Totally unacceptable: CT speaker of the house endorses Lieberman

[femmedem]

http://connecticutblog.blogspot.com/

James Amann, CT's Democratic Speaker of the House, refuses to endorse his party's primary winner. I can hardly believe it.

Edit to add his phone #: [phone]

[movonne]

1. This has got to stop...where are our dems...

[Nothing Without Hope]

33. Wrong possessive pronoun - these people are NOT "our" Dems when

they reject the proven will of voters. They are neither Democrats with a large "D" nor democrats with a small "d." And they should be removed from the office that they are so blatantly and dangerously abusing.

"Speaker of the House" - what irony. He speaks only for Bush's criminal band of enablers.

[AndyA]

2. Well, I would say the good people of Connecticut have more house cleaning

to do. There is nothing worse than poor representation. And there is no excuse for it. The Democratic voters of Connecticut have indicated their desires, and those in public service who do not wish to abide by those desires must be shown the exit door.

[invictus]

21. It's a battle for the soul of the CT Democratic Party

Fortunetly we are on the winning side.

[midnight]

27. That's right.....

Connecticut let him know where you stand with your support.

[noamnety]

32. That was my immediate thought.

When's he up for reelection?

[Missy M]

3. If I lived in CT I would already be on the phone to him.....

telling him he's next.

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

28. I emailed him Saturday

after reading that he would be mulling this over during the weekend. I also emailed my CT reps that it was time for a sore loser law here in CT

[femmedem]

54. Did you get any response? n/t

[paparush]

4. I hope CT Dems are pounding this guy w/ phone calls, emails, and

holding a sit-in on his desk.

[Pierre.Suave]

5. SO much for...

...the principles of democracy.

[SaveElmer]

6. You mean Democracy...

Big D...

I disagree with what he is doing, but it hardly is enemical to the principles of democracy (little d)

Everyone is free to support who they wish

[MysteryToMyself]

39. There is a virtue called Loyality

The man is speaker of the house for the Democrats. So he supports Lieberman? That is a terrible thing to do.

I am sick and tired of republicans who pretend to be Democrats. They think they know more than we know about what we want and need.

Bush and Lieberman promise us $300,000.00 medical out of pocket costs after retirement for each person. They want perpetual war. They are bankrupting the country and causing death and destruction all over the world.

They are destroying everything good about America.

We need to clean house and not just Republicans. We need to get rid of a lot of Democrats too.

[Pierre.Suave]

73. Amen

do we ever.

[Pierre.Suave]

45. But...

I think one of the principles any elected official should understand about democracy is what should be the most important, and that is to respect teh will of the voters.

[SaveElmer]

46. There hasn't been an election yet...

A primary is a private party function...

It is a way for the party to decide on its nominees and are not required...

[Pierre.Suave]

71. OK...

Joe Lieberman is free to run as an independent, however, doing so after losing his parties primary is in no way respectful of the will of the voters in CT that voted for Lamont instead of him as their parties candidate. Furthermore, as the Democratic party VP candidate only a few years ago, he should know better than to purposefully split the Democratic vote by running as an independent.

The voters made their choice, and he should respect that choice and live with it. Anything else is an affront to democracy, democratic principles, the voters of CT that chose to support Lamont, and the country as a whole as he stands a good chance of turning the seat over to a Repug, or more likely, himself when teh repug voters vote for him. This country as a whole needs a Dem majority this fall. This is bigger than CT alone.

Joe should be ashamed of himself.

[SaveElmer]

75. Yes...

He is a disloyal party member...I completely agree with that and he should be ashamed of himself

[MysteryToMyself]

79. We voted

and elected Lamont as the Democratic candidate. Joe thinks he knows more of what we want than we do. Pitiful. It is that attitude that keeps the republicans winning. Voters can't tell the difference between the two parties.

[Pierre.Suave]

72. Honestly,

does it matter if I capitalized the letter "D"

[SaveElmer]

76. Well it does have meaning...

It is not an affront to democracy, meaning our system of electing our leaders.

It is an affront to Democracy, meaning loyalty to the Party.

[femmedem]

7. I just got off the phone with Amann's staffer.

His staffer was actively campaigning for Lieberman with me. "blah blah blah difficult times blah blah terrorism blah blah energy costs health care experience blah blah."

I pointed out that Lieberman's campaign will divert funds and activism from other important races. He blamed Lamont.

I said I was very angry. He said Mr. Amman respected my decision and he hoped I would respect his. I said, "He's not respecting the decisions of the Democratic voters who showed up to vote in their primary."

