Shine The World's Biggest Spotlight On Them!

The more I watch the U.S. Senate, the more disgusted I become. The arcane "Rules" of the Senate are out of touch with the principles of Democracy and majority rule.

There are many instances of Senators abusing and misusing these rules for personal political gain or to hold something up until a project or an appropriation of money is given to his or her State.

Pardon my old fashioned values, but that sounds a bit like extortion. Don't call it "politics," it's extortion--especially if there isn't a bona fide cause for the hold.

As the health care bill torturously creeps through the U.S. Senate toward an up or down vote, we have all become front row spectators to the bizarre "cloture" rule that requires 60 votes to prevent a filibuster so that there can even be a debate on the Senate floor.

But what is an even more egregious Rule than cloture is the "HOLD" that any one Senator can place on anything that comes up for a vote or approval in the Senate. So, for example, if a position in the Federal government requires "Senate Confirmation," what it really means is that we have allowed our elected representatives to create a set of internal rules that allows any one Senator prevent a person's name from ever coming up for a vote by the entire Senate.

The Senatorial Hold has is being used right now by our recently appointed Senator George LeMieux to block the nomination of the next ambassador to Brazil.

So, for any reason, or, if he so chooses, for no reason at all, a man who was appointed by his best friend to a job that no one elected him to, can, for the next 18 months, decide that the United States should not have an Ambassador to the country of Brazil--and, he doesn't have to tell us the reasons why he has placed a "hold" on his nomination.

The St. Petersburg Times article on November 21, 2009, on this issue mentioned a former "hold" by Senator Larry Craig in 2003 that blocked hundreds of unrelated Air Force promotions until his state of Idaho received four C-130 cargo planes for the Idaho National Guard. I ask you again is that politics or extortion? It's clearly an abuse of public power by one person, but our system is so dysfunctional--by design--that it is considered acceptable behavior by Senators. Yet, how many people outside of Washington, D.C. think that is an acceptable system or acceptable personal behavior?

Someone from a small State with a tiny population (e.g. Wyoming), can decide the fate of the political process of the entire country-- and, the Senator doesn't even have to publicize it or give his or her reasons, unless WE do something about it.

For years, these types of things have gone on, largely unnoticed and often unreported because those who do the reporting are "embedded" with these politicians and are largely desensitized to the abuses (and think it's allowed because of these crazy rules, or they otherwise slough it off and label it as "politics" as usual). With the impending death of journalism and newspaper investigative reporting, I am concerned that there will likely be even less reporting of these activities in the future unless we force things to change.

It is time for us to SHINE A LIGHT on these Holds. Publicize them, blog about them, ask questions about them, and demand that these "rules" allowing one American to stop the Senate from acting, come to an end.

When I watch the actions of our Senators, I am reminded of a poignant line from the movie "Nuts" in which Barbara Streisand's character was facing a mental competency hearing in Court, and she was questioning the wisdom of having one particular Judge have the sole power to determine whether or not she was incompetent and unable to make her own decisions, just because her behavior was eccentric and outspoken. "Why does he get to decide what happens to me... What if he's just an asshole with power?...."

Why should any one Senator be able to stop our democracy dead in its tracks?

We must immediately publicize any Holds that are placed on any legislation or any appointments and SHINE A LIGHT ON THESE SENATORS TO EXPLAIN THEIR BEHAVIOR. There may well be valid reasons for their actions and if so, they should have to tell us and not keep their actions a secret, in the shadows.

Turn on your spotlights, people, and start looking for these "holds" and start reporting them on the internet. Seek out progressive investigative reporters and inform them of your findings. Write letters to the Editor. Demand explanations. Make Democracy work and stop this hostage situation from being routinely employed and accepted.

Wouldn't it be great if this "Rule" became an embarrassing thing that people in the Senate no longer use because there's just too much heat under those bright lights?

Remember "I've Got A Secret?" ....It's Back....

In the 1950's and 60's there was a TV game show called "I've Got a Secret." A mystery guest would appear and whisper to the Host what his or her secret was, and the celebrity panelists would play a game of "20 questions" to try to guess the secret. The audience at home would be clued in by a message on the bottom of the screen.

