Rep. Tim Jones can't believe the legislature can take on the insurance industry but can't take on "the teachers unions" & school executives. about 9 hours ago from web
Because teacher unions in Missouri have unlimited power and insurance companies don't?
...an astroturf "populist" lobbyist, and a few ankle biters.
Senator Claire McCaskill (D) busted the chops of the republican leadership of the Missouri General Assembly over their hypocrisy when it comes to using federal money. The Twitter flurry started on February 10th.
Sent letter yestrday askng budget chairs in Mo legis what programs they'd cut if they didn't have almost billion $ in stimulus this year. 8:58 AM Feb 10th from web
They dnt wnt the stimulus $$ but if MO residents r paying @clairecmc 's earmark big debt bill, how cld they not spend it? RT @ChadLivengood 2:15 PM Feb 10th from TweetDeck
@clairecmc now that gun has bn held 2 leg head, they r n box. Ur vote forced Missourians 2 pay 4 the big debt so how cld leg not spend $$? 2:19 PM Feb 10th from TweetDeck
@clairecmc Leg shld not have spent $$ 2 begin with, MO wld pay taxes 4 ur vote 2 indebt them. They shld start by not spending $$ on HB22. 2:22 PM Feb 10th from TweetDeck
@clairecmc my point is using orig $$ which they hd no real choice 2 do places them in a hole. I wld sprt tkng $$ bck & hvng thm mke decisns 2:33 PM Feb 10th from TweetDeck
@clairecmc U ddnt ask how they wld spnd b4 voting 2 put MOians n debt so asking now is pol. Vote 2 pull remaining $$ & lt thm do thr job. 2:44 PM Feb 10th from TweetDeck
@clairecmc decisions 2 cut always tuf but stimulus $$ jst delayed it & now made decisions harder. 2:45 PM Feb 10th from TweetDeck
Senator McCaskill finishes with:
Going forward,if we pull back unspent stimulus $, how will the budget in #MO be balanced? Who will take the billion $ cut?Impt to be honest 2:24 PM Feb 10th from web
The usual right wingnut suspects - teabaggers, tenthers, and numerous and sundry members of the political lunatic fringe join the fray:
Evidently this particular one is a completely different idea.
MU-Navy is a tough call for me, but most sports fans understand you have to stick with your alma mater. I love and respect MU, but Go Navy! about 5 hours ago from mobile web
Senator Claire McCaskill (D) has been posting on health care reform via Twitter today:
Still hope we can get some public OPTION or non profit coop. Also must make sure private can compete so gov doesn't swallow competition. about 2 hours ago from UberTwitter
The only way a public option could 'swallow competition' is if it's clearly superior to private insurance.
And if that turns out to be the case, what's the problem?....
...I guess we should have kept the buggy makers, the wagon makers, the steam locomotive makers, the radio tube makers, the door to door ice delivery businesses, the quill pen makers ... in business....
Senator McCaskill also posted:
Now is the starting gate,not the finish line for health ins reform.Hard work remains. I'm betting we don't get done til Rudolph ready to fly about 2 hours ago from UberTwitter
Why the wait? Last Sunday Senator Tom Harkin (D), Chair of the Senate HELP Committee, showed why we can't wait:
....we'll do the health care bill. We'll get that done. People will immediately, immediately know how they're being helped with our health care bill. Because as soon as our bill is passed and signed by President Obama no longer will they be able to exclude you from pre-existing conditions, no longer will there be any kind of lifetime caps, no longer can an insurance company drop you if you get sick. People who have health insurance [wind noise] will see an immediate change in their lives when we pass this bill...
Within the flurry of coverage of yesterday's disruption of a health care town hall in the St. Louis area was the news today that Senator Claire McCaskill had to cancel one event scheduled for next week because the people in charge of the location were concerned about safety.
