John Kerry says he will filibuster!

[Ian David]

Just heard from his staffer!

[Dave Reynolds]

1. I eagerly await confirmation,

I may hold my breath for a while.

[catmother]

19. me too. nt

[sandnsea]

42. Filibuster Confirmed, (so sorry to interrupt)

I just called the press office and they aren't aware of this so there may be a misunderstanding. I'm waiting for an email while they try to track this down.

Update

Hey Sandy—

Yes, Kerry would vote no on cloture (i.e. support a filibuster) – so that’s correct.

Let me know if you need anything else.

Thanks!

Amy

[babylonsister]

52. This deserves its own thread! nt

[Imagevision]

57. Any bonafide Link???????

[sandnsea]

59. Sorry

That came straight from the Senator's press office. My word is all you've got. Best I can do.

[Imagevision]

102. UPDATE: Kerry would join a fillibuster, not lead it - [sorry]

but that's the truth

[sandnsea]

108. Nobody said he'd lead it

The link is clear, Kerry will vote no on cloture, he supports the filibuster.

[cyberpj]

118. Hah! Isn't that jus his style? nt

[IndianaGreen]

111. Voting "no" on cloture is not the same as starting a filibuster

There are two questions:

Are there any Senators that will filibuster the Alito nomination?

How many Senators will support the filibuster by voting against cloture?

What I heard so far is that Kerry will vote against cloture, but I haven't heard anything about Kerry filibustering Alito.

[sandnsea]

117. And it's been clarified

The post clarifies that he will support the filibuster. There really isn't anything to debate except by people who want to nitpick the intent of the OP and the very clear words in my post.

[kainah]

126. unfortunately

saying he would vote no on cloture and "support a filibuster" isn't the same as saying he will wage a filibuster.

[Lorien]

2. So glad to hear that he's finally taking the lead on an issue

let's hope that the rest of the Dems and a few repugs get on board.

FAX CALL EMAIL until the vote everyone!

[blm]

12. He took the lead on DSM, Katrina and ANWR. He was probably waiting for

Judiciary Committee Dems to step up first, as it's usually their call. He must have gotten tired of waiting.

[welshTerrier2]

20. yes, i agree ...

someone posted yesterday that Kerry came out in support of Al Gore's call for a special counsel ... i strongly applaud him for doing so ... where the hell are the rest of the Democrats ... it's one thing to object to illegal spying and the abuse of executive power and it's something else entirely different to use your power and prestige to pressure the republicans into agreeing to a special counsel ... it's great that Kerry supported Gore's position on this critical issue ...

and Alito is part of the exact same problem ... this is about far more than "evasive answers" or Roe v. Wade ... we have an administration that believes it can ignore the Constitution ... when the foundations of the republic are shaken to their very core, every resource must be mobilized ... there is no way a "unitary executive" Supreme Court nominee can be allowed to ascend to the Court at this time (or any time for that matter) ...

the American people are increasingly aware that bush has put himself above the law ... fighting Alito, and investigating bush's abuse of power is the only right way for Democrats, and frankly republicans with any integrity at all (yes, there might be one or two), to proceed ...

kudos to Kerry for his support of a special counsel and for his willingness to filibuster Alito ... they are two sides of the very same coin ...

[Vektor]

113. Oh, wow!

Thanks for saying this. Seriously.

[welshTerrier2]

114. not as surprising as you might think ...

some just don't pay adequate attention, that's all ...

i abhor Kerry's position on the war ... you've heard very few, if any, other criticisms from me ...

[Vektor]

119. Ok, fair enough...

I have honestly only seen the negative comments, and this is the first positive one I have seen, so if there have been others that were positive - I'm sorry I missed them. I will be sure to pay more attention in the future.

