3 main parties. Currently David Cameron's conservatives hold a lead in the pools of roughly 8 points.

The Backbencher is a complete anglophile and will spend much of the next month following the campaign. I hope to blog on the issues, personalities, and events surrounding the campaign as much as possible.

Here We Go Again

2010-04-01T11:33:00.002-05:00

I watched with dismay as President Obama announced his intention to allow for more offshore oil drilling. For me, what is especially galling is his explanation that he is seeking "to move beyond the tired debates between right and left."

Every time I hear Obama talk about getting beyond the debate between left and right, I just assume he is about to sell out liberals and get nothing in return from conservative Republicans.

Fool Me Once

2010-04-01T11:29:00.004-05:00

The Guardian ran a great April Fool's story about Labour's efforts to use Gordon Brown's temper as an electoral strategy.

Update: The Guardian has a series of posters that they and readers created.

Theological Dictionary

2010-03-30T21:46:00.003-05:00

Tebowed: To be profanely reminded of Jesus' admonition about public prayer found in Matthew 6:5

My One Shining Moment

2010-03-26T18:27:00.003-05:00

As I mentioned last week, I attended the 1st and 2nd rounds of NCAA tournament. I experienced too much to give the full impression but here are some tidbits to give a taste of what my March Madness was like.

Watching the Murray State vs Vanderbilt game at the Atlanta airport while on the phone with my brother who was watching the same game. I was standing outside a bar with 100 other people because we could the big screen TVs. My brother's TV was 5 seconds faster and I knew before it happened that Murray State would hit a buzzer beater.

Playing with the Gus Johnson Soundboard.

Seeing media personalities Brent Beaird, Clark Kellogg, Jim Nantz, Stephen A Smith, and John Feinstein.

The fans in the arena always pull for the underdog if they are hanging tough and have a chance to win. This happened twice; When Wofford almost upset Wisconsin and when Cornell upset Wisconsin to go to the Sweet 16.

A Cornell fan had a sign that said Cornell: Our other fans are studying.

The University of Arkansas Pine Bluff had a 16 seeded basketball team but a 1 seed pep band.

Pine Bluff's players got everything out of the experience. The gave fist bumps to their teammates, the players and coaches from Duke, and the officials.

Coaching legends Mike Krzyzewski and Rick Pitino both coached in Jacksonville and used the benches closest to my seat so I could easily watch what they were doing.

I saw Christian Lattner come to support his alma mater and for reasons that probably defy explanation he wore a shirt that had his jersey number and last name.

Over the course of two days I saw a cinderella in Cornell. I saw a great game in Wofford and Wisconsin that Wisconsin won with 17 seconds left and I saw Duke look good and advance to the Sweet 16. All in all a great weekend and I am ready for another opportunity to go again.

At Least You Have Your Healthcare

2010-03-25T15:59:00.005-05:00

President Obama and the Democrats scored a big victory this week with the passage of the healthcare bill. Other people(Ezra Klein and Jonathan Cohn are my go to people) can talk about the substance of the bill better than I can but I want to focus on some of the political aspects.

The passage of this bill means the Democrats will maintain their majority in 2010. Various historic and political trends will mean Republicans gain congressional seats but since they did not defeat Obama and congressional Democrats then they will not gain the majority. Unlike in 94, Democrats have a success to blunt the Republican criticism and popular items they can use to attack Republicans for opposing.

Republicans know this and know the magnitude of this defeat. They also know they lost to an African-American and a woman and many conservatives can't stand that fact either. The world is changing and the old guard is giving way to the new. The healthcare bill demonstrates that the new guard can do what they said they were going to do and that they will be around for a while.

So, Kudos to President Obama, Speaker Pelosi, Sen Harry Reid(who may well have sacrificed his seat) and every Democrat who voted for the bill for achieving the biggest legislative advancement since the Great Society and hopefully ushering an area of more progressive governance.

Look What I Found

2010-03-20T20:18:00.004-05:00

C-SPAN just put an archive of all their videos online. The possibility this offers is endless. It is literally a video history book of the last 20- 30 years and I can't wait to explore.

32 Teams and then Some

2010-03-17T20:59:00.003-05:00

The Backbencher is headed for Florida for a weekend of NCAA basketball. Every few years I go with my dad and my brother to the first and second round of the NCAA Tournament. I like college basketball and I love the tournament, and I would hate to see anything change greatest three weeks on the sports calendar.

Sadly, the NCAA is thinking of increasing the field of the tournament from 65 to 96. The reason is money but this is a bad idea.

Due to the NCAA and conference tournaments, the regular season contains very little meaning. Increasing the field would render the regular meaningless and the lack of meaning would cause people to spend less money on regular season games. I also fail to see how increasing the field would increase interest. Since the top teams would get a bye, the interest generated by possible upsets would be non-existent and without the interest in upsets I think the money would gradually shrink.

Many coaches support this idea because they think that more coaches will keep their job by making tournament. Just as many coaches would be fired within and expanded tournament as they today. Just like SEC football coaches can fired if they don't play in New Years Day or BCS bowl games even if they play in bowl games, basketball coaches would be fired if they don't get enough byes.

Sometimes you just shouldn't mess with a good thing, and I am afraid the NCAA is doing just that.

My Kind of Church

2010-03-13T10:42:00.003-06:00

So, Glenn Beck wants people to leave their churches if the church preaches a message of "social justice. Well, for once, I am glad to say that I agree with Beck. Instead of attending a church preaching "social justice" I want to attend a church that preaches the message of the Bible.

To that end I will only attend a church where "no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything the owned was held in common(Acts 4:32)." Any church I attend will also follow only the Bible and not "social justice" because "there was not a needy person among them for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles feet, and it was distributed to each as they had need(Acts 4:34-35)."

That is my kind of church and I expect to see Glenn Beck sitting beside me in the pew on Sunday.

Backbencher of the Week

2010-03-07T13:28:00.002-06:00

This week we honor a Senator from the Pacific Northwest. Sen Maria Cantwell(D-WA) is recognized for her work cracking down on Wall Street.

Since her election in 2000, Sen Cantwell has focused much of her attention on making sure Americans get a a fair deal from Wall Street corporations. In her first term, she cracked down on Enron and other energy companies that gamed the market at the expense of consumers. Now in her second term, Sen. Cantwell is going after derivatives and other Wall Street practices that have contributed to the country's economic problems. This stance puts her at odds not just with Republicans but also with leading Democrats in the administration and Congress.

The Backbencher is not the only one to recognize Sen. Cantwell's work. Read a detailed account of her efforts to curb Wall Street abuses in The American Prospect and The Nation named her Most Valuable Senator.

The Backbencher is pleased to join the chorus recognizing the work of Maria Cantwell.

