Dodd To Filibuster FISA Bill, If Necessary

by: Chris Bowers

Fri Oct 19, 2007 at 14:22


Dodd is really going to go to the mat over this one:



Since a cave-in appears inevitable, such a filibuster will be the only way to stop this from passing the Senate. As such, threatening to personally filibuster this bill is something every Democrat in the Senate who opposes this legislation should do. Other Senators who are not, literally speaking, standing with Dodd and helping him on this are not demonstrating real opposition. Simply sending out a press release and voting against the bill isn't enough. It is time to physically block this bill by standing up and being heard.

Chris Dodd will be literally standing up for us on FISA, and for quite a long time. He's going to need some help.  Both we, and other Senators who oppose retroactive immunity, must stand with him.
Chris Bowers :: Dodd To Filibuster FISA Bill, If Necessary

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Dodd To Filibuster FISA Bill, If Necessary | 27 comments
Dodd filibuster (0.00 / 0)
I'm gettin' closer to voting for him in the illinois primary if he's still standing
He may not be nominated (0.00 / 0)
to run for the Presidency but he sure has my support to be the Majority Leader in the Senate. My support for Dodd is not a total slam on Reid but I am of the opinion that we need a better public communicator as Majority Leader if we are to advance the party to the next level. Reid may have many attributes but getting in front of the cameras and driving our points home is not one of them but it is one the party sorely needs.
[ Parent ]
You can help this effort on Senator Dodd's part by.... (0.00 / 0)
let's tell ALL the progressive Senators (4.00 / 2)
to join Dodd in putting a hold on the bill.

http://www.democrats...

This petition goes to:

Joe Biden at JoeBiden.com ... Barbara Boxer at Pac for a Change ... Hillary Clinton at HillaryClinton.com ... Russ Feingold at the Progressive Patriots Fund ... Ted Kennedy at the Committee for a Democratic Majority ... John Kerry at JohnKerry.com ... Barack Obama at BarackObama.com ... Harry Reid at Searchlight Leadership Fund ... Bernie Sanders at Bernie.org ... Chuck Schumer at the DSCC

[ Parent ]
I signed the petition... (0.00 / 0)
.... but did so with reservations. The whole point of this is to stop the FISA bill, so stick to the point. Including a call for impeachment based on a laundry list of reasons not related to FISA/illegal wiretapping is counterproductive, regardless of how I/we feel about the impeachment issue.
[ Parent ]
Metrics (4.00 / 1)
Thus far, all Dodd himself has done is a press release or two and a YouTube video. 

According to the WaPo,

Whenever that big day comes, Dodd -- as the keeper of the "hold" -- must return from the campaign trail to officially block debate on the bill. That entails standing around on the Senate floor, forcing procedural votes, avoiding the furious glares of colleagues who don't share the same concerns. The standard duration of such showdowns is about a week -- time that Dodd, who is trailing badly in early primary polls, can scarcely afford.
I would not advise any of the other candidates to spend a week away from the campaign trail for this.
If there's a filibuster, we'll all be watching (4.00 / 1)
including the citizens at every pancake breakfast/Dem BBQ/ladies lunch. 

I just gave Dodd a donation.  This is what I want to see from everyone who feels he/she deserves my vote.  A little action.  A bit of earning it.

[ Parent ]
not all he has done (0.00 / 0)
Nice try, but Dodd has already done much more than issue press releases and post YouTube videos. Dodd "himself" has also actually requested a hold on the bill with Reid. He has done more than just talk about stopping a bad FISA bill, he has taken a tangible action.

And I'd much rather see a Democratic candidate show us leadership with a principled filibuster against a bad bill instead of speeches at a "rally for change" or attending fundraisers. But, maybe that's just me.

[ Parent ]
actually, no. (0.00 / 0)
Insofar as there is no bill yet, all Dodd has done is indicated his future intent to place a hold.  Procedurally, he's done nothing yet and can do nothing yet.