Flash forward to 2009 for the current version of the I've Got A Secret game. In today's version, we know what the "guest" does, we just don't know who the "guest" is. The celebrity panelists are the members of the Florida Legislature and the Governor. And, unfortunately, the folks watching all of this at home aren't being given any messages on the bottom of the screen.

The guest is an agent for undisclosed parties. The guest's name is Florida Energy Associates, LLC, a company formed by a Daytona Beach lawyer in 2008 to represent unknown parties who want to drill for oil off the coast of Florida.

It's not a secret that Florida Energy Associates, LLC has hired lots of lobbyists and is reportedly spending lots of money to try to convince the panelists to allow offshore oil drilling within nine miles of our beautiful Florida coastline. So far, however, this guest hasn't answered any of the important questions--the most important one being--EXACTLY WHO ARE YOU TRYING TO GET OIL LEASES FOR?

And guess, what? So far, according to a recent St. Petersburg Times article, Florida Energy Associates has refused to say who they are representing, and furthermore, they don't intend to disclose the names of their principals who will apply for the oil leases until after the law is changed. (Talk about putting the cart before the horse....)

In other words, Florida Energy Associates believes that it's none of our business. They've got a secret.

All we have is a pristine coastline that's at risk of being irreparably destroyed. So I say that it's high time that the panelists on this game show (the Florida Legislature) REQUIRE THE GUEST TO ANSWER THAT IMPORTANT QUESTION or get sent home (without a copy of the home game).

Don't the members of the Florida Legislature care if the oil drillers have the financial wherewithal to pay for the clean up of their spills?

Do we even know how much it would cost in cleanup costs alone if they (WHOEVER THEY ARE) were allowed to put "new, state of the art, safe drilling platforms"-- like the one that is presently leaking off the coast of Australia (and has been for weeks)-- within sight of our beautiful beaches?

How can the Legislature even consider allowing drilling without knowing the costs of cleanup, the potential loss of sales tax revenue from a spill, the loss of property values from a spill, and the identity of the drillers who would be responsible?

Don't the members of the Florida Legislature want to know if the drillers might be the Chinese, the Saudi's, Hugo Chavez, Bernie Madoff, Kim Jung Il, al Qaeda, or anyone else???????

Don't we care who is "setting up shop" right offshore from Clearwater Beach?

We've now seen the pilot show of the new version of "I've Got A Secret." It's time to cancel this show. Let's face facts, it's been a bad concept since the 60's. Although I hear it's still running in syndication in Texas. Let it stay there.

It's called Due Diligence, and our Florida Legislature needs to engage in it and needs to start asking LOTS OF QUESTIONS and DEMAND LOTS OF ANSWERS, UNDER OATH. Let this bill never hit the floor of either house, or let the hearings begin (and televise them)!

We're In Uncharted Waters, Only There's No Water

Eight years and counting. Twice as long as World War II, approaching the length of the Viet Nam War. No end in sight. No clear mission in sight. No end to the suffering of the soldiers and their families.

Our soldiers have done their duty. It is our civilian leaders who need to act like civilians and stop this endless war.

On this day when we honor our Veterans, what better honor could we bestow upon them than exercising sound judgment to preserve their lives?

Do we ask who is supplying the weapons and bullets being fired at our soldiers? Why don't we ask? Are we afraid we might discover that it is our own defense industry who has sold arms around the world that are now being used to kill our soldiers?

Do we ask how much this endless war is costing our nation in lives lost and borrowed dollars spent? Why not?

Do we discuss making the War "budget neutral" by paying for it with a War Tax (in the same way that we demand that health care reform legislation be "paid for")? Why not?

Why is there no concern that we are increasing the deficit with every bullet that is fired, every MRE that a soldier eats, every no bid contract that Halliburton receives? Why is stopping those discussions always "off the table?"

Why are we trying to build other nations while ours is in crisis and in need of repair?

Do we stop the Stop Loss program and the endless tours of duty that are destroying our troops and their families? Why not?

Do we consider the impacts of the mental illnesses being inflicted on our soldiers? Are we prepared for more Post Traumatic Stress Disorder incidents at home and abroad? Certainly, we don't expect these tragedies to decrease, do we?

