Anger management, community service for anti-health care reform Miamian who assaulted pro-HCR man

I understand disagreeing with people. I do it all the time. But why is it that the unfettered anger, the hatred and disdain that causes one to react physically and violently, seems to be a nearly exclusive characteristic of the Right?

We've seen it in the "Teabaggers' Balls" (wait, that came out wrong....) and we've seen it at the health care town halls. One of these in particular resulted in criminal charges in Miami, but as Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) reported today on Twitter, the wingnut offender is getting off with a slap on the wrist.

A Miami-Dade man who punched a demonstrator at a healthcare reform rally has reached a plea deal with prosecutors and will take anger management courses and serve 50 hours of community service as part of his punishment.

Raul Anasagasti, 56, is scheduled to appear in Miami-Dade Circuit Court Thursday. He agreed to the conditions of a pretrial intervention program.

Back in September, Anasagasti punched a 65-year-old man in the face after a heated exchange.

Police said Luis Perrero was attending the rally outside the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce, headlined by [Sen. Nelson], when Anasagasti, driving by in his green pickup, stopped and began arguing with the crowd.

When Perrero uttered an offensive Spanish expletive, Anasagasti punched him in the face, knocking him to the ground.

Okay, maybe Mr. Perrero shouldn't have called Mr. Anasagasti a name. But words never justify physical violence, and there's no exception here. Maybe the anger management classes will help Mr. Anasagasti learn to control his temper and even see how the right-wing messages in which he no doubt immerses himself from Fox News and the like are driving him to such displays of anger and hate.

But I'm not getting my hopes up.

Comic relief

I just don't understand why the Right doesn't "get it" with regard to health care reform. If I had to guess, though, I suppose they don't want to get it, because they're in bed with the insurance companies (this goes for "Democrats" like U.S. senators Max Baucus, Kent Conrad, Blanche Lincoln, Tom Carper, and our own Bill Nelson, too).

But it's really quite simple. Maybe an illustration will help:


See more such dark humor -- hey, sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying -- at The Far Left Side's website.

Good for Grayson

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), one of the very, very few true liberals (or progressives, if you prefer that term) in Congress, pissed off a whole slew of Republicans last night when he declared on the floor of the House that "Republicans want you to die." Here's the video:

As usual, Republicans in Congress can't handle the truth. The bottom line is that Republicans have no plan for health care reform; their only tactic is to delay and obfuscate and demonize ... pretty much everything they've done for the last decade or two, at least.

And Rep. Grayson was exactly right. Since the GOP (and their sycophantic boot-licking colleagues from the other side of the aisle -- I'm looking at you, Max Baucus and Bill Nelson, among others) essentially feels that the status quo, with insurance companies making health care decisions and condemning people to die, is just fine and dandy with them, it follows that they would want sick people to die more quickly, thereby saving their insurance company supporters a lot of money ... which they then can contribute to the campaigns of those legislators whose selfish and irresponsible actions saved them the money in the first place. Talk about a vicious circle ...

Of course, the GOP is outraged!!!one!11!!! at Rep. Grayson's statement, and they're pulling out all the stops to vilify him. Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-Va.), about whose ties to an apparent gay Republican murder-suicide in Florida it would be irresponsible not to speculate, tweeted his consternation this morning using the customary strawman/false equivalency "logic" of the Right: "Will Pelosi hold vote to reprimand #Grayson? http://bit.ly/4pGUWN Or was JWilson reprimand just partisan politics after all?" Yeah, Pat, way to compare a member of Congress calling the president a liar in a joint session of Congress (when, by the way, the president wasn't lying) with the kind of political speechifying that happens every single day in Congress, on both sides of the aisle (and which is also truthful, at least in this case). McHenry is a tool, though, so at least we don't have to pay him much attention.

No, there won't be any reprimand for Grayson. If anything, he should be celebrated. At a time when too many Democrats think it's chic to roll over meekly and let the Republican minority have its way with them (no, McHenry, I don't mean that way), it's good to see that one congresscritter is willing to tell it like it is.

Jefferson-Jackson Dinner 2009: liveblogging, page 1

Interestingly, the pastor giving the invocation tonight said, "Only in America can the son of a black man and a white woman grow up to become president of America." Um, well, yeah, that's true.

"Isn't it nice we have a president that we can be proud of?" -- Sen. Nelson

Next, Sen. Nelson introduces the chair of the Florida Democratic Party, Karen Thurman. She just recognized "the next government CFO Alex Sink." I don't think that's what she meant to say, though.

"Last year, we worked to unite our party and focus our efforts on electing Barack Obama. Look what we accomplished: we delivered Florida's 27 electoral votes to Obama/Biden, we defeated two incumbent GOP members of Congress, and now we're focusing on local elections."

We have our first mention of "George W. Bush." No booing. At least not audibly. Thurman goes on to say we are working to "drain the swamp of Republican corruption." I think she's lost her audience, though. The talking in the room is pretty distracting, actually.

(Incidentally, forget about pictures from this event. I'm situated just way too far back. Sorry.)

