House Democrats Storm Out of Ways and Means Committee (Repubs call cops)

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A11104-2003Jul18.html?nav=hptop_tb

Months of political tension in the House of Representatives erupted into open warfare today when Democrats stormed out of a Ways and Means Committee session and the panel's chairman called in the Capitol Police.

The day began with a fairly ordinary procedural fight over an otherwise-innocuous pension bill. Committee Democrats complained that the Republican majority had not given them enough time to review a substitute bill that they had received shortly before midnight Thursday. Most of the Democrats then moved to a nearby library to plot strategy after they demanded that Republicans read the legislation line by line.

Infuriated, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas (R-Calif.) instructed the Capitol Police to remove the Democrats from the ornate library. Republicans said Democrats were being disorderly and did not have the right to occupy the libary.

After the one remaining Ways and Means Democrat got in a spat with a GOP committee member, Thomas dispensed with the reading of the bill altogether and pushed through the legislation, without a single Democratic vote.

[flamingyouth]

1. The police???

:wtf:

[Pale_Rider]

30. For good ole politicizing ...

... and apparently not without precedent when Our Man Senator Robert Byrd (as Senate Majority Leader) had Senator Bob "The-Kisser" Packwood arrested in 1988.

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/19/politics/19DEMS.html?hp

The scene, playing out in the same chamber where Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain on Thursday inspired lawmakers with his rousing defense of democracy, was clearly not the finest moment for Congress. But it was not entirely without precedent. As recently as 1988, the Capitol Police — acting on the orders of Senator Robert C. Bryd, the West Virginia Democrat who was then the majority leader — arrested Senator Bob Packwood, Republican of Oregon, and carried him feet-first into the Senate chamber, bringing a dramatic climax to a middle-of-the-night filibuster.

BTW: for the dear readers' general edification and persual, the Great Fight of 1798, before there was the Capitol Police.

http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/journals/EH/EH41/Neff41.html
"Will you fight me with your wooden sword?"

[Nottingham]

2. Why have the Democrats there? Republicans are gonna do what they want!

Democrats don't want to be part of this fiasco.

PENSIONS?????

this is Americans livilihoods were are talking about

Amercicans are in a Truly Tragic moment in history

:bounce:

[Fovea]

3. Hey, it worked so well in Texas.... NOT

This sounds like the Japanese diet versus the military in 1939, next they will be hunting down and and shooting Democrats who protest.

[Starpass]

4. Wake up America--we are dealing with far more than just "politics"

Americans better get their heads out of their asses and take a look at what is happening in this nation....especially before they keep getting all liquored up and telling the world what a great democracy we have and how we must liberate everyone on planet earth into such a democracy. We are turning into shit....total shit...Nazi shit. We snoozed through the presidency being stolen (yo, what's the big deal) but now we have these Nazis calling the police on the members of the other party because they went into a room in the US Capitol (the people's capitol)for a meeting. They kept the opposition out of the chambers while they took a fast vote. THIS better not be "one of those amusing stories on the evening news"...Dems need to start screaming: NAZIS as the top of their lungs and showing America a portrait of these traitors and their lying scum president. Our soldieres fought in many wars to prevent just such shit from happening here. These people belong in Federal prison.

[goforit]

17. Just tell me where !

And I am there!

God Bless those DEMS!!!!

POLITICS ASIDE NOW!!!!

[Old and In the Way]

5. Democrats should go to war.

Refuse to go along with the charade any longer. Let these pigs choke on their own anti-American agenda.

Either vote 100% against each and every Republican bill or just completely boycott all business in Congress altogether.

Don't give these bastards any more cover for the evil shit they are doing to our country. Let the American people see what a One Party system call really do to destroy this country.

[Walt Starr]

7. Boycott save one

LEave one behind to object on the grounds of an absence of a quorum.

[antineocon1]

6. Can someone please explain to me

why this pension bill is a bad thing. I want to post this article on another forum, but I also want to be able to explain why this bill is a negative for the American people.

[MaryBear]

9. My understanding of the significance of this news, antineocon1,

is not so much whether the bill was good or bad. The important matter here is the attempts of the Republican majority to disenfranchise the Democratic committee members.

[bowens43]

10. They weren't even given the opportunity

to read and study the bill. That's what the problem was, they received the copy of the bill shortly before midnight on Thursday and were expected to vote on it without reading today.

[SeattleDem]

11. the bill is not the issue

Ben Cardin (D- Md) is a sponsor of the bill. However, what I saw on CSPAN, changes were made to the bill and not disseminated to the Dems until midnite last nite.

Cardin himself had not had a chance to review those changes, so this morning, when the GOP asked for a unanimous consent to proceed, the Dems objected. One of the sponsors of the bill wasn't given time to review the changes, for crying out loud!!

How many times do we bitch here on line about bills that get passed that no one seems to read? Well, finally, this time, the Dems said "No, we are going to read and contemplate your changes, GOP" and in doing so, the GOP called the cops.

The pension bill is really beside the point. No one is saying there's anything good, bad, or indifferent about it. The issue is GOP strong-arm tactics to ram thru anything they like, without allowing the system of checks and balances to operate as intended.

[goforit]

18. WOW.......Thanks for explaining the fiascio!!!!........Ugly fat pugs!!!!

:puke:

[nadinbrzezinski]

8. CALL and EMIAL the MEDIA

This is unacceptable and no, not evevybody watches C-SPAN, but they
will watch the boys in the networks.

[Code_Name_D]

12. Oh the Republicans are just being FASHIST again!

This should be the respoce any time a Republican acuses the Democrats of partesen politics. Hell, when they do stand up to the repugs, the repugs hide behind the capital police. Like true born again fashists.

