Sen. Landrieu will vote for cloture

[Anita Garcia]

Her Assistant to Chief of Staff, Marshall Hevron met with us at Sen. Landrieu's NOLA office this afternoon.
Mr. Hevron said Sen. Landrieu is a "Centrist Democrat".
She will vote for cloture.
More information at: <http://politicalswitchboard.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=7200>

[Caoimhe]

1. FU*k HER

you either have spine.. or you don't. She doesn't.

fixed my expletive deletive

[mom cat]

20. IGNORE PSYOPS! ... NO FORMAL ANNOUNCEMENT YET!

E-mail her and fax her over the weekend and encourage her to abstain.

[Justitia]

2. She's no "Dem", she's an appeaser. I'm mailing her a coat hanger. -eom

[Coexist]

3. thank you so much for trying so hard.

:grouphug:

[cdsilv]

10. She's having to BEG Bushco for funds to rebuild the LA gulf coast....

...please cut her some slack. When someone has your back up against the wall you have to compromise or 'give in'.

However, if the DEM caucus could watch her back, and let her know that, maybe she would
change her vote.

Just sayin'

[Justitia]

19. She is stupid if that's why. Bush just shot down a relief pckg YESTERDAY

She can go begging to the chimp all she wants and look like an idiot doing it - he will NEVER lift a finger for her.

[Bumblebee]

39. She is also aware that if 80% of NOLA blacks do not, in fact, return

she will be a senator in a very red state... Not that it excuses her.

[Anita Garcia]

43. I wonder about that and the "Centrist Democrat" comment

[0007]

72. Senator Landrieu shouldn't have to beg for nothing from junior.

What Senator Landrieu wants is a common right for all Americans and America is willing to submit.

Senator Landrieu answer is in public opinion and in the streets.

The administration along with it's cronyism wants New Orleans for their own interest. The writing is all on the wall.

[wisteria]

4. She is a mouse. She is afraid the repubs will hold up the money for

NO. In the meantime Alito will deminish and vote against minorities in cases of privacy, and civil rights. And the President's power will go unchecked. Poor weak woman.

[lyonn]

15. Like Louisiana and Landrieu will get any REAL help

from the bushies no matter how she votes. It's a sucker bet.

[jillan]

5. Kerry did so much to help her and the people of NOLA

He even flew down there to deliver supplies while * was patting Brownie on the back.

And she is being loyal to who?

(say hi to Dylan:hi: former cgcs here)

[Blue Belle]

6. Lets keep on her...

Remind her how many times the GOP has welched on their promises to her. Remind her that voting no on alito and yes for cloture is the same as aproving Alito in the fist place. Remind her that the placement of this Jackass on the Bench isn't going to help NOLA... it will only make her plight worse.

[Carni]

29. In addition she won't be re-elected anyway

Hey I am the first person to say that the federal government was the one who ultimately screwed up regarding Katrina

But if I lived there?

I think I would be voting ALL the municipal and state incumbents out regardless of who they were, or what party they belonged to because I would be mad as hell at anyone involved.

I would imagine that the residents in those gulf states don't give a crap in general about anything but getting their lives together at the moment.

Maybe I am wrong about this but I think all those officials will be on their way out.

[Blue Belle]

36. They're already working Katrina against her...

She could get the money to NOLA tomorrow and that won't stop the GOP slime machine come election time. Talk radio has already deamonized her... cowering to Bush is only making it worse - it makes her look weak in the eyes of both parties.

[WLKjr]

75. Oh hell, she must not have seen the MSNBC article this morning

about all the promises made that still haven't been met.


Maybe she just doesn't care about her state any more than the republicans do.

[wookie294]

7. A "centrist" wouldn't allow an extremist on the Court

Landrieu is not a centrist.

[Anita Garcia]

11. after we caught our breath we made that comment, too!

[radio4progressives]

69. The Definition of a "Centrist" - a yellow stripe in the middle of the Road

or a dead possum?

Centrist has become a "positive" label for someone who squats him/herself down firmly in the middle of the road - even when there is a truck ready to squash them.