Our Twitter exchanges with Tony Messenger of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch swirled around that news:
tonymess SEIU union council in Missouri issues statement blaming Tea Party activists for assaulting "reverend and SEIU member." about 2 hours ago from TweetDeck
tonymess RT @clairecmc: Very disappointed that U City school dist cancelled our event. We will expand the time on afternoon event ... about 2 hours ago from TweetDeck
tonymess Tea Party activists today are crediting @clairecmc for how she is handling protests (at least for her tone on Twitter). about 2 hours ago from TweetDeck
TheyGaveUsARep @tonymess Think perhaps the 3 teabaggers who can pass for sane are taking assessments & see an unpleasant near future & R backing up a bit? about 2 hours ago from web in reply to tonymess
At this point Senator Claire Mccaskill was posting via Twitter about the cancellation of the Tuesday morning town hall.
TheyGaveUsARep @tonymess They don't get a pass just because some of the less dangerous ones want to back up today. Also today:SEIU threatened,@clairecmc=/= about 2 hours ago from web in reply to tonymess
TheyGaveUsARep @tonymess They may find that the genie doesn't go back in the bottle willingly, and they deliberately uncorked the crazy,"rattle him""shout" about 2 hours ago from web in reply to tonymess
tonymess @MBersin What false equivalence? I talked to libs and conservatives today who are asking their members to avoid conflict. That's both sides. 44 minutes ago from TweetDeck in reply to MBersin
MBersin tonymess "What false equivalence?" Oh, please. You've never heard of Glenn Beck and the rest of the Mighty Wurlitzer? The same rhetoric? 36 minutes ago from web in reply to tonymess
TheyGaveUsARep @tonymess So do you condemn "Freedom Works" and the like for initiating the disruption strategy that set us on this path? 31 minutes ago from web in reply to tonymess
MBersin @tonymess False equivalence: "shut 'em down" or "gee, we'd like a public option". Sesame Street: "One of these things is not like the other" 26 minutes ago from web in reply to tonymess
The Twitter exchange ended here.
And while we're talking about false equivalence, let's take a another look at hotflash's video from yesterday's town hall.
This morning a little bird tweeted another little something that Denny Hoskins posted about the Internets and blogtopia (y,sctp!) via Twitter:
DLHoskins You mean everything I read on the internet, blog sites and chat rooms is not true?? http://bit.ly/16zNgR ColumbiaTribune.com: The Wild Web 37 minutes ago from web
Senator Claire McCaskill, commenting on the Iran election in a Twitter post:
clairecmc The Iranian elections make me very grateful to be an American. Home of truly free speech and fair elections. Hope reformers don't lose hope. about 9 hours ago from web
Former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage in Hendricks Hall at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg.
Twitter posts on the speech by former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and the question and answer session which followed:
At Missouri Boys State covering speech by former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage for Show Me Progress. Starts in half an hour. about 3 hours ago from web
On mistakes and the outing of Valerie Plame:
Richard Armitage at Missouri Boys State: mistakes - "I am inadvertently responsible for leaking the name of a covert agent's identity." about 2 hours ago from web
Richard Armitage at Missouri Boys State: "Why am I not in jail [for leak]? I told the truth [to Justice Department]." about 2 hours ago from web
RT @KatieFavazza In case you missed it: former Sen. Jack Danforth officially endorsed @royblunt for Senate yesterday. Come on, party unity! 11:02 AM Jun 12th from web
Twenty-three days and no public access to updates. How's that transparency thing working out for you?
This evening a little bird tweeted a little something that Denny Hoskins (r - noun, verb, CPA) posted tonight about CPAs and PIs and his difficulty counting on Twitter:
Denny Hoskins DLHoskins Just got back from the MO CPA conference.Economist guest speaker talked about the dangers of Obamanomics and loose federal govt spending...about 1 hour ago from web
Denny Hoskins DLHoskins CPAs also discussed my amendment to exempt CPAs from having to get their private investigator license that Dems voted no on voice vote..about 1 hour ago from web
Denny Hoskins DLHoskins Missouri CPAs asked why Dems would do that. I didn't have a good answer for them...about 1 hour ago from web
[emphasis added]
Maybe because republicans voted against it? You think? Uh, Denny, the republicans own the majority in the Missouri House of Representatives. You can't only blame Democrats when your silly amendments get voted down. In your own words:
...Woody: And then to the floor.