Book Review

2010-03-06T15:08:00.004-06:00

I am trying to expand my understanding of the American system of government and the area that I understand the least is Federal Judiciary; especially the Supreme Court. The beginning of my quest to understand the Court, it's justices, and the Constitution is with Linda Geenhouse's study of Justice Harry Blackmun titled Becoming Justice Blackmun.

Greenhouse did not try to write a comprehensive biography of Blackmun but used the release of his papers to study the man and the Court during his time of service. Blackmun is best known as the author of the opinion in Roe vs Wade. The decision, which came early in Blackmun's term as a justice, is the fulcrum for understanding Blackmun's jurisprudence.

Even though Blackmun initially viewed Roe as a means for preserving doctor's ability to treat women, the case began to expand Blackmun's view of justice. He slowly began to expand his conception of justice to include the poor, victims of sex discrimination, and those who have no voice in our legal system.

Greenhouse won a Pulitzer for her coverage of the Supreme Court and it appears it was well deserved. She explains constitutional issues well and makes the world of the Court very accessible. Greenhouse is helped by having the good fortune to chronicle a jurist whose thinking evolved towards a more inclusive understanding of the law.

Tying the Threads Together

2010-03-06T13:53:00.002-06:00

White House news this week was dominated by two major stories. The first was a series of articles that all praised Rahm Emanuel, and blaming Obama's difficulties on not listening to Rahm's more conservative advice. The other story is Washington Post's story about Obama getting ready to reverse course and try 9/11 plotters in a military tribunal.

Ezra Klein has the best take on the Rahm story and what it all means. I have been interested in Rahm ever since the Michele Norris gold star incident. My opinion is that Emanuel is a ruthless genius when it comes to gaining power but he seems to have little concern for what he wants to use the power for.

As for the decision to use military tribunals, Glenzilla, Josh Marshall, and Yglesias all say what needs to said. I will add that what I have noticed that President Obama seems to be able to find the exact limit of what is politically possible(in this case closing Gitmo but keeping miltary tribunals) and then doing what is possible but he does not seem to be able to expand what is politically possible. I find this sad because one of the reasons I supported Obama was I thought he would be able to expand what is politically possible.

Tying these threads together, I would say that the disappointment that exists with Obama comes from his being a President who doesn't know what he will uncompromisingly fight for who is served by aides who don't know what they want power for.

Don't Call it a Comeback

2010-02-28T12:02:00.002-06:00

Gordon Brown and the Labour party are skyrocketing in the polls and look poinsed to possibly pull off an upset and win the elctions. The real question is does Gordon ride the wave of momentum and call for an early election or does he wait things out in hopes that his poll numbers solidfy in advance the expected election date?

So You Want to be a Rox and Roll Star

2010-02-25T16:49:00.002-06:00

On Saturday 10 hearty souls braved the winter cold and a forecast of 5-8 inches of snow(that never materialized) to hear the frontrunner for the Democratic senate nomination. Roxanne Conlin was once a rising star in the Iowa Democratic Party; she was a U.S. attorney during the Carter administration and she was the Democratic nominee for Governor in 1982("I was first runner up," she said). After her gubernatorial bid, Conlin retired from frontline politics. Conlin said that Sen. Chuck Grassley's(R-IA) antics during the debate over healthcare drove her to run against him.

Conlin came off as a typical Democratic candidate. She favors the healthcare reform and even appeared to endorse the idea of "medicare for all." All of the questions were related to domestic issues. Every participant asked about, or voiced support for, healthcare. There were also questions about further stimulus, jobs, and immigration. It also appeared that everyone is sick with American political culture. Most specifically attendees were distressed by the corporate role in American politics and the recent Supreme Court ruling in the Citizens United case. Strikingly, there were no questions about foreign policy or national security. Nobody asked about Iran, Afghanistan, Iran, terrorism or any other foreign policy issue. It is clear that the 2010 election will be focused on domestic issues.

I am glad Roxanne Conlin came to Southwest Iowa, which is the part of Iowa most ignored by the Democratic establishment. I do think her run speaks to the difficult conditions for Democrats this year. The most effective possible challenger is off in D.C. working as the Secretary of Agriculture and the other big names in Iowa Democratic politics all passed on the race when their names were floated as possible challengers. Even though Sen. Grassley disgraced himself with his conduct over the healthcare debate, it seems clear that no major Democrat wants to risk anything to hold him accountable and that is sad.

Even though it is an uphill climb to defeat Grassley, all Iowa Democrats should commend Conlin and the other candidates in the Democratic primary. They have shown a willingness to risk all and hold an incumbent Senator accountable. That deserves our respect and support.

Book Review

2010-02-19T19:07:00.003-06:00

From my days in seminary, I have been interested in English soccer. My roommate was a fan of Arsenal and I often went with him to an English pub in Atlanta to watch the games on satellite. I read, and enjoyed, Nick Hornby's Fever Pitch and I now like to watch Premier League games on ESPN.

I thought I was ready to take my enjoyment of English soccer to the next level and it turns out that I was not quite the connoisseur I thought I was. My attempt came in the form of reading David Peace's tale of soccer legend Brian Clough's disastrous managerial tenure of Leed's United titled The Damned Utd. Peace's book is considered a modern classic and for good reason. The probing of the inner workings of Clough's mind is brillant.

The problem is I lacked the requisite understanding of 1970's English soccer. I felt like I was adrift in a world that I knew little about. It just seemed like I knew very little about he inner workings of a soccer team and the writer wrote with what appeared to be an assumption that his readers would be die-hard soccer fans. An American writer would probably have similar assumptions about baseball or football.

Perhaps in another few years, if my understanding of English soccer grows, then I might return The Damned Utd. and enjoy it more.

Mardis Gras and the Preacher

2010-02-19T18:55:00.002-06:00

A friend of mine from the same young minister's group where Liturgygeek and I met recently became the pastor of a Baptist Church in New Orleans and experienced his first Mardi Gras. He wrote a column and the Times-Picayune published it.

I am taking this Lent off because dealing with a winter that has seen 50 inches of snow is penance enough.

The Play's the Thing

2010-02-19T17:49:00.004-06:00

I have not been posting lately because I have been busy exploring my theatrical side. Our local community theatre put on Alfred Uhry's play The Last Night of Ballyhoo and Liturgygeek and I had roles.

Ballyhoo tells the story of a family of Jews(the Freitags) living in Atlanta in 1939. The start of World War 2 and the Premiere of Gone With the Wind serve as the background historical events of the play. The play, however, centers around a Jewish cotillion called Ballyhoo. In the Feitag family are two cousins; Liturgygeek played the cousin named Lala Levy. I played one of the cousins suitors named Peachy Weil, and I had the red hair to match.

Ballyhoo is a marvelously written play and I had the opportunity to work with a fine director and a talented cast. This was the first play I had been in since I played a watermelon farmer in an elementary school play(a fact that was in the playbill and commented on by at least one audience member after every performance).