[stepnw1f]

8. KEEP FIGHTING! Ignore this thread!!!!!!! (nt)

[Anita Garcia]

17. We're still fighting for no cloture.

We gave her our position paper on Monday.
Called for Urgent Action Request yesterday with the Urban League.
Met with her staff today in New Orleans.
Tomorrow we will meet in Baton Rouge for strategy session.
Press reports on Sunday.
Direct Action (to be announced) on Monday.

[mom cat]

26. Then urge her to abstain. That works too.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x260594

[mom cat]

18. Absolutely!

[ladjf]

9. She has been a huge disappointment by consistently supporting

Bush legislation. You'd think by now she would have caught on. Bush has royally screwed Louisiana.

[SillyGoose]

12. All our help amounts to nothing?

This could bite her in the ass.

[kainah]

13. unbelievable

of all the senators, she and Vitter have the most reason to stand up and refuse to go along with this administration.

Truly pathetic.

[Generator]

22. Yes but on the other hand she's the only one

that has a real excuse. It's pathetic and it's sad that she thinks this will get her anything from Bush but that's what she thinks. If that's why she feels she has to do it-to help some real people in her state then honestly she's the only one who has an excuse. The rest aren't doing to save a life-is there a major crisis in Nebraska I don't know about?-no she's the beaten wife that thinks hubby might still feed the kids. I feel sorry for her. Especially because everybody-even many Dems have made it seem like such a done deal anyway.

[mom cat]

14. The page is not opening and there is no other confirmation. Beware

of possible disinformation... PsyOps Happens.
Contact her and the others this weekend. Urge them to Abstain on cloture if they feel they can't vote NO.
Remind her of what the liberals have done for Louisiana after Katrina. Ask Her to abstain for Kennedy.

[Blue Belle]

21. Exactly...

They can't come after her for abstaining.

[Anita Garcia]

23. I met with her staff today along with NAACP region rep.

and Louisiana President NAACP, Ernest Johnson. I am Annie Spell, President Greater Covington Branch NAACP. The Assistant to Chief of Staff said that she will vote for cloture. Then he said she is a "Centrist Democrat". Then he said that she is against a filibuster because she would prefer the Congress to spend time on Katrina/Rita relief.

[mom cat]

35. Please tell her that the filibuster will NOT take away from Katrina relief

and that she would be letting down a lot of people who came from all over the country to help and that most of them were liberals.
Please ask her to abstain during the cloture vote and to vote against the nuke.

[mom cat]

38. Could someone at the national NAACP headquarters have Ted Kennedy

call Landreau and ask her to change her mind or at least abstain? He has done so much to help her and could try to do even more to help the state. Bush has done nothing... She should not reward him.

[progressivebydesign]

42. She's afraid to piss Bush off and get no money for Katrina? is that it?

She thinks that concentrating on Katrina relief means jack shit when she's ENABLING a friend of Bush (who is responsible for much of the grief in the Katrina disaster?), and a friend of big corporations? OR is it more like she's AFRAID to piss Bush off because she's been told in no uncertain terms that she'll be cut off of more help for Katrina/Rita if she pisses Bush off????

[Anita Garcia]

47. No, that is not how Mr. Hevron explained it

We asked him that.
He said it is not that she's afraid of losing money.
She's afraid that Congress will be spending "time" on the filibuster and not spending "time" on Katrina/Rita relief package.
Of course, that opens up a whole other can of worms...see the Switch on "Baker Bill" discussions and her companion bill in the Senate.

[bostonbabs]

50. how short sighted is that and wrong

she is fearful that they will punish her....that's what it sounds like...all the people that she is dealing with are Republicans ...great....the two decisions should have nothing to do with each other.

[Anita Garcia]

51. I agree.

I wish we could have done more today to convince her staff of the seriousness of her decision.
I wish there was some way to package the opinions on this board and others and deliver them to her office.
I will take what I can to the strategy meeting tomorrow morning.

[mom cat]

53. I am sorry to have doubted you, but we have been fighting

disinformation all day.
Would the Senator listen to Kennedy or Kerry? Can someone get through to them to set it up? Can someone at national NAACP get this going?
Sounds like you have already given all of the reasons we would give.
What are the best ways to get messages to her over the weekend?
Thanks for all your hard work!