I think we can already judge the various candidates' leadership abilities over the course of their careers, rather than simply look at what they're doing in the final months before presidential primaries.  And no one has pointed out any similar efforts Dodd has led in the last 26 years, as far as I know.

[ Parent ]
Obama (2.00 / 2)
Yeah, I guess we can all worship Obama's 'leadership'. What on earth has this guy done? He does not dare to speak out for his own people on race issue ...

What a load of crap ...

[ Parent ]
OK (0.00 / 0)
It's obvious that you have an agenda and it is not Dodd. Fair enough. But to say Dodd has not done anything I suspect is disingenuous on your part. Yes there is no bill. But to put a hold on the upcoming bill is as real as putting a hold on a bill already marked up and presented. That's just fact. Call it a pre-emptive strike if you must but a strike it is.

Further, it is of no consequence if Dodd has or has not done this type of thing before. What is of consequence is that he is doing it now. Presidential calculations aside a hold is what it is, and in this case it means a lot to all law abiding Americans.

To read your posts here one could conclude that you are not for holding up the immunity of law breakers. I find that a very conflicting stance given the fact that you are an attorney who  believes in the law.

[ Parent ]
don't get me wrong (0.00 / 0)
I'm glad that he's doing it.  But Dodd has an agenda as well.

In evaluating his fitness for President, it is absolutely worth exploring Dodd's history of leadership (or lack thereof).

[ Parent ]
Thanks for clarifying (0.00 / 0)
I'm not supporting Dodd either though I like much of what he has been saying even before this FISA hold/filibuster threat. So I give him credit for that - Presidential aspirations aside.
[ Parent ]
Insofar as there is no bill yet? (0.00 / 0)
There is a bill. I can't believe you are arguing that there isn't such a thing.

Sure, it doesn't have a number, but it's been through committee and was rarin' to go until Dodd indicated this, that, and the other. Had he done nothing or said nothing, it just might have a number by now.

"Insofar as there is no bill yet"? 59 pages of no bill -- just ink on paper?

Come on.

[ Parent ]
as of when I posted (0.00 / 0)
The marked-up bill was not available. `
[ Parent ]
Here's the thing. (0.00 / 0)
The bill was passed by the committee on the 18th.

Dodd would have had plenty of time to see it; and I may be way off, but I imagine that the hold could have been placed even before it was assigned a number, etc.

[ Parent ]
semantics (0.00 / 0)
Considering there is no formal creature called a "hold" it is a contrivance of senate tradition, there is no substantive action Dodd could possibly have taken that qualifies under the definition you seem to advocate.

In that case we must give credit to Feingold and Wyden for voting against this in committee, which has been the only formal senate action on it to date.

[ Parent ]
Personally... (0.00 / 0)
...I'd rather see a Senator vigorously defending the Fourth Amendment (and the rule of law) in DC than see one shaking hands with, sucking up to, and expelling a lot of hot air at Iowa voters.

The Post writer doesn't make much sense, when you think about it.  Someone in Dodd's position doesn't have a lot to lose.

[ Parent ]
Stunt, surely? (0.00 / 0)
I'm not doubting that Senate floor action could get pretty ugly, if tempers don't cool (or get bought off) before the fun begins.

But the 13-2 vote in the SIC (Feingold and (who knew?) Wyden) rather indicates a done deal.

I'm not following the prez race too closely, and perhaps the love Dodd has been getting recently has gone beyond the jerking knees of assorted lefty spheroids.

And - what is politics if not one damn stunt after another? Getting sniffy just because Dodd's long-shot prez race needs goosing would be distinctly foolish.

However - looking more broadly, it might not be the best thing for Uncle Harry to be seen to lose control of the floor to one of his own guys.

(Question to self: can Reid, using his privilege of first recognition stop Dodd getting recognized? If Reid gets up, yields to Durbin, Durbin yields to Rockefeller, Rockefeller yields to Reid... Damn, homework!)

