FYI, the basis for Senate holds appears to be in the Standing Rules of the Senate, Rule VII, Section 2, which basically seems to cover the rules for setting the agenda for the legislative day.

http://rules.senate.gov/senaterules/rule07.php

Yeah, I think there aren't sufficient reasons for supporting Obama any longer. Obama would, no doubt, make for a somewhat better president than McCain. But that is a small benefit compared to the irreparable damage we would do to by giving our support to the Democratic candidate after his party has embraced some of the most extreme right wing policies of the Bush administration. The effect will simply be that we'll eliminate serious opposition to authoritarianism from mainstream political discourse. If we give up on the Democratic party now and allow them to hold power even after they have embraced their authoritarian tendencies, there would simply be noone left to stand up for constitutional protections. And that would be worse for the U.S. than a Republican president.

"Politico is kind of like

Fox news and Drudge combined. Real Democratic members of the House and Senate should realize this and treat them accordingly. Leave them in the wilderness with the rest of the right-wing machine.

-- Cwafty Rabbit "

merely illustrating the point, of the right way to to it. I saw joan walsh at salon happy that rush limbaugh agree'ed with her and was spreading her name around. Saying" see even liberals agree with us on this. We're main stream and centrists".

As opposed to what greenwald did. owning an issue and representing us progressives there, rather than republcain propoganidsts. Big differance.

But I agree with you. Screw politco. Rove's brainchild. I like when they have front page stories and their polls compleatly reverse waht they are trying to say. I love that. Shows them for the gop propogandists they are.

I'm getting confused now. How can a great victory cause great anger--on the winning side? And how--after ramming a bill through the house 24 hours after the thing was written--can she now see a need for more debate? I thought debate came prior to the vote. Perhaps Ms. Pelosi has been hearing from some citizens on this issue. How strange.

June 24, 2008, 11:03 am

Pelosi Says More Debate on FISA Would Be ‘Healthy’

It would be “healthy” if the Senate spends more time debating an overhaul of domestic-spying laws now moving through Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday.

The House passed the legislation last week, despite misgivings and outright opposition from many Democrats. Pelosi voted for the bill, saying legislation was urgently needed to update federal authority to collect intelligence information. But she said the provision granting retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that aided the government surveillance program is “a cause for great anger” among the American people.

“It would be healthy if (the public) heard more about it… even if the resolution is the same,” Pelosi said, when asked by reporters whether she thinks Senate Democrats, including Sen. Barack Obama, should filibuster the legislation updating the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act as it heads to the Senate floor this week.

Obama has said he would support the legislation and supports eliminating the immunity provision. Sen. Chris Dodd is expected to offer an amendment stripping out the provision during Senate debate, but the Senate has rejected similar efforts multiple times in the past.

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/06/24/pelosi-says-more-debate-on-fisa-would-be-healthy/

"No Democrat for President

Democrats Must Lose In November"

thanks for your input.

"Pelosi senses "anger"

I'm getting confused now. How can a great victory cause great anger--on the winning side? And how--after ramming a bill through the house 24 hours after the thing was written--can she now see a need for more debate? I thought debate came prior to the vote. Perhaps Ms. Pelosi has been hearing from some citizens on this issue. How strange.

"

Weak. And it has nothing to do with being a women. Hoyer was weak. rockefeller and di fi were paid off.

Let's hope clinton and obama can unite on our behalf, for once. She doesn't have to be the vp to fight for her party and canddiate. If she doesn't she does herself/future a huge diservice./ not obama or her party. they can always be replaced.

After making some Energy, Gas and Oil points, including facts of the greedy Companies holding onto undeveloped Federal land leases which would dwarf the unimmediate drill reaps of recently proposed US coastal and Arctic preserve incursions, Sen Barb Boxer of Cal.

then off-topic-ed to opposing the FISA bill in its House passed amnesty form.

She mentioned Hoover vs MLK, the Tuskeegee experiment. Didn't hear Watergate... Said she represented 38 Million people of California. Wanted to get the truth on illegal spying. Offered to indemnify Telecoms in the search.

If it wasn't a punch, it was a real, stiff jab.

She said our troops go forth to protect our freedom. And we must uphold the Constitution here in kind.

Quoted Justice Marshall on holding to Constitutionality even in perilous times.

Kit Bond, Mo., then lied for a few minutes in rebuttal.

Is a miracle still conceivable?

Prayer vigil, and all pursued avenues of argument, pressure, and opposition, must continue.

More!

And.

Hooray!

It was just a wild hare William. (click sig.)

>"Quetzalcoatl? (No, no, you're right -- that was a serpent.

Well, dang slippery quetzalcoatls.

>And who said dinosaurs and humans didn't co-exist?)"

Not me. They banned me from the Creation Museum for playing with the baby dinosaurs.

bah.

Reports that Pelosi is saying that more debate would be healthy seem rather disingenuous given that the House, which she is the Speaker of, only allowed 1 hour of floor debate, with an vote to follow immediately afterwards, on a bill where the text was not even released until a day before. That, and the debate and vote was on a Friday in June, which is getting close to as a dead time in Washington as it can be when Congress is in session.

The house offices can not even get through their mail in time to hear from constituents in time to even get an opinion on a bill like that. I'm guessing it wasn't even until Monday that Pelosi and other Reps heard the opinions of people who have been calling and emailing since this bill came out.