[Anita Garcia]

56. Glad to be where information is digested and questioned!

I will suggest this to Washington Bureau at tomorrow's meeting. I think that we should still call, email and fax because they will be "releasing" the numbers on Monday.
I will try to do some press education over the weekend and alert people that she is voting cloture on Monday. This may get more people to call in on Monday and/or "do something".
Her office is closed on Saturday and Sunday.
Tomorrow we will discuss with National the benefits of direct actions on Monday.
I will post our decisions here and at the PoliticalSwitchboard.

[mom cat]

80. Thanks for being in the trenches! You have got a tough one there.

:yourock:
Please post any "Action Alerts" for us in the General Discussion - Alito thread... Then PM (private message me to call it to my attention... thanks. I will be sure that anything from you gets wide circulation on this board!
Good Luck! :grouphug:

[rzemanfl]

16. This woman represents a devastated state, begging for alms

from BushCo. She is the one Dem I can excuse.

[Justitia]

28. Then she needs to switch parties & give a REAL dem a shot at her seat.

There is NO EXCUSE for selling out her country (incl her own constituents) for generations to come.

That is cowardly and it will do her no good whatsoever - Bush won't do a damn thing for her in either case and would happily undermine her in her own party.

[progressivebydesign]

45. That's why I CAN'T excuse her.. she has to do what's right.

If she thinks that she's helping her people doing this, she's wrong. She's trading short term (supposed) relief money for long term MISERY MISERY MISERY for the people she represents. (ask New York if the money promised to them for 9/11 recovery was every realized??). I dislike her short term mentality.

[Anita Garcia]

48. President Johnson and Claude Foster made that clear.

Claude is Regional Director for NAACP.
He gave the Assistant to the Chief of Staff a "Badge of Shame" to give to the Senator.

[beaconess]

54. The people she claims to be fighting for will be DEVASTATED

by a Court with Alito on it - voting rights, civil rights, education, womens rights, democracy are all issues of HUGE importance to the citizens of the Gulf and they are in serious jeopardy as a result of this nomination. Why Landrieu thinks she has to allow Alito on the Court in order to focus on begging Bush for Katrina money - especially after he's spit in her face time after time - is beyond me.

She apparently doesn't believe she can walk and chew gum at the same time.

[Anita Garcia]

58. Rubbed my tummy

At one point in the meeting when we were listing all of our rights and liberties that were about to be devastated by hurricane Alito I actually rubbed my tummy and said Roe.

[Roho]

71. What was the outcome

of the michael moore, Cindy Sheehan, VFP and missing 100k? I read a letter saying you and your husband had been fired but that it might have all been a missunderstanding

I recognized your name so I googled but only saw all the fighting and none of the resolution. Some of it was even here on DU.

Also,

Did you call the staffer a liar when he said the calls received re alito were 50/50 for and against.

[BattyDem]

24. I love this part:

"She is against the filibuster because she would rather the Congress spend time on Katrina/Rita relief."

Hey lady ... WAKE THE F*CK UP! BushCo and their puppets in Congress are NOT going to do a DAMN THING to help NOLA! It's been FIVE months. If they actually gave a shit about the people of NOLA, they would have helped them long before now. :grr: :grr: :grr:

This is the same old problem ... too many Dems still have their heads up their asses and have failed to notice that the GOP does not want to "play fair" or "make nice" or do anything to help the "mythical little people". Dems are still battling partisanship, when they should be battling FASCISM! Are they blind or just plain stupid???

[Anita Garcia]

30. We told her the same thing

Pres. Johnson made an excellent point. He said, "we don't need a good economy down here, if we have no rights."

[Peace Patriot]

25. It's not over til the fat lady sings! She hasn't done it yet. She hasn't

betrayed her Democratic colleagues yet. She hasn't "crossed the picket line" yet, and played the scab and the Bush asskisser, yet. She maybe hasn't heard from enough of us, yet--we who wrote the letters, made the calls, send the aid, actually went to LA and gave aid, blogged 24/7 for weeks raising the alarm, got on everybody, raised money, dug into our own pockets, supported her, through all that--while Bushites leered at the poor black bloated bodies and made crude jokes.

