Know Your Government

“Dick” Shelby

February 5, 2010 at 11:38 am | Posted in politics straight up, public safety | Leave a comment
Tags: DNC, Hari Sevugan, Mitch McConnell, national security, politics, Richard Shelby, Senate Minority Leader

Okay, kids, grab your phone. It’s time to make a call to “Dick” Shelby’s office.

Why?

Because he has placed a hold on votes for 70 — yes, kids, count ’em — 70 “nominees to be the top Intelligence officers at the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security as well as the number three civilian at the Pentagon.”

That’s right, kids — in a time when, as Republicans like Shelby constantly remind us, we are at war, one Republican senator — allegedly without the knowledge or approval of the Senate Republican Minority Leader — is preventing positions critical to our national security from being filled by qualified nominees.

And why has “Dick” Shelby decided to take this radical, anti-American action?

Pork.

Apparently believing that he makes the final decision on what is or is not critical to the country’s national security, not the president, he’s holding the country hostage until two lucrative projects in Alabama are funded.

So please call “Dick” Shelby’s office at (202) 224-5744 and let him know that he is not the president and to stop playing games with national security.

And while you’re at it, let him know how much you appreciate the significant role he played in defeating consumer financial protection legislation in the Financial Services Committee.

The clueless Senator Minority Leader Mitch McConnell had this to say about “Dick” Shelby’s scandalous and anti-American behavior “in a time of war”:

“He is not able to be here at the moment to state his position,” said McConnell of Shelby. McConnell implied that that he’d rather go ahead with the votes. “Maybe we can in discussions with him make some progress on these sooner rather than later. but for the moment I’m constrained to object on his behalf,” said McConnell.

So give Minority Leader McConnell’s office as well — (202) 224-2541 — and let him know that it’s time he started acting like a leader and a patriotic American by directing “Dick” Shelby to allow votes on the nominees to these important national security positions to go forward.

UPDATE: In 2005, “Dick” Shelby said: “I firmly believe that each of the President’s nominees should be afforded a straight up-or-down vote. I do not think that any of us want to operate in an environment where federal judicial nominees must receive 60 votes in order to be confirmed. To that end I firmly support changing the Senate rules to require that a simple majority be necessary to confirm all judicial nominees, thus ending the continuous filibuster of them.”

Of course, those were Bush administration nominees. “Dick” Shelby feels no such obligation to afford the nominees of President Obama a straight up or down vote.

Why does “Dick” Shelby hate democracy?

Robert Gibbs, White House spokesperson, got it right when he said, “If that’s not the poster child for how this town needs to change the way it works, I fear there won’t be a greater example of silliness throughout the entire year of 2010.”

Senate phone lines are open till 5:00 p.m., although it being Friday, I would recommend making your call by 4:30 p.m. Let’s give “Dick” something to think about over the weekend.

FURTHER UPDATE: Well, well, well. Not only is “Dick” Shelby holding up votes on 70 nominees for various important positions in order to force the government to fund two high-priced projects he wants for Alabama, he’s doing it as a favor for to Northrup Grumman, “a firm that has contributed more than $100,000 to the Alabama Republican over the course of his long political career.”

As long as you’re making a call to “Dick” Shelby to let him know that his despicable behavior is not appreciated, give a call to Kent Conrad, chair of the Senate Budget Committee, and let him know how you feel about Alabama pork. Senator Conrad can be reached at (202) 224-2043.

ADDITIONAL FURTHER UPDATE:

The White House is not impressed by the antics of “Dick” Shelby, or his Republican colleagues.

Let’s be clear: Sen. Shelby is preventing qualified nominees who will help protect the American people from being confirmed. He’s not alone, though. This is just the latest example of this kind opposition for opposition’s sake that the President talked about earlier this week.. This strategy of obstruction is preventing qualified people from doing their jobs on behalf of the American people and it’s preventing real work from getting done in Washington. Every minute spent needlessly blocking noncontroversial nominees, many of whom go on to be confirmed by 70 or more votes or by voice vote (nine of the President’s nominees so far), is a minute not spent on the issues that matter to American families.

UPDATE 2/6/10:

Statement by Hari Sevugan, national press secretary for the DNC:

“President Obama has nominated qualified, talented people for critical vacancies related to our national security and other issues – and the President has called for an end to Washington politics as usual — but Republicans would rather play politics than do what is right. The American people are sick and tired of it. And, with Senator Shelby’s blanket hold on ALL nominees, they can no longer claim that their obstruction is about qualifications. It’s about politics plain and simple. And for putting politics ahead of the nation’s security they should be ashamed.”

Thanks Political Animal!