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DEF is a non-partisan, independent political blog based in the
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Congressman Wm. Lacy Clay (D-St. Louis) today blasted House Republicans as they once again failed to join with the Democratic majority to override President Bush's veto of the expanded State Children's Health Insurance Program. The effort failed by just 15 votes.
“Today, President Bush and House Republicans stood between 3.8 million additional children who would be covered by SCHIP and the health care they need.,” said Congressman Clay. “Over 56,000 children of hardworking Missouri families will remain uninsured because the President and the Republican minority continue to refuse to cover them. That is indefensible, especially when the economy is teetering on the brink of a recession. One of the most irresponsible things we could do is to leave millions of children uninsured as their parents struggle with foreclosures, layoffs, and higher prices for gas, utilities and groceries. As a parent, I want every child in this country to grow up healthy, with insurance coverage that helps keep them well. There is no excuse for sustaining this veto, and we continue the struggle to cover every child in this nation."
The legislation vetoed by the President provided a $35 billion expansion of the SCHIP program which would have provided health care coverage to 10 million American children. The existing SCHIP program was extended last December until March 2009. But without this legislation, 3.8 million additional low-income children of working families will not be covered under the program. In addition, state budget shortfalls and administrative rules from President Bush put children who are covered now in jeopardy of losing health care.
Democrat Mike Garman made his bid for the 2nd District Congressional seat official today. The office is currently held by Republican Todd Akin. Garman is the Vice Chairman of the St. Charles County Ambulance District, and he says his campaign will focus heavily on health care issues.
From the press release:
Mike currently holds elected office as Vice Chairman of the Saint Charles County Ambulance District and is the 6th District Director. The 6th District covers parts of Saint Peters and O’Fallon, as well as Lake Saint Louis, Wentzville and Foristell.
Healthcare will be a major issue for Garman’s campaign. With 19 years of experience in the field, Mike is acutely aware of the medical needs facing residents of his district and is an impressive advocate for patients. He noted recent changes in medical insurance that have placed an ever-increasing burden on the elderly and their families.
“Access to the prevention, treatment, and management of disease must be a right, not a privilege,” Garman said. “When I’m elected, I’ll make sure affordable healthcare is available to the good people of the 2nd Congressional District and everyone living in our nation.”
Mike is currently a Radiologic Technologist for Saint John’s Mercy and specializes in Urgent Care Diagnostic Imaging.
Probably best known (as much as he probably wishes he wasn't) as the "angry black guy" from the first season of the mother of all reality shows, The Real World, hip-hop author Kevin Powell, who is now running for Congress, is coming to St. Louis.
Powell, the former editor of Vibe magazine, is running as a Democrat in the 10th Congressional District in Brooklyn, New York. The invitation to his St. Louis event says that Powell is "widely considered one of America's most important voices in these early years of the 21st Century."
Wow! That's coming a long way from throwing a phone at Julie and claiming that black people can't be racist because they don't have power.
Powell will be at the Regional Arts Commission building, 6128 Delmar Blvd, on Monday, November 12, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM.
Republican Chris Sander, a mortgage company executive from Ellisville, has filed to run for Congress against Democrat Russ Carnahan. This is Sanders' first bid for political office.
Following appearances today by General David Petraeus, the U.S. commander in Iraq, and Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador in Baghdad, before the House Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill issued the following statement:
“When President Bush asked the American people in January to support a new way forward, he said this surge was going to be about giving the Iraqi people a chance to stabilize. He set forth himself in that speech in January nine benchmarks that he said he would hold the Iraqi government accountable for.
“Unfortunately, so far, we have not heard enough about why these benchmark aren’t being met, and why is it that we have been able to sacrifice as a country now on the ground for longer than our troops fought in World War II, why is it that the Iraq government cannot take meaningful steps towards securing their own country and living with each other.
“I think there is some good news in what General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker have said today – the fact that they acknowledge that drawing down troops is the right way to go.
“But unfortunately, I don’t think there has been enough conversation yet about something other than the two extremes. I don’t think any of us in Washington want an expeditious drawdown of all our troops in Iraq. And on the other hand, I don’t think most people in American want us to continue to stand in the middle of a civil war. I think there is something in between. I will look forward in the hearing tomorrow, I will look forward to questioning General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker, as I know many other senators will, about what would be in between.