Well yeah (0.00 / 0)
But this is what I want out of the presidential race. Ideally it's supposed to push our leadership class to, you know, lead.

To me, the willingness to risk unpopularity, and to call out fellow dems for being pushovers, ups the ante considerably. Now, it's been pathetically low all year, so that's not saying this is the Greatest Thing Ever, but it is Good, and hopefully more of our would-be leaders will follow the example.

Me | My Work | Future Majority

[ Parent ]
To your last: No. (0.00 / 0)
When the senate president asks for unanimous consent to move to a vote on the bill, Dodd yells "nay" and then it returns to debate.

If Reid has 60 votes it doesn't matter if Dodd is actually at the podium reading the phone book or not, the filibuster would be quashed.  If he doesn't, then he could force Dodd and whoever else to continue debating in a traditional filibuster or just shelve the bill as he has tended to do all session.

[ Parent ]
Dodd "Hold" / Filibuster (0.00 / 0)
- have sent a donation to Sen. Dodd, my first donation to a political campaign ever.

Davidson

If Dodd doesn't go the distance (0.00 / 0)
I'm supporting him for Senate Majority Leader.  Hell, even Stephen Colbert would do a better job than Harry Reid.
Fascinating... (4.00 / 2)
same dialogue over at OrangeLand. Same carping about the almighty 'campaigns' and what they require. Same 'this is great but....' fill in the blank.

Funny how a politician steps up to the plate and frames the damn issue pretty much the way progressives would want and yet....

We've got folks squawkin' about 'electability' and what the guy did in the past.

Folks this is called 'change' get used to it there's gonna be a lot more of it and just because you are one of the privileged few to be part of Free Left Blogistan don't mean you will not find yourself uncomfortable with it.

And, if you would, try and remember what you said last week about what you'd like to see happen....

When it does.

Peace, Health and Prosperity for Everyone.

Hmmm (0.00 / 0)
Savvy internet users are sitting here, keyboarding away, across a telecommunications network, at a politically oriented website, and speculate Dodd's stand against the new FISA bill (which grants the telecoms immunity from warantless wiretapping and electronic surveillance) a 'mere' political 'stunt.'  Too much irony for me.
Oh, Lord! (0.00 / 0)
And, now someone tosses in the criterion of "leadership."  Leadership, I tell ya!  Even when it's staring them right in the face.  LOL.  What was the quote attributed to Stalkin' Malkin?  "You wouldn't recognize it if it bit you in the lip."  It might just apply here.

Look.  A candidate's record matters.  I agree with that sentiment.  And, if the electorate had an ounce of intelliegence and been willing to look at Teh Record, Bush the Lesser never would have passed muster.  But, the whole Congress seems woefully short of record these days.  We ought to support 'em when they do right, or we'll convince 'em that doing right doesn't matter and they shouldn't expend the effort. 

Dodd gained my respect (0.00 / 0)
Dodd gained my respect this week.  While I don't know if he would be doing this if he were competitive in the polls, I'm not really concerned with that.  This is the right move and Dodd deserves every bit of credit for leading the charge.

As for Obama, I can't believe that he hasn't come out in support of the filibuster yet.  If he wants the progressive vote, he needs to lead as a progressive.  If he keeps acting like Senator Clinton on these issues, why should anyone vote for him, when they can vote for the real McCoy?  If the primary were held today, I would still vote for Obama for many reasons, but my support becomes more tenuous by the day.  If Dodd sees traction and gets competitive, and Obama continues to refuse to stand up to Bush, I may switch.

As for Reid, his latest maneuvers make him unfit to be majority leader.  He doesn't have to join the hold, but to blatantly disrespect a senator of his own party like this is pathetic behavior from a leader.

And you wonder why Congress has an 11% approval rating on his watch.

Dodd To Filibuster FISA Bill, If Necessary | 27 comments
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