When will we adequately fund the mental health needs of our Veterans when they return? We haven't yet. When will we begin to do so?

Why don't we provide health care benefits for all of our Veterans through the VA and not just those Veterans who have a service-related injury? Surely we owe them more.

It's long past time to honor our Veterans and our soldiers by ending these 2 wars and bringing our troops home where they belong. We can honor our active duty soldiers and Veterans through sensible policies and by finally giving them sufficient benefits. They have more than earned them.

After 8 years, it should be clear that we remain stranded in uncharted waters. Let's hope we can find our moral compass soon.....

One Year Later, Has "Yes We Can" Been Replaced By "No I Won't?"

November 4, 2008, was an exciting, historic day. Democrats and Independents answered the call of "Yes We Can" in record numbers, with a voter turnout never seen before.

Thousands gathered and cheered in Grant Park--many of whom had tears streaming down their faces, never believing they would ever live to see a black man elected as President of the United States. The Obama family was warmly greeted on that cool evening by that loving crowd, as a waive of optimism spread across our country and across the world for a new direction for America. Film footage of spontaneous celebrations from all around the world startled us all.

There was a great deal of optimism in the promises of Hope and Change. For the first time in a long time, there was a feeling that we were not only going to change directions as a country, but there were many transgressions of the previous 8 years that needed to be rectified.

"Yes We Can" was firmly rooted in Candidate Obama's promises of ending the war in Iraq; re-evaluating the war in Afghanistan; providing universal health care for all Americans and paying for it by ending the tax cuts for the richest 2%; closing Guantanimo Bay and providing real trials for those prisoners in which they would be apprised of the charges and evidence against them and not held indefinitely without knowing the charges against them; ending torture and rendition of political prisoners to black site prisons in other countries known to torture; ending warrantless wiretapping of Americans; ending Presidental "signing statements" and restoring the importance of the rule of law as the foundation of our democracy; regulating the banks and brokerage firms on Wall Street so that reckless investment schemes could not again bring us to the brink of financial collapse; creating green jobs for the future; recognizing the importance of science both in terms of stem cell research and in combating global warming; talking to our enemies and using diplomacy instead of bombs as a first option; advancing civil rights of all Americans regardless of race or sexual preference; practicing bi-partisanship and reducing the influence of lobbyists and special interest groups; ending the politicalization of the Justice Department; providing better care and treatment for our veterans; and improving the quality of our educational system so that we can compete in the world economy. (Just to name a few.)

Never before had a President assumed office with so many serious problems. The task was, and remains, daunting. There are few quick fixes.

I understand that there are severe institutional problems in not being able to control the legislative branch, but there are many things that can be accomplished through executive orders and choosing the right people to work in the exectutive branch. It's those things that the President can control--that he isn't charging quickly enough and aggressively on-- that make me wonder if I'm going to have to "keep the Change"....

For the Progressives and Independents who have been waiting a long time for the above mentioned Changes to occur, the bold assertions that "Change is Coming" and "Yes We Can" have been brushed aside.

It's hard to implement changes on Wall Street when you choose Timothy Geithner and Larry Summers as your agents of change. They were part of creating the problems that led to the financial crisis and they cannot be expected to point the fingers at themselves. "Too big to fail" is not a policy we can allow to continue. Yet, it has and will under the current administration.

In the area of ending warrantless wiretapping, rendition, and providing real trials for the prisoners at Guantanimo Bay, this might as well be the third term of George W. Bush. I see no policy Changes whatsoever.

When Barack Obama was a state senator in Illinois, there is film footage of him saying that he strongly supported a single payer health care system (and recognized it as the only way to provide health care for all and to reduce costs), but in order to accomplish that, he said that "we would first need to control the House, the Senate and the White House..." Well, guess what, that's what the American people voted for, and yet, notwithstanding the mandate provided by the electorate to the Democrats, President Obama promptly set his sights much, much lower.

First of all, the President outsourced the health care bills to Congress, refused to adequately use his bully pulpit and extraordinarily high approval ratings to hammer home real health care reform. To this day, the President refuses to clearly state what it is that he really wants in "his" health care reform.