Blast Off! endorses Alex Sink for governor

Earlier today, state CFO Alex Sink (right) announced her candidacy for governor of Florida in the 2010 election. Several months ago, she withdrew her name from consideration for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Mel Martinez, and that naturally led to increasing speculation regarding her candidacy for governor. With two major political plums up for grabs next year, all eyes have been on Gov. Charlie Crist as he mulled over his options; his announcement yesterday that he would run for Senate made today's statement by Sink almost anticlimactic.

I'm running for Governor.

Floridians from Pensacola over to Jacksonville and all the way down to Key West are facing enormous challenges. Each and every day, the global financial crisis tests our families, our economy and our resolve.

In unique and challenging times like these, our state needs a new and different kind of leadership.

Thousands of Floridians have told me they need leaders committed to protecting the middle class, strengthening our economy and giving our families a fighting chance. As a businesswoman and working mom, I couldn’t agree more.

Before the people of Florida elected me their CFO, I spent nearly three decades in business – creating jobs and economic opportunity in communities all across our state.

During my short time in state government, a couple of things have become crystal clear: Tallahassee’s tired old ways of doing business just aren’t enough to answer the urgent new challenges we face. And a state government influenced by narrow special interests cannot put the best interests of everyday Floridians first.

Today, I’m announcing I will be a candidate for Governor of Florida in the November 2010 election, and put my business experience and know-how to work restoring our economy.

And, as Florida’s CFO, I’ll continue using my business experience to cut wasteful spending, crack down on financial fraud and reform state contracts.

For too long, we’ve had to tolerate a state government that puts playing politics ahead of helping families. Together, we can change all that, and give our state a fresh start.

Alex

p.s. Watch my announcement on video here.

For some time, I've said here and elsewhere that whatever Charlie Crist runs for, he'll win (although I'm hedging my bets a little now, as his primary challenge may well be tougher than the general for him) and that I hoped Alex Sink would run for whatever Charlie didn't. Moreover, I've predicted that the non-Crist race in 2010 (between Senate and governor) will go the Democrats' way. Well, today my forecast officially became half right. Even though I publicly urged Sink to run for Senate, I look at it simply like she and Crist exchanged election races.

But regardless of the office, I have been impressed with Alex Sink every time I've spoken with her and seen her speak, whether it was to a few people or to a whole audience of Democrats. Not only is she the highest-ranking Democratic state official in Florida but, other than Bill Nelson, who already has a job (for a while at least), she's the only Florida Democrat currently holding office who has proven she can win a statewide election.

Alex Sink is the best hope for Florida to stem the tide of Republican malfeasance that has infected the state through Jeb! Bush's two terms as governor and, indeed, right on through the current administration of faux-moderate Charlie Crist. Because of that, and because of my deep respect for her and her proven leadership ability, I am pleased to give Blast Off!'s 2010 gubernatorial endorsement to Alex Sink.

Annual travel to Cuba OK, says Nelson

The Cuban embargo, in place now for nearly half a century, shows no signs of ending soon. However, a relaxing of restrictions against Cuban-Americans traveling to their native country may be imminent, as the $410 billion spending bill containing provisions on Cuban travel makes its way to the White House.

Yesterday, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) backed down from his earlier objections to the plan once he received assurances from the Obama administration that other parts of the embargo would continue to be enforced.

Nelson released a letter from Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner saying the administration will insist that Cuba pay cash upfront for sales of food and medicine to Cuba. This assurance removed a sticking point, at least for Nelson, as the Senate prepares to vote on a big spending bill that contains controversial provisions on Cuba.

"I believe that if there is to be a new strategy towards Cuba then it must come from our commander in chief, not from the tinkering of a few lawmakers inserting language in a must-pass appropriations bill without any opportunity for debate," Nelson said in remarks he is preparing to give on the Senate floor.

The spending bill – which passed the House and [late yesterday] the Senate – would ease travel restrictions for Cuban-Americans and also make it easier to finance sales of food and medicine. Farmers in this country say this change would help expand a growing market for American products.

But many embargo supporters – notably Nelson, fellow Democrat Robert Menendez of New Jersey and Florida Republican Mel Martinez – oppose attempts to ease financing of food sales for fear it would weaken the embargo and perpetuate the Castro regime.

Geithner’s assurances are an attempt to draw Nelson, Menendez and perhaps others into supporting the spending bill that contains these provisions. The secretary indicated the administration will insist on cash up front, which continues a policy imposed by President Bush.

Unfortunately, there remains strong political pressure to retain the embargo, which actually does little if anything to maintain the crumbling Castro regime and hurts the Cuban populace far more than it does Fidel or Raul. Naturally, the pressure tends to come from Republicans (or, like Nelson, GOP-lite Democrats), who care about as much about the average Cuban as they do the average American. But, as long as that pressure exists, it's unlikely the embargo will be lifted in toto, as it should.

Nevertheless, this is a step in the right direction. The controversy over lifting the Cuban embargo isn't going away, but it's probably going to take baby steps, like today's, to get rid of it entirely.

¡Viva Pensacola!

