Bob Goodlatte....Leadership....My Mistake

Bob Goodlatte is into his 10th term as 6th CD Congressman.

                                                                             Melwood Manor Virginia News, Amherst Virginia
I got mail from a reader who chewed me out for giving Bob Goodlatte credit he did not deserve.    The reader was correct.


My Mistake.     Goodlatte is only a co-sponsor of H.R. 1503 (the birther bill).      Earlier I had given him credit for writing the bill, I should have known, Goodlatte is too lazy to take the lead on anything.       Bill Posey was the sparkey nutjob who wrote the legislation and Bob Goodlatte just the embarrising, lazy, free loader who signed on as co-sponsor.

                                                                              Merry Moor Virginia News, Amherst County
If Bob Goodlatte thinks any of us in the 6th Congressional District of Virginia have the slightest interest in the Birther Bill (H.R. 1503) then he is more addle brained than even I think he is.     The Bill has been laying around for over two years and only 11 names are attached.      Most of the folks that get elected to go to Washington are proud of their positions and the people they serve and wouldn't associate themselves with a piece of crap like H.R. 1503.     It is the ultimate embarrisment that Bob Goodlatte sucked onto it like a catfish on rotten cabbage.


You can have quite a bit of fun if you choose to indulge in the easy kind of conspiratorial thinking used by people who believe that Barack Obama is concealing that he was secretly born in Kenya, or in Communist Russia, or on the Moon.     Among these people are eleven members of Congress who have signed their names to H.R. 1503 – a bill that would require all presidential candidates to provide copies of their birth certificates to prove that they are eligible to run for President.

The insinuation is that any politicians who have not provided a copy of their birth certificates to be viewed publicly can be rightly suspected of being secret foreigners, come to the United States to infiltrate our government.     That is, after all, the contention of the “birther” movement, the group that H.R. 1503 was written for.     The legislation is a political attack against Barack Obama, who is alleged by conspiracy theorists to be a secret Muslim spy whose Hawaiian birth certificate was faked years ago, because somehow, Obama’s handlers just knew he would be elected President.


U.S. Representative Bill Posey wrote the legislation, and has been joined by the following ten cosponsors and tea party nutjobs:


Marsha Blackburn


Dan Burton


John Campbell


John Carter


John Culberson


Louie Gohmert


Bob Goodlatte


Kenny Marchant


Randy Neugebauer


Ted Poe
 
If these 11 members of Congress applied their conspiratorial standards of suspicion to themselves, they wouldn’t fare very well. After all, none of these members of Congress supplied their own birth certificates before running for public office.     Furthermore, the legislation supported by these politicians only applies to presidential candidates, and not to congressional candidates?     Why?     What are they trying to hide?      Are they all perhaps part of a secret Argentinian spy network, having been born in Tierra del Fuego and sent here secretly to conduct terrorist operations?


Of course, I don’t think that any of that is true as far as I know and I don't know for sure,  but the loose standards of logic employed by the birthers, and their enablers in Congress, could lead to the creation of such a conspiracy theory,  if I were inclined to idle speculation.

Louie Gohmert, the goofball from Texas with the French first name wants to strap on a pistol and stroll around the halls of Congress.     Louie's sanity cannot be asertained from observing him or listening to him speak.      He may be sane but some specialized test would have to be done to say for sure.     Tom Delay, with a wink and a laugh, says he's "willing to bet 1 to 3 and 10 years probation that Louie is sorta normal."     Tom added quickly "don't hold me to that its just a guess, everyone knows Louie's a couple of cans short of a six pack".

                                                                           Montrose Heights Virginia News, Amherst County
Anyway these are the people Goodlatte pals around with and looks up to.     It has long been known that Goodlatte is a major supporter of the tea party.     What isn't known is What Goodlatte did for his first 18 years in Washington?      His first 9 terms of drawing a Congressmans salary?      Recently we know he wanted to read the constitution or most parts of it on opening day for the 112th Congress.      Starting his 10th term and still willing to do anything to get out of working, thats Bob Goodlatte.

                                                                            Old Stage Run Virginia News, Amherst County
ACVDN BOTTOM LINE
We need to do the hard work required to replace Bob with a Congressman who represents the 6th District.

Amherst County Virginia  Democratic News

Bob Pretends To Want To Balance The Budget

Goodlatte wants to impose on the Congress a rule that certain votes (raising taxes, increasing the debt ceiling) must have a 60 percent majority.     Does Goodlatte misunderstand what a majority is?     Does Goodlatte not grasp that the very FIRST power given Congress in Article I, Section 8 is the power to tax?     Does he not understand, historically, why that power was conferred?     The answer to all three questions is yes.     Goodlatte does not understand, and the tip of the iceberg is Goodlatte's misunderstanding of the needs of the people in his district.

Goodlatte wants a balanced budget amendment.     Where was he during the Bush administration when he supported unfunded tax cuts directed primarily for the wealth and corporations?     Why did Goodlatte support all the Bush policies that more than doubled the national debt and nearly broke the economy?


In 1993, Goodlatte had the opportunity to actually vote FOR a balance budget, but he did not do so.     The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, pushed by Bill Clinton and passed in the Congress WITHOUT a single Republican vote of support, raised tax rates on the wealthiest Americans and provided for some spending reductions.      That bill led to several balanced budgets, and helped to create a robust economy that created more than 22 million jobs.


But Goodlatte was opposed. Goodlatte voted against it.


Bob Goodlatte is a master of deception and subterfuge.     He votes for policies that allow the rich to gorge from the public treasury, and that saddle the nation with debt, then he professes to be shocked by the outcome.     He will, by golly, submit a bill to propose a balanced budget.


But when he had the chance to actually put his vote where his rhetoric was, Goodlatte defaulted.     He voted no.     Goodlatte is a bad Congressman, Goodlatte is a scam artist but a typical conservative.     Goodlatte also votes against seniors and retired people and would balance the budget on their backs if he gets his way.

H.R. 1259 was named the Lockbox Bill and it would require that any budget surplus cannot be spent until the solvency of Social Security and Medicare is guaranteed.      The ‘Lockbox Bill’ aims to protect the future Social Security surplus by removing it from the control of federal budget makers.      The vote in Congress was 416-12 in favor of the bill.      It would require a ‘super-majority’ vote on any bill that would add to the budget deficit, which implies borrowing from the Social Security Trust Fund.


Who would vote against this?      Among the 12 in opposition was Bob Goodlatte.      Bob is Rated 10% by the ARA, indicating an anti-senior voting record. (Dec 2003)

What is the ARA and who do they represent?      The mission of the Alliance for Retired Americans is to ensure social and economic justice and full civil rights for all citizens so that they may enjoy lives of dignity, personal and family fulfillment and security.      The Alliance believes that all older and retired persons have a responsibility to strive to create a society that incorporates these goals and rights and that retirement provides them with opportunities to pursue new and expanded activities with their unions, civic organizations and their communities.

When it comes to looking out for senior citizens and retired people Bob Goodlatte gets a 10% rating based on his anti-senior voting record.


If you're a senior or retired person living in the 6th Congressional District of Virginia please be aware that Bob Goodlatte votes against your interest.       If voting for Bob is a second nature habit with you consider giving your vote to a candidate who supports your interests.     Say NO to Bob Goodlatte.


Bob Goodlatte is a Hard-Core, Far Right Wing, Conservative and YOU deserve better.

Democratic News of Amherst Virginia

Senate Dems Abandon Filibuster Reform

January 25, 2011 - by Donny Shaw

The Democrats’ cave-in on reforming the filibuster in the Senate appears to be complete.     According to reports, Senate Rules Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Schumer [D, NY] is bringing a proposal to his fellow Democrats this afternoon that would do nothing to address the recent explosion in senators using procedural rules to kill bills just by threatening to filibuster.      It apparently includes three minor changes in the Senate rules and is accompanied by a gentlemen’s agreement to start behaving more reasonably, sometimes.      Here’s what’s in it.


Rules changes that will probably be codified in the rules —


Ending secret holds — The Democrats tried banning secret holds in 2007 when they took over power from the Republicans by requiring disclosure of the holding senator’s name within six days of the hold being isued, but it didn’t work because senators dodged the rule by teamimg up and trading holds back-and-forth every five days.      Schumer’s proposal is expected to require disclosure of the holding senator within one day of the hold being placed.

Removing some presidential appointees from advice and consent consideration — In the past two years, Republicans have severally limited the Democrats’ ability to confirm presidential nominees by using their constitutional advice and consent powers to require hearings and cloture votes, even when the nominees in question are completely non-controversial.      Schumer’s proposal would make some presidentially-appointed positions immune to this kind of dilatory action.       Dave Dayen says it will be for about 100 nominees of the 1,400 that are pending.


End ability to force full readings of bills as a way to delay — Under current rules, each senator has the right to require a full reading of all amendments and bills when they are offered on the Senate floor.      Since a lot of major legislation ends up getting done in the form of a substitute amendment to an unrelated bill, senators can use this power to basically shut down the chamber for several days when the majority party tries to bring it up something important (and lengthy).

Informal agreements accompanying the rules —



Less auto-filibustering — In the past four years that the Republicans have been in the minority, the threat to filibuster has become standard operating procedure for everything, even on the question of beginning debate.      The effect has been that it takes much longer to take care of non-controversial business and bills that have a clear majority support are unable to pass because it takes a 3/5ths majority to overcome a filibuster threat.      According to Schumer, as a supplement to the rules changes, Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell [R, KY] will agree off-the-record to issue fewer filibuster threats.

Less amendment-tree filling — As a result of the auto-filibuster, Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid [D, NV] has been

blocking the minority’s ability to introduce dilatory and poison-pill amendments by filing the total number of allowable amendments himself and then not calling them up for votes.      The unfortunate side effect is that senators who have serious amendments are unable to offer them and get a vote.      In exchange for fewer filibuster threats from the Republicans, Schumer says that Reid is prepared to leave room for more amendments to be voted on.
And that’s it.      This is really worlds away from the original idea that kicked off this whole effort — that a clear majority of senators should be able to legislate without stooping to the will of a clear minority at every step.      According to Reid, this mild derivative will be complete within the next 24 to 48 hours.     The 60-vote Senate lives on!
 
Amherst Democratic News


Here's some good news.


H.R.204 - Congressional Pay Cut Act Sponsored by Representative Gabrielle Giffords D-AZ.     To provide for a 5 percentreduction in the rates of basic pay for Members of Congress.
Pedlar Virginia News, Amherst County