Maybe she hasn't been reminded enough, yet, who the real Democrats are, and who the real people are, who came to LA's rescue, when Bush was eating cake and everybody else in the junta had gone AWOL.

[Anita Garcia]

32. Assistant said the will post the call counts

Mr. Hevron said that so far, the calls for and against Alito have been about 50/50. He said that they will "add them all up" and get the information out on Monday.
President Johnson said that the count is not accurate because we (the NAACP) have given her an "A" rating and because of that, many NAACP members have assumed that they did not need to call Sen. Landrieu, that many believed she would be anti-Alito.
Another reason to call some more!

[Blue Belle]

37. So it's still possible to win her over??

[mom cat]

49. Excellent point! Everyone who went down there, sent money, or did

anything to help should e-mail and fax her. Tell her your story and how this feels like a betrayal.

[Mr_Spock]

27. No

She better not.

[Avalux]

31. WHO is Anita Garcia?

Because this info comes from her, an unconfirmed source. Let's not panic just yet.

[Anita Garcia]

34. This is Anita Garcia:

<http://www.bestofneworleans.com/dispatch/2005-05-24/news_feat.html>

[Acebass]

57. Give em hell Annie!

I know this woman personally, she's the real deal... I'm just glad she's my good friend :kick:

Go get em!:yourock:

[EFerrari]

61. Anita, welcome to DU. We have a site for Katrina survivors:

www.katrinaunderground.com

If you have actions or links for us to post, please let us know!

:toast:

[mom cat]

41. Check the user profiles and her website. Does anyone in the DU admin know

how to get through to Ted Kennedy's office. If Landreau is leaning this way, perhaps Ted could help her see things differently. Suggest the abstention solution also. Thanks
mom cat

[beaconess]

55. This is already being done. The pro-filibuster Senators are working

her hard, but she's not budging.

[Anita Garcia]

59. I hope we can do more than we have done.

[mom cat]

81. Thanks for the info. n/t

[GR]

33. I Have A Lesson For Her....Jean Carnahan....

She tried to assuage Bush and got nothing but an attack on her seat when the election rolled around...

[progressivebydesign]

40. I wrote and asked her (nicely) HOW she could do ANY favor for BUSH????

Amazing.. after Bush totally FUCKED OVER her State.. she gives him what he wants. What is WRONG with her?? Does she think that her constituents REALLY want some asshole justice who will side with BUSH of all people? Or that will side with corporations and developers that will destroy what is left of N.O.??? Alito is NO friend to the people that she serves.. I'm ashamed that she is Zell Miller in drag(ooh.. bad mental image).

[Justice Is Comin]

44. This is no time for polite speak to her.

She has to be reminded that millions of Americans contributed to her state and the Katrina disaster. She's a Senator and her decisions represent America. What nerve to say the Senate has more important things to do than block this nomination. And I told her so. Everyone here needs to do the same and where it hurts.


Senator Landrieu,

I'm not from Lousiana but I gave to show support of Louisiana's tragedy as it is part of the United States. So am I.

You have a lot of nerve not joining in the filibuster. This is of one of the most abhorrent judges guaranteed to threaten the constitution and insure the continuation of the policies and secrecy of the most dangerous and power crazy president in U.S. history.

Did you listen to the confirmation hearing ? What about Bill Clinton who jumped in to generate millions for your constituents because he thought it was critical that he do so? Now you don't think it's important enough to jump in and save our constitution?

If you refuse to honor the Democrats hard fought victories and values, and those who elected you Senator, you disgust me. You dishonor everything that Bill Clinton has done for you. And tried to put in place for this nation.

I contributed to the Katrina disaster losses as a citizen because I thought it was my duty. It is your duty to contribute something to the United States now for generations to come ? Or know that you will live with the consequences of AMERICA'S disaster you helped put on the Supreme Court.

FILIBUSTER ALITO !!!!!

[Canuckistanian]

46. Randi has a theory...

Landrieu needs money to rebuild NO, right? Billions.

Randi speculates that Landrieu can expect NO money from the "the fed" unless she cooperates on Alito.