Representative Hoskins: Yes.
Woody: And then how many, is it a simple majority vote?
Representative Hoskins: Yes. Simple majority vote. So, eighty, there's a hundred sixty three representatives. So we have to have eighty-two votes. Eighty two votes [crosstalk]
Woody: To pass something.
Representative Hoskins: ...in order to pass something, yes....
It's gotta be an aversion to counting thing. That's a real bummer for someone who supposedly holds magical CPA powers.
Nineteen days and no public access to updates. How's that transparency thing working out for you?
Today a little bird tweeted a little something that Denny Hoskins (r - noun, verb, CPA) posted yesterday about veterans on Twitter:
DLHoskins Enjoyed visiting with vets at the Warensbrg Veterans Golf Scramble today.Vets excited about the possibilty of no MO inc. tax on retremnt pay 2 minutes ago from web
Possibility?
They'll be excited as long as they know you always voted for veteran's issues. Well, did you do so during the previous session Denny? Just asking.
Senator Claire McCaskill (D) weighs in on Guantánamo Bay via Twitter:
We will close Gitmo, We must keep America safe & shut down terrorist recruiting tool.We have to plan & do it right, just not as quickly. about 2 hours ago from web
...Despite all that, we never tire of the specter of the Big, Bad, Villainous, Omnipotent Muslim Terrorist. They're back, and now they're going to wreak havoc on the Homeland -- devastate our communities -- even as they're imprisoned in super-max prison facilities. How utterly irrational is that fear? For one thing, it's empirically disproven. Anyone with the most minimal amount of rationality would look at the fact that we have already convicted numerous alleged high-level Al Qaeda Terrorists in our civilian court system (something we're now being told can't be done) -- including the cast of villains known as the Blind Shiekh a.k.a. Mastermind of the First World Trade Center Attack, the Shoe Bomber, the Dirty Bomber, the American Taliban, the 20th Hijacker, and many more -- and are imprisoning them right now in American prisons located in various communities.
We've been doing that for two decades. What are all the bad and scary things that have happened as a result? The answer is: "nothing." Take note, Chris Cillizza and friends: while it's true that "not a single prisoner has escaped from Gitmo since it was created," it's also true that no Muslim Terrorists have escaped from American prisons and our SuperMax prison "has had no escapes or serious attempts to escape." Actually, the only person to even make an escape attempt from a SuperMax is Green Arrow, who hasn't succeeded despite the help of Joker and Lex Luthor...
Senator McCaskill continues:
I respect John McCain for expertise in holdng & prosecutng military prisoners.He also said he'd close Gitmo durng campaign,but need plan. about 2 hours ago from web
"...but need plan."
Uh, how about put them in prison? That seems to work for everyone else.
BINGO - My bingo bill, HB 620/671 passed the House this morning and is headed for the Gov's desk! 10:31 AM May 15th from web
The private jail bill, sb 44, passes! Now it will be a crime for an inmate to escape from a private jail! 4:01 PM May 15th from web
Great moment recognizing collegues from both sides of the aisle. 2009 Freshman Representatives have done a great job...Very cool moment...4:31 PM May 15th from web
Except they aren't saying that. What is it about"...In the end, you and the Committee will have to determine whether this information is an accurate summary of what actually happened..." that Sarah Steelman doesn't quite understand?
Oh that's right, that's always way too much to ask of right wingnut political hacks.
Senator Claire Mccaskill (D) responded today to a right wingnut via Twitter:
@24thstate I'm confused.Who are you referring to as my boss?I've got a record that's so independent that both the right and left chew on me. about 3 hours ago from web
an address by William J. vanden Heuvel to the Monthly Meeting of The Century Association
Thursday, April 4, 2002
...FDR was, of course, a consummate political leader. In one situation, a group came to him urging specific actions in support of a cause in which they deeply believed. He replied: I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it...
