One Down, One More to Go. There is Another Primary Coming Up in New York

[Al122]

Michael Moore wrote the following about Hillary Clinton in a letter to his mailing list today:

"You and Joe have been Bush's biggest Democratic supporters of the war. Last night's voter revolt took place just a few miles from your home in Chappaqua. Did you hear the noise? Can you read the writing on the wall?"

But, as with the Lamont campaign in Connecticut, the New York rebellion against Mrs. Clinton is not just about her position on the war. Many of us are simply fed up with her fundraisers with right-wing, plutocratic scum like Rupert Murdoch and Bush-Cheney "pioneer" Tom O'Gara, her cozzying up with other right-wing scum like Newt "World War III is upon us" Gingrich, her past and continuing support for "free trade" agreements that are destroying the American Middle Class (she recently voted for one with the Arab nation of Oman) and the fact that she is the number two recipient of campaign contributions from the "health care industry," right behind Rick Santorum, and is now, not surprisingly, supporting incremental (read doing nothing) reform of our health care system.

There is alternative to this madness: Jonathan Tasini. Tasini is for 1) The immediate, safe withdrawal of American troops from Iraq; 2) Medicare for All (an idea originally proposed by Sen Ted Kennedy in 2005; 3)Reigning in out of control corporate power; 4) Addressing the root causes of "illegal immigration" (i.e. the effect of multinational corporate policies); 5) Full marriage equality for gay couples; 6) Repeal of the PATRIOT Act and; 7) The impeachment of both Bush and Cheney (for more details on these and other issues visit the web link listed below).

We the people have the power to defeat Mrs. Clinton and send the strongest message possible, not only to the leadership of the Democratic Party, but to the nation as a whole, that we will no longer tolerate subservience to the interests of the few at the expense of the many. We will no longer tolerate violations of our civil liberties that have reduced us to little more than subjects of Bush. We will no longer tolerate policies that are leading this nation down a path to theocracy, bankruptcy and destruction.

Jonathan Tasini has been a leader and advocate for working people all of his adult life. He also has a unique back ground of family ties to and time spent in the state of Israel, that give him great insight into the current conflict in the Middle East, one that with each passing day becomes more of a threat to world stability.

Jonathan Tasini has the potential to become a great progressive Senator in the tradition of "Fighting Bob" La Follette of Wisconsin, New York's own Robert Wagner and Minnesota's Paul Wellstone. Don't just take my word for it. Visit Jonathan's website where you can hear audio and see video clips of his numerous speeches and conversations.

The New York primary is on September 12.

For more info on Jonathan Tasini and his campaign go to www.tasinifornewyork.org today.

[GodlessBiker]

1. Tasini is a good guy. I plan on voting for him.

[Mr_Jefferson_24]

2. Good luck cutting the chain...

These should do nicely...

[readmoreoften]

3. 100% with Tasini

Tasini has risked going to jail for 15 days to help me get my job back. I'm not voting against Hillary. I'm voting FOR Tasini. This is good news.

[bvar22]

4. NY is a liberal state. Why support a conservative Senator?

Sending a donation to Tasini today!

https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/tasini-private

http://www.tasinifornewyork.org/

[Bretttido]

5. Okay, disagreeing with her is one thing, calling her conservative

is just wrong and baseless.

[AZBlue]

14. Welcome to DU - it's the mantra here unfortunately. (nt)

[bvar22]

16. "Liberal" Senator Clinton is a media myth.

Senator Clinton rakes in more money from AIPAC and Corporate CEO's than most Republicans. She votes accordingly. She may appear "liberal" on some social issues, but when it comes down to issues affecting Working Americans, Hillary parties with the CEO's and the War Machine.

Check the voting record.

Look at how the majority feels about some of the issues that you'd think would be gospel to a real Democratic party. Hillary is to the RIGHT of most of these issues.