Single payer could not even be debated? Passing it might not have been possible, but not standing up for the principle and talking about it is unforgiveable. If not now, when? Never even discussing single payer (and taking it off the table from the start) was a huge tactical error and a stab in the back to his base--and a betrayal of his own beliefs.

Despite the promises to end the business as usual with lobbyists and special interest groups, a back room deal was quickly struck with Big Pharma that prevents the ability to reduce drug costs through volume purchasing discounts (another often mentioned idea during the campaign). It didn't take long to sweep that noble idea under the rug in the Oval Office, now did it?

By the way he's acting now, I wonder if the President would sell his soul for one solitary Republican vote on the health care bill? While the ihe idea of bi-partisanship was noble, initially, how long do we have to watch the continuous "dance" with the party of "No" before we want to scream?

Olympia Snowe's one-time vote for a watered down bill that forces more purchasing of higher priced health insurance from the same unregulated companies that have brought us to this untenable place is not exactly the Change I was hoping for when I cast my ballot a year ago.

I recall promises about fixing "Don't ask, don't tell." Couldn't that policy be rendered unenforceable with an Executive Order? Don't ask.

Four years after Katrina, would we finally build a hospital in New Orleans? Perhaps as a useful expenditure of stimulus money? No We Can't. (He even did his own version of the New Orleans fly-over recently. The President would love to stay longer and talk about "rebuilding" New Orleans, but he's off to a fundraiser in San Francisco).

To hear Tea Baggers and some Republicans talk about the President (and how they want their country back, etc.), you'd think he was a raving liberal. Quite the contrary. To date the President has been conservative and slow to push for the Change that he promised in the Campaign. He has in many instances continued the policies of the Bush administration and has catered far more to Republicans than to his base.

Don't get me wrong. I'm thankful to have an intelligent, thoughtful, articulate man as our President. But, measured against the bar that he set in the election, his actions have not lived up to the hype--at least not yet.

And one year later, I'm wondering if real Change will ever come. Until I see some progressive changes, I'm off the Kool-Aid.

What were Pete Townsend's immortal words in The Who's classic song "Won't Get Fooled Again?" "Meet the new boss, just the same as the old boss...."

For the sake of our country, and my sanity, I sure hope not.

Charlie's Always Running; Too Bad He Can't Run Our State

Charlie Crist was born to run. He simply loves to run for office. Unlike most politicians who detest fundraising, Charlie loves to raise money to run for office.

Charlie loves to run so much that when he wins, he can't wait to leave that office and run for the next higher office.

He loves running around the State for photo ops and he loves running for exercise. He loves running to personal appearances at public gatherings where he can charm a crowd with warm homespun cliches about how "Florida is a shining state on a hill" or remind us how he is "the People's Governor."

Unfortunately, the only thing that Charlie doesn't like running is the State of Florida.

As Governor, Charlie hasn't done much, now has he?

Unlike Jeb, who was an agenda setter extraodinare (albeit not a good agenda, but there was never a doubt that it was Jeb's agenda nonetheless), Charlie is at the other end of the leadership spectrum. Charlie has adopted the role of a spectator, or perhaps a cheerleader, but not a leader. By the relaxed way that he acts, if you didn't know better, you'd think that Charlie has already fixed all of the State's problems (and that's why he's looking for another job).

But the last time I checked, we're experiencing a vast number of problems for Charlie to address right now (when he's not dialing for dollars for his Senate campaign).

Charlie, in case you haven't noticed, here is what is happening to our "Shining State on the Hill:"

1. We're still near the bottom of all of the states in the country in education funding and test scores (thank goodness for Mississippi);


2. We have an unemployment crisis, with no relief in sight;


3. One-fourth of Floridians under age 65 have no health insurance;


4. Home foreclosures are at an all time high;


5. Our Republican-controlled state government didn't balance the budget last year and had to rely on more than 4 billion dollars in Federal Stimulus Funds to "balance the budget;"


6. We still have a homeowner's insurance crisis with too much loss exposure being guaranteed by Citizens Insurance Company, while Charlie is driving private insurers out of the state (thank goodness we haven't had any hurricanes during the last three years);


7. More people moved out of Florida last year than moved into the State--for the first time since WWII;


8. Tourism is down;


9. Sales tax revenues are down, documentary stamp tax revenues are down, and intangible tax revenues are down;


10. Property values are down 50%, yet property taxes have not dropped appreciably.

Charlie promised us a lot of things when he was running the last time. Most of all, he promised us that he would be the Governor for an entire 4-year term if he was elected. Yet, two years into his term, he pulled a Sarah Palin, and basically quit to run for Senate. At least Sarah had the decency to give up the State salary while deciding what to do with the rest of her life. Charlie just plays Governor while he draws the Governor's salary and does his campaign fundraising.