Thursday morning, Miss July and I strolled downtown to see the public festivities for the royal visit to Pensacola of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia of Spain. The royals came here to commemorate the 450th anniversary of the first Spanish settlement in the area, which preceded the better-known settlement at St. Augustine by a full six years.

With apologies to those with slower intertubes, here are a few pics of the events:

King Juan Carlos I (blue suit, center) and Queen Sofia (lime green suit) arrive for the wreath laying at the site of Fort George, where the Spanish defeated the British in 1781.

Florida dignitaries arrive for the wreath laying, including U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (red tie), Kitty (Mrs. Mel) Martinez (blonde hair, partially visible to Nelson's left), Florida's First Lady Carole Crist (dark hair, black coat to Nelson's left), Gov. Charlie Crist (behind photographer), and U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez (immediately behind Gov. Crist).

"You bet I'll be at the wrestling Friday night!"

The King and Queen await the wreath laying.

The King and Queen (standing at far right) listen to the remarks of University of West Florida president Judith A. Bense (at podium). Observing the proceedings (backs to the camera) are (l-r) Carole Crist, Charlie Crist, Bill Nelson, Mel Martinez, and Kitty Martinez.

Marines salute as the King and Queen present the wreath.

Another view of the wreath laying, featuring the bust of Spanish Field Marshal and Governor General Bernardo de Galvez.

The royals smile after spotting a couple of small girls with flowers, which one of the security guards retrieved and presented to the Queen (the flowers, not the girls) as the motorcade departed from the wreath laying.

The King and Queen greet a crowd of about 2,500 at the T.T. Wentworth, Jr. Florida State Museum. Immediately to the Queen's left is Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.).

Gov. Crist delivers his remarks at the Wentworth Museum while King Juan Carlos looks on.

Palafox Street, like much of downtown Pensacola, was festooned with Spanish flags for the occasion.

Sink for Senate? Or governor?

Democrats in Florida are hoping to maintain some momentum in 2010 following Barack Obama's big win, and they're looking right at Sen. Mel Martinez.

With Dems already branding Republican U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez a top target for 2010, much speculation has focused on Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink as a potential Democratic challenger. Sink is also a hot commodity in the 2010 gubernatorial speculation market. Sink, for the record, says she's focusing on her job and not commenting on 2010 rumors.

If Sink doesn't run for Senate, U.S. Rep. Ron Klein, D-Boca Raton, will be among those attracting speculation. One of the most prodigious money-raisers in Congress, Klein has about $1.7 million left over in his campaign account. Klein says he's too busy dealing with the nation's financial meltdown and national catastrophe insurance to think about 2010.

Okay, first of all, let's be realistic here: Democrats in Florida have no momentum. Not really. Yeah, we went blue for president, but that was about the extent of the excitement. Democrats had a net gain of one -- count it, one -- congressional seat, and the Legislature remains deep red. And as far as ballot initiatives, one need only look at the atrocious Amendment 2, the constitutional ban on all non-one-man-one-woman unions, to see that Florida has far to go to consider itself even on the on-ramp to the progressive road.

But, let's fast-forward a couple of years. If President Obama is successful at restoring economic health in America (and, presumably, in Florida by association) and the Iraq War is over or nearly so, the Democrats might be able to make some gains in the mid-term elections. Besides, we have to have someone to run against Martinez, as well as against incumbent governor Charlie Crist who, despite being a Republican (or maybe because of it), remains highly popular. Martinez clearly is the easier target of the two, and Alex Sink is the Democrats' strongest statewide candidate at this point; she and Sen. Bill Nelson are the only Democrats presently holding statewide office.

As much as I like Ron Klein, though, I believe he would be a poor statewide candidate (as would his congressional colleagues Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Robert Wexler). Floridians outside of south Florida tend to distrust those from this area (the exception being Miamians like Jeb! Bush, Bob Graham, and Claude Pepper), and even though Klein is a prodigious fundraiser, I don't think he has the pedigree nor the experience to succeed in a statewide race.

So, for my money, Alex Sink should step up and take on Mel Martinez in 2010. Florida was a pioneer in sending a woman to the Senate (Paula Hawkins, elected in 1980). It's time for another one, but this time a Democrat. As for the gubernatorial race, it's going to be frankly tough to beat Charlie ... so let's not sacrifice a successful member of Congress for the cause.

Liveblogging: Biden in Jupiter, photographic goodness

Yeah, it's not the "HOLLYWOOD" sign, but "VOTE" is a pretty important message right about now.

Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.) addresses the crowd.

Our very own "fire-breathing liberal," Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), fires up the audience before Biden's speech. (I was so fired up, I couldn't focus.)

My fellow Americans, behind me on the bleachers that in turn were behind the podium.

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) tells those assembled about his friends Barack and Joe (the senator, not the alleged plumber).

Sen. Nelson asked several other officeholders to join him, including (l-r) state Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink (mostly obscured), state Sen. Dave Aronberg, and Rep. Wexler. Not sure what Dave was doing to Wexler ... I don't think a "wet willie" would be very appropriate. (I keed, Dave, I keed!)