1. 65 percent (of ALL Americans Democrat AND Republican) say the government should guarantee health insurance for everyone -- even if it means raising taxes.

2. 86 percent favor raising the minimum wage (including 79 percent of selfdescribed "social conservatives").

3. 60 percent favor repealing either all of Bush's tax cuts or at least those cuts that went to the rich.

4. 66 percent would reduce the deficit not by cutting domestic spending but by reducing Pentagon spending or raising taxes.

5. 77 percent believe the country should do "whatever it takes" to protect the environment.

6. 87 percent think big oil corporations are gouging consumers, and 80 percent (including 76 percent of Republicans) would support a windfall profits tax on the oil giants if the revenues went for more research on alternative fuels.

7. 69 percent agree that corporate offshoring of jobs is bad for the U.S. economy (78 percent of "disaffected" voters think this), and only 22% believe offshoring is good because "it keeps costs down."

http://alternet.org/wiretap/29788/

8. 66% of Americans believe that the War in Iraq was a mistake, and favor some type of withdrawal.

The Democratic Party is a BIG TENT, but there is NO ROOM for those
who advance the agenda of THE RICH (Corporate Owners) at the EXPENSE of LABOR and the POOR.

[sabbat hunter]

6. if you think

hilary clinton is conservative, then you havent been paying much attention. she was the one behind the single payer national health care plan back in 1993 remember? not exactly a conservative attitude.

[leetrisck]

7. Believe I'll stick with Hillary

thank you very much.

[CTD]

8. Maybe not "conservative" but...

Fine, so she's a pro-business, pro-war "centrist". Just like Lieberman. And Bush.

[Al122]

9. The 1993 Healthcare plan was not a single payer plan

It was rather a somewhat commendable (b/c at least the Clinton's tried to do something to help the uninsured) to compromise with a market based system that had no incentive to compromise on its outrageous drive to maximize profits at the expense of the sick and injured. Dr. David Himmelstein, Executive Director of Physicians for a National Health Program met with First Lady Clinton in 1993 to argue for a real single payer plan. According to him Clinton's response was: "Can you name any force capable of taking on the $300 billion dollar a year HMO and insurance industry." When Himmelstein replied: "How about the president of the United States leading a crusade of the American people ," he claims that Mrs. Clinton asked him for "something real." (see "The Health Care Crisis in America: An Interview With Dr. David Himmelstein" at http://www.counterpunch.org/welch10302004.html)

[bvar22]

22. That plan has been "repackaged" by conservative (Pro-Ceo)

Democrats who are NOW calling it "Affordable HealthCare".

Be wary of Democrats selling "Affordable HealthCare".
"Affordable HealthCare" would delay or permanently torpedo any chance for TRUE Universal HealthCare.

[MissWaverly]

10. That was then, this is now

Hillary Clinton, who leads the list of '08 potential Dem presidential candidates in various national polls, only votes traditionally Democratic 66% of the time. While we've recently reported on the Dems who defected to the Bush camp on his energy bill, a number of Senate Dem votes during late May and early June, as well as the recent CAFTA vote, have now been added to our running list of key Senate Dem votes that have been taken by the 109th Congress.

With Republicrats such as Lieberman and Hillary paying lip service to the traditions of the Democratic Party as they continue to move to the right, it's just a matter of time until the average grassroots Democratic sees little reason to continue to be lied to while supporting an ineffectual Republican Lite Party, a party where 58% of its senators vote with the Republicans more often than they vote Democratic. --Politex, 05.24.05

http://bushwatch.com/demwatch.htm

[KurtNYC]

12. at Wellesley college she was head of the Young Republicans

during Vietnam, during Nixon's first term. Yes I have been paying attention. She is a vocal supporter of the failed nation building in Iraq.

[MissWaverly]

13. Now, that is very interesting

College is where you develop your principles, she was influential in Republican politics on
campus, could this be as I long suspected her true compass.