[welshTerrier2]

120. sounds good to me ...

i have written a number of times about Kerry's comments (which i strongly endorsed) on last year's energy bill ... the speech he gave (i think it was maybe around July 27?) was great ... i wish he would speak out more often on energy policy and the role the energy lobby plays in screwing up the country ...

the only other specific criticism of have made on DU re: Kerry, at least the only other one i specifically recall, has to with what i view is his (he's certainly not the only one) total invisibility to his constituents (i live in MA) ... it seems to me that democracy works best when the "elite political class" is not far removed from the voters ... perhaps more would come to understand why Kerry votes as he does were he to do that; perhaps he would better understand how more people feel ... most of the Kerry events i've seen in MA were fundraisers of one sort or another ... i understand all too well the need for cash; i understand better the need for a better democratic process ...

finally, i'll tell you i've had many arguments with Kerry supporters on DU ... too often these degrade into personal attacks ... it would be unwise to necessarily assume these heated exchanges are indicative of my views about Kerry himself ...

if you look for posts from me on threads about Kerry's election concession, or about running a lousy campaign, or about "he lost so he should give someone else a chance to run", you will almost never (maybe actually never) find any posts from me ... i have my own thoughts about the quality of the campaign he ran; i see very little value spending time on the issue ...

[Vektor]

124. I used to live in MA, too. I'm a native...

I miss it terribly, though maybe not so much this time of year. I understand what you are saying - all good points. I agree too, that honest to goodness human contact between elected officials and the voters - actually sitting down and talking with them face to face - is so very important, yet something that seems to happen all too infrequently.

I wonder if it would do any good to write a letter to that effect to him - letting him know that his constituents have questions and concerns and would like to see more of him on a personal level. Maybe you have done that already, I don't know? It doesn't always get results right away, but I have known some people in CA that have arranged to meet and talk to Senators in their office regarding pet issues.

What specific suggestions would you make regarding things Kerry could do to connect with constituents more effectively? I'm sure not only would he have a vested interest in hearing them, but Senators in all states. One of the biggest complaints you hear about politicians across the board is that they are not really "accessible" to the average voting public.

[welshTerrier2]

128. specific things

i supported Dean for Party Chair because i thought he was committed to "empowering" the grassroots ... i had hoped that this meant Dean would work tirelessly to connect voters to their reps and vice versa ... just my take, but it seems to me that Dean has done very well "utilizing" the grassroots but has not done much to empower them ... i'm still hopeful this could happen but i've seen no progress whatsoever ...

to be clear, my issue is not specifically with Kerry (or Dean) ... i fear that our elected reps, and voters themselves, have lost sight of our democratic ideals ... btw, my Congressman, Jim McGovern, holds regular meetings with voters all over his district ... last spring, i had a chance to sit down with him (and mrs. wt2) for more than a half hour in a local restaurant ... it was quite an exchange!!

it seems to me that it's not asking too much to ask Kennedy and Kerry to attend a free, public forum once every three months somewhere in their state ... slicing Massachusetts into N, S, E and W would allow both Senators to meet with voters in a given region one time per year ... is that asking too much from a Senator? ... to me, the absolutely most important role elected leaders play is public education ... too many times, i've seen Democrats shy away from fights they couldn't possibly win because that had not laid the sufficient groundwork for their arguments ...

i don't know about you but i think we've drifted a wee bit from the ideals of the country's founders ... government has become the refuge of incumbents who are little more than an insulated political class ... if anything is ever going to change for the better, we have got to commit ourselves to returning power to the people ... most Americans are badly alienated from their own government ... too many believe politicians are "in it" for themselves ... too many no longer participate at all ... i would hope that those in power and those running for office would dedicate themselves to reversing this trend ... with each voter who stays home, democracy dies a little more ...

Kerry et al need to get back to their districts ... they need to hear the applause and they need to hear the boos ... they need to teach and they need to listen ... they need to lead and they need to follow ... as voters become more and more alienated, and they are, the "power elite" become safer and safer and less and less challenged ... the only thing that will change the direction is real leadership ... voting the right way, making the right case and winning re-election time after time is just not enough; in the long run, the rich are getting richer and richer and the poor face a very dangerous future ... what the country needs are leaders who take their case to the people and leaders who are willing to listen ... today's disconnect is very real ... reaching out to "the little people" is the only way to restore faith in our democracy ... there's a tidal wave of untapped energy in the hopes and frustrations of plain old joes ... done right, republicans will be drowned in a populist uprising ... after all, as all Democrats should know very well, all politics are local ...

[Vektor]

129. That's not too much to ask, and actually

is a very good idea. I like the idea of regional public forums, and that sounds like a realistic request to do them on a quarterly basis.