The crowd, now numbering around 2,000, anxiously awaits Sen. Biden's entrance.

And here he is -- the next vice president of the United States, Joe Biden! (Note the spring in his step -- he'll turn 66 next month. Compare with Huggy Bear, who at 72 doesn't walk so much as dodder.)

Sen. Biden brings out the signs in the crowd.

Firing us up ...

Six -- count 'em, six (blue shirt and white shirt on sidewalk were just walking by) -- protestors, outside the ballpark. I almost feel sorry for them.

On second thought, they have to live with their own stupidity, so no, I don't after all.

So, I'm sitting in a coffee shop near the ballpark where the rally took place, and in walks Sen. Nelson. Another woman there wanted his picture, and I offered to take one with her and the senator together. Then she asked me whether I wanted my picture with the senator, and I demurred, since I'm not the world's biggest Nelson fan (the senator, not the band ... well, not a fan of the band, either, actually). But he said, "Sure, why not?," so I figured, yeah, why not?

Liveblogging Obama in Miami, part 1

Looks like the best I can do, if I want to see what's going on, is to post via Blackberry. I have my laptop with me and a clear (albeit distant) view of the podium, but if I go somewhere to set up, I'll lose my spot. Decisions, decisions ...

So far, speakers have included Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.), Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), and right now, former Florida governor and U.S senator Bob Graham. Nelson talked about Obama's great choice of Joe Biden as his running mate, and Graham is introducing Michelle Obama - onstage now.

Getting decent photos, too ... will post 'em as soon as possible.

Jefferson-Jackson Day: Dinnertime

Well, it's time to blog again. As usual, there are technical difficulties and it appears I'm the only blogger with Internet access. We tried to hook up a router through my laptop to use my aircard, but no go. Tech support here sucks. (just kidding, Curt!)

We opened with two videos: one from TheRealMcCain.com and one a musical rendition of Yes, We Can (featuring a bunch of celebrities, most of whom I'm too old to recognize -- heh). Now we have the invocation and the presentation of the colors, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. (See, Republicans -- you don't own patriotism, you assholes.) Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) just walked in right in front of me. I didn't confront him like I did last year, though ...

Mitch Caesar, Broward County Democratic chair, is speaking now. He just asked for a remembrance for Tim Russert. "This election will not be about Internet rumors ... this election will not even be about Joe Lieberman whispering in his candidate's ear what the real answer is ... we will no longer be a red state and be a blue state in 2008 -- now and forever!"

Caesar introduces "a person who's done a fabulous, tireless, and wonderful job ... our [Florida Democratic Party] chair Karen Thurman." Thurman: we have already begun canvassing, walking precincts ... this is only the beginning. Now is our time ... it wasn't always this tough. I was fortunate to be in Washington during the good years. (For some reason, a huge influx of people just came into the banquet hall, and there's a great amount of talking and milling around ... how weird.) It is time to elect a president who can look a struggling working family in the eye and say honestly, "I'm fighting for you." We need to elect a leader who can lead this country in a new direction -- we need to elect Barack Obama!

More Thurman: throughout this campaign, don't forget that we are all in this together. Brave Americans are fighting for us in distant lands every day. Regardless of how you feel about the war, the soldiers deserve our respect. This flag [Thurman shows a folded flag] flew over Camp Victory in Iraq two weeks ago, and she is giving it to state Senate candidate Fred Taylor, a veteran, on behalf of all veterans.

Next up is Florida's highest ranking Democrat, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink. She said, "didn't we have a great woman candidate for president?" Scattered applause. She has been "glued to the TV" over the last couple of days watching the Russert coverage, and she remembers the white board he held in 2000 when he said the election comes down to three words: "Florida, Florida, Florida." Sink: "I need help in Tallahassee ...

Florida's senators predictably endorse front-runners

Whatever you might feel about Sens. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and Mel Martinez (R-Fla.), you have to admit they're savvy politicians. Yesterday, each senator cleverly, even daringly, endorsed his party's front-runner for the presidential nomination.

I'm somewhat surprised by Nelson's endorsement of Hillary Clinton, not for the choice itself but for the timing of the decision. After all, Sen. Nelson told me (and 120 of my "closest friends") personally that he would wait to endorse until he saw "how the candidates treat Florida." Granted, the announcement is set for Tuesday, but according to the article, he's already informed the Clinton campaign of his decision. So much for wait-and-see.

This may well be an indication that Sen. Clinton is poised to break the no-campaigning-in-Florida pledge, since she has the least to lose politically by doing so and given her statement yesterday that she plans to fight to have Florida's delegates seated at the convention. Nelson would end up looking even more foolish than usual if, say, Obama or Edwards "treats" Florida better by coming here. Of course, Nelson naturally would choose the candidate whom I consider the least progressive of those remaining, but I've already told you how I feel about the senator's lack of progressivism.

Meanwhile, Sen. Martinez has hitched his cart to Huggy Bear, which makes sense on many levels. Huggy is leading nationally right now (although recent Florida polls suggest Mitt Romney now has a lead in America's Wang™) and is a friend and colleague of Martinez in the Senate (I imagine Martinez simply knows Huggy better than he knows the others) but, more importantly, both Huggy and Martinez have spent much of the last several years fellating Drunky McStagger, and it's that shared slobbering that really drives this endorsement.