[paulk]

15. shortly after that she decided to support Eugene McCarthy

that was .... 37 years ago.

Tell me something... what do you think about the fact that Ned Lamont was a Republican and voted for Ronald Reagan as recently as fourteen years ago? Do you think that should disqualify him for your support?

[KurtNYC]

24. 14 years ago was 1992

What was Reagan running for in 1992 ?

So I'll have to check your other assertions about Lamont but the short answer is "no". The question was what evidence is there that Hillary Clinton is right-leaning and I cite her Young Republican days as one part of the larger answer.

edit to add: I believe you have misquoted from one of Lieberman's smear campaign ads. The truth is 12 years ago, as a Greenwich selectman, he and other Democrats voted alongside Republicans on some non-ideological town issues.

http://www.newhavenindependent.org/archives/2006/06/post_239.php

[paulk]

31. well, math was never my strong suite

and I have been completely wrong about Ned Lamont being a Republican. It's his father, Ted, who switched parties, in 1988, actually.

I misread the Widepedia entry.

I still don't think the argument that HRC was a Goldwater girl 37 years ago is a valid one insofar as it impacts her politics today.

[Bretttido]

28. DISQUALIFIED! To the Lieber-mobile!

:crazy:

[sabbat hunter]

32. and then

became extremely disenfranchised with republicans and nixon and became a hard core democrat.

[Mr_Jefferson_24]

19. What happened to that Hilary, BTW? I liked her...

...where did she go?

[yodermon]

20. ...But then Rush started calling her "Hitlery"

and "feminazi" and she got scared and started her shift to the center.

..Except that the political frame of reference was shifting to the right as well (thanks to Rush and the corporate media lapdogs), and so her shift to the center was actually a shift further to the right... and all the while Rush and Hannity are still calling her Hitlery, even thought she voted for the IWR, leaving her all confused. The latest tactic is to dilute (some say "balance" or "triangulate") her IWR vote with a nice tongue-lickinglashing of Don Rumsfeld, getting gullible left-leaning Dems all atwitter that she's finally listening to them. Pshaw.

She's a political opportunist trying to be all things to all people, and as a result is wholly unbelievable. She's a caricature of herself. Most of it's the fault of the far-right, but she's reponded to it using their framing, thus falling into their trap. The far-right paints her as far-left, the far-left paints her as a dlc-corporatist sellout, and she does nothing to actually & positively clarify the issue.

[Bretttido]

29. I honestly don't shame a single senator who voted for the IWR

Those who support "staying the course" in our current day are a different story. Let's face it, the IWR was NOT a vote for war, as much as the MSM would like everyone to believe. * did NOT explore all diplomatic means or come to a final vote with the UN. He chicken-shitted it and withdrew the resolution and went to war cowboy style. I'm not going to throw my own party members overboard because they were tricked by *. Hell, I'll admit it, he fooled me too and I was in favor of IWR... because I was too naive to realize he was a warmonger.

"If you want to keep the peace, you've got to have the authorization to use force. It's a chance for Congress to say, 'We support the administration's ability to keep the peace.' That's what this is all about." -- George W. Bush, Sep. 19, 2002

[herbbrown]

11. One, Two, Three, Four

Everybody Dump the Dinosaur.......She's not much different than Liberman!

[AtomicKitten]

17. ***

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=2767100&mesg_id=2767100

[DinahMoeHum]

18. Sorry, Tasini's a nice guy, but he's not beating Hillary in 2006. . .

2008 is another story.

I'm not gonna waste my hard-earned $$$ on a lost cause here, because there are better prospects for progressives and Dems in other NY state races.
ie. Eric Massa (USRep NY-29), John Hall (USRep NY-19), Kristen Gillibrand (USRep NY-20).
Not to mention other Congressional races in Connecticut, which will get a nice big boost with Ned Lamont's victory.

I'm concentrating on efforts to make those 2 states "bluer" than before.