FWIW, by way of a wild progression of events, I had the opportunity to sit down with Kerry last month in a restaurant in Boston. There were 12 of us from DU present, and we had a great conversation that lasted...er...I think about an hour or so, but admittedly, there was Guinness involved. So I don't remember the exact time frame. It was really amazing and rewarding - an up close and personal chance to say whatever you want, directly to him! (With Guinness on board.) :-)

Of course, I had a list of "really intelligent" things to say that had been residing in my overactive, frenzied brain for years that I REALLY believed I would be able to convincingly and effectively deliver to him should we ever meet face to face, in such a way that it would rock his political world.

Well, suffice it to say, I remembered about three things, and feel like I looked and sounded like a TOTAL ass when I attempted to deliver them, but he did listen and was very genuine. He's really different than you'd imagine from what you see in the media. Different in a good way. It too, was quite an exchange so, I totally know what you mean by that.

I think these sorts of exchanges with the voters do far more to win people over than anything else they could possibly do.

[snowbear]

3. Wow...

This could get interesting!!

[jobycom]

4. no he can't he's dlc he sold out the voters blablablablabla....

Just trying to fill in the rest of the thread. Oh yeah, left off "he grew balls, testicles, or some other anatomical part meant to prove that only men have courage yadayadayada..."

[New Earth]

6. don't forget about

'too little too late' :eyes:

:bounce:

[jobycom]

9. Ah, yes, thanks.

Wouldn't want that one to go unmentioned.

[Laurab]

134. and of course "he let me down"

"he should just shut up now", which always makes such PERFECT sense to me.

Just trying to cover them all! I know there's more, I just can't think of them.

I was thinking though that it's usually "to little to late", which always makes me wonder, knowing the spelling capabilities over at the place that shall not be named....

[jsamuel]

48. but aren't the ones that love the dlc also the ones that hate Kerry?

I don't like the DLC, but I don't have much venom for Kerry. He at least stands for some principles. (just not very good at it all the time)

[LittleClarkie]

53. Hating DLC and Kerry often go together despite From barely mentioning

Kerry ever, even in conjunction with 2008. Sometimes I think they were purposely underwhelming in their support of him in 2004.

I wish he'd have his name removed from their rolls. He's far too liberal for them. They don't even seem to consider him truely one of them. He's like their red-headed stepchild or something.

[fujiyama]

81. Better yet...

Skull and Bones, Skull and Bones!

[babylonsister]

5. YESSSSS! Lead the way, Senator Kerry! nt

[OrangeCountyDemocrat]

7. Glad He's Doing What A Senator Should....

I'm no longer a fan of his for President, but it's good to know he's still standing up for the rights of his constituents as Senator of Massachusetts.

[babsbunny]

15. Okay, How Does This Filibuster work again?

Can he do it alone, how many more will follow?

[The Magistrate]

8. Confirmation Would Be Appreciated, Sir

"LET'S GO GET THOSE BUSH BASTARDS!"

[Mass]

18. Agree - there are two issues here - I have no doubt Kerry will vote

for a filibuster if there is one. "Will there be one?" is the first question.

[louis-t]

10. In my letter, I asked him to.

I think a lot of others did, too.

[sui generis]

11. hot damn

it's gotta happen -

Now will be interesting to see who tries to talk him out of it as a grandstanding ploy and what rationale they use.

[LSparkle]

13. If he says he will, I'm sure others will join -- Boxer, for one

And even if he doesn't do it, maybe she WILL. (She signed the House resolution re 2004 election -- she's got more balls than half the men in the Senate.)

[Botany]

14. Rumor or fact?

Because Alito is a perfect filibuster .....
He lied under oath
and would not answer questions.

Bay Airs to the attack.



Let us kick some bush ass.

[Deb]

16. Oh please be true!

Thanks for sharing!!

[BigBearJohn]

17. That made my day!

[Tom Rinaldo]

21. Now THAT would be meaningful (if confirmed)

I will gladly acknowledge his important leadership on this critical issue if Kerry is in fact one of the first, if not THE first Senator to make this committment. C'mon John, I know you have it in you!

[babylonsister]

22. John Kerry on Filibusters, dated 6/24/03:

John Kerry Prepared to Filibuster

In a letter to MoveOn.org, Senator and Presidential hopeful John Kerry says that the Supreme Court is a major reason the Democrats need to take the White House away from Bush.

