I want the Nuclear Option triggered on Alito

[mikelewis]

If Alito is to be confirmed, let them do it by breaking the Senate rules. Any Senator that votes No in the farce is only legitimizing this sham of a confirmation process. Any Senator that Votes Yes is either corrupt or retarded. Any Senator that stands up and filibusters Alito, even without the party should be considered a hero. Make them vote for cloture. If they can't get it, make them change the rules.

Ultimately, I want the Nuclear Option triggered on Alito so do it Senators, stand up and deliver. This is not only a fight we can win, it's a fight we have to win. Alito's confirmation will legitimize every crime perpetrated by Bush and everyone knows it. Stand up Senators and fight against tyranny and fight against the political genocide being waged upon you. If you don't stand up for us, we won't be able to stand up for you. You are elected by Democrats and I can tell you right now, if you don't stop this wing-nut, you're just digging your own political graves. Stop listening to the media and to opinion polls, trust in your loyal party members and they will follow you to victory. If you fail to lead, plan on being shoved out of the way and left behind.

Do it Senators, stand up and deliver. Because if you don't, there will be dire consequences. Democrat women will hate you because you allowed the Right to subject them to coat hanger abortions and the Democrat men will hate you because you make us look weak and spineless. You represent us and right now, you're making us look like a bunch of wishy-washy pussies afraid of a bunch of crooks. I am not afraid of Bush or his cronies. What frightens me more is a pathetic opposition to tyranny. You seem to forget, every time you roll over, they fuck ME in the ass, not you. Well, the election cycle is coming and I'm tired of getting fucked. So Stand up or get the hell out of the way.

[MercutioATC]

1. Nominated!

"You seem to forget, every time you roll over, they fuck ME in the ass, not you."


I couldn't have said it better.

[Blue Belle]

2. I agree... If they don't stand up now...

we might as well kiss our nation goodbye.

[mousie]

8. exactly!!! NO ALITO!!!!

[StClone]

3. Me too

Let see what the rat bastards got.

And, maybe we could get all our women folk to simultaneously break into tears on camera. :sarcasm:

[AuntiBush]

4. CBS Just Reported

Dems will not filibuster, moments ago. Less I heard it wrong, but, certain that's what the reporter said.

Here's hoping Dem Senators do the right thing, stand-up & deliver!

:kick:

[Surya Gayatri]

5. K & R

and that makes 5! Yes, push has come to shove, rock has met hard place and

devil and deep blue sea are too close for comfort. Time to sh_t :hurts:

or get off the pot! They threaten nukular, we'll give ém nukular!


:nuke: SG

[stillcool]

6. It's their duty to protect the constitution...

and this is gravest threat to the constitution I've ever seen.

[StClone]

9. Which is the greater War?

The war between those that want to protect The Constitution for perpetuity from Bush's Imperial ambitions or the invented shorter term War on Terror?

[stillcool]

15. That's a good question...

both have devastating consequences. I think of all the soul's with holes, as a result of this war. That is a present danger, as that kind of damage radiates through society in the most unlikely ways...and consequences will reverberate through generations. The loss of democracy in my little world is an unknown...I don't see the consequences..I just fear them.

[pat_k]

25. If any of Member of the Senate erroneously believes that standing up risks

. . .their transient position as 1/100th in the deliberative legislative body we established, they just need to compare the risk they fear with the known menace posed by a lifetime appointment to the court for someone who believes the fascist fantasy that a Stalinist "unitary executive" is supported in the Constitution We the People established for the United States of America.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2388509

[pat_k]

27. . . .and we will NOT tolerate deriliction of duty

We expect the men and women of our armed services to risk life and limb to fulfill their oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

Every member of Congress takes the same oath. We will not tolerate dereliction of duty.

[AbbyR]

7. I'm beginning to think they aren't going to do it...

I sure hope I'm wrong, and I'll call again if it will do any good - I'm just not hopeful any longer.

[pstokely]

12. Maybe that's the point

maybe it'll be a suprise.

[pat_k]

26. Every call, visit, telegram, fax, makes a DIFFERENCE! n/t

[mom cat]

34. This is the core issue...What we do to convince Repubs (there are a

few moderates)to vote agains cloture or at least vote against the nuke. Keep calling the moderate Repubs and the Dems.

[pat_k]

38. Alito's refusal to put ANY limit on executive power. . .

. . .is intolerable.

Alito told us everything we need to know to reject him when he offered his standard response -- that he couldn't offer an opinion; that he'd figure it out if it came to the Supreme Court -- to the hypothetical case Sen. Biden posed. (If We the People, through our representatives in the Senate and House, passed a resolution prohibiting the President from ordering any sort of attack on Iran, could the President ignore our will and order Bombs to be dropped on Iran?).

