Oman: Both Parties Join Hands to Sell Out America…Again (Sirota).

[chill_wind]

The 10 Dems:

Baucus, Cantwell, Clinton, Kerry, Landrieu, Lieberman, Nelson (FL), Nelson (NE), Obama and Salazar

"Both Parties Join Hands to Sell Out America…Again

The United States Senate has become corporate-owned territory - a place that doesn’t even pretend to care about ordinary citizens. Today’s evidence of this reality came in the form of the Oman Free Trade Agreement, where to the delight of Washington’s army of corporate lobbyists, Senators of both parties joined hands to pass this pact and once again screw over American and foreign workers.

More than 400 labor, environmental and human rights groups wrote to Congress asking it not to sellout and instead reject this disastrous accord. The concerns about this pact - which has virtually no labor, human rights, environmental or workplace protections - are many. Here are just a few:

see full text: http://www.davidsirota.com/

[OzarkDem]

1. Sherrod Brown has been fighting it / Obama voted for it

as Sirota noted in his article.

http://sherrodbrown.com/press/releases/287/

The Oman agreement specifically authorizes Omani companies --or companies with subsidiaries in Oman -- to operate U.S. ports. If the U.S. passes port security laws after the deal takes effect, those companies could sue the U.S. government to override the laws. Such lawsuits would be heard before international tribunals charged with trade promotion, not security.

"First, Mike DeWine refused to take a position on the Dubai ports deal. Then he voted against port security funding. And now he is remaining silent on the Oman deal," said Congressman Sherrod Brown (D-Lorain County). "Ohio has lost 200,000 manufacturing jobs in the last five years. Will Mike DeWine jeopardize our homeland security as well?"

Brown is the sponsor of the Trade-Related American National Security Enhancement and Accountability (TRANSEA) Act, which would protect Ohio by requiring a comprehensive national security review for all new trade agreements. The TRANSEA Act would also establish an independent Congressional commission to monitor the impact of trade policy on homeland security.

"We must not trade away our families' safety," Brown said. "Mike DeWine has supported one job-killing trade agreement after another, with no protections in place for our national security. With this Oman deal, he wants more of the same."

[Dogmudgeon]

2. Those evil Democrats!

Traitors!

Whores!

That does it! The straw that broke the camel's back!

I'm voting my conscience!

I'm voting Republican!

:eyes:

--p!

[chill_wind]

4. Nice try. No cigar.

Now try, perhaps, to deal with the content and substance of the piece.
ie the issues to Americans. Did you read it?

[jonnyblitz]

5. i never could understand the mindset of " just shut up, agree

and don't complain about our DEMs" when they act like republicans!! it's so fucking cowardly and unprincipled, IMHO.

of course Sirota is right on as usual, much to the chagrin of DLC types and DEMBOT loyalists..

[chill_wind]

6. Dig it:

Don't speak out on harmful policies, or any of your own party politicians who support them. There will be a cult-like conformity, a tar-brush remedy of instant disapproval for those it pains. To wit:

"I'm voting my conscience!

I'm voting Republican!"

Both Centrists and Progressives do it. Accuse each other of "Republicanism." Though how in this instance, from this Sirota piece and the points made there-in,that can ever be construed, I'll never know. Good grief.

[jonnyblitz]

7. when our DEM leaders favor legislation that benefits the big

guys at the expense of the little guys, that, to me, is acting like a republican.

No matter how much complaining I do here at DU,btw, I always end up voting for the DEM( unless they change election rules, 3rd parties are never an option for me), but on a discussion forum such as this I will speak my mind, which is what I thought these places were for. If we all just agreed and praised each other and never questioned the positions of our leaders, this place would be pointless and boring as hell IMHO.

[chill_wind]

12. The bewildering "republicanism" charge

I meant was the one directed at me for bringing the subject and the votes to light :-)

[Totally Committed]

3. All but two are DLC...

NAFTA, CAFTA, and now the SHAFTA... 'nuff said.