So, as is so often the case in politics, nothing new under the sun ... including the Florida sun.

Bill Nelson hates the Constitution

Why does Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) even bother with the charade anymore? He really ought to declare himself a Republican and be frank about his real positions.

I have found a number of his votes and decisions to be odious, but having met him personally on at least two different occasions, I was willing to be civil, even cordial, in talking about him and with him, considering that the alternative to Nelson would have been Senator Pontoons.

That ends now.

Today, Sen. Nelson was among 12 Democratic senators who voted to table the Senate Judiciary Committee's electronic surveillance bill, which would have withheld retroactive immunity for the telecommunications companies. In other words, Sen. Nelson voted to give aid and comfort to massive multinational corporations that may have assisted -- in fact, likely did assist -- the federal government in conducting covert electronic surveillance on American citizens, in clear violation of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The final tally was actually 60-36, not 60-34, and the full list of Dems voting to kill were: Sens. Evan Bayh (D-IN), Tom Carper (D-DE), Daniel Inouye (D-HI), Tim Johnson (D-SD), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Ben Nelson (D-NE), Mark Pryor (D-AR), Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), and Ken Salazar (D-CO).

I don't care what it takes. I don't care if I have to mount a campaign myself because all the other Democrats in Florida are too piss-their-pants scared to take on Nelson in a primary. All I know is that there must be a progressive challenger to Bill Nelson in 2012. Yes, I know that's four years away, and yes, I know that we ought to be focusing on getting rid of Mel Martinez first. However, Bill Nelson has skated by for years on a kindly smile and his Spaceman Spiff reputation, while consistently voting in clear contravention of the ideals he supposedly espouses as a Democrat. He voted for torture, he voted for war, and now he votes for Big Telecom.

Enough is enough. Sen. Nelson, you not only have embarrassed the voters of the state of Florida with your vote today, but you have contributed directly to yet another opportunity for the Republicans and their allies in corporate America to get away with egregious illegal activity. History will condemn you and the other 11 turncoats for this, as well as for all the other ways in which you have betrayed the Democratic Party, just as I condemn you now.

Any Democrat But Nelson in 2012. We must start now.

Guess who's coming to dinner south Florida?

Why, it's our old pal, the odious WATB Joe Lieberman (I-Can't Believe He's Still in the Senate).

This week, the 2008 presidential race brings Lieberman back to Palm Beach County - but on behalf of a Republican candidate. Lieberman is scheduled to make appearances in South Florida on Wednesday and Thursday for GOP hopeful John McCain as Florida's Jan. 29 primary approaches. McCain himself isn't expected here this week.

Lieberman's schedule includes a Boca Raton event hosted by McCain-backing Republican state Reps. Adam Hasner and Ellyn Bogdanoff and Boca Councilman Peter Baronoff. Lieberman also is slated to campaign in Broward and Miami-Dade for McCain, who isn't expected in Florida until after South Carolina's primary on Saturday.

The columnist, George Bennett of the Palm Beach Post, notes that on Lieberman's previous forays down here, as Al Gore's running mate in 2000, the Connecticut senator was "welcomed in South Florida as a virtual favorite son ...." I imagine the greeting might be a little different this time, or at least more orchestrated ...

Incidentally, Bennett also quoted Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.):

Florida's top elected Democrat, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, isn't saying whether he'll make a presidential endorsement before the Dem primary. Nelson's GOP prediction: "John McCain is going to be the nominee, and he's the toughest nominee that the Democrats can have. Give me a Giuliani. Give me a Romney. Give me a Huckabee."

Hmmm ... that sounds familiar, doesn't it?

On the Republican side, Sen. Nelson was much more direct. "I've been saying for three months now, and I've said it to his face, John McCain will be the nominee," provided he has the money to run the race. According to Sen. Nelson, McCain is the "closest thing to a leader" that the Republicans have, and he will provide the toughest challenge for the eventual Democratic candidate. "Come on!," he fairly laughed. "Give me Giuliani! Give me Romney! Give me Huckabee! McCain is the toughest match."

You don't think Bennett reads Blast Off!, do you? Sure, maybe he was at the same luncheon I attended, but who knows? After all, it would be irresponsible not to speculate ...

(Then again, if Bennett read Blast Off!, he might have quoted Sen. Nelson accurately ...)

What Nelson said

As noted above, I attended a luncheon today in West Palm Beach, hosted by the local chapter of the Democratic Professionals Council, featuring U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.). Joining me was a veritable all-star cast of local Democrats, including U.S. Rep. Ron Klein, West Palm Beach mayor Lois Frankel, and myriad other area officeholders and officeseekers.

Being the guest of a DPC chapter board member, I had the privilege of attending a pre-luncheon meet-and-greet, where I reintroduced myself to both Rep. Klein and Sen. Nelson and chatted with them each briefly about some of the things happening in D.C. (I gave each of them my business card, so I'm sure they'll be my BFFs soon. Ha!) I've always liked Rep. Klein, and he was gracious and personable as ever; of course, I mentioned to Sen. Nelson that I'd met him last summer at the Jefferson-Jackson Weekend in Hollywood, which he pretended to remember.