I enjoyed every moment of this experience; from the rehearsals in a empty theatre to the performance night; I had a great time. Being in the play was like discovering a hidden treasure. I never thought I would enjoy performing and yet I discovered that I did. This, I believe, is one of the joys of growing older. I discover more things that I like, I try new activities, and my horizons broaden. Liturgygeek has a bacground in theatre and one of the great things about being married(both in general and in specifics) is having a spouse introduce you to their loves and you discovering that you share that love and enjoyment.

Now that I have discovered this enjoyment of theatre, I am learning the other side of being in a play. While Liturgygeek directs a performance of The Hobbit, I will be learning the ropes as the assistant stage manager.

Why the Healthcare Bill Needs to be Passed

2010-02-04T13:17:00.002-06:00

I work at a hospital, and lately I have noticed flyers around my office advertising a benefit for a fellow employee. The benefit is to help with medical costs for the employee and the employee's family. I do not know this person and do not know any details about the illness.

I think that what the hospital employees are doing is admirable and deserves to be commended. However, it points to the biggest weakness in out healthcare system. A hospital employee with good benefits is still in financial straits due to a major medical problem. In the richest and most powerful country in the world. this is unacceptable and needs to change. Yet the U.S. system of employer based private insurance is no longer sustainable.

The House of Representatives could change this tomorrow if would pass the Senate healthcare bill. The Senate could help if it would produce a reconciliation bill. The President could help if he would signal what he wants done.

The bill is not perfect and it is not what I would dream of having but it is a good bill. It makes sure that people will always have insurance. It makes sure that the government will help people who have have trouble affording insurance buy insurance, and it sets the groundwork for controlling medical costs. The healthcare bill will do a lot of good for a lot of people and a little bit of good for a lot more.

Pass the Damn Bill.

Beagle Blogging

2010-02-04T12:04:00.003-06:00

From fellow beagle lover Andrew Sullivan comes this headline from the New York Post, Savage beagles terrorize East End. The story itself is sad and infuriating; wild beagles are loose on Long Island because hunters realease them in the woods when they are no longer good for hunting. However, it must be said that the headline is great.

Here is a photo of our dogs, named Leroy Brown and Rory, practicing their savageness by playing a little game called frogger.

Obama and the State of One Year

2010-01-28T11:07:00.003-06:00

A year and a week after Obama was inaugurated, he appeared before Congress to deliver his first State of the Union. Even though, Obama should be in good political shape(Democrats actually hold more seats today than they did a year ago and there are incremental but substantial successes to point to) recent events made it feel like the President was in political trouble. The recent Massachusetts special election, and ensuing Democratic freak out, made the situation look worse then it should.

Obama used his speech to give a reset to his administration. I liked that the President came out fighting and defending his record. I also enjoyed the air of silent tension in the House chamber. While the audience was outwardly more respectable, there appeared to be a constant undercurrent of reaction to Obama's speech(even from Associate Justice Samuel Alito). It felt like a Prime Minister addressing the House of Commons on a serious subject. I am also glad that the President affirmed his support for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell, and Defense Secretary Gates endorsement.

I wanted to hear a firm commitment on Obama's plan for passing the healthcare bill. While he did not give the firm direction I was hoping for, Obama did appear to give a guiding hand to the direction he wanted to go. He said he would not "walk away" from healthcare, and then later said the Democrats still had large majorities and "should not run for the hills." My belief is that this is the boost needed to encourage the House to pass the Senate bill and for the Senate to promise to use reconciliation to address the needed fixes but granted I am reading between the lines.

Ultimately what will determine the success and effectiveness of Obama's 1st State of the Union is the passage of healthcare, and a change in the jobs and economic outlook.

Book Review

2010-01-28T08:51:00.002-06:00

For a long time I have been interested in reading E.L. Doctorow, and this week I dived in by read City of God. It is clear why people consider Doctorow to be one of our greatest living novelists. Doctorow is able to take difficult and complicated ideas and through his use of language and narrative mastery make those ideas accessible. There is no bigger idea then the idea of God and that is the idea that Doctorow tackles in City of God.

Doctorow addresses the the issue of God by intertwining a series of narratives, reflections, and commentaries. The tie that holds all these narrative threads together is the story of the theft of a cross from an Episcopal church and its subsequent discovery on the roof of a synagogue. This theft and investigation bring together the iconoclastic priest of the episcopal church and the female rabbi at the synagogue.

Doctorow's theme is the necessity to strip away all the trappings and build a belief system based on the most primal yearning for God. For Doctorow that means religion and God are what brings us closer to each other in either love or a quest for justice.

City of God is thought provoking and so well written that it draws you in as you read it. However, Doctorow's method of jumping from thread to threat is distracting. For me, I was almost a third of the why through the book before I was able to untangle the threads to get a handle on what is going on. As a card carrying(and paycheck receiving) member of the professionally religious, I have my doubts about being able to strip away all the trappings to get to the essence of religion.

Doctorow focuses on Christianity and Judaism and the essence of those religions is that God communicates through the events of history. In effect the method and the message are indistinguishable from each other. To strip away the method is to strip away the message, and Doctorow seems to want to do both; even though his different narratives make underlie the idea of the method is the message.

Even though I had some quibbles with City of God, I am impressed enough by Doctorow that I want to read some more of his books.

Book Review

2010-01-21T16:06:00.006-06:00

I took a trip to Savannah, GA and I was able to read two books on my vacation from winter. One disappointed me and the other provided me great joy as I read.

The first book I read was The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. A follow up(but not a sequel) to Zafon's masterly The Shadow of the Wind, The Angel's Game does not live up to its forebearer. Zafon creates a tale with a great number of plot twists and unexpected turns. However, the book reads like Zafon got so carried away with creating plot twists that he was unable to find a good way to end the story. Zafon also seemed to get wrapped up in the spiritual aspects of the story that it did not seem that he was able to weave this strain into the story in an effective way. In spite of these disappointments, Zafon is such a gifted user of language that the book was a pleasurable disappointment.

Due to an unusually long mechanical delay on my flight to Savannah, I ran out of reading material and needed to buy more books. The book I bought was Clyde Edgerton's The Bible Salesman and I am glad I did. The book focuses on a 20 year door to door Bible salesman in 1950's North Carolina. The salesman is a little on the naive side and ends up getting involved in a multi-state car theft ring because he believes he is actually helping undercover FBI agents. Along the way, our salesman begins to read the Bible and realizes what it says isn't what his fundamentalist upbringing led him to believe the Bible said. As someone who grew up in a religious culture that revered a certain view of the Bible, and tried to pretend it was still 1953, I greatly enjoyed the gentile satire that recognizes the good that people in that culture are capable of but also recognizes the mental childishness that thrives in fundamentalist religion. Oh, and the book will make you laugh out loud. It is that funny and that good.

Mass Reax.