I think the time has come, where this word truly fits the situation at hand.

[revcarol]

13. Instruction manual : "How to slant an article" available at the WP.

Democrats being "combative"
Mentioned " you little fruitcake," but not prior "shut up!"
Police called before verbal altercation and not FOR verbal altercation
No quote from police that they obviously didn't have any business there.

I am too tired to mention the sloppy and unprofessional writng examples contained in this article.Suffice it to say, it does not meet any known journalism school standard.Facts missing, facts twisted,...sleaze.

[drscm]

14. But CNN continues to report this story as if the "spat"

with the one remaining Ways and Means Democrat was the reason the police were called.

The media is sick and complicit in the demise of the democratic process.

[SeattleDem]

15. NPR just reported it a little better

by mentioning WHY the Dems retreated to the library, which has bee missing elsewhere.

[LifeDuringWartime]

16. marketplace on npr didnt mention it

when they mentioned the bill being passed...i was very pissed off but at least they covered it in a seperate story.

[TankLV]

21. But hardly any better than the CNN spin.

Began with lengthy bitching by 2 repukes and ended with a short statement by a democratic congressman.

If it was slanted any further to the repukes, they would have called for the dems immediate execution for disobeying our furher.

Absolutely sickening reporting.

Now tell us again why this ISN'T like Nazi Germany in the 1930's? I can barely tell the difference any more.

I think I will finally become a gun owner to defend myself against these storm troopers.

[IndianaGreen]

23. CNN: Police called during House meeting

"We're not taking it anymore," declared House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-California.

I applaud all the Democrats for doing what an opposition party is supposed to do: OPPOSE!

Police called during House meeting
Accusations of name-calling and threats
From Steve Turnham
CNN Washington Bureau
Friday, July 18, 2003 Posted: 7:44 PM EDT (2344 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Capitol Police were called Friday to a contentious House committee meeting marked by a Democratic walkout and accusations of name-calling, vulgarity and physical threats.

Witnesses described flaring tempers. One GOP lawmaker said he almost came to blows with a Democratic colleague he said was threatening him.

<snip>

Democrat John Lewis of Georgia likened the appearance of the police to his struggle against Southern police chiefs during the Civil Rights era.

"We will not be intimidated, we will not be immobilized; we live in a democracy and not a police state," Lewis said.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/07/18/house.disarray/index.html

[goforit]

19. WTF did the police do????.....Arrest them???

Well let us call the police on the Repugs all over the nation!!!

[MaryBear]

22. Read the source article.

The police said it was not a police matter.

[NYC]

20. Meanwhile, the Repubs voted to pass the bill unanimously.

So, they got away with it in addition to summoning PEOPLE WITH GUNS to control the opposing party.

This is very serious.

[Lostnote03]

24. What A Day!!!!

....Yes it appears that it took a 70 yr old Dem. Congressman to shake up the Congressional Dems....McInnis(sp) from Co. really showed his lack of character by "egging" on a gentleman at least 25-30 yrs his senior....Of all the goose-stepping House GOP members however, Thomas from CA. is the most obnoxious phoney of the bunch....He is the one along with DeLay that provide the "air" of stench permeating the current GOP House membership....His "quick" gavel denied Starks any objection, thus tossing out Roberts Rules Of Order while the Dems were caucusing in the Library....Starks took all of them on!!!...God Bless the Old Salty Dog!!!There are TWO issues...1)The suspension of Rules Of Order that Starks objected to...2)The harrassment of Dems by Thomas utilizing the state authority to remove them for NO apparent reason (unless reading the actual amendmant under consideration is now unlawful)....Hoyer(sp) from Maryland summed it up by stating that this was NOT an isolated incident but a continuation of the One-Party dream of the GOP herd and as Pelosi stated "hubris" has infected the GOP....also the amendmant prolongs retirees from withdrawing money from individual savings accounts much like the desire to extend the age limit for SS claims.....best wishes

[young_at_heart]

25. Wasn't this supposed to a united, not divided, country?

Just one more obvious dysfunction!

[burr]

26. Have a Republican Congressman?

I don't care how much you loathe the person. It is our responsibility as Democrats to give them hell for this. Call them, write them, email them, and fax them. Do not stop until they know you're pissed! Give them the facts, such as that Stark did not get into a dispute with Thomas until after the cops were called. Let them know how much you find this abuse of power to be a condemnation of the majority party. And do not let them give you any sweet talk or justifications for wasting our law enforcers time, and our tax money!

This hubris, and arrogance has been sparked by the recent speech given by the Prime Minister. The House Republicans believe they are the modern day gods of Tony Blair Churchill, given the right to use any means they choose to destroy "evil in America."

Now they will arrest you and rip up your anti-Bush signs up if you display such signs at a Bush rally. What will they do next?

[moondust]

27. Never leave one human being alone

in a room full of Repo thugs. May as well throw him to a school of hungry piranhas.


On edit: Dems may need to consider using a buddy system so that everyone always has a witness.

[Pale_Rider]

28. The Cultural War ...

... is finally making itself manifest in the government. I want to go to my window, open the window and scream, "I'm mad as hell and I ain't going to take it no more". Go Pelosi! So goes parlimentary rules and procedure that protect the minority. Should we remember this espiode the next time the Democrats regain the House in Texas and the US? Afterall politics and the ecomony are rather cyclical.

Anyway, this whole tawdy congressional affair is chickenshit compared what goes on during the Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons. Imagine Bush having to personally defend his legslative agenda to the Other Side of the House? I could see him going linear as he was being questioned. Then all of a sudden Bush would finally break down and pass out on the floor.

[Nottingham]

29. Republicans has started thePolice state

I'm proud of the House Dems! :bounce: