ProgressOhio

House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) and Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) have invited Ohio's controversial former Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell (R) for a chat about voting irregularities in the 2004 election. The hearing, which "will explore the current state of voting rights and the allocation of resources to end voter suppression and voter fraud," is scheduled for February 8th. Conyers and Nadler appear to be hoping that Blackwell's past success in suppressing voter turnout will be very informative.

Senator Levin,

You only need 51 votes to pass legislation through the Senate, not 60. Make the Republicans filibuster, if necessary.

Here's what Harry Reid should say: "I hope that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle vote with the rest of America and agree to set at timetable to leave Iraq. If they choose not to, well, all of America will witness how unwilling the Republicans are to listen to the people. Americans want this amendment to pass. It's time for the Senate to represent the people - the will of the people." Then Harry DOES NOT offer a cloture motion, but lets the Republicans filibuster.

Look, even if the Democrats get their 60 votes, President Bush will veto the bill. But the Senate Democrats have to FIGHT for what the American people want. Either way the Democrats handle this (making the Republicans filibuster or offering a cloture motion), the Republicans will say, "the Democrat Party is wasting the People's Time and is getting nothing done." ...This in spite of the fact that the People will see that it is actually the Republicans who are wasting the People's Time by blocking legislation which the People so desperately want.

[T]he attitude of the Democratic majority worries me. Prompted by the "Flying Imams" incident, when six Islamic leaders were removed from a flight after fellow passengers reported suspicious behavior, Republicans included a "John Doe" measure in the 9/11 Commission Recommendations bill that would protect those people who report suspicious activity from being sued. That measure passed the House as part of the overall bill by an overwhelming vote of 304-122.

But when members of the House and Senate sat down to iron out the differences, Democrats vehemently resisted including that measure in the final bill. Thankfully, common sense prevailed, and the "John Doe" measure is included in the final piece of legislation.
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Our vigilance helps our children grow up not worrying about what will happen when they walk a few blocks to meet friends or worry about threats at school, like they do in some terror-ridden countries. This threat won't go away, and efforts to reduce our security won't make us safer.

There has been speculation that two other longtime Republican House members -- David L. Hobson of Springfield and Ralph Regula of Navarre -- are considering retirement. But Hobson, 70, issued a statement declaring that "as of today, I'm running again."

Electricity generated in the outside world and brought into the Amish community via power lines is generally forbidden. Power lines running into an Amish home or business would be too direct a connection to the outside world for a people who believe in the Biblical injunction in II Corinthians 6:17: "Come out from among them and be separate, sayeth the Lord."

But generating power for themselves - especially in a family business, where the family members come together for a common purpose, is more than acceptable.

AEP's Appalachian Power and Indiana Michigan Power utility units each signed a 20-year agreement to purchase 100 MW of wind energy from the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm being developed in Benton County (and part of Tippecanoe County), Indiana, according to AEP. The Fowler Ridge Wind Farm is expected to be online by the end of 2008.

A pair of Ohio National Guard bases has received $7.1 million in federal funding for the installation of solar panels and wind turbines.
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The University of Toledo's Wright Center for Photovoltaics Innovation and Commercialization will be involved in the research and implementation of the new systems at both bases.

...Democrats said that in order to fund a $4 billion expansion of nutrition programs, including food stamps, they would close a tax loophole affecting foreign companies that have U.S. subsidiaries in places like Bermuda.

Republicans, like Rep. Deborah Pryce of Ohio, cried foul:

"In the 11th hour, Democrat leaders blindsided America with the news of how they were going to pay for this bill by putting 5 million American jobs at risk," Pryce charged.

Pryce mentioned the Honda plant in Ohio that she said would be affected by the tax increase.

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Democrats countered that Republicans were exaggerating the tax's impact, and noted that the Bush administration had itself called for the loophole to be closed.

White House officials arranged for top officials at the Office of National Drug Control Policy to help as many as 18 vulnerable Republican congressmen by making appearances and sometimes announcing new federal grants in the lawmakers' districts in the months leading up to the November 2006 elections, a Democratic lawmaker said yesterday.

Rep. Henry A. Waxman (Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said documents obtained by his panel suggest that the appearances by the drug control officials were part of a larger White House effort to politicize the work of federal agencies that "may be more widespread than previously known."

Waxman cited a memo written by former White House political director Sara M. Taylor showing that John P. Walters, director of the drug control office, and his deputies traveled at taxpayer expense to about 20 events with vulnerable GOP members of Congress in the three months leading up to the elections.

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Appearances also were held with Rep. Deborah Pryce of Ohio in Columbus and with then-Rep. Chris Chocola of Indiana in South Bend. Pryce narrowly won reelection, while Chocola lost in November.

Paula Brooks stepped out of a race for Congress this morning, avoiding a contentious primary with fellow Democrat Mary Jo Kilroy.

Brooks' announcement, a decision she said she reached over the weekend, clears the way for a rematch between Kilroy and incumbent Republican, Rep. Deborah Pryce.

It also ends months of speculation and discomfort at the Franklin County County Courthouse.

"Thank you," Brooks said Franklin County Democratic Party Chairman William A. Anthony Jr. told her when she phoned Sunday night to give him the news.

Anthony was to convene his 195-member central and executive committee to endorse one of the two women, an effort to avoid a bloody battle.

If both commissioners ran, it would require each to give up a shot at re-election next year and leave two of the three commissioner seats more easily open to a Republican challenge.

Sen. George V. Voinovich (R-Ohio), a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, sent a letter to Bush yesterday urging the president to develop "a comprehensive plan for our country's gradual military disengagement" from Iraq. "I am also concerned that we are running out of time," he wrote.

Republican skepticism has grown steadily, if subtly, since the Senate began debating the war in February. One lawmaker who has changed his tone is Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.). Earlier this year, McConnell helped block from a vote even a nonbinding resolution opposing the troop increase. Now, he views a change in course as a given. "I anticipate that we'll probably be going in a different direction in some way in Iraq" in September, McConnell told reporters earlier this month. "And it'll be interesting to see what the administration chooses to do."

Oh yes, we'll see what September brings, Mitch.

McConnell, Warner, and Sessions are all up for re-election in 2008 ( Link ). Just throwing that out there.

Matthew Iglesias talks about this much better than I can, here ( Link ).

Oh, and one more thing: What happened to the talking point, "It is treasonous to disagree with the Commander in Chief during a time of war"? Guess that doesn't apply to these Very Serious Senators.

See also:  Updated With Audio: Voinovich Melts Down On Sean Hannity Radio Show

Portman wants to spend time with his kids: Link

---begin excerpt---

Portman said he was leaving the administration for personal reasons.

"I need to be home more. I've got three kids ages 12 to 17. It's just been very hard to spend as much time with them and Jane as I need to at this time of my life," he said.

A former congressman, Portman also made it clear he might seek a return to elective office, either by running for governor of Ohio or for the Senate.

---end excerpt---

I see he's not considering running for OH-2 again, 'cause Mean Jean's doing such a bang-up job there.

Also, note that his kids don't need to spend time with him ... he needs to spend time with his kids and Jane his wife. His 17-year-old will probably be going away to college soon (or joining the military?), making this timing unusual.

This wasn't announced on a Friday afternoon, so he had to quit right away. What did he do?

UPDATE Porkopolis has an article from last November here ( Link ), reminding us "Rob Portman was a member of the House Budget Committee during the disastrous formulation of the Medicare Prescription Drug Bill."