2010-01-20T20:35:00.002-06:00

Last night in Massachusetts Republican Scott Brown defeated Democrat Martha Coakley to win the special election to fill the U.S. Senate seat most recently held by the late Sen. Ted Kennedy(D-MA). I feel obligated to share some of my thoughts about this development.

1. Congratulations are in order to Senator-elect Brown. He ran the better campaign; he diagnosed the mood of the electorate better, he ran a more disciplined campaign, and he was quick to pounce on Coakley's many gaffes. Sometimes in politics the person who does a better job is rewarded.

2. This is a setback for President Obama and the Democrat's agenda but it is only any insurmountable obstacle if Obama and the Congressional leaders allow it it to be one. I have long thought that Obama spent most of his political capital cleaning up the mess the Bush administration left. However, I thought there was still enough capital to pass the healthcare bill. All the the other major agenda items are probably of the table; except for economic and job issues that can be addressed through the budget and reconciliation process. Still with helathcare added to the mix this would be a substantive first Congressional session for Obama.

3. There is a Senate helathcare bill that the House can pass tomorrow if it wants to and there is still an empty healthcare reconciliation bill that can also be used. The House needs to pass that bill and then come back and use the reconciliation bill to pass the compromises the White House and Congress are currently negotiating. Morally this has to happen because people need to have access to healthcare and they need to know they will always be able to have health insurance. Politically, this bill has to pass because Congressional Democrats and President Obama cannot afford to not have this bill pass. If this bill fails then it will be the end of Democratic power in Washington for a long time. Also Democrats need to change the narrative. Right now the narrative is that the Democrats are in disarray and their agenda is possible. If healthcare passes then the narrative changes to Democrats fight and overcome setback to pass healthcare bill.

I have been watching Democrats for too long to think they will choose the obvious path. However, I hope they soon see that this is only real path they have.

No Time Like the Present

2010-01-07T15:19:00.005-06:00

If Labour's 1983 general election manifesto is "The longest suicide note in history," then it appears that the ensuing 27 years Labour has become more concise and efficient in committing political hari-kari.

During yesterday's session of Prime Minister's Questions (a session that the press said Gordon Brown won), two former Labour ministers circulated a letter asking for a secret ballot vote of the Party's confidence in Gordon Brown's leadership as Prime Minister. Patricia Hewitt and Geoff Hoon launched the coup believing that up to a half dozen Cabinet ministers would join in the coup. The coup fell apart as during the afternoon and evening Cabinet ministers announced their support.

With a General Election this year, and the campaigning informally begun, there could not have been a worse time for an attempted leadership coup. All the recent polling indicates that Labour had pulled close enough to the Conservatives that a hung parliament was a possibility. At the very least the Tories would have a small majority in the Commons, and small majorities make it harder to push an agenda through and can often lead to early elections.

It seems to me that this aborted coup is the type of event that can seal a party's fate. The end result will be, I think, a reasonably comfortable Tory majority and a bloody Labour leadership election.

UK Political Nerdiness

2010-01-07T11:20:00.002-06:00

Since the temperature is hovering around zero, and the wind chill makes it feel like the temperature is well below zero, I am spending my day off inside watching my DVD collection of Yes Minister. I am also spending my time playing with the greatest online political toy on the internet.

Ukpollingreport is the must go to site for making sense of events in the run up to the UK general election. They have a swingometer map that allows you to enter the projected percentages for each party. On a map of Great Britain(the map does not appear to have the Northern Ireland constituencies) the constituencies change color based on the party expected win the particular seat. I have spent the better part of the new year entering different percentages to see what seats would change hands.

Anyway, the swingometer map is a great way to waste time on the internet and yes I realize that I expose myself as more of a nerd then previously acknowledged.

Mom's Chili

2010-01-04T21:15:00.002-06:00

The Backbencher's mom makes the best chili; an impressive feat when you consider she lives in a climate that allows people to eat chili for about 3 weeks every year. She sent me the recipe this weekend and I made a pot. Liturgygeek said that it was teh awesome, and so I decided to share the recipe with you.

Ingredients

1 1/2 lb. of ground beef (or a combination of beef and sausage)

1 medium chopped onion

1 pkg. Chili-O seasoning

2 tsp. of cumin and paprika

1 tsp. of salt and pepper

1 can of stewed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste

1 cup of water

1 can of chili beans and kidney beans

1 beef bouillon cube

5 tbs. of chili powder

Directions

Brown ground beef in a large pot. While browning meat chop the onion. When the meat is browned add the onion and then season with the Chili-O, cumin, paprika, salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes, sauce, paste, and water. Add the beans and the chili powder. Cook for at least 20 minutes, stirring often and adding more chili powder to taste if you so desire. Serve with tortillas, crackers, chopped onion, or cheese.

Backbencher of the Week

2009-12-27T17:16:00.002-06:00

Matt Yglesias points us to this article in the Washington Post about possibly endangered Democratic congressmen. One of the most endangered is this week's Backbencher of the Week. Rep. Tom Perreilo(D-VA-5) represents a districts that leans strongly Republican, and in the 2008 Democratic tidal wave election Perreilo won by 727 votes. Despite being vulnerable, Congressman Perreilo voted for the stimulus, cap-and-trade, and the healthcare bill.

When asked about his vulnerability, Perreilo said "My ultimate goal is not to get reelected, It is to know that I did the best damn job I could representing the people of the 5th district and making a difference. That's just a different litmus test then some of the powers that be are used to working with."

For understanding the nature of his job, and working to do as much with his time in Congress as he can, we are pleased to award this week's Backbencher of the Week to Rep. Tom Perreilo.

White Christmas 09

2009-12-26T09:55:00.003-06:00

The Backbencher no longer has to dream about a White Christmas because he has now experienced one.

They Got Cars Big as Bars; They Got Rivers of Gold

2009-12-25T10:24:00.002-06:00

The Backbencher hopes all your Christmas wishes come true

The Difference Between a Moderate Republican and a Conservative Democrat

2009-12-20T18:44:00.005-06:00

However much it stinks to high heaven, and it stinks a whole lot, there was a deal that could get Sen. Ben Nelson to vote yea on the healthcare bill. With her refusal to back the healthcare bill because she feels the bill is being rushed, Sen. Olympia Snowe(R-ME) makes it clear that no deal could be reached to earn her vote.

The incentives(political, partisan, and individual) were always structured in a way that Sen. Nelson would feel pressure to support the bill but Sen. Snowe would feel strong pressure to oppose.

The difference between a conservative Democrat and a moderate Republican is the difference between finding a way to get to yes and finding a way to get to no.

Backbencher of the Week

2009-12-20T17:53:00.002-06:00

Though serving less then a year, Sen. Al Franken(D-MN) has already managed to garner a substantive accomplishment.