I am prepared to filibuster, if necessary, any Supreme Court nominee who would turn back the clock on a woman�s right to choose, on civil rights and individual liberties, and on the laws protecting workers and the environment.

Kerry has prepared a petition which he promises to deliver to Tom Daschle, Senate Democratic Leader and Patrick Leahy, ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, as well as their Republican counterparts

The criteria are basic: Any person who thinks it's his or her job to push an extreme political agenda, rather than to interpret the law, should not be a Supreme Court Justice. Any person who thinks it's his or her job to carry out the President's political agenda, rather than to provide justice to ordinary Americans, should not be a Supreme Court Justice.

[biscotti]

28. Do you mean Harry Reid

the Senate Democratic Leader?

[babylonsister]

36. No! Kerry said that in 03. nt

[Ian David]

29. I hope he sticks with that! Can he bring the rest along with him? n/t

[leftstreet]

23. Has this been confirmed?

:shrug:

[Maddy McCall]

24. Woohoo!

:woohoo:

[Capn Sunshine]

25. Confirmation needed

and fast; I have a Senator on the fence who has been open to our daily nagging.

[Ian David]

27. Call Kerry's office yourself, I guess. Or have your Senator do it

I thanked the staffer for Kerry saying he was going to vote against Alito. Then I asked, "But instead of just voting against him, is the senator going to Filibuster?"

The answer I got was, "Yes, he is."

There's always a chance that there was a misunderstanding of somekind, but I thought I was being pretty clear.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

35. This is some guy answering the phone?

And not an insider's scoop?
And there may have been a misunderstanding?

[Ian David]

38. This was one of his staffers I spoke to

And I only say it might be a misunderstanding because I am, after all, wrong 1/12 of the time.

Unfortunately, when I'm wrong, I don't usually know I'm wrong.

And I'm assuming that the staffer might be wrong at least 1/12 of the time as well.

Which would mean there would be a 2/12 or 1/6 chance of this being a misunderstanding.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

47. It's not too late to edit your OP.

[Ian David]

49. I stand by it. n/t

[EVDebs]

37. Have him look into Alito's views on REX 84 and watch the blood drain

from his face !

The executive orders are current; Roberts is on, Alito is next
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2056463&mesg_id=2057986

during Reagan's era these guys were busy rubberstamping this REX84, 'suspension of the constitution' stuff. They should have been disbarred.

[flpoljunkie]

26. CNN's Ed Henry said the 41 votes were not there to sustain a filibuster.

There will be a cloture vote, and we will see what happens. I would love to see Alito voted down, as in "up or down" on the Senate floor.

Now that would be "priceless"-not likely, but priceless. Somehow the other side always seems to prevail in important votes--with just enough Democrats crossing over to the other side to make up for any Republican defections.

The Republicans have 55 votes. The only "victory" we can realistically expect is that Alito will be confirmed with something less than 60 votes.

[crikkett]

31. why don't we do a count, ourselves?

I don't think there are going to be 41 votes to close debate. Does anyone have a running count of who said what about voting for/against Alito?

xo,
Crikkett

[flpoljunkie]

32. Dem Senators have ony said they would vote NO, as far as I can recall.

Except for Ben Nelson, of course, who has announced he is voting for Alito's conformation. It seems as if they are all avoiding the "F" question.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

30. Marked for future reference.

[rsmith6621]

33. He Said He Would Count Every Vote

Before conceding the 2004 election.......Personally I dont think that Kerry has the BALLS to fillibuster....I know he has the lungs though!!!!

[Ian David]

40. You're just saying that because you want to see John Kerry naked

Maybe you can get an invite to the congressional gym?

[Laurab]

135. LOL - n/t

[EVDebs]

34. Quick, sent the 'Slippery Elm' throat lozenges ! FIGHT BACK ! NOW !

Set him up with catheters for bathroom break 'extensions'. Whatever it takes, KEEP HIM TALKING !

The Executive Orders, mostly from Reagan-era with Roberts and Alito signoffs are here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2056463&mesg_id=2057986

'Suspension of the constitution' and locking up dissenters is what this is all about. Sen Kerry needs all our help. Put the word out.