Remember the campaign ads that Charlie ran which showed an "empty chair" and criticized his opponent, Jim Davis, for missing votes in Congress while he was running for governor against Charlie? I can't help but think about that empty chair that now sits in Charlie's office in the Governor's mansion. First of all, he's never in the chair--because he's busy running around the state running for Senate. But even when he's physically in Tallahassee, he's also figuratively "not in the chair" because he is AWOL as a Governor and is not proposing ANY solutions for the 10 things listed above that need to be worked on right now. The budget crisis isn't going away, and this year there will be no Stimulus Money to plug the holes.

While Charlie's chair (and his suit) are empty, I'm still waiting for my property taxes and homeowner's insurance premiums to "drop like a rock" as Charlie promised. Unfortunately, my property's value is the only thing that has dropped like a rock under Charlie's "watch."

And worst of all, Charlie is running away from his current job in hopes that he can get elected to the Senate before Floridians wake up and realize how badly he has performed as our Governor. He knows that if he served as Governor for 8 years, there would be no way for him to hide from his dismal record. He's counting on his charm as a retail politician and he's counting on Floridians' general sense of apathy to try to run away to Washington, D.C. before we wake up and realize what hit us.

Can someone give me a reason why we shouldn't be screaming for Charlie to do his present job?

And, for the life of me, I can't understand why we would want to give him a promotion....

A Failed Business Plan

I have to expand my business in another country. My business plan calls for continuous expansion. It's what we do. My suppliers need me to continuously expand so that they can all make lots of money.

There are a few significant problems, however.

First of all, I don't have ANY money for this expansion. I'll need to borrow every penny.

Secondly, I have serious concerns about the stability of the government in the country where I want to operate my stores. The government could fail at any minute and they may not want me to be there once I get my stores open.

Third, this is a very dangerous place to set up my business, but I can deal with that part. I'll heavily arm my employees and authorize my employees to kill anyone that they have to. My employees aren't exactly thrilled about my idea to expand our business into this country, but they are very loyal to me, and luckily for me, they are under iron clad employment contracts. They can go to jail if they refuse to go where I send them. And, fortunately for me, I don't have to pay them exorbitant amounts to send them there. But actually, in my business plan, costs don't really matter. All that matters is that we continuously expand.

If my employees don't have some of the skills or equipment that I need to set up my business, I can get other companies to do the work on an independent contractor basis, and my business plan doesn't require me to look at how much they are charging me. My bankers have promised to fund the loan for my business regardless of these impediments. I'm so glad I don't have that headache of balancing a budget for my business.

Another potential problem is that I'm not sure that the people in the country of expansion either need my product or want it. Yet, I'm not overly concerned with that. I've got a business to run and they'll eventually want me to be there, I'm sure. They just don't know how great I am and how much they need what I'm selling.

My managers keep assuring me that they can create a successful store if I'll just send the employees over quickly. They think they may be able to set up our stores if we send at least 40,000 employees, but it may take 10 years or more to get the stores set up and we may need several hundred thousand employees to set up our store.

In order to fill my staffing needs, I'm going to have to pull people out of other jobs here in the U.S. and send them over to my new stores for the next year or so. I'm sure their families will understand. I'm also sure that some of them may not come back in tact, so I'll need to plan for sending replacement employees and for dealing with the medical needs of those who come back home too injured to work in my stores. (Note to self: This is one area where our company may be able to save a few dollars. We'll need to appoint a subcommittee to study that).

But wait a minute, I thought you said that your bankers don't care how much things cost? Why wouldn't you just get your bankers to pay anything that you need to care for your sick or injured workers (or to take care of the families of those who get killed in setting up the stores)?