Back in October, Sen. Franken purposed an amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill. Based on the case of Jamie Leigh Jones, the amendment prevents the department of Defense from contracting with companies that do not allow victims of sexual assault to pursue their case through the courts. Despite opposition from the Defense Department, and Republican men, the bill President Obama signed included Sen. Franken's amendment.

For a substantive accomplishment that stands up for women, and attacks the practices of military contractors, we are glad to award Backbencher of the Week to Sen. Al Franken.

Cleveland 41 Kansas City 34

2009-12-20T17:46:00.001-06:00

The joy of watching two bad teams play each other.

San Francisco on the Buffalo Bayou

2009-12-14T19:04:00.001-06:00

I wonder if Liturgygeek will like Texas a little more bit because of this?

Uganda and Grassley Update

2009-12-14T18:51:00.003-06:00

The Republican Senator from my state, Sen. Chuck Grassley(R-IA), came out over the weekend and condemned the Ugandan homosexuality law.

An Ivy League Education

2009-12-13T14:40:00.002-06:00

Yale University, through their Open Yale program, offers the chance to listen to lectures that Yale professors give to their classes. You can go to the above link or download the lectures through iTunes. Besides the lectures, it is also possible to download the syllabus and reading lists.

Right now I am listening to Dr. David Blight's lectures on the Civil War and Reconstruction. I am planning on listening to lectures on European civilization, the modern American novel, Astronomy, and Old and New Testament.

Other colleges offer lectures and other presentations through iTunes U.

Springtime for Elections in England

2009-12-13T14:04:00.003-06:00

Both the Labour Party and the Conservative Party are preparing for the possibility of an early election. The reports all say that there is a growing likely hood that soon after the new year Gordon Brown will call for an early election scheduled for March 25.

The Tories have maintained a constant lead in the polls since the last half of 2007 but recent polling indicates that Labour is closing the gap. This strengthening of Labour's position is leading many Labour MPs to push for a March poll.

I don't think Labour can close the gap enough to win but they are pushing the polling into hung parliament territory. If that is the case then the Liberal Democrats become king makers and Labour might stay in office through Lab-Lib coalition.

Tom Said Stop Talking

2009-12-13T13:33:00.002-06:00

Sen. Tom Harkin(D-IA) is talking about resurrecting an idea he had fifteen years ago. Back in 1995, Sen Harkin teamed up with Sen. Joe Lieberman(I-CT) to introduce a bill that would curtail the filibuster. The proposal would have instituted a gradual threshold for ending debate. The first vote would require 60 votes for cloture but each successive vote would lower the threshold until it only required 51 votes to end debate.

After watching Max Baucus and his "gang of 6" drag out their deliberations on healthcare reform to the point of almost killing the bill, it is clear that there are plenty of ways for Congress to stop a bill from becoming law. The filibuster is a holdover from a bygone era and its use to stop progress, especially progress on civil rights, is evidence that the filibuster has long outlived its usefulness. The Senate recognizes this fact and instituted the process of reconciliation that allows bills related to the federal budget to pass with 51 votes. If 51 is good enough for budget votes then it is good enough for al bills the Senate considers.

I am especially glad to see that Sen. Harkin is leading the charge. As a longtime Senator, Harkin would usually be expected to jealously guard his prerogatives. Instead Sen. Harkin is to be commended for putting the good of the country, and the Congress, above his own individual prerogatives.

Backbencher of the Week

2009-12-13T12:48:00.003-06:00

Over in the UK, there is an investigation going on about how the British government decided to join the U.S. in the Iraq war. One of the strongest critics of the decision to go to war to emerge during the investigation is the Conservative MP Adam Holloway. Holloway represents the constituency of Gravesham and he sits on one of the parliamentary defense committees.

This week Holloway claimed that one of the biggest pieces of evidence the Blair government used to make its case for war came from an conversation a Baghdad taxi driver overheard. The Blair government claimed that Saddam Hussein could launch WMD in 45 minutes. According to Holloway, an intelligence report debunks the claim and note the intelligence communities belief that the report was not reliable.

It is always heartening to see politicians on the right of the political spectrum speak out against war. Rep. Ron Paul(R-TX-14) and Rep. Walter Jones(R-NC-3) due valuable service in the U.S. when they criticize the Iraq War from the right. Holloway is doing the same in the UK and for that reason he is this week's Backbencher of the Week.

Stepping Up

2009-12-11T20:25:00.008-06:00

It is good to see that Rick Warren and Sen. Tom Coburn(R-OK) both speak out about the bill the in Uganda that strongly curtails the rights of gays and lesbians.

I wish my Senator had the moral sense the Rev. Warren and Sen Coburn possess.

The Nobel Prize for War and Peace

2009-12-11T20:25:00.006-06:00

President Obama accomplished the rare feat of accepting the the Nobel Peace Prize while in the process of escalating a war. The President used this occasion to articulate his particular interpretation of the "just war" theory.

He starts by acknowledging his debt to Martin Luther King but also says that as President he can't "be guided by their [King's and Ghandi's] example alone." Fair enough. However, I wonder if King's words about his country being the largest purveyor of violence in the world makes any impact on Obama's view point. Obama is right is that there is nothing naive or passive in King's methods but I wish Obama also recognized that King was spot-on in his view of the U.S. It appears that Obama's position limits his ability to see.

To defend the idea of 'just war," Obama states "a non violent movement cold not have stopped Hitler's armies." Pulling out the Hitler card is a cheap sot by the President; especially by cherry picking the date. A non-violent movement could not have stopped Hitler on September 1, 1939 or on June 6, 1944. However, Hitler did not come from out of nowhere. Hitler had been a force since the early 1930's and a non-violent movement might well have stopped at an earlier date.

Obama's big idea is that it is possible to fight a war on humanitarian grounds. I believe the President is sadly mistaken. First, when a country decides to go to war it makes a decision to commit resources that would be allocated in a different manner towards the war. The New Deal died at the hands of World War 2; President Franklin Roosevelt admitted as much when he had Dr. New Deal give way to Dr. Win the War. President Johnson's Great Society died at the hands of the Vietnam War. With a military budget of nearly 670 billion dollars, it is worth asking what kind of humanitarian projects at home are being starved at the expense of our war machine. What kind of humanitarian action continue to allow millions of people to go without health insurance or only sluggishly attempts to address the fact that 1o% of Americans are unemployed.

During his speech, Obama continually cites the war in Afghanistan as an example of the kind of war the fits into his paradigm. It's hard to see how that can be the case. Obama calls the war in Afrghanistan a "war we did not seek." This is a limited view of what precipitated the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. There is nothing in the 9/11 attacks that made a military response inevitable or necessary. the attacks on Pearl Harbor, which are the closest cousin to 9/11, were a strictly military attack. The Japanese Navy attacked U.S. military installations in the Hawaii. The surprise and shock of the attack does not diminish the military nature of December 7, 1941. 9/11 was not a military attack and should be viewed as a crime against humanity. Nothing suggests that a military response was required. Instead an international law enforcement effort could have accomplished much of the same thing. When the use of Guantanamo, black sites, and the Prison at Bagram are factored in it is impossible to see the military solution as being in any way "humanitarian."