[Ian David]

39. Hide the clock and let Biden speak until he's tired of hearing himself

I bet he'd die of dehydration first.

[flpoljunkie]

46. There you go!

[The Backlash Cometh]

41. Go John!

He has my support.

[never_get_over_it]

43. Well i just heard from his staff that he has not made up his mind

on filibuster. However if someone else leads a filibuster he will support it -that is what I was told about five minutes ago by his staffer

[blm]

45. It's supposed to be a Judiciary Committee member or minority leader.

Kerry would be stepping outside protocol if he filibusters.

[snowbear]

51. Did they say when they'd decide?

:shrug:

[sandnsea]

55. I just got a yes

Hey Sandy—

Yes, Kerry would vote no on cloture (i.e. support a filibuster) – so that’s correct.

Let me know if you need anything else.

Thanks!

Amy

[ProudToBeLiberal]

61. wait why didn't she confirm that he's going to invoke unlimted debate?

I thought Kerry was going to lead the filibuster? I'm so confused.

[sandnsea]

62. No you're not

But hope you enjoy your pissing party.

[ProudToBeLiberal]

63. excuse me?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=2386685&mesg_id=2386685

The OP said Kerry will Filibuster, which means that there is going to be a filibuster because Kerry is going to filibuster.

You said you confirmed the op, but your post does naught. You are spreading false lies. Thanks for putting people's hope up, like mine for a filibuster. You smashed our hearts into the ground. I hope you're happy.

[sandnsea]

64. He is going to filibuster

The way you filibuster is to have 41 Senators vote against cloture. That's the way it is. I know you know that. You have to be full of an awful lot of hate to distort this. Why don't you try focusing some of it on Bush for a change.

[babylonsister]

66. I have an idea; why don't we all wait until we get something in

writing before anything else.
I can't wait to see the filibuster procedure happening, as I've
never paid attention before!

[kerrygoddess]

75. Good idea!

What I heard from JK's office is he will vote to filibuster, if it happens. A filibuster has not been confirmed - they are still tallying up the votes. If 5 dems will vote against Alito but will not go along with a filibuster effort they have no filibuster.

Kerry's office saying he will vote to filibuster is not a verbatim that it will happen as of yet.

[sandnsea]

83. Then call them and ask them

Because if they don't tell you what they told me then they lied to me.

[kerrygoddess]

93. I've been in contact

What you were told:

"Yes, Kerry would vote no on cloture (i.e. support a filibuster) – so that’s correct."

The key word here is "support" not will lead a.

Here's what I was told:

Off the record... someone is counting votes -- "JK would support a fillibuster but we'll see what develops"

[sandnsea]

95. Gee

Isn't that what the email I posted says??? Once again, you're stirring up shit in order to feed your ego. Nothing ever changes, eh?

[kerrygoddess]

96. No

Because I'm not posting all over DU that Kerry will filibuster, because voting to support a filibuster is not leading a filibuster and when you say he will filibuster every thinks he will lead it. No one has confirmed that he will.

Hell, if I knew verbatim that he was I would be shouting it. People here are misconstruing your statements.

[sandnsea]

97. I didn't say any of that

If you'd bothered to read, you'd see that I've been responding to other people who made that shit up in order to slam Kerry for anything they could find.

[kerrygoddess]

115. Just further clarifying...

the situation with what I heard from his staff. Not arguing with you.

[Usrename]

This shouldn't even be a discussion among Democrats..

If 5 dems will vote against Alito but will not go along with a filibuster effort they have no filibuster...

In that case I say: Heads on pikes!!!!

five of them

[Usrename]

130. oops

[Usrename]

131. oops again

[Usrename]

132. and again

I meant to be emphatic, but not that much...:)

[Senator]

44. Opposing both Alito and Filibuster is just Immoral Idiocy

And since he said on Sunday that he'd vote no on Alito, it's not that big a surprise that he's decided not to make a Beltway Boob of himself (yet, again).

Remember, he's been out of the country for a while. Nothing like a little distance to clear your head of the DC/Euphemedia Siren Song of Irrelevant Blather.

Now if he can only convince the rest of them that without a Filibuster (overruled by neofascist "nuclear" nabobbing or not), IT MATTERS NOT ONE IOTA how many of them vote up or down.