Lacking time to engage either Nelson or Klein in extended discussion, I went to my seat and prepared to take notes on the senator's remarks. It became clear at the outset that he was going to direct his address almost exclusively to the Florida primary fight with the DNC, as he has been one of the key players in fighting the DNC's efforts to punish Florida for moving up our primary date. After the old joke about how "an election is like a car: to move forward, you go with D, and to move backward, you go with R," Sen. Nelson began to talk about the primary controversy in earnest.

As Sen. Nelson described it, the four early states "approved" by the DNC -- Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina -- made a joint pledge to work together to retain their first-in-the-nation status. Because the DNC opted to adhere to that pledge and threatened to refuse to seat Florida's delegates at the convention, Sen. Nelson led a lawsuit because, as he put it, "my responsibility as the senior Democrat in Florida is to make sure our votes count." However, the judge ruled in favor of the DNC and, according to Sen. Nelson, there was not enough time to appeal the ruling. Despite this, Sen. Nelson assured us that "Florida Democrats will have the last laugh." He explained that demographically, Florida is highly representative of the country, with the exception of our higher-than-average proportion of citizens over the age of 65. Moreover, it should be the most important early state because it will be the first large state to hold a primary with all the candidates, as Michigan's Democratic primary will have only Sen. Clinton on the ballot.

Next, the senator diverged from the primary discussion to talk more generally about the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. I was disturbed immediately by Sen. Nelson's declaration that "it's a two-person race," with reference to his Senate colleagues Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. In fact, he referred to the "two-person race" several times, explaining that, in his opinion, "it's going to be very difficult for Sen. Edwards to come back from 17 [percentage] points in New Hampshire."* Sen. Nelson refused to endorse one of the candidates, however, saying that he preferred to "wait and see how the candidates treat Florida." Will they come to Florida on January 27, the day after the South Carolina primary [ed. note -- I mistakenly have said that the S.C. primary is Jan. 29], Nelson wondered, or adhere to the DNC's sanctions? Although he did not say so explicitly, he clearly inferred that he would be more inclined to support a candidate who demonstrates an understanding of Florida's extreme importance in the primary process. "They [the DNC] shouldn't have picked on Florida," said Sen. Nelson. "We have long memories and sensitive memories," as he alluded to the 2000 debacle as well as the problems in 2006 in the 13th District congressional election.

So what can we do, asked Sen. Nelson? TURN OUT, he emphasized. It's going to be vital that Florida Democrats go to the polls on January 29 and demonstrate that we demand that our voices be heard. Because of the candidates' pledge, said the senator, they can't campaign here, nor conduct any campaign-related activities like fundraising or advertising. However, we as citizens can do so, and Sen. Nelson encouraged us to talk to our friends and neighbors and work to help our candidate in the primary.

Sen. Nelson also described the legislation he and Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) have introduced to create a national primary system. In short, the country would be divided into six regions. In each region, the states would draw lots to determine the order of the primaries. Then, all the states that had drawn #1 in their respective regions would hold the first primaries on a single day in March. The #2 states would follow in April, and thus it would go through the #6 states in June.** At the next presidential election cycle, a rotation would begin, with the #2 states from the previous cycle moving up to #1 and so on.

The senator took a few questions from the audience; the DPC had distributed index cards at the beginning and told us to submit our questions in writing in advance. I knew this meant my question wouldn't be asked, but I submitted a card with the following question anyway:

How can you justify, as a Democrat, your votes against habeas corpus and in favor of the Bankruptcy Bill, which severely hurts Americans?

Okay, it wasn't well-worded, but they didn't give me much time ... anyway, of course the softball questions were chosen.

The first question was "given your personal connection to the Democratic presidential candidates, what can you tell us about them?" Sen. Nelson said he counted all of the candidates as personal friends, citing particularly his close relationships with Joe Biden (D-Del.) and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.). He added that he was close to both "Hillary and Barack," as he called them, and that John Edwards had campaigned for him in Fort Myers (where Sen. Nelson noted that there were a lot of middle-aged women in the crowd ... "they weren't there to see me," he exclaimed). The Nelson family and the Clinton family have been friends for over 20 years, and "Barack" also campaigned for Sen. Nelson in Eatonville, a predominantly African-American community near Orlando.

All this was to say that the senator has "greatly conflicted feelings." "I can tell you," he added, "that I was so upset at the pundits, how they ran down Hillary for being emotional." Again, he said that he planned to wait and see how the candidates treated Florida, and he added, "I'm not interested in any quid pro quo. I'm going to do what's best for the state of Florida and for America, and if I make a decision, I'll have an announcement about that."

On the Republican side, Sen. Nelson was much more direct. "I've been saying for three months now, and I've said it to his face, John McCain will be the nominee," provided he has the money to run the race. According to Sen. Nelson, McCain is the "closest thing to a leader" that the Republicans have, and he will provide the toughest challenge for the eventual Democratic candidate. "Come on!," he fairly laughed. "Give me Giuliani! Give me Romney! Give me Huckabee! McCain is the toughest match."

