Obama campaign says they will support FISA Fillabuster

[Political Heretic]

Can I please be allowed to say a big retroactive SHUT THE FUCK UP to all the hysterical posters and the Obama haters who crawled out of the woodwork and jumped all over this for days - all for nothing.

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/06/20/draft-where-is-obama-on-the-fisa-fight

[crankychatter]

1. get down with your bad self - k/r - nt

[Adelante]

2. That's from the last time around, actually

I don't believe he has addressed filibuster in the current situation.

[Political Heretic]

4. No, its not. See the update.

[Adelante]

9. I looked again

I don't see a statement regarding filibuster expect for the old one referring to Chris Dodd's promised filibuster which was months ago. Would you mind pasting the text your are referring to? I would like nothing more, but I don't see it there.

[tpsbmam]

7. Bingo. I'm an Obama supporter but his stance on this issue isn't OK with me. n/t

[Rick Myers]

3. Seems like DU has become hypersensitive...

Any little item gets magnified outta proportion before it can be confirmed or acted upon...

The Primary Hangover Effect

But we KNOW the GOP will be slinging poo in larger and larger chunks...

I find that reviewing a post before launching it sometimes resulting in me NOT posting it...

We sould be proavtive, not reactionary...

[dkf]

5. Umm..it says "He says he will work to remove amnesty from the bill, but once that fails, will vote

for the “compromise.”

The FISA filibuster was when Dodd was at it.

I'm not sure I've heard that anyone is going to filibuster this latest version.

I love Obama, but I also feel he needs our input right now.

http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/contact2

[karynnj]

13. It takes 41 people to filibuster

Dodd LED a filibuster in Dec 2007, looking at the "nos" and the "not voting" - all of which would could towards the 41, you can see they fell short by a long shot.

Here are the "nos" and "not voting" - obviously EVERYONE else is a "yes", giving them 76 votes (when they needed 60)
NAYs ---10
Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Dodd (D-CT)
Feingold (D-WI)
Harkin (D-IA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Wyden (D-OR)
Not Voting - 14
Allard (R-CO)
Biden (D-DE)
Brownback (R-KS)
Clinton (D-NY)
Coburn (R-OK)
Craig (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Gregg (R-NH)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Lieberman (ID-CT)
McCain (R-AZ)
Obama (D-IL)
Sanders (I-VT)

There was another cloture vote (more important as it was before the actual vote), and it got 69 votes.

Here were the "NOs" then:
NAYs ---29
Akaka (D-HI)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Harkin (D-IA)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Klobuchar (D-MN)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Murray (D-WA)
Obama (D-IL)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schumer (D-NY)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Tester (D-MT)
Wyden (D-OR)
Not Voting - 2
Clinton (D-NY)
Graham (R-SC)

Can you find 10 Senators who voted yes last time who will change? I am not helpful - and remember that Graham will likely be a yes - so we need 11 Senators.

[Tatiana]

17. It's sad that our party is hampered by the likes of Bayh and the Nelsons.

Akaka (D-HI)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Clinton (D-NY)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Harkin (D-IA)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Klobuchar (D-MN)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Murray (D-WA)
Obama (D-IL)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schumer (D-NY)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Tester (D-MT)
Wyden (D-OR)

That's 30. I'm adding Clinton to the base "NOs"

So we need to twist 11 arms. Here are my suggestions:

Baucus (D-MT)
Casey (D-PA)
Collins (R-ME) - up for reelection; polling shows the Dem candidate closing in on her; might get Chaffee'd
Kohl (D-WI)
Hagel (R-NE) - retiring; he can afford to vote his conscience
Landrieu (D-LA) - up for reelection
McCaskill (D-MO) - not up for reelection; can support filibuster without losing much political capital in her conservative state
Mikulski (D-MD)
Specter (R-PA)
Sununu (R-NH) - up for reelection; trailing Dem badly
Webb (D-VA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)

[KittyWampus]

6. Yeah, BUT HE'S NOT HEADING the Filibuster, is he....

you know that's next.

[madfloridian]

8. But he will still support the bill anyway.

"He says he will work to remove amnesty from the bill, but once that fails, will vote for the “compromise.” Obama has obviously calculated that sacrificing the rule of law and the Fourth Amendment is a worthwhile price to pay to bolster his standing a tiny bit in a couple of swing states"

[gateley]

10. As far as I can tell, there has been NO mention of a filibuster on this

vote. All these references are to when Dodd filibustered in February.

I also see nothing on his website about this bill at all, nor in the news. The most recent statement was dated June 20. Nothing since his statement on June 20.


EDIT to clarify that I haven't heard ANYONE speaking of a filibuster this time around. Nothing from Dodd or Feingold, etc.

[LSparkle]

11. That's what I've said to my friends all along - FILIBUSTER!

He doesn't have to vote for or against it -- all he has
to do is support to keep discussion going ... not exactly
an unprecedented action in the Senate during this session
of Congress.

[vaberella]

12. LSparkle can you expand. I'm not familiar with the term filibuster and

what you mean about voting for or against...I'm a bit lost about this FISA bill and how Congress and the Senate vote on this. A lot of people are angry at Obama over it, can someone give a detailed explaination why.

[MonkeyFunk]

14. 41 Senators can prevent "cloture" on the bill

which is the new type of filibuster. It just means they 41 can band together to prevent the bill from coming to vote.

[LSparkle]

16. MF (oh that sounds like something else) has it right ...

If 41 Senators want to "continue to discuss the matter"
they can prevent "cloture" (close of debate, and a vote
on the issue at hand). I know Obama is hesitant to
have to cast a vote on this, but hopefully there will
be enough Democratic Senators willing to filibuster
(i.e., engage in an extended debate) of this matter
to allow him to join then and avoid having to bring
the matter to a vote to begin with.

The Rethugs have been able to effectively keep a lot
of bills off the floor simply by THREATENING to fili-
buster ... Hopefully in this case the Dems will actually
MAKE GOOD on that threat and put it into action. I'm
one C-Span junkie who will be watching the entire
procedure.

[MonkeyFunk]

21. Thank you

you explained more eloquently than I did. I was on my way out to dinner...

[Tatiana]

15. Where does it say he will support a FISA filibuster in 2008? n/t

[rockymountaindem]

18. I don't see it in there either n/t

[Tutonic]

19. Don't see where he said he'd support Filibuster.

Can you point it out? Thanks.

[daa]

20. Did you read it???? D?oesn't sound like it. nt