TC

[Donna Zen]

9. I was looking at some voting records:

This is the drill. It is okay to vote left if 1) it doesn't matter or 2) it is purely a social issue. But when it comes to economic issues vote right everytime. Incredible. I ask you TC, your a smart women. How in the hell can someone say that they care about women and children when they then vote in favor of robbing us.? Crazy!

[Totally Committed]

10. They can't. And, it's not crazy, it's disingenuous and it's

disrespectful, and maybe even cynical, but crazy? Nuh-uh. These votes are calculated for their effect on the electoral viability of those who make them.

Each and every staff has someone who advises on such things, sometimes after polling or focus groups have been taken on the subject, sometimes not. The feeling is, who else are women going to vote for? If they love their children they will vote for the candidate with the "D" after his or her name despite just one bitty vote against them. They rely on that. The f*cking a**holes rely on us to keep going to the polls regardless of how they vote. It has to stop, and for me, you know it has.

Any candidate who thinks a corporation is more important than me, my family, minorities, the poor or any of America's best interests can forget my vote. I ain't gonna happen. Never again.

TC

:hi: Hi, Donna!

[LUHiWY]

18. What they really want?

That is the essence of the Repub scam....to use "moral issues" to distract people from what they really want...power and profits?

Not too many will stand up and call for abuse of women and children....so they can hide a lot behind these issues...like the forthcoming NWO police state?

[windbreeze]

8. Why does this list of names sound familiar..???

Seems like every time a vote is held against the good of the people, most of these same names are on the list....and to think Cantwell's re-election campaigners called me for a donation....yeah, in another life time when she remembers that she was elected by people who expected her to represent THEIR best interests, instead of her own...sad thing is, I'd have to vote for her over McGavick...(but she sure is giving him ammunition to use against her)
windbreeze...

[chill_wind]

11. You mean like these names (CAFTA)?

Which approximated a quarter of the Senate's Dems?

Bingaman (D-NM)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Carper (D-DE)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Murray (D-WA)
Bill Nelson (D-FL)
Ben Nelson (D-NE)
Pryor (D-AR)
Wyden (D-OR)

Like these names?

Sirota's House-Senate List of Democrats' Ultra-Sellouts:

http://www.davidsirota.com/2005/07/house-senate-list-of-democrats-ultra.html
http://www.davidsirota.com/2005/07/which-of-15-dem-sellouts-should-start.html

[sadiesworld]

23. The only reason Kerry and Clinton aren't on that list...

is that CAFTA was a bit too high profile in light of their presidential aspirations. Both are committed free traders. But they can "make their bones" on the Oman deal, it flew so far under the radar screen (not that CAFTA was exactly a media event) that few dems will ever know about it.

[itzamirakul]

13. And then on another DU thread, a poster tells us to hold our noses

and vote for DINOs because of replacing judges on SCOTUS. It just makes me sooooooo angry.:banghead:

[chill_wind]

15. FUBAR. Because I have to admit any prospect of one more *sh

appointed SCJ gives me nightmares. I don't like the choices, but I like handing *sh another conceivable nail for our coffins the very least. That REALLY scares the crap out of me and I'm not interested in helping him.

[Clark2008]

17. OK - so who do we vote for in the general election when the

choices are: Republican and DINO?

Just wondering.

[CTLawGuy]

20. well, I'd vote for the DINO

but I wouldn't be happy. I would primary the DINO, and then face the resistance of the closet conservatives who will tell me that "the primary is a waste of time..." "this is a unique opportunity to take back the house/senate (as is seemingly every election), put that money and effort to better use...", "why do you never go after republicans..." etc.

[CTLawGuy]

19. what really pisses me off

is those people who say "vote DINO don't vote third party" and then say "don't challenge the DINO in the primary cause it's a waste of money."

I think they are just conservative but they don't wanna come out and say it on this board.