The senator related a story where he recently ran into NBC News bobblehead Tim Russert at a D.C. event, and Russert told him, "It's Florida, Florida, Florida." Indeed, Sen. Nelson said, Russert is right, because there is virtually no scenario where a candidate can win the presidency without winning Florida.

Next, Sen. Nelson was asked what the chances were that the Democrats could pick up a filibuster-proof majority in November. He responded that four seats definitely would turn Democratic: New Hampshire, where former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen would win; Colorado and New Mexico, each of which has a Udall brother running; and Virginia, where Mark Warner will take John Warner's old seat. He cited Oregon (with GOP incumbent Gordon Smith), Maine (Susan Collins), and Minnesota (Norm Coleman) as other possible Dem pickups, but he said that even a 57-seat majority would make it far easier to reach the 60 votes needed for ending debate.

The last word was with regard to the possible candidacy of New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. Said Sen. Nelson, "if it's McCain vs. Clinton or McCain vs. Obama, Bloomberg won't run."

It was instructive to hear an insider's view of what's happening, but I'm still disappointed I wasn't able to confront Sen. Nelson about the lack of intestinal fortitude that the Democrats seem to have. Afterwards, I looked for Rep. Klein, to encourage him to support Rep. Robert Wexler's (D-Fla.) efforts to impeach Dick Cheney, but apparently the congressman left early.

And if nothing else, the food was good ...

---

* At this point, I had to resist the urge to leap from my seat and ask indignantly, "How exactly does the awarding of one-half of one percent of delegates to date require Sen. Edwards to 'come back' from behind?" Indeed, even when superdelegates are included, Sen. Clinton has less than 5% of the delegates needed to win the nomination, with Sen. Obama having roughly half that.

** I note that this accounts for only 48 states; Sen. Nelson did not explain what two states (Alaska and Hawaii?) were left out or how they would be included.

Two hours to go ...

... if you want to submit a question that I can try to ask Sen. Nelson.

I understand there will be well over 120 people at this luncheon. While I'm also going to be a board member's guest at a reception with Sen. Nelson beforehand, I can't guarantee that I'll be able to ask him even one question.

But I'm sure going to try.

It's time for another exciting episode of "Ask Sen. Nelson!"

On Thursday, I'll be attending a luncheon at which the keynote speaker will be Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) (right). You may recall that I asked Sen. Nelson a question last summer about his pro-torture vote in the Senate, and while I didn't like his answer, I did respect the fact that at least he answered. (I'm quite certain he doesn't remember the exchange, of course.)

Well, it's a new year and a new set of issues ... with some old, enduring issues continuing to hang over our heads (can you say "Iraq?" Sure -- I knew you could). And while it's definitely not an interview, I do plan to have some questions ready for an expected Q&A session following Sen. Nelson's remarks on Thursday. As one of the least progressive Democratic senators, Nelson's record has been less than stellar (pun intended) from a progressive standpoint. I'd be more than happy to put him on the hot seat on your behalf.

Now, I'm sure I could come up with plenty of questions on my own ... but I thought I'd open it up to you as well. Do you have a question that you'd like for me to ask Sen. Nelson? Put it in Comments below, and I'll make a list of the best questions and take it with me on Thursday. I'll do my best to ask as many as I can, and of course I'll record the responses for posting here. (I imagine other attendees may ask similar questions to what you might suggest, too.)

So c'mon! Let's play "Ask Sen. Nelson!"

(Cross-posted at Florida Progressive Coalition Blog)

A veto override for Florida's sake

Drunky McStagger has never had a veto overridden (although Congress certainly is trying with SCHIP). However, that may be about to change, with profound implications for Florida.

Bush says he supports Everglades restoration and has included funding for it in his proposed budget. But the president objects to the total cost of the water bill, especially after Congress tacked on projects that boosted the total to $23 billion.

Everglades restoration remains trapped in the standoff between Bush and Congress.

While vetoing the bill, Bush said its many projects potentially divert spending from higher priorities, such as Everglades restoration.

"American taxpayers should not be asked to support a pork-barrel system of federal authorization and funding where a project's merit is an afterthought," he said.

On this bill, Bush faces a defiant Congress, including many fellow Republicans who support projects in their states. As a result, proponents of the bill are confident they can round up two-thirds majorities in the House and Senate to pass the bill into law over Bush's veto.

If so, supporters of the various projects, including Everglades funding, would still need to seek annual appropriations. The bill Bush vetoed merely authorizes Congress to spend money within certain limits.

Florida Sens. Bill Nelson, a Democrat, and Mel Martinez, a Republican, said they would vote to override the veto, noting the bill authorizes nearly $2 billion for Florida projects, most of it related to the Everglades.

"No single bill Congress approves this year will have as much positive impact on Florida's environment than this," Martinez said. "The federal partnership in Everglades restoration is long overdue, and this bill brings our federal partners to the table."