He said, "Only 43% of the Democrats voted in the primary."

I said, "ONLY 43%? 43% is huge."

He said it wasn't a majority. I asked if Mr. Amann believed in our primary system. He said Mr. Amann believed in the best man for the job.

Edit to add: He also said Lieberman was still a Democrat. No, I said. He's the Democrat's opponent. Brick wall.

He said it was the first phone call he'd gotten today. Folks, if you're from CT, please call.

[City Lights]

8. "The people" have become irrelevant.

:-(

The response you got from Amann really ticks me off.

Democracy is dead. RIP.

[femmedem]

9. I'm a little ticked off, too.

Ticked off, as in my hands are shaking so much I can hardly type.

[mcscajun]

10. Only 43%. I guess this dingbat staffer and his boss are holding out

for the great, "silent majority" of Connecticut residents to rise up and carry Joe back to the Senate.

It's a horrible delusion and damaging to not only Democrats, but all Connecticut residents. What a self-serving, narrow-minded Senator they have.

You have my sympathies.

[AnneD]

50. I think he might feel different

when another 43% of voters unseat HIS ass. They are elected by the people, not annointed by God.

[Vidar]

19. Well done on your part, arrogant idiocy on their's.

[Quantess]

78. How will the CT voters respond to his arrogant idiocy?

Will they say, "oh sorry! we were wrong to choose Lamont, you're right, superior one Amman, we should be licking your boots and apologizing to your pal Lieberman?" :mad:

[Pale Blue Dot]

31. What percentage of Democratic voters elected Mr. Amann?

I just got off the phone. I left a message. This is beyond the pale. I'm livid.

I think I need to get EXTREMELY involved in CT politics. Mr. Amann will rue the day he made this choice.

[LiberalFighter]

43. Need to write LTE... not just you but others in CT need to write also

Phone calls are good but only the candidate knows who called and the message given by the caller.

LTE makes it more public and makes the candidate think twice.

[femmedem]

49. I 'm torn about this.

One of my concerns is that it makes the Democratic Party look like a bunch of fools who can't get their collective act together. So I wonder if LTTE's are counter-productive to the whole Democratic effort.

Anyone else have thoughts on this?

[mrsadm]

11. Totally absurd and insulting to Americans!

How can anyone as a citizen of this country insult democracy so much? This is like saying fu** the voters' choice. Unbelievable. CT dems please give this guy the feedback he deserves.

[femmedem]

12. Thanks for keeping this kicked.

I want CT DU'ers to find it.

[kwolf68]

13. Quite an amazing story

the contempt for Democracy is quite illuminating.

[femmedem]

51. One week before the primary,

Amann referred to Lamont supporters as "a shrieking minority" hijacking the Democratic party. It's the lead sentence in this excellent article in The Nation.

http://mobile.thenation.com/docmobile.mhtml?i=20060814&s=shapiro

Talk about contempt. This also puts his staff's comment about the 43% who turned out to vote in the primary in some perspective.

[skipos]

14. More contact info here, email too:

In the District:

515 Popes Island Road
Milford, CT 06460
[phone]


At the Capitol:

Legislative Office Building, Room 4105
Hartford, CT 06106-1591
[phone]
1-800-842-1902
[e-mail]

http://www.cga.ct.gov/hdo/HDO118.asp

[femmedem]

18. Thank you. Excellent. n/t

[Vinca]

15. Once again I ask, would this happen to the Republican party?

It's like the Democrats see victory down the road and intentionally set out to muck it up. I really don't get it. Support the damn Democratic candidate. Unite. I'm furious.:mad:

[bvar22]

16. The answer is YES.

Republicans (White House included) are breaking Party Ranks to support Loserman AGAINST the Republican candidate in the 2006 election.
This goes beyond Party Politics, and points directly toward the shadow cabal that actually runs the US Government behind the scenes. The Political Parties are just "bread and circuses" for the entertainment of the citizens.

[Vinca]

17. Things are not always what they appear to be.

They want Joe to split the Democratic vote and at the last minute they will replace the numbnuts Republican candidate with a more suitable person and elect a Republican. They can do it. And they will.

[leesa]

66. Joe IS their candidate. He has been for years.

[AllieB]

22. I fear that you're correct

:-(

[BootinUp]

30. They just want Joe around to make other Dems look "radical" n/t

[JohMunich99]

34. hahaha

Thanks I needed that

[ourbluenation]

20. K and R - this is ridiculous.

[MasonJar]

23. I tried, but it will not take a KY. call.

[guidod]

24. I tried to call him

but I couldn't get through but I did send him an e-mail. I'll try calling him later, thhis guy has to go!