“I think the logical thing is to change the mission, to change our mission from securing Iraq and providing stability to that nation to what we really should be doing which is fighting terrorism. We should be fighting terrorism in Iraq with our troops on the ground, but at a much lower level than we have now. And we should be refocusing our troops in other areas of the world where terrorism continues to be a problem, and in fact is growing because we are bogged down in Iraq. There is a better way than what we are doing now.
“I think that General Petraeus – although I think he is an honorable man, and I think both he and Ambassador Crocker are giving their best judgment – they own this strategy on behalf of the commander-in-chief, and they are obligated to defend it. I think there has to be somewhere in between the president’s stubborn opinion that nothing should change and the position of some on the left who believe everything has to change tomorrow. We’ve got to find that middle ground. It’s important to the American people, it’s important to the men and women risking their lives.”
State Representatives Jeanette Mott Oxford (whose birthday is today, according to the Arch City Chronicle) and Jamilah Nasheed recently appeared on a "A Nation Deceived," a podcast dedicated to discussing the impeachment of President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
Listen to the entire show right here...
This year, Nasheed sponsored, and Oxford co-sponsored, HCR 46 calling for Congress to impeach Bush and Cheney. The resolution never got a hearing.
In Congress, St. Louis Congressman Lacy Clay is a co-sponsor of House Resolution 333, calling for the impeachment of the Vice President. Last year, Clay was one of 33 Democrats to co-sponsor a resolution seeking to investigate grounds for impeaching President Bush.
THOSE MISSING EMAILS - Congressman Lacy Clay may have a lot of work headed his way very soon.
A report released Monday by the House Oversight Committee found that the GOP email server used by White House Officials has not retained all of the emails sent through it. As some of the missing emails cover official business, the failure to retain those messages constitutes a breach of the Presidential Records Act.
The Information Policy, Census and National Archives Subcommittee, of which Clay is the chairman, oversees the Presidential Records Act.
VYING FOR VILLA'S SEAT - St. Louis Young Democrat Jake Hummel has announced that he will run for the 108th district seat of Rep. Tom Villa, who must vacate his seat due to term limits.
Hummel is an electrician with IBEW Local 1 and the Vice President of the St. Louis City Labor Legislative Club. His campaign's kick-off is at 5:30 PM this evening at the IBEW Local 1 Hall, 5850 Elizabeth Street.
KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY - State Rep. Fred Kratky has announced that he will step down from his seat in the State House early, and that he wants his wife, Michele Kratky, to take his place.
His departing wish isn't necessarily a sure-thing, however, as Michele Kratky still needs to win the nomination of the Democratic party in order to have a chance to take her husband's former legislative position and finish his current term.
Louisiana Congressman William Jefferson was indicted today on federal charges of racketeering, soliciting bribes and money-laundering. Readers may recall that back in 2005, the FBI raided Jefferson's home and found $90,000 in cash in his freezer.
According to the AP, the 63-year-old Democrat maintains his innocence. He was re-elected last year despite the looming investigation.
Back in September, PubDef.net photographed Jefferson in a happier moment, "Electric Sliding" with California Congresswoman (and St. Louis native) Maxine Waters in Washington D.C.
With all the uproar about the billions more dollars allocated for the Iraq War yesterday, almost completely unnoticed is that in the same bill Congress also raised the federal minimum wage for the first time in almost a decade.
The hike will raise the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour over three years. Starting 60 days after it is signed into law, the first increase will be to $5.85. In year two, it goes to $6.55 an hour. And in year three, $7.25.
McCASKILL & BOND VOTE TO FUND WAR, CLAY & CARNAHAN VOTE AGAINST
By Antonio D. French
Filed
Thursday, May 24, 2007 at 11:03 PM
The U.S. Congress tonight passed a $122 billion emergency supplemental appropriation to continue funding the war in Iraq at least through September. St. Louis Congressmen Lacy Clay and Russ Carnahan voted against the measure, which passed the Democratic-controlled House by a vote of 280-142.
The following statement comes from Rep. Clay:
"I cannot, in good conscience, vote for a supplemental appropriation that provides $97.8 billion more for President Bush's failed policy in Iraq.
This bill imposes no real deadlines and lacks any credible thresholds of accountability for either the President or the Iraqi government.
It does nothing to move this tragic and unnecessary war towards a swift and responsible conclusion, which is what the American people expect us to do.
Very soon, Congress will revisit this critical situation. And I pray that we will finally have the courage to face the realities on the ground, let the Iraqis decide their own country's future, and bring our brave troops home."
In the Senate, Democrat Claire McCaskill and Republican Kit Bond were among the 80 votes in favor of the funding. Illinois Senator Dick Durbin also voted for it, while his colleague and Presidential candidate, Barack Obama, voted against.
Obama's leading competitor in the Senate, Hillary Clinton, also voted no.
How Missouri's Delegation Voted:
Lacy Clay (D-1st) - NO Todd Akin (R-2nd) - YES Russ Carnahan (D-3rd) - NO Ike Skelton (D-4th) - YES Emanuel Cleaver (D-5th) - NO Sam Graves (R-6th) - YES Roy Blunt (R-7th) - YES Jo Ann Emerson (R-8th) - Did not vote Kenny Hulshof (R-9th) - YES
Kit Bond (R) - YES Claire McCaskill (D) - YES
Click here for the Senate roll call vote. Click here for the House roll call vote.
In other news... The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill this week to rename the University City Post Office after former Missouri Lieutenant Gov. Harriett Woods, who passed away earlier this year.
H.R. 1617, introduced by St. Louis Congressman Russ Carnahan, would name the post office located at 561 Kingsland Avenue "The Harriett F. Woods Post Office Building." According to a release from Carnahan's office, the location was chosen due to the fact that Woods began her political career in University City and it was the post office that served Woods for nearly 50 years.
As a further testament to Woods' legacy, said Carnahan, H.R. 1617 was cosponsored by 74 Representatives, including nearly every female Member of Congress from both sides of the aisle and the Missouri delegation.
St. Louis Congressman Lacy Clay has joined with Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) in filing articles of impeachment against Vice President Dick Cheney.
On April 17, Kucinich wrote a letter to his Democratic colleagues espressing his intention to fill the legislation. "Dear Colleague," wrote the Presidential candidate, "This week I intend to introduce Articles of Impeachment with respect to the conduct of Vice President Cheney. Please have your staff contact my office . . . if you would like to receive a confidential copy of the document prior to its introduction in the House."
Since then, only Clay and Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois have added their names to House Resolution 333, which states:
"Despite all evidence to the contrary, the Vice President actively and systematically sought to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States about an alleged threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction..."
"The Vice President subverted the national security interests of the United States by setting the stage for the loss of more than 3300 United States service members; the loss of 650,000 Iraqi citizens since the United States invasion; the loss of approximately $500 billion in war costs which has increased our Federal debt; the loss of military readiness within the United States Armed Services due to overextension, lack of training and lack of equipment; the loss of United States credibility in world affairs; and the decades of likely blowback created by the invasion of Iraq.
"In all of this, Vice President Richard B. Cheney has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as Vice President, and subversive of constitutional government, to the prejudice of the cause of law and justice and the manifest injury of the people of the United States. Wherefore, Vice President Richard B. Cheney, by such conduct, is guilty of an impeachable offense warranting removal from office." Click here to read the full text of the resolution.
CLAY OR CARNAHAN??? — If you were running for office and had to pick between Congressmen Lacy Clay and Russ Carnahan for a leadership role in your campaign, who would you pick?
Judging from a leaked memo, Presidential Candidate Barack Obama's people are betting on Lacy.
According to the internal campaign memo, first reported by Newsweek (but a hat tip to Jo Mannies for the local posting), Obama's staff advised him to tell Clay that "he will be one of the main leaders in Missouri for your campaign."
But they advised Obama "DO NOT lead [Carnahan] to believe that he will be in an exclusive role."
Both St. Louis Congressmen got to Washington with the help of their fathers' last names. Clay in 2000. Carnahan in 2004. Clay's four years of seniority may be what Obama's people are focusing on. But some may argue that the Carnahan name is more valuable for any Democrat looking for votes across Missouri.
BURKE DISSES CLAIRE? — Fresh off of dissing singer Sheryl Crow, Archbishop Raymond Burke seems to have a new pro-choice Missouri woman to practice his passive aggressiveness on.
"It was a special opportunity because my daughter is one of the graduates. I'm disappointed that the archbishop has made this decision," McCaskill said in a statement.
But Burke's people say it wasn't him. They say the decision was all St. Joseph's.
DR. DOCTOR — Respected newsman Tim Russert of NBC's "Meet the Press" (remember when PubDef was on "Meet the Press"?) and Dr. Henry Givens, president of Harris-Stowe State University, are among the six men and women slated to receive honorary degrees from Wash U this month.
Russert will deliver the Commencement address and receive an honorary doctor of humane letters degree. Givens, who already holds a Ph.D., will add another doctorate to his wall when he gets his honorary doctor of humanities degree.
ABC News broadcaster Paul Harvey; David C. Farrell, the former CEO of the May Department Stores; William S. Sly, M.D., chairman of SLU's Dept. of Biochemistry; and Shirley M. Tilghman, Ph.D., president of Princeton University, round out the list of overachievers.
Congressman Lacy Clay has issued the following statement in response to President George W. Bush's State of the Union address delivered a short time ago:
"Tonight, the President reviewed his long list of broken promises and confirmed that he is still disconnected from what really matters to the American people. A year ago, he promised that as the Iraqi government stood up, the U.S. would stand down. Since he made that statement, 879 more brave Americans have been killed in support of Mr. Bush’s failed policy, for a total of 3,059 U.S. soldiers killed in action. The very last thing that we should be doing now is to send 21,000 more U.S. troops into the middle of a civil war."
"Next week, I will cosponsor a resolution that will advise the President that the House of Representatives strongly opposes his plan to escalate this tragic and unnecessary war. Mr. Bush’s continuing refusal to face reality in Iraq is depleting our military strength and weakening our efforts to fight the very real war against terrorism. We don’t need to escalate this war… we need to end it."
"The President also spoke a great deal about health care. But unfortunately, his health care proposal will do little or nothing for most of the 47 million Americans who are uninsured.It's like offering a band-aid to a patient who is bleeding to death. The obvious and most cost-effective way to achieve universal coverage is to expand Medicare to cover the uninsured, which is exactly what I have proposed." "In the first 100 hours of the new Congress, the U.S. House, with bipartisan support, has voted to raise the minimum wage, expand federal funding for stem cell research, implement the recommendations of the 9-11 Commission, require negotiation of lower prescription drug costs for seniors, make college loans more affordable, and end the multi-billion dollar giveaways to big oil and gas companies. That is a great beginning."
"In the coming year, I hope that the President will truly put the state of our union first, and work with us to find common ground on key issues like immigration, alternative energy and conservation, restoring fiscal responsibility, increasing home ownership and ending unfair trade policies that hurt American workers."
Congressman Lacy Clay's office proudly announced today that the St. Louisan was unanimously chosen by his Democratic colleagues to chair the House Subcommittee on Information Policy, the Census and the National Archives.
The chairmanship, which is one of five selected by the majority members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has primary oversight responsibility for the 2010 Census, an enormous $12 billion national project that will determine political reapportionment and the distribution of billions of federal dollars.
"This is a historic moment, and I deeply appreciate the confidence and trust that my colleagues have invested in me," said Clay in a press release.
"The census is one of the most powerful tools that the federal government has to help African-Americans and other minority communities. In 2000, the national census missed at least three million people - mostly the poor and minorities. But as the Chairman of the Census Subcommittee, I will use all the government's resources to see that this never happens again. Phoenix-like we will rise up and ensure that every American is counted."
Congressman Clay's subcommittee will also have oversight responsibilities for the National Archives and Records Administration, which safeguards essential evidence and historical records from U.S. Presidents, the Congress and the federal courts. It also has responsibility for the management of sensitive and classified information through the Office of Information Security Oversight and for monitoring the enforcement of the Freedom of Information Act.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi swears in Congressman Wm. Lacy Clay for another term in the U.S. House. Joining the Congressman for this occasion in the U.S. Capitol were his father, former Congressman Bill Clay; mother, Carol Clay; and sister, Michelle Clay.
DONE FOR A WHILE -- Outgoing Senator Jim Talent said Monday he doesn't intend to seek political office again in the near future, but wasn't ruling out a later campaign farther down the road.
"I don't foreclose anything, but I don't have any plans to run for anything for a while anyway," Talent told the Neosho Daily News.
The Daily News ponders that Talent "could try in 2008 for the Republican nomination for election to his former western St. Louis county 2nd Congressional seat or for Missouri's other Senate delegation in the same year if incumbent Sen. Kit Bond decides not to run again. A stab at the Republican nomination for governor in 2008 is also an option but not likely unless Gov. Matt Blunt unpredictably makes a go for national office."
BLUNT BETS AGAINST BEAVERS -- Gov. Blunt and Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski have made a gentleman's wager as the University of Missouri Tigers and Oregon State Beavers prepare to meet in the 73rd Annual Brut Sun Bowl on Friday, Dec. 29, at Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso.