Or else she can expect a horse head in her bed if she doesn't.

Capish?

[EFerrari]

63. Randi is half right. She can also expect NO money if

she collaborates.

Bush will not help the Gulf Coast. We will have to fight him and his vultures for every penny of our own damn money.

[Zodiak]

73. I love Randi, but she is wrong

We often attribute good intentions to Democrats in order to explain the obvious betrayal we are all getting in return for our support. Landrieu has voted with the Democrats TWICE since she took office. She is our second worst Senator, beaten ONLY by Ben Nelson of Nebraska (who NEVER votes with Democrats).

She is not a "centrist"; she is a right-winger, and she was that way LONG before Katrina hit New Orleans. She is not likely to listen to phone calls, emails, and faxes because she is certain that carrying a "D" by her name entitles her to our votes, regardless of what she does as a Senator.

I really think that a lot of DUers are going to be disappointed in her actions on Alito. She never listens to the party, much less her base.

She voted FOR Condi's nomination
She voted For Gonzales' confirmation
She voted to restrict class action lawsuits
She voted for the bankruptcy bill
She vogd to confirm Negroponte
She voted for the Cheney Energy Bill
She refused to stand up for Ohio voters
She voted for firearm manufacturer immunity
She voted to confirm at least one of Bush's radical judges, and was one of the compromise 14
She voted to cut medicaid
She voted for Bush's tax cuts for the rich
She voted to confirm John Roberts

The only votes on which she sided Democrats was against CAFTA

And now we rationalize her betrayal as gamesmanship concerning New Orleans? What gamesmanship was she showing when she was selling us all out BEFORE Katrina hit?

I am sorry, but when thuis is over we need to stop with the optimisim about the intentions of our worst Senators. If we want results, we need to challenge them for their seats. As it stands now, we are asking for sympathy from an unsympathetic ear.

If she votes for Alito or for cloture, she can go to hell. I will not attribute her betrayal to some noble cause of getting money to her constituents. Her vote history does not support that hypothesis.

[Canuckistanian]

76. Excellent case against her, good post

I never knew she was that bad.

[Justitia]

82. This is GREAT info! Question, please?....

Is this your own compilation, or do you use a specific site or source?

When I'm trying to evaluate someone (esp for donations via groups I belong to), I spend A LOT of time sifting thru stuff on www.Vote-Smart.org & other places, and I end up drilling down and searching all over. I really need a better way to make a quick summary and yours was great. I especially like knowing how many times someone votes w/the party.

Thanks.

[Zodiak]

83. I track senator votes and post them every 3 months

Everyone likes ADA ratings, but I disagree with their methodology.

The full list of senators, already scored (and Republicans) can be found here:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/12/18/19162/775

As well as my methodology and why I disagree with ADA's. Feel free to drop a comment.

If you are REALLY interested, you can PM me your email and I will send you my Excel file where I track the votes.

[Justitia]

85. Thanks so much! Re: those comments - whew!

"herding cats" is right! For my own purposes, I see that my perspective is very closely aligned w/yours, so your methodology appeals to my most pragmatic side.

You do updates every three months - will this "diary" be updated with those numbers if I bookmark it? Or do I need to search for a new one? (Although I regularly read dailykos, I admit I still get ensnared in the format....)

Thank you!

:hi:

[Zodiak]

88. My main diary page is where any new updates will appear

just move up one level, or bookmark this link

http://www.dailykos.com/user/Zodiak%20Ironfist

I only use it for this exercise, so don't worry about it getting cluttered up with extraneous information.

[Justitia]

90. great , bookmarked - thanks again! -eom

[Anita Garcia]

86. Thanks

for your post and for what you are doing on dailykos.
Good information.
I will forward Landrieu information with link to your site.

[dchill]

52. She is interested more in being ...

Senator from Louisiana than in whether there'll be a Louisiana OR an America to represent. And that IS in question.

[Anita Garcia]

60. I hope she will think about this over the weekend

[Acebass]

62. will you be meeting

with her again anytime soon?