It is lunacy to think the constitution gives (or even might give) the President the power to flagrantly violate the collective will of the people codified in the acts and resolutions passed by our Congress.

Alito must be rejected to on principle -- American principle vs Fascist principle.

No matter how muddled their thinking is with faulty legal logic and fascist fantasy, the truth is not hard to see. Even a former Dean of the ultra-conservative University of Chicago Law School gets it <link>

...
Whatever else Judge Alito may or may not have made clear about his views on such issues as abortion, federalism, and religious freedom, he has certainly made clear that he has no interest in restraining the acts of this commander-in-chief. That, in my judgment, poses a serious threat to the nation, and is a more than adequate reason for the Senate -- Republicans and Democrats alike -- to deny his confirmation to the Supreme Court of the United States.

[Nutmegger]

10. K & R!!!!! n-t

:kick::kick:

[bigjohn16]

11. If not Alito then who?

I don't understand how most of them can say they don't want Alito on the bench but are unwilling to use their only weapon to fight him.

[pat_k]

28. It is impossible to understand, because it is not rational or moral.

When we make contact with staffers, we need to start asking why the Senator and other members of the Caucu) believe it is moral or reasonable to claim to oppose Alito's nomination AND support his nomination by obstructing the Filibuster.

Because it is impossible to reconcile those conflicting positions, any rationalizations they invoke are, by necessity, complete malarkey and must be challenged.

It is far more effective to engage a staffer in a dialog, if at all possible. When we do all the talking, we make it easier for them to hang onto their rationalizations and use them to deny reality.

We must ask questions and engage them in conversations (however brief) if we are going to elicit and challenge the beltway idiocy that muddles just about everything they do and say.

[bleever]

13. The time is now.

Do it.

[doublethink]

16. If not now ...... when?

It's time. K&R. Peace. :)

[mikelewis]

17. That's a Tracy Chapman song...

If you haven't heard it, you should. It's a lovely song.

[pat_k]

29. . . .from the greatest debut album ever released (IMO). . .

Simply entitled, "Tracy Chapman"

[malachibk]

14. EXACTLY!

I just said this to my father, like, 10 minutes ago!

[understandinglife]

18. Excellent. I hope you've already fax'd this to all the Senate Dems.

Recommend.


Peace.

[Sydnie]

19. I'm with you - Go Big or Go Home!

We neuter ourselves otherwise.

[liberalla]

20. Do it, Senators!!! It's time!

"This is not only a fight we can win, it's a fight we have to win."


Alito's confirmation will legitimize every crime perpetrated by Bush...
OMG, what a horrendous thought!
_____________


A "No" vote without a filibuster is a meaningless and empty gesture.

[Ovett]

23. If they don't fillibuster

then all the extreme language and concern expressed all amounts to nothing, and we can assume that it was mere politics (especially since the voting looks to run down party lines). if the senators really believe their rhetoric, they have no choice but to fillibuster to save the constitution.

[pat_k]

30. Hear, Hear!!

I just made this point in a response to someone who argued that the statements they are making on the floor are "laying the groundwork" for a filibuster. <link>

. . .Part of telling the truth is telling America that they believe the man must be stopped. You cannot make an honest case against him as a threat to the most basic tenets that Americans hold dear -- and have codified in the Constitution we established for these United States -- without concluding: "And I for one will do everything in my power to keep him off the court."

Stopping short of that fails to show true conviction. And Americans disdain those who do not put their money where their mouth is.

[Mandate My Ass]

21. Oh yeah

K&R

[IndyOp]

22. Preach It My Brother!

And... everyone reading this thread -- CALL/EMAIL AS MANY SENATORS AS YOU CAN:

Call any congress critters toll-free! 1-877-851-6437 or 1-888-355-3588 or 1-888-818-6641 or 1-800-426-8073

FAX YOUR Senators: FREE, easy, online http://www.SaveTheCourt.org/AlitoFax

Contact Information for Key Dem Senators; Dem Leaders in the Senate; Gang of 14

Contact Info for 5 Republicans who have not committed their vote

[pat_k]

31. Congress.org also makes it easy to sent telegrams and email

You can send email and telegrams via congress.org (See "Extra Impact" for telegrams). The site also provides look up for congress critters and local media.

And, they provide links to a staff page for each member of congress. Asking for a staffer (e.g., the Judiciary Legislative Aide) can give your call more umph (and you can email or fax a copy of your letter directly to their attention).

[ClintonTyree]

24. I'm with you 100%, no more playing nice.

The Republicans stopped playing nice in the 90's and they've walked all over the Democrats since then because the Democrats still think there can be bipartisan solutions to problems. The Republicans have demonstrated time and again that they are not interested in bipartisan solutions. They only thing they are interested in is the total annihilation of it's opposition party.