"With Missouri poised to win back-to-back bowls and our second Sun Bowl, a sampling of Oregon products to help us celebrate will be most appreciated," Blunt said.
Should the Tigers defeat the Beavers, Kulongoski has agreed to give Blunt a bounty of Oregon goodies including a large selection of premium Oregon craft microbrews from the Oregon Brewer's Guild, three full wheels of globally-recognized Rogue Creamery bleu cheese, and a sampling of fresh Oregon seafood.
Should the Beavers win, Blunt has offered Kulongoski a selection of Missouri branded beef, Missouri award-winning wines and an AgriMissouri basket containing Show Me BBQ, Fitz’s Root Beer, blueberry amaretto syrup from Persimmon Hill Gourmet Foods and apple butter from Bekemeier's Fruit Butters.
YOU'RE INVITED -- U.S. Senator-Elect Claire McCaskill is inviting her supporters to her swearing-in in Washington D.C.
McCaskill will host a cocktail reception on Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2007 from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. at The Willard Hotel, 1401-09 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.
Then on Thursday, Jan. 4, McCaskill will actually be sworn-in at noon. A swearing-in reception will be from 11:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at 538 Dirksen Senate Office Building SD 538, Washington, DC 20540. There will be a closed circuit viewing of the swearing-in for all to enjoy. Senator-elect McCaskill will join the reception immediately following her swearing-in re-enactment which occurs at 1:50pm.
Congressman Says He'll Take Wal-Mart's Money and Still Vote Against Them
By Antonio D. French
Filed
Tuesday, November 21, 2006 at 2:41 PM
EXCLUSIVE PUB DEF VIDEO
At a press conference today meant to call attention to the working conditions of employees of Wal-Mart, America's largest private employer, Congressman Lacy Clay was asked about contributions he has accepted from the retailer.
At the conclusion of Clay's speech, which slammed Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott for his company's huge profits in the face of persistent poverty among his roughly 1.4 million employees, reporter Matt Sepic of local NPR affiliate KWMU asked Clay whether he would return nearly $7,000 in campaign donations from Wal-Mart's political action committee.
"Not at all," said Clay. "That's the name of the game is raising money. I have dues to pay to my Democratic Party, about $150,000 a year. So wherever I can get that money to pay those dues, I will take it."
Clay said even though he has accepted money from Wal-Mart, he has not voted how the company would have wanted him to on many issues in Congress.
"You have to have money to run effectively," said Clay. "I'm going to take all the money I can get."
Check back later for more exclusive video from today's press conference...
A story in today's New York Times calls attention to the shift on K Street following last week's elections. Quoted in the story is Steve Elmendorf, a longtime aide to former St. Louis Congressman Richard Gephardt and a lobbyist with St. Louis-based Bryan Cave.
Elmendorf said Democrats in the House and the Senate would operate differently.
"The Republicans' view of lobbying is we give people money, we buy them lunch and then go up and tell them what to do," said Mr. Elmendorf, whose client roster included Shell Oil and Ford before the election and has grown since then. "We go in and make public policy arguments. The business community is going to have to reorient their view."
Congressman Lacy Clay best summed up the mood at the Renaissance Grand Hotel last night. "It's a great night to be a Democrat," he told the crowd at Claire McCaskill's victory party. "Especially in Missouri."
Watch this video of last night's victory party:
The Democrats' takeover of the House means that Clay will be the new chairman of the Government Reform Committee Subcommittee on Federalism and the Census, which oversees census issues, federal aid to states and localities and federal grants.
Bill to be introduced to investigate decades-old Civil Rights murders
By Antonio D. French
Filed
Thursday, April 27, 2006 at 3:15 PM
A group of legislators joined today to announce the reintroduction of a bill to create two new Federal offices to investigate and prosecute unsolved murders from the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and '60s.
Among the supporters of the "Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act" are Missouri Congressmen Lacy Clay (D-1) and Kenny Hulshof (R-9), and Senator Jim Talent (R-MO), who co-sponsored the bill last year.
State Auditor Claire McCaskill, a Democrat who is running against Talent for the U.S. Senate, said today that she also supports the bill.
"As a former prosecutor who has made a career of fighting to protect rights and enforce laws, I feel that providing the tools and resources to prosecute Civil Rights-era murders is long overdue," McCaskill said in a statement.
Clay took the opportunity to take a jab at the record of McCaskill's opponent. "The rest of the Missouri delegation needs to improve their NAACP scores, in particular our two Senators who both received an F," he said.