[Anita Garcia]

64. Next planned meeting with Sen. Landrieu is in late Feb.

[Acebass]

65. Why no news media?

[Sleepless In NY]

67. If it wasn't for Anderson Cooper Mary would still be thanking bush

Anyone remember how he blew up at her during Katrina? Mary thanking bush for the help that never came? After that interview with Cooper she did a complete 360...and started getting angry. I'd like to believe that Mary has the good intentions of the people of Louisiana in mind, for they surely need it, but she comes off to me, as worrying more about her own politcal position, then anything else.

Wont matter, repubs will promise her the sky, toy with her, give her a little, but never what they will promise. In the end, even though "Brownie" admitted last week, he was at fault for not reacting quickly enough, comes election time, repubs will go after & succeed in blaming Blanco, Landrieu & Nagin for everything. Any money that comes Mary's way (dont hold your breath) bush will get the credit for anyway.


Bush is stonewalling the Katrina Investigations, same as he did the 9/11 Investigations, and after 2 years of begging for that, we all saw what a farce that turned out to be, despite "bipartisan support".

Mary, Please wake up! You think you can trust the republicans to come to your aid? Dream on. They are playing you like a violin. NY still hasn't received funds promised to it & 5 years later a Ground Zero Czar has yet to be "appointed" while people are dying left and right from the toxins emitted there.


You give in to republicans & they just walk all over you.

[Wordie]

66. Thanks for your efforts, Anita Garcia. Maybe she will reflect later

about the things you told her.

[blitzen]

68. Landrieu is a total disaster...And has been since way before Katrina

A lot of people on here tonight are cutting her some slack, as of she's only backing the Repukes so as not to jeopardize Katrina funding....That's crap--she has always backed the pukes on every issue that matters to us. I'm from Baton Rouge, by the way, and have voted for her twice. Although I vowed quite a while ago that I never would again.

I don't care about her motives or her "strategery"...The fact is, she doesn't do us a damn bit of good.

[Halliburton]

77. she praised Bush's response to katrina

and when everyone except her figured out how stupid she was, she finally started criticizing the President.

[clitzpah queen]

70. Wow - I urge everyone to read Anita Garcia's link (above)

How wonderful do you sound?!! The quality of you as an organizer and leader is evident by your posts here, but reading that article about what you have been doing down there has added great depth. Right on to you and your partner (husband) and daughter!

Do we have a Coalition of folks in New York planning to converge upon Chuck Schumer's office on Monday? I wonder...(will post this question elsewhere)

[Acebass]

74. One heck of a lady!

The only white lady thats president of an NAACP chapter...she see something wrong look out, proud to know you Annie...

[tulip]

78. Anita is the real deal!

Thanks for your continued efforts. Onward!

[EFerrari]

84. Welcome to DU, tulip!

:hi:

[ticapnews]

79. For someone who supposedly has a lot of political savvy, she's acting dumb

I sent her an email Friday and pointed out that
A) she said the Administration is moving too slowly to help the Katrina victims
B) the Senate will not grind to a halt if the filibuster succeeds - the Patriot Act expires February 3 and the GOP will want to act on that ASAP.
C) if she filibusters and we are successful, the president and Congressional GOP leaders will be so weakened she will be in a much better position to get relief for the Gulf States.
D) It's the right thing to do anyway.

She's supposed to be from a family with a long political history in Louisiana. Shouldn't she know better how to play the system? Huey Long would be so disappointed.

[AtomicKitten]

87. I hope this isn't the final answer or response from her.

But this is a perfect example of the different shades of blue in the Democratic party. Although this seeming republican butt-smooching is most repulsive, it is probably fair to say her centrist ideology is par for the course in her state and that red state Dems can't win with a more leftist ideology.

And as much as her voting yes on cloture is something we can barely digest, it reminds me that there is another part of the big tent of Democrats that is moderate/centrist, and it isn't fair to label that as being a DINO as many here at DU call it.

The Dem party has a long history of being a big tent. And as much as we disagree vehemently with that notion, I'm beginning to see the distinct possibility of a third party arising from this breech.

[cboy4]

89. You're doing a heck of a job Brownie....I mean Mary

:sarcasm:

[bvar22]

91. *