The bill includes money for restoration of the Indian River Lagoon and a study of the Herbert Hoover Dike on Lake Okeechobee, both of which would have significant impact on the sustainability of the Everglades.

I'm happy to see Sens. Nelson and Martinez agree on something other than bombing the shit out of other countries. Let's hope they can garner enough support from their colleagues to override the veto and tell Drunky where he can stick his faux "fiscal responsibility."

Steny Hoyer's coming to town

The Florida Democratic Party, despite all the signs that point to the desirability of a more progressive position, refuses to budge from its "centrist" (read: stupid, DLC-influenced) perspective.

First, we have the bizarre instance of "moderate" (read: wolf in sheep's clothing) Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Barely) suing the national Democratic Party over the primary date fiasco.

Then, just when I've finished trying to figure that little tactic out comes this e-mail a few minutes ago from Florida Democratic Party chairperson Karen Thurman:

Dear [Sinfonian],

I'm proud to announce that my old friend, Steny Hoyer, the Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, will deliver the keynote address at the Florida Democratic Party's 2007 State Convention Victory '08 dinner.

The Convention opens in just three weeks so purchase your tickets to the dinner today!

Congressman Hoyer, the second highest-ranking Democrat in the House, has built a reputation as a skilled legislator and a strong consensus builder. In the past few months, he helped score major victories for the American people, including the first raise of the federal minimum wage in over a decade, a 50% cut to student loan rates to make college more affordable, and the toughest Congressional ethics regulations in history. His current priorities include fighting to bring new accountability to the war in Iraq and overturning the President's veto of children's health insurance.

Ugh. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) (right) is one of the least progressive Democrats in Congress. He's been bending over backwards (no, Larry Craig, not literally) to appease Republicans in the old "can't we all just get along?" style, the style that demonstrably doesn't work. Okay, I call it "appeasement" and Thurman calls it "consensus build[ing]." Either way, it's a travesty.

Why, just today, Atrios taunted Hoyer for being forced to back down from announcing new FISA rules -- you remember, the law that allows the Bush crime syndicate to eavesdrop on your conversations and all that -- that didn't include critical safeguards against overreaching surveillance. At a time when the Florida Democratic Party should be reaching out to progressives and embracing us for representing the majority of the party, as they did in June by bringing bloggers into the "inner sanctum," they instead insult us by bringing Hoyer in, presumably to talk a good game ... but he backs down every time to Republicans when push comes to shove. All talk, no action, that's Steny.

I was considering changing my plans to attend the Party's convention, since I'd originally planned to be out of the state that weekend. But, if Hoyer's there, I assure you, I will not be there.

Norman Hsu: he's not just for Democrats

Predictably, the wingnuts have been bloviating themselves silly over the Norman Hsu scandal. Hsu is the guy who's been a fugitive for sixteen years while showering stolen money on politicians all over the country. The most high-profile recipient of Hsu's money may indeed be Hillary Clinton, but she's far from the only one. Indeed, some of them are even here in Florida:

Sen. Bill Nelson's staff admitted Friday that his campaign received as much as $7,500 from Hsu.

Florida's Democratic Party also benefited — to the tune of $6 Gs.

And while Hsu funded mostly Dems, two of his associates reportedly gave to one Republican: Former Florida CFO Tom Gallagher. He bagged $1,000 in his ill-fated attempt to beat Charlie Crist in last year's gubernatorial race.

Sen. Clinton (D-N.Y.) gave her Hsu money to charity, as Sen. Nelson plans to do. Naturally, though, Gallagher, being a Republican, took the "I didn't do anything wrong" approach:

Gallagher said he hadn't even heard about the Hsu scandal. The $1,000 he supposedly received from two Hsu minions didn't trigger alarms. "I received money from 10,000 to 12,000 people."

I'd just like to take a moment to thank Florida's Republicans, who voted for Charlie Crist over Tom Gallagher for their gubernatorial nomination last year. I can't imagine how much worse off we'd be with an ignorant dickhead of Gallagher's caliber in office.

UPDATE (8:29 pm 9/22/07): Welcome, all you crazed, mouth-breathing, moronic brownshirt fucks who have linked over here from your mutual masturbation society known as Free Republic! I'm so happy you've visited this "moonbat's" blog. Nothing better than getting traffic from people too stupid to think for themselves!

Your, um, referrer said I was "trying to link Norman Hsu with Republicans because one of Norman Hsu’s associates gave Tom Gallagher of FL $1,000." Now, which part of that don't you understand? Of course I'm linking Hsu to Gallagher ... because Hsu did give him money! Note that I didn't say "only" Republicans; in fact, the title of this post should be pretty self-explanatory.

Of course, I shouldn't expect mentally deficient cretins like yourselves to understand the nuance of meaning between, say, claiming that Hsu only supported Repukes (which I didn't say) and stating that Hsu gave money to a Republican (which he did, to Gallagher, who is an especially reprehensible and noxious Republican). But I thought I'd try.

Again, thanks for visiting, and please stop by again! Oh, and thanks for 2006, and thanks in advance for 2008, you intolerant steaming piles of shit.