This is what the future holds if Alito is confirmed.



I hate abortion. I wish there were never another case when a woman would choose to have one. But I will defend a woman's right to CHOOSE until my last breath. Old men in Washington have no right to dictate what a woman can or cannot do with her own body. Period.

As for Alito's penchant for siding with power, he does not correctly interpret the intent of the Constitution. Our government was artfully created by our founding fathers so that no one branch of the government would hold too much power. Alito will upset that balance, not only by his ultra-conservative judicial views but by his willingness to grant the president unlimited power over the other branches and the American people. We do not need another king. Our ancestors fought a war so we would never need to bow down before a king again. Alito is all too willing to reverse that.

I stand with you 100% on this issue and hope our elected Democratic leaders consider all of these points then vote NO on Alito and filibuster if necessary!

[pat_k]

36. The reality they are denying is even worse.

It's not just that Republicans aren't interested in bipartisan solutions -- the reality the Dems are denying is far worse. They believe they can deal with the Bush White House and their henchmen in the Congress and Judiciary rationally, when the fascists simply do not operate within rational limits.

Their denial is deep, but every time a citizen confronts a member of Congress and demands that they act in accordance with simple truths and moral principles, we chip away at their denial. They are slowly "getting it." It has been painfully slow, but when your head is already muddled with beltway idiocy, recognizing fundamental truths about the world the PNACons (pee na cons -- PNAC crowd and co-conspirators) occupy is a tall order.

The first step on the road to sanity is to let go of all the "shoulds" (it should be this way or that way) and confront and act on what is.

Monarchists, fascists, theocrats -- the label doesn't really matter. What defines them all is the unwavering belief in the right of their small cadre to sovereign rule.

The neo- fascists currently infiltrating our government gleefully conspire to thwart the will of the American people to grab and consolidate the power they believe they have a right to. They view the rest of humanity as pawns to be manipulated to their own ends. They twist reality to justify the atrocities they commit in our name.

Many -- but surely not all -- of their crimes are well-known. They conspired to con and terrorize us with the threats of mushrooms clouds; they are war criminals guilty of torturing in our name; they spy on us.

Any elected official who takes their oath of office seriously must set aside old labels (e.g., progressive, left, center, liberal, conservative). They must understand that first and foremost, they are Anti-Fascists who must oppose the fascists at every turn with everything they’ve got.

American anti-fascists must see their opponents for what they are. As long as the Fascists are permitted to exercise power, they will abuse it in their pursuit of ever more power. The Bush syndicate will never submit to external authority unless forced to. Their actions have stripped them of all legitimacy.

Supporting the pretense of their legitimacy by offering "plans" to them -- or as Reid did, by calling on them to "come clean" -- is to be complicit with their actions.

Facing the truth about the nature of our opponents demand action. The only option is to oppose the fascists, force them out of power, and punish them.

Blocking the nomination of Alito is just one such battle. Every time anti-fascist leaders stand and fight, we make progress toward the ultimate goal: Impeaching and removing Bush and Cheney from power, and exposing, purging, and punishing their neo-fascist co-conspirators in every corner of our government.

[Czolgosz]

32. I agree. Let the record reflect that we did everything we could to stop

Alito.

That way, when Alito dismantles the Constitution, it will be a straight party issue when the blame is assigned for this colossal fuck up.

[Swamp Rat]

33. DAMN STRAIGHT!!!

:kick:

[Bill Bored]

35. Tell Reid to give' him hell (Harry)

Think about this:

Reid: Man of faith = insulated from the religious fanatics.
Has stated that the next justice should be a woman.
Showed some courage by calling the closed session on pre-war intel.
Knows the rules re Nuclear option, how to respond, shut the whole Senate down, etc. Whatever it takes.
Minority leader.
Knows how to spin.

I say he's our man, along with calls to our own Senators and the so-called moderate Repubs, Collins, Snowe and Jim Jeffords who left the party and hails from VT, the same state as Sen. Leahy.

If there are any Repubs who haven't declared their allegiance to the King yet, call them too. Chaffe of RI maybe?

Also check the Gang of 14 (Wikipedia has a nice article on this) to see if I've left anyone out.

Let's do this!

[Pithy Cherub]

37. YES! Be not afraid! Defend Truth, Justice and the American Way.

To have fought nobly and valiantly for the greatest of reasons is the most honorable thing our elected Democratic Senators can do. To fore swear their oaths to protect and defend the Constitution, will ruin the remnants of Good Faith that We the People have left.

To lead or not to lead... They will suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune if they choose to remain on the sidelines and risk nothing while Alito is installed on the bench to eviscerate the Bill of Rights.