[welshTerrier2]

14. clinton, KERRY, landrieu, lieberman, nelson (fl)

interesting company Mr. Kerry is keeping ...

[OneBlueSky]

16. I too am surprised to see Kerry on this list . . .

I've been impressed with his pronouncements in recent days, and was beginning to actually believe that he'd turned over the proverbial new leaf . . . no such luck, apparently . . .

as for Clinton (my senator) . . . well, let's just say that I lost all hope for her a long time ago . . .

[CTLawGuy]

21. its getting close to running time

nuff said about Kerry.

[Totally Committed]

22. I'm not...

You don't see Kennedy's name on that list... One word for ya: V I A B I L I T Y.

Toeing the Corporate line means getting the Corporate $$$... Can't let Clinton, Warner, Bayh, Vilsak, and Dodd get ALL that nice DLC moolah. It's the only reason he stays affiliated with that organization. And, as this vote proves, he only needs to sell his soul once in a blue moon to stay a member in good standing. Who could blame him? If it's okay with the voters, it must be an okay vote, right?

I was *this* close to thinking the old Kerry was on his way back. *This* close. This kick in the pants was just what I needed to set me back on the straight-and-narrow.

TC

[blm]

25. What a crock - - you still obviously haven't studied his actual record and

don't even know that Kerry never accepted any corporate pac money in any of his senate races, and IN FACT, WROTE THE PUBLIC FINANCING OF CAMPAIGNS bill called Clean Money, Clean Elections that has been adapted by three states now for their own elections.

[blm]

24. Read what he has to say about it himself - his record has always been

consistent in trying to get fairer global trade in every agreement.

He has always been someone who believes in global trade, but also believes in trade that brings in labor and environmental concerns, as well. Why do you think he worked on Kyoto for 10 years? He and Gore are both global traders who believe in BRINGING labor and environmentalist to the table when the agreements are being negotiated. I expect one of them will be demonstrating that commitment in the near future.


Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, today the Senate is considering a free-trade agreement with Oman. And here we are, once again, facing a free-trade agreement with an important ally that is the product of a failed process, an inattentive administration, and a basic neglect of the will of Congress.

I think this is a decent agreement with Oman, and I am not interested in harming relations with an important Middle East ally because of my frustration with the administration. Economic integration of the Middle East is too critically important a goal and vital to our efforts in the war on terror. I understand that deficiencies remain in this agreement. I will monitor Oman's remaining commitments on worker rights very closely. We must continue to engage this volatile region of the world economically if we expect to make progress on a number of fronts.

I have said repeatedly to the administration that our trade agreements must include the basic International Labor Organization, ILO, standards within the four corners of the trade agreement and that those standards must be enforceable. I have said that we must address other abuses such as the recent reports of abhorrent working conditions in Jordan. So what have we done? On CAFTA, I offered an amendment calling on the administration to require equivalent dispute resolution procedures for workers' rights as we provide for patent violations. And even though that vote failed on a 10 to 10 tie, the administration did not even consider strengthening the standards.

On Oman, Senators CONRAD, BINGAMAN and I offered an amendment to strengthen slave labor laws. The committee adopted the amendment unanimously. Inexplicably, the administration has returned the implementing bill without the language--without an explanation--without justification. It is absolutely inconceivable that the administration would not support a ban on the importation of goods produced with slave labor. At a time when America is attempting to restore its image around the world, this certainly sends the signal that as long as this administration is in place, we should not anticipate common sense in Government.

But I will say that the intransigence demonstrated by the administration this week does not bode well for renewal of fast-track authority. Under the Constitution, Congress is empowered to manage our economic relationships. We grant that power to the administration so that we may present the world with one voice in our economic diplomacy. But we must evaluate under what conditions we grant this authority in the future--if we grant it at all. There is no doubt that the system is broken. And I will be actively engaged as we reevaluate this strategy.