Obama does touch on some meaningful goals. He continues to tout the idea of complete nuclear disarmament and the idea of diplomacy with unfriendly nations. However, I find myself disapointed with Obama's address. He speaks to having to dal with the world the way it is and I understand that. However, part of engaging and changing the world is changing the tools we use to engage the world. President Obama inherited a way of engaging the world that was strongly biased toward the military. Instead of siezing the opportunity to change out direction, Obama chose to embrace and defend it.

Why the Senate Doesn't Work

2009-12-08T19:37:00.004-06:00

The Democrats have to get the vote of of a Senator who is opposed to adding to the deficit to pay for health care but would issue war bonds, which are nothing but another form of debt, to pay for the war of Afghanistan and Iraq.

Backbencher of the Week

2009-12-06T19:52:00.003-06:00

The Backbencher is a fan of Sen. Bernie Sanders(I-VT) and his type of Democratic Socialism. We recognized Sen. Sanders earlier this year for his work on healthcare reform, and now we recognize his work on the issue of reforming the financial system.

On Wednesday night, Sen Sanders placed a hold on the nomination on Ben Bernanke's nomination for a 2nd term as Chair of the Federal Reserve. Joining Sander with the hold, and also as Backbencher of the Week, is Sen. Jim Bunning(R-KY.) Bunning hold a warm place in the Backbencher's heart because he is a curmudgeonly old coot who is a constant pain in the rear to his fellow Kentuckian Sen. Mitch McConnell(R-KY). Also joining the Coalition of the Holders, and the winners of Backbencher of the Week, is Sen Jim DeMint(R-SC). These three will probably never be celebrated together again on this blog, but attention must be paid when a bi-partisan group of Senators forms to look at changes to the Fed.

Most of the reading I have done regarding the financial crisis indicates that Bernanke did as good a job as anyone given the circumstances. However, there are real questions if he is the right person to rebuild the economy. During Senate hearings this week, chairman Bernanke called for cuts to Social Security and argued against further measures to stimulate the economy and raise employment. Even though part of the mission of the Federal Reserve is maintain high employment, Bernanke is opposed to doing anything that might raise the employment level.

As Ezra Klein points out, the Fed Chair is to be insulated from day to to politics but he is not an independent actor. Politicians appoint and confirm the Chair, and their decision is an expression of the policy they want to see the Fed enact.

As a good government liberal, I would like to see Senate policy(including the use of holds) changed. However, the correct use of political power on the Fed is worthy of this week's Backbencher of the Week. Congratulations to Sens. Sanders, Bunning, and DeMint.

A Christian Nation?!

2009-12-03T19:09:00.004-06:00

When theocrats in the U.S. talk about wanting the U.S. to be a "Christian Nation," this is what they are talking about. Ugandan politicians with connections to U.S. evangelicals like Rick Warren and the the political/religious group the Family(the people who are responsible for the Stupak amendment) are pushing a bill that make Homosexuality a crime punished by life imprisonment or in some cases the death penalty.

Theocrats would like to bring the same type of bill to the U.S. but are prevented by our strong tradition of tolerance and by the idea of the separation of church and state. Groups fighting to uphold our grand traditions of tolerance and the separation of church and state include more secular based groups like the American Civil Liberties Union, religious groups like the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, and groups with feet in both camps like Americans United for the Separation of Church and State.

The Backbencher encourages you to clink on the above links to learn about these groups, support these groups, and find ways to join in the fight to keep church and state separate.

I Will Send Them 15,000 by 15,000

2009-12-03T14:43:00.002-06:00

President Obama decided this week to send an additional 30,00 troops to Afghanistan. I oppose this move because I think it prolongs the attempt at a military solution where there is no military solution to be found. The position which John Kerry took in the 2004 election is I believe the right one; Terrorism is a law enforcement issue much more than a military one.

The correct way to defeat international terrorism is to increase use of law enforcement methods, and that includes the use of civilian Federal Court system. Increased international cooperation among police and intelligence agencies are also important tools in the arsenal against international terrorism. The best way to combat international terrorism is to invest in resources for 1st responders and capabilities to rebuild, increase the use of law enforcement and criminal justice resources, and reduce the use of the military. It would also be very beneficial to stop taking actions (like invading countries for no reason) that increase the risk of terrorism.

I remember when the purpose of going into Afghanistan was to capture Osama Bin Laden "dead or alive." Somehow that has turned into a long term effort to stabilize Afghanistan. I am afraid that this mission creep will cause the Obama administration to lose sight of the goal, which as far as I am concerned as been to bring the perpetrators of 9/11 to justice. The hijackers can not be brought to justice because they died in the attacks, and the alleged mastermind will brought to trial in a New York courtroom. That leaves only bin Laden as the last real Al Qaeda leader remaining. Since the safe house for the planning of the 9/11 attacks was in Hamburg, Germany, occupying various Afghan provinces does not really make us safer and it might be harmful if this "surge" keeps the government's focus away from Al Qaeda.

I do not feel betrayed by Obama because this is what he said he was going to do. However, I do feel like a moment that could have been used to reorient our policy had been lost. President Obama could have moved towards a more law enforcement approach. Instead he continue the imperial project and increased our military presence, and I do feel very dispaointed about the opportunity missed.

Saved by the Moderates?

2009-11-29T15:47:00.006-06:00

The Senate begins debate on the healthcare this week, and the quality of the bill might depend on the stubbornness of a group of Senate moderates. This group of moderates includes Sen. Mary Landrieu(D-LA), Sen Joe Lieberman(I-CT), Sen. Blanche Lincoln(D-AR), and Sen. Ben Nelson(D-NE). All 4 of these Senators currently outright oppose or are skeptical of a bill including a public option. Each of the 4 senators have their own reasons and it might be difficult to appease all of them.

However, the opposition of these 4 might provide a a means for strengthening the bill. A new report from the Urban Institute says that a public option with triggers would be better then the public options currently in any of the legislation before Congress. There is also talk in the progressive community about the weaknesses of the public option. The problem with the public option is that it is not tied to medicare rates and it has limited eligibility. With these limitations, the public option could very likely become a dumping ground for uninsurable; which would make the public option more expensive.

A public option with a strong trigger might be able a better bill and might be able to pass the Senate because of the support of Maine's Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins. I also think that a bill that jettisons the public might be a very good bill if it includes increased subsidies and increased access to the insurance exchanges.

There are good reasons to continue to fight for a public option. A successful public option would help liberals make the case that an increased role for government actually helps people's lives, and it would be easier to fix a weak public option then it would to create one at a later date. Those are both good reason to continue to fight for a public option but if those moderate senators are willing to increase subsidies and increase eligibility for the exchanges then I would be willing to make a deal on the public option.

Book Review

2009-11-22T19:35:00.003-06:00

Once he found out he was dying, Ted Kennedy gathered his journals, diaries, and the interviews he did for an oral history project and turned them into his memoir True Compass. True Compass is a very engaging and readable book and is a quicker read then a lot of political memoirs.

A great deal of the book's readability comes from Kennedy's natural talent as a storyteller and the quality of the stories he has to tell. Many of the best ones deal with the lengths Kennedy was willing to go to during the 1960 presidential election(a photo at rodeo in Wyoming illustrates this point). Kennedy also went to great lengths to speak at the 2008 Democratic Democratic Convention soon after doctors diagnosed him with a brain tumor. I thought I had followed the 2008 campaign closely but Kennedy shed light on a couple of details that I had not previously known.

The most difficult part of the book was reading about the 1980 election. Kennedy challenged President Jimmy Carter for the Democratic nomination because of disagreements over health care. I admire Jimmy Carter and it hurt me to read of the continuing and long lasting rupture between these two men.

As to be expected from a younger brother(and a considerably younger brother at that) there is little critical said about his family. It is clear that Ted Kennedy has no time for many of the stories about his family and that John and Bobby could do no wrong. John's mediocre record of President is due to it being unfinished and that most the Great Society was passed because it was based on JFK's ideas and not because Johnson was better at getting legislation passed then Kennedy was. Also the book tries to protect Robert's image as ruthless and ignores such facts that it was Robert as Attorney General who acquiesced with J. Edgar Hoover's campaign against Martin Luther King. I can fully understand why Ted Kennedy is not critical of his family but I wondered if Ted might have been better served if he had been more critical of the lessons he learned from his family.

Kennedy's greatest success came in the Senate and he talks at lengths about many of them. He is also not shy about talking about his greatest political struggle and that was trying to achieve universal health coverage. Interestingly his proposal during the Clinton administration looks a lot like what the final product of this year's health care debate will look like. Kennedy's proposal included a "pay or play" version of the employer mandate and an individual mandate that included subsidies and a more regulated health insurance industry. I feel better about the this year's proposals after reading about what Kennedy wanted.

You cant' tell the story of the last 50 years. without including the Kennedy family. There success and tragedies are integral part of American history. Ted Kennedy's role and importance is indisputable and True Compass allows a major player in a half century worth of history to tell his story in his own voice.

Back in Byrd's Day

2009-11-19T19:50:00.002-06:00

Sen. Robert Byrd(D-WV) is now the longest serving member of Congress in history. Starting in 1953, Byrd served six years in the House and in 1959 moved into the Senate. While breaking the record previously held by Arizona's Carl Hayden, Byrd has cast over 18,000 votes. Byrd's career in Congress has spanned such an expanse of history that he was able to fully support Barack Obama's presidential run forty four yeas after opposing the Civil Right's act. Senator Byrd's accomplishments are many, and the fact that half of West Virginia is named for Byrd is evidence of that fact, but perhaps his greatest moment came when he opposed the Iraq War.

When he was first elected to the Senate in 1958, Sen Byrd defeated the incumbent Republican who had the greatest name in Senate history; Chapman Revercomb.

Taking the 5th

2009-11-19T10:27:00.002-06:00

The 5th Congressional district of Iowa comprises all of western part of the state. All of us who live in the 5th district have the joy of being represented by Republican Steve King. It is not that King is a conservative Republican that makes him an embarrassment but the fact that he is a unrepentant bigot. King called a vote against Hurricane Katrina Relief was "the best vote I ever cast." He cast the lone vote against a resolution honoring the slaves who built the U.S. Capitol.

Fighting the good fight to replace King is Mike Denklau. The Backbencher is an avid supporter of Denklau's campaign and encourages you to do the same. If you live in the 5th district, then find out when Mike is going to be in your area and go meet him. The Backbencher also encourages you to find ways to assist with his campaign. If you live outside the 5th, then consider contributing and telling your friends to that we can raise the national profile of this campaign.

Mike Denklau's website is here.

Here is an ActBlue fundraising page if you want to contribute.

Trying the Terrorists

2009-11-15T16:18:00.003-06:00

This big news this weekend is that Attorney General Eric Holder decided to try some of the Al-Qaeda terrorists in U.S. Federal Courts. One of the people that will be tried is the person the government believes masterminded the attacks on 9/11/01. I think Holder's decision is a courageous and wise decision and I wish he would extend it to cover all the alleged terrorists that we hold in custody.

I have some thoughts about this decision.

1. It is my belief that this is the best way to defeat the terrorists. Al-Qaeda sees itself at war with the West and they want to west to react militarily so that the West overreacts and muslims respond by joining Al-Qaeda. Why would we want to play by the rules? I think treating Al-Qaeda like criminals will defuse the myth that they are super villains and deflate their standing.

It is my firm belief that the best way t defeat them is to use the institutions that enshrine the values of our democracy. Our ideals and values are stronger and more enduring than any bomb. Demonstrating our values in action before the world(friend, enemy, and skeptical) will do more to come closer to victory then any military action.

2. I do not understand the objections to the Attorney General's decision. I no see no security threat. Our courts and police have handled plenty of terrorists and other dangerous criminals. The Federal courts have successfully prosecuted the first world trader center bombers(in New York City), Eric Robert Rudolph, the Oklahoma City Bombers, and 20th hijacker Zacarias Moussaoui. All of these trials went off safely and without any security disruption.

As for the fear of terrorists being released on a technicality; I think that fear is is misplaced. A "technicality" usually means the police or the prosecutor were sloppy. On a case as important as one involving Al-Qaeda, we would want our police and prosecutors to give their best and most detailed effort.

I also don't buy the threat of losing an intelligence resource. If there are safety considerations about an informant then our government contains plenty of people with expertise in providing security to witnesses. Otherwise the chance to public bring Al-Qaeda terrorists to justice and hold them to account in front of the whole world is worth the risk to our intelligence resources.

The U.S. effort against Al-Qaeda has suffered from too many self inflicted wounds. It is time that the U.S. anti-terrorism efforts earn a victory by upholding U.S. values and the institutions that uphold those values. Attorney General Holder's decision is a good first start.

Book Review

2009-11-14T09:12:00.004-06:00

The blue posts in the above photographs mark where the San Andreas Fault crosses the the southern portion of the Point Reyes Peninsula(about 50 miles north of the epicenter of 1906 earthquake).

I spent part of my childhood in the San Frncisco Bay Area, and I have been fascinated with th 1906 earthquake for as long as I can remember. As a boy I had a calendar commemorating the San Francisco earthquake and fire. I would often open the calendar and stare at the photographs show ing the damage the earthquake caused.

This week I read a comprehensive history of the earthquake and fire. San Francisco is Burning is Dennis Smith's narrative history of the 1906 disaster. Dennis Smith is a retired New York City firefighter and the author of Report From Engine Co. 82(the best book about firefighting ever written).

Since Smith is a retired firefighting, there is a lot of focus on the efforts to fight the fires. However the theme of the book might be how the disaster transformed the city of San Francisco. The disaster brought about the fall of the corrupt forces that ran the city and led to a rise of a government based on progressive reforms.

Smith's tale does have its heros and they are first and foremost the San Francisco Fire Department and a group of naval sailors led Lt. Commander Frederick Freeman and Ensign John Pond. The villains of the disaster are the corrupt mayor Eugene Schmitz and the political boss Abraham Ruef. Brigadier General Frederick Funston and the army come off not as villains but as people in over their heads whose mistakes add to the disaster. One of the devices Smith uses to tell the story is focus on a small group people and incidents as way to draw a wider picture of the devastation.

Smith's real gift has always been the ability to combine an understanding of the technical details of a fire or a disaster with an insight into the human dimension of people caught up in such a cataclysm. This gift makes for an engrossing an informative read.

Obama as Commander in Chief

2009-11-12T19:34:00.005-06:00

If the reports that Obama has rejected all the options about Afghanistan that the military has presented are true, then this is good news. President Obama wants a plan that more effectively deals with the corruption in the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzi and a plan that includes a timeline for eventual turning over of the war to the Afghan army.

I am glad to to see President Obama exercising his authority over the military. Even though our society regular treats military leaders as dispassionate experts, it is worth noting that military leaders always have an agenda.

I am reminded of a story about how Franklin Roosevelt exercised his authority as commander in chief. During the early months of World War II, Roosevelt was embroiled in a debate with his top military commanders. President Roosevelt agreed with Winston Churchill and the British military that there should be an invasion of North Africa. The American military did not want to invade North Africa. Army generals wanted to invade Europe directly and they wanted to invade as soon as they could. Navy Admirals did not want to invade North Africa because they wanted the resources allocated for North Africa to be sent to fight Japan in the Pacific Theatre.

When the allied governments announced their intentions to invade North Africa, American generals and admirals got together and said that they could not support the plan and all the the resources should be diverted to the Pacific. Roosevelt called their bluff and told them to have a detailed plan to him the next morning. Since the military did not have a plan ready, the plan they produced was not very good. Roosevelt rejected the plan and ordered the military to go along with the invasion of North Africa.

Roosevelt knew what I hope Obama is learning and that is the military's agenda does not always coincide with what the President was elected to do.

The Separation of Church and License Plate

2009-11-12T16:08:00.003-06:00

On Tuesday, a U.S. District Court Judge ruled that Christian themed license plates issued by the state of South Carolina that proclaim "I Believe" are unconstitutional. Judge Cameron McGowan Currie said that the case "presents a textbook example of the need for and continued vitality of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution," and that the law "gives the impression that Christianity, as the majority religion, is also the preferred religion and its adherents favored citizens."

I am a strong believer in the separation of church and state because I believe that church losses the power of its message when it enmeshes itself with the state. What does the license plate actually say? "I am a Christian because the state of South Carolina lets me." "The message of the Gospel is most powerful when presented on a platform made possible by the state of South Carolina." This type of thinking leads to a belief that Christ and the Church have no power and that all the power belongs to the state.

It saddens me that the legislative sponsors are all Baptists because the great Baptist gift to the U.S. is the separation of church and state. It seems that there are many Baptists are willing to sell their religious inheritance for some meager crumbs from Caesar's table.

On Armistice Day

2009-11-11T19:45:00.003-06:00

Today is Veteran's Day is the U.S. but originally today was called Armistice Day. Today commemorates the signing of the armistice that ended World War I. Over time, the day has morphed into Veteran's day and I feel like that is unfortunate.

Veteran's Day has turned into a celebration of all things military instead of the somber remembrance of war that it should be. War is always industrialized mass murder and a military is the organization dedicated to carrying out industrialized mass murder.

Armistice Day began as a way to remember those who died in the calamity of World War I. When President Woodrow Wilson signed the bill creating Armistice Day into law he said the purpose of the day was to "be dedicated to the cause of world peace."

I wish that instead of a day glorifying the military we could actually work on the original cause for the day. One way we could do this we be to look at just what a calamity war really is. We could perhaps reflect on the fact that there were nearly 11,000 casualties on the last day of World War I that occurred after the Armistice was signed but before it could take effect.

We could look to World War II, which as we all know was an unambiguous "good war." The war started when Hitler's Germany invaded Poland and when the war ended Stalin's Soviet Union occupied Poland.

Perhaps instead of taking pride in our immense military might we think about what it actually gets us. War is more destructive then we ever imagine and as we enter into our eighth year in Afghanistan with the capture of Bin Laden looking less and less likely it should be clear that we are not going to get out of the war in Afghanistan what we put in.

Perhaps if we reflected on these things then we would see war as the stupid and sadistic state of affairs that it really is then we might come closer to the original intent of the day.

Book Review

2009-11-09T19:20:00.003-06:00

Carlos Ruiz Zafon uses a simple concept in his book The Shadow of the Wind but he uses that concept to build a fantastic novel. Zafon's novel is built around the idea that some books are so powerful that their stories will in some very meaningful ways mirror our own lives.

The main character is Daniel, the son of a used book dealer, who finds an obscure novel. The book makes such an impact on Daniel that he attempts to find and read more books written by the same author. This desire to read more leads Daniel into a mystery that touches on issues of love, revenge, and life in post revolutionary Spain.

The summary in the previous paragraph does not to justice to the story. The real power to the story is that he reminds you of what it is about reading that you love. The book grabs a hold of you and just never lets go.

Sometimes a book is great because it grants some new insight about the world you live in and some books are great because they open up a new world to you. The Shadow of the Wind is great because it does both.

Backbencher of the Week

2009-11-08T12:10:00.002-06:00

Yesterday the House passed it's version of the healthcare reform bill. The House managed to accomplish a good and worthwhile task in such a way as to bring as little credit to itself as possible.

The final vote was 220-195 and only Republican crossed sides and voted for the healthcare bill. That Republican is Rep. Joseph Cao(R-LA-2) and he is this week's Backbencher of the Week. Cao represents the heavily Democratic district in New Orleans and won his seat because the incumbent was convicted felon William "Dollar Bill" Jefferson.

Since Obama carried the district with about 75% of the vote there is to be sure a certain amount of political self-preservation. However there certainly a number of Democrats who thought the political self-preservation meant they needed to vote they other way. Besides, every vote a Congressman takes contains a bit of self preservation.

For be willing to vote against his party, and on the right side of history, we award this week's Backbencher of the Week to Joseph Cao.