[ReadTomPaine]

25. This issue is like a blacklight lamp...

it makes the stains pop right out.

[Nikki Stone 1]

26. K& R

:kick:

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

29. Nominated and posted to the CT Forum n/t

[Tesha]

35. And to think: Only last week I was "full of bullshit" for daring to...

And to think: Only last week I was "full of bullshit" for daring to
suggest that I didn't think DLC-styled Democrats were going to
hold their noses and support THE DULY ELECTED DEMOCRATIC
CANDIDATE as they keep insisting we do when a DLC guy wins
the primary.

Oh well, I guess the shit's splattering somewhere else.

Tesha

[TankLV]

74. Yes, I'm noticing too - and taking names...

It's amazing what people spew when they THINK they're gonna WIN...

[threadkillaz]

36. Status Quo - Must Go

(repeat)

[femmedem]

41. Status Quo Joe: it's got a ring to it. n/t

[bigwillq]

37. K&R!

I was at work all day and just saw this post. I will call tommorrow.

[femmedem]

40. Great! The one thing I said which seemed to give him pause

was this: "Why would anyone donate to the Democratic Party if leading Democrats don't stand behind Democratic candidates?"

He seemed quite glum as he considered that one.

[Cha]

38. KNR! For Connecticut

Dems! Not Indies but Dems!

[ursula law]

42. he should lose his position as speaker for that

disgusting

[tbyg52]

44. Disgusting, absolutely disgusting n/t

[ChipsAhoy]

58. What you said!! n/t

[ochazuke]

47. Democrats for Nixon

Remember in 1972 that there were many Dems who did not accept the nomination of George McGovern?

So, I guess Nixon = Lieberman. Odd how far people will go to support mass murder of innocent civilians for nuthin'.

[eridani]

48. Surely someone in CT can find out how many votes Amann--

got in his own primary. If there was less than 43% turnout, throw it in his face.

[femmedem]

52. He ran unopposed in 2004. n/t

[eridani]

55. Was that his first outing?

What was the overall voter turnout then?

[femmedem]

57. He's been a state rep since 1990.

I don't know overall voter turnout.

[Olney Blue]

53. The Dems in Connecticut won't forget what you did, Mr. Amann.

[Janice325]

56. k&r

even though I'm in Georgia.
Good luck to those of you in CT.
This is such bullshit.
Do any of ya'll know if Loserman got a sufficient number of legal signatures for his bid as (cough cough) "Independent?" :puke:

[femmedem]

64. The petition signatures have not been validated yet.

He submitted 18,00 sigs and needs 7500 to be verifiable. Apparently, many many are being invalidated. Update here:

http://www.courant.com/news/local/hc-sa-petitions-0811,0,1277416.story?coll=hc-headlines-local

[Janice325]

68. Thanks!

I appreciate it.

[AZBlue]

59. Well...when's his term up???????

I believe Mr. Speaker needs to go.

[Critters2]

60. K & R nt

[Guaranteed]

61. He just goes on the list, is all.

This is a deal-breaker. You respect your voters, or you're gone.

[skids]

62. Yeah that's a neat side-benefit from this...

...where pols fall on this gives a pretty clear indication as to whether they are corporate elitists or populists. Not perfect, but pretty darn accurate, and those in Lamont-heavy districts with Leiberman endorsers will wake up to the fact that their rep is a corporatist damn fast this way.

[tbyg52]

63. "Corporatist"--I love it!

What a great, and exactly descriptive, tag.

[sendero]

65. Another...

.. S.O.B who thinks his cushy-ass perk-encrusted job is OWED to him.

Let's hope he as a challenger come next election. He's just made himself the next easy target.

[MysteryToMyself]

67. Imus was mad because the Democrats don't want Joe

Bush and Lieberman are promising $300,000 medical out of pocket costs after retirement and a perpetual war, so who wants that?

[bigwillq]

69. I just called

Spoke to a woman, who was fairly polite and heard me out. She said she would pass it on to Amann about my complaint.

Told her that it's disappointing that Amann has decided to still support Lieberman although the Democratic voters of CT choose Lamont.
Told her that it's an insult to the voters that Amann would continue to support Lieberman and it's a shame that the speaker cannot stand behind the nominee that the voters choose.

[opihimoimoi]

70. But BUSH is a UNITER......People come together.... Joe is following

Bushies footsteps....

Whad a POS he turns out to be,,,Ptui

[Bretttido]

77. James Amann... your days are numbered

[mhatrw]

80. Kick.

I'm outraged!