You either stand in opposition or you don't. There's no middle ground here.

===
www.january6th.org

[mom cat]

50. Great! ...When I called earlier,they were still playing it cagy.

Great news.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

54. HA!

I TOLD YOU PEOPLE! OH YE OF LITTLE FAITH!!! SEE? OUR GUYS DO HAVE A PLAN... THEY'RE NOT AFRAID!!! CALL UM COWARDS NOW YOU FREEPER SPYS IN HERE!!!

[greiner3]

56. Woo-hoo; n/t

[Imagevision]

58. Still no link though

[sandnsea]

65. Yep,full of an awful lot of hate

You've been given your answer previously. Why so eager to believe I'm lying????

[ProudToBeLiberal]

67. look at the time difference of this post and the other post

I posted this comment first. So your accusation has no merit.

You act like that you are a part of my life. You act like that you have been through the hardship that I've been through. You act like that you know me intimately, emotionally and physically. Do you? I believe that in order to truly know someone deeply, they should experience emotional love AND physical love. I don't recall of ever making love with you unless you're that person who...:P

[sandnsea]

68. I don't care

I really don't. Believe whatever you want, say whatever you want. Pretend you've never posted before and nobody knows whether you know anything about senate procedure or not. I just don't give a shit.

[ProudToBeLiberal]

69. WRONG. You know that I'm a Seahawks fan!!!

You're using my passion against me. UNFAIR!!!!

P.S. I stll like you like you

[sandnsea]

73. I'm cranky

Thanks for reminding me that it's a happy day. HAWK CITY!!!!

[ProudToBeLiberal]

60. wait kerry will invoke unlimited debate?

is he going to invoke the motion and lead the filibuster? If so kudos to the Senator. Can you provide link? This is big news if he's going to lead the filibuster.

[Mass]

71. Nobody said he would. I doubt a staffer would say that on the phone.

Are you going to hold the 43 other Democratic Senators to the same standards?

There is never one senator leading a filibuster. It is always a group and, as of now, I dont think I heard any senators say they would, not even Durbin who is the closest to have said so.

[sandnsea]

77. Kerry is voting no on cloture

Hey Sandy—

Yes, Kerry would vote no on cloture (i.e. support a filibuster) – so that’s correct.

Let me know if you need anything else.

Thanks!

Amy

[Mass]

80. Assuming there is a vote for cloture.

[sandnsea]

86. Well yeah

I swear I'm in the twilight zone today.

[pat_k]

70. No "Middle Ground" -- Hypocrites who obstruct Filibuster, then Vote NO. .

...will NOT be tolerated. It is up to us to make this CRYSTAL CLEAR!

Excerpt from a Discussion Topic I started in response to IanDB1's news:

. . .Let's make things crystal clear to the rest of our "leaders." It's simple, they have three options:

1. Filibuster;
2. Vote Yes to Confirm; or
3. Get Out!

Any Senator who Opposes the Filibuster, Supports Alito's Nomination.

Either publicly throw your support behind the Filibuster OR Vote Yes.

Hypocrites who make a useles and phony display of Voting NO while refusing to support the Filibuster are exactly the kind of weasels we no longer need. . .

[Clarkie1]

84. I'll take a Democratic weasal over a Republican weasel any day. eom

[pat_k]

109. That's not the choice. Strong, Principled Primary Challengers WIN . . .

. . . Primaries AND General Elections.

The Weasels need to know this: If they KEEP being weasels, they will face a STRONG primary challenge.

We can win more elections against Republicans with candidates who are willing to tell the truth and fight the good fights. The more such Democrats we elect, the more Democrats we WILL elect, because the very identity of the party will be changed.

Principled does not need to mean "shoestring campaign."

There are Wealthy people in every state who are willing to take a stand, and who have the resources to WIN primaries and general elections.

There are Celebrities in every state who are willing to take a stand, and who have the resources to WIN primaries and general elections.

We can do a much better job of recruiting Winning candidates than the entrenched party apparatus.

We MUST stop buying the malarkey that we gotta run in the wimpy middle to win or that a Weasel incumbent is the strongest candidate available.

[TayTay]

72. Kerry's going to lead it?

Funny, he's not on Judiciary. I would think Kennedy would lead it or Feingold and then non-Judiciary members would back them up.

Hey, it's all good as long as someone leads it. Alito should not be confirmed.

[FogerRox]

74. SHUT IT DOWN

SHUT THE SENATE DOWN

IF THEY SHUT THE SENATE DOWN

WE MARCH ON DC, LIKE IN THE UKRAINE

[sandnsea]

76. Where does it say that????

I did not see anybody say Kerry is going to lead a filibuster. Am I going friggin' blind or what. :shrug:

[Mass]

82. Starting # 2, a number of people assumed that.

[sandnsea]

87. So that makes it true?

Something that has to be defended??? Twilight zone.

[Clarkie1]

85. Who is he going to "lead?"

How can a small handful of Dems filibuster? Don't they need more?

[sandnsea]

89. He's going to vote for cloture

He will filibuster. That's what came from his office. If there aren't enough votes, duh, there won't be a filibuster. I don't get what is so complicated. It's as if everybody got dropped on their head overnight. Everybody understood filibuster procedures and the numbers required yesterday.

[Clarkie1]

92. There is no way 41 senators will support a filibuster.

I'm just a realist, sorry. It ain't gonna happen.

[sandnsea]

94. And???

Really not the point. The point is Kerry said he would support the filibuster and that's all anybody around here has said today.

[mom cat]

103. That was the old conventional wisdom...The worm has turned.

[TayTay]

98. Thanks! That didn't make any sense.

I can see his office saying he would support it. (In fact, I would expect that he would given his strong statements on it recently.)

But I didn't think he was the one to lead it. That doesn't make any sense. It should be someone from Judiciary who floor manages the debate. That makes sense. Maybe Teddy (hey, the RW hates him with a big fiery passion anyway.)

That makes more sense. I can see him voting to not invoke cloture, but I was very, very surprised to read the other posts in here about 'lead it.' That would be strange.

Still, isn't he one of the first to even mention it? Can he get any credit for that at all?

[sandnsea]

100. I think that's what they meant

When they said "lead". That he was the first to speak out in support of filibustering. They were giving him credit for being a leader on an issue, whether he is spearheading it or not. Some chose to twist those words to beat him about the head, and for other purposes, but I think most people understand clearly what was meant from his staff and the email I posted.

[TayTay]

104. Thanks!

The clarification helps. Leahy should lead on this, isn't he Ranking Dem on the committee? If the Dems vote to not send Alito out of committee with a favorable then Leahy, according to tradition, should floor manage the opposition. Kerry would be a Senator who would line up behind Leahy and support Leahy, if indeed he goes through with the vote against cloture on debate. (I'm sure that Kerry has a speech ready to go, I think we have heard snippets of it in his recent criticisms of both Bush and Alito.)

Hey, whatever. I am just glad to hear Dems and filibuster in the same sentence. I do not want Alito confirmed. I do want to see strong Dem opposition and a filibuster, if we can get it. I called Chafee of RI to ask that he not vote for Alito. I hope that helps.

[sandnsea]

107. I thought it was a good thing n/t

[pat_k]

106. Reid and Durbin are the "head counters" -- so far no dem is out there . .

. . .leading the Filibuster charge.

I don't understand WHY more dems aren't out there declaring their position on blocking Alito's nomination from reaching the floor -- but, for whatever reasons, they are not.

They are apparently in "counting mode." Reid and Durbin, as caucus leadership, are the ones doing the counting, and they aren't talking. We KNOW that only one Democrat, Nelson, has publicly declared his intention to Vote For Alito's Confirmation (And we can still work on him). Nearly all of them are silent on whether or not they would join an effort to block the nomination from reaching the floor. The ones who have come out at all have just told us they intend to Vote against confirmation, assuming the vote DOES go to the floor.

We need to push them to take a position on Filibuster. Will they or won't they vote to end debate???

Our biggest barrier to a filibuster are the WEASELS who think they can get away with a SHAM display of opposition.



They all need to know that we will NOT tolerate any Senator who hypocritically:

• Obstructs the Filibuster by voting to end debate and send Alito's nomination to the floor (Folks here are undoubtedly aware that 60 votes are required for cloture -- i.e., to end debate).
• Votes Against Alito's confrimation when the vote comes to the floor.

A vote against Alito on the floor is MEANINGLESS if they refuse to support a Filibuster.

Let's do what we can to make sure they understand they have ONLY three options: Filibuster, Vote to Confirm, OR Get Out!

[Clarkie1]

78. He has little company. The majority of Dems will oppose a filibuster.

Additionally, only 38% of Americans believe a filibuster is justified.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/01/23/alito/index.html

Alito is going to be on the high court whether we like it or not...all the more reason to fight hard in 06' for a Democratic legislature. It's time to move on to other battles.

[LittleClarkie]

127. Well, we'll see if his petition gives him any leverage

He's only one vote against cloture, regardless, unless the tide changes and more Dems favor a fillibuster.

[banana republican]

79. when do we take over the streets???? n/t

[ananda]

88. If Kerry succeeds..

.. in keeping Alito off the court, I will eat some of my words about him
being not liberal enough. I'm sure he'll still have his drawbacks,
but the Alito filibuster is big.

Go Kerry! Filibuster the creep and keep him off the court!

Sue

[sandnsea]

90. Filibuster is a 41 vote procedure

In case you weren't aware the procedure changed from a one person filibuster, many years ago.

[Clarkie1]

91. Kerry doesn't have the support to filibuster Alito.

The guy is going to be confirmed whether Kerry "leads a filibuster" or not. If he did, Kerry simply would not have to votes to sustain a filibuster...my understanding is he needs 41 one Dems to join him, and that will not happen.

It's time to move on to other battles and win in 06', that's where are focus should be.

[TayTay]

99. I don't think, as others pointed out, that he leads on this.

Unless it's that behind the scenes stuff that we will never see. (Talking to other Senators and such.)

I am thrilled to hear him use the 'F' word. He didn't back away from saying he would vote against cloture and that's more than I've heard from a lot of Senators who seem to want to have someone else bring it up first.

DiFi is actually on Judiciary. Does anyone know if she has warmed to the idea of voting against cloture? That would be extremely significant. Odd to say, but her vote against cloture would be more significant than Kerry saying he would support a filibuster. She's on Judiciary. I didn't doubt Kerry would vote against Alito or cloture, but what about those waverers who will seriously decide Alito's fate?

Anybody know if any of the Dems who voted for Roberts will come over and seriously join the fight against Alito?

[kerrygoddess]

125. She actually

never said she was against it - she said that we probably did not have the support for it. At the time she said this they did not appear to have the support. DiFi is voting against Alito in Committee and when it comes to the floor. I think she'll be on board for a filibuster, she intially said she would. She was only voicing what was going on, not her own feelings that day.

[FogerRox]

110. SHUT THE SENATE DOWN

THEN WE MARCH ON DC

[DWolper]

121. Reality check

The Senate leader calls for a vote to end filibusters on judicial nominees. The simple majority needed is won. Filibuster over and we lose. Then the walk on Washington can commence. It's sad, but that's the reality. To spin it any other way is not facing reality.

[FogerRox]

122. W stands for What - ever

[Imagevision]

101. This Kerry fillibustering; "Kerry will join fillibuster not lead one"

nice try but NO prize

[Mass]

105. Logically, somebody from the Judiciary Committee should lead.

I think most people understood that.

[IndianaGreen]

112. No, any Senator can filibuster a nominaton

You have to wait for the nomination to come to the floor for a vote.

[TayTay]

116. Well then good, we have someone who will filibuster

I hope a lot more come out and say they will too!

Any know if Pat Leahy has commented on a filibuster?

[wordpix]

123. good, finally a LEADER is using the F word

[autorank]

133. I'll bring food and water, stay up with him. This would be THE BEST!

[coldiggs]

136. Do they have the votes

[Hyernel]

137. Shhhh! Not so loud. Filibusters must have element of surprise.

Or the Rovian media will undermine it with spin before it ever gets out of the gate.

[WildEyedLiberal]

138. Harry Reid will decide if there is a filibuster or not

If there is one, John Kerry will support it. If there is not one, it was not his decision to make.

I sincerely hope there is a filibuster. However, if there is not, hopefully DU will direct its wrath at Reid for not deciding on one as opposed to Kerry, who is the only Senator to publicly commit.