[emphasis added]
I would add that promoting the image of moderation for the sake of pleasing pundits is no virtue, it's a vice. [I'll take every chance I can get to mangle Barry Goldwater's words for evil purposes.]
[September 2007]...Members of Congress and retired Members are entitled to participate in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) under the same rules as other federal employees. Members meeting minimum enrollment period requirements who are also eligible for an immediate annuity may continue to participate in the health benefit program when they retire. For an additional fee, incumbent Members can receive health care services from the Office of the Attending Physician in the U.S. Capitol; in addition, Members may purchase care from the military hospitals using their FEHBP benefit. Members must also pay the same payroll taxes as all other workers for Medicare Part A coverage...
...Last June, the 230 workers at nine newspapers voted for representation by the California Media Workers Guild, which was working with CWA in a "One Big Bang" campaign. Just two weeks later, 29 workers were fired, two-thirds of them union supporters. Steffens, an award-winning reporter at the Contra Costa Times, was among them.
Management claimed layoffs "weren't based on seniority or merit or skills, that they were just taking positions that they didn't need or couldn't afford anymore," Steffens said. No one who opposed union representation was let go.
The regional National Labor Relations Board sided with MediaNews, claiming there was no proof that the company had targeted union supporters. The case has been appealed to the NLRB in Washington, D.C.
The company clearly knew who the union activists were, and was pretty sure how most people were voting, Steffens said. The captive audience meetings gave managers plenty of clues and they demanded information from lower-level editors.
That makes the claims of Employee Free Choice Act opponents that unions want to take away secret ballot elections especially galling, Steffens said. "That just kills me, the idea that all these companies are trying to protect our rights," she said. "We had a manager who admitted that he was being asked for daily counts of where everyone he supervised stood. How is that a secret ballot?..."
[emphasis added]
Roy Blunt:
Robin Carnahan wants less freedom for workers with a system where workers can be coerced to sign a card to form a union. about 13 hours ago from mobile web
And how many instances of that over the last, say, seventy years? As opposed to employer coercion? Sean McGarvey, Secretary-Treasurer Building and Construction Trades Department AFL-CIO:
...The Employee Free Choice Act doesn't take away secret ballots [voice: "Right!"] Doesn't intimidate anybody. [voice: "Right!"] Stewart Acuff, who is a friend of Teresa [Hensley] and her husband [Kenny Hensley], husband's college buddy, is the organizing director for the AFL-CIO. And when you hear people talk about union thugs intimidating people in organizing drives in order to get them to sign cards [voice: "Liars!"] [laughter] It's worse than that. [laughter] They have no idea how an organizing drive works. Organizers don't all of a sudden arrive at a door and decide to organize a company. It's the employees of that company that decide that they're not likin' the way things are goin' and they want to have an opportunity to come together and collectively bargain instead of collectively beg with their boss. And they reach out, then activists inside that company reach out for the union and ask for assistance. And that's what we lend. Technical assistance. Money and expertise. There's no intimidation.
And as Stewart said on Fox News, I told Teresa, and don't quote me on the exact number, but since 1937 there have been a hundred and thirty cases of documented intimidation by an organizer in a union drive having to do with having workers sign up for the union. In seventy some years. Last year there were thirty thousand cases of employer intimidation in organizing drives. [applause] In one year...[applause]
[emphasis added]
So, where does Roy Blunt's point of view come from?:
Congressman Roy Blunt (r - lobbyists) and former Missouri State Treasurer Sarah Steelman (r) wrote competing teabagger Twitter posts. First Sarah Steelman:
Looking forward to speaking at the Tea Party in Camdenton this evening! Power to the People! 7:30 AM Apr 15th from web
Speaking at the tea party in Camdenton was great fun last night! Lots of freedom loving peole who care about this country. 2:03 PM Apr 16th from mobile web