But come 2008, Hillary gets her ass handed to her.

:kick:

[derby378]

21. That's what some people said about Ned Lamont a couple of months ago

The people still have the power. All they have to do is use it.

[Al122]

23. Exactly!

If we put away our own fears and reservations we can make this happen and watch Mort Zuckerman, Tony Blankley, Britt Hume, Krauthammer, Limbaugh, Hannity and Coulter squirm on Sunday morning. Because they will squirm in fear even though the sacrifice is onstensibly from "the Left." The aristocracy (and punditocracy) are always petrified of the power of the people. They'll know that if we can take HC down, we can take anybody down including Bush and Cheney.

[sendero]

34. Yeah..

.... I remember all the adamant posts the Lamont had zero chance. Bet those folks are feeling pretty foolish right now.

Politics is like a football game, it isn't over til it's over. Ever seen a strong team with a 14 point lead at the middle of the 4th lose the game? Happens, not even that rare.

Nothing would make me happier than sending a completely unmissable message to the rest of the Dem senate. The righties would have a hard time spinning that as a "left fringe" action, since they are always claiming that Hillary is herself left fringe.

The only downside I can see is that if Hillary were booted out of the senate, she'd have more time to mount a presidential bid - and the Dems need her like we need 20 more Rush Limbaughs on the air.

[goreo8]

25. Yes!

It's time to support Tasini next, and get rid of Hillary. She will ruin the party. Heck even Bill Clinton couldn't help Lieberman.

Hillary is doing lousy in early polling for '08, and we cannot risk her being the favorite candidate in '08. WE CANNOT LOSE AGAIN!! I have read that Rudy Guiliani is beating her in polls, and even John McCain.

She's even doing terrible in a New Hampshire poll among Democrats: http://news.bostonherald.com/columnists/view.bg?articleid=151737

[leetrisck]

26. Talent, Bond, Blunt - why can't we work

very hard to get rid of rotten right wing republicans and quit trying to get rid of Democrats. We are going to bring ourselves down in the Senate and probably in the House.republicans won't have to do a thing except sit back and laugh.

[desi]

27. Mike, Mike..

There would be no fucking Bush/Cheney criminal cabal, no fucking Iraq war, no "Scalitos"/Chief Justice Roberts, quite possibly no 9/11 were it not for YOUR and your former employer's god damned "No difference between '"Tweedledee and Tweedledum.'"

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Michael+Moore+endorses+Ralph+Nader&btnG=Google+Search

[fishwax]

30. I'd prefer to save my money and energy on winnable races

if I were a new york voter, I'd probably vote for Tasini. But he's not going to beat Clinton in September, and I'd rather focus my resources on helping democrats take seats from republicans.

[jfkjunior2004]

33. Im goin 2 put my 2 cents in!!!

I live in the state of Ohio and I am 17 yrs. old and a very active political personand the debate about Hillary is crazy. First of all because she was a republican doesnt mean she was a CRAZY CONSERVATIVE!!!!! The Republican party is drastically differnt now then it was back in the early 70's. they were once a party that could and would work together with democrats to get things done. Our enemy is not Republicans it is the Cristian Conservatives that want to hold progress behind and not give equal oppurtunies to all Americans.

Second going into the war in Iraq I was a little worried about the idea of a war. But the lies a decite of the Bush adm. would have been enough for more than 70% of the bloggers on this site if in the senate to vote FOR the war in Iraq. And as we have found out that our troops were under supplied and Hillary has been a Big Critic of the administration on that point.

VOTE CLINTON 08

[mom cat]

35. I just signed up to do volunteer phone calling.

Tasini looks real good, like he stands for the people, not the elite.

[Jack Rabbit]

36. I wish Mr. Tasisni good fortune

I'll eat another helping of crow if he wins, but, as was the case this week, I'll love every bite.

[wiley]

37. 100% Hillary Supporter

Go after some Republican already. This is so tired.