I can't believe you asked me that question. You obviously aren't a business person. You see, my business plan thrives on expansion of the business, and building the business, not taking care of its workers. You just don't understand this business. What's wrong with you focusing on the human cost of the business? You must be a Communist.

Did I mention that no outsiders have ever set up a store in this country over thousands of years? Don't worry....we'll get it done---we're different, we're special--they just don't know us well enough yet. We have the best stores in the world. Don't fret over the fact that our test store has only been open for 8 years. Sometimes it just takes a little while for people to understand how much they need our product.

If you were the Chairman of the Board of my company, would you think that I have a sound business plan? Are you ready to give me the green light to proceed full speed ahead?

Whatever you do, please don't "dither" or spend a lot of time thinking about it.

The only thing I really need your input on is where to put my stores. I've already got my sights set on Afghanistan, but I'm not ruling out Pakistan.

Many are saying that our stores in the U.S. are in need of retooling and reinvestment, but they just don't understand a great business model when they see one.

The Founding Fathers Wouldn't Believe Their Eyes

If the founding fathers were here today, they'd never believe the mess we've created in Washington. It's so bad that even George Washington himself would likely ask that the District of Columbia be renamed so he wouldn't have his family name slandered.

Would we have three separate, but equal branches of government if we were starting our country from scratch today? If you answer "yes" to that question, then you have to tell me the names of the people who would be able to draft the constitution today. And then tell me if it would look anything remotely like what the founders created. I think not.

Would we have a Bill of Rights if our founding fathers had been worried about their own personal political futures or their own personal wealth like today's politicians do? Thankfully, unlike the current cast of characters in Congress, our founders had a collective vision of something much larger than themselves. Today's leaders, um....not so much.

There aren't any Madison's or Jefferson's or Washington's in our Capital today. Not even close.

Unfortunately, today it is solely about enhancing one's own political career first, then parlaying that into making as much money as possible. And don't forget to throw in a big dose of extreme partisanship and hatred to make the entire place as disfunctional as possible.

Everyone in Washington is always looking ahead to the next election and the next fundraiser, and the next lobbying job when they leave public office so that they can really cash in.

As a result, it's no wonder that we have lots of problems, no solutions, and nothing more than a corrupt, bankrupt confederation of states. Yet, no one in Washington wants to admit it or try to do anything to address it. Instead, they are all too busy feathering their own nests and padding their own wallets to even notice or care.

Although it was nothing more than a gimmicky political slogan in the last election, it is high time that we all began to truly focus on "Country First." We'd better figure out how to build a strong middle class and restore a manufacturing economy in the United States or we are in for extremely tough sledding ahead. Remember the Roman Empire?

We also need to figure out a way for all Americans to be able to obtain quality affordable health care. Let's not wait for our present crop of Senators to fix our predicament. They don't care about us, and they don't have "the right stuff." They shouldn't even be mentioned as having the same title as our nation's prior great statesmen who were Senators.

Although there are many Senators who are worthy of criticism, today's rant will simply focus on two--Evan Bayh and Joe Liberman.

Joe Liberman and Evan Bayh wouldn't even make the farm team of the founding fathers. They couldn't even carry the water bucket for the team. They should be cut from the current team for not being able to discern when they have been completely "bought and paid for" and have had their integrity completely compromised to the point where they should no longer even have a vote in the Senate.

It sickens me that Evan Bayh hides behind his professed fiscal conservatism as his reasoning for "going slow" on healthcare reform, especially any creation of a public option. Evan, please, give us a break on the "fiscal conservative" hogwash.

In reality, we know that you are married to Susan B. Bayh, who sits on the Board of Directors of WellPoint, Inc. one of the largest health insurance companies in the country, and a company who strongly opposes a Public Option.

Is it fiscal conservatism that has Evan Bayh so concerned about the Public Option? Or, is it the fact that he and his wife's personal stock holdings increase every time he indicates that he is personally going to kill the public option, that is driving his convictions ? You aren't fooling us, Senator! You're a dog alright, but not a good dog, and not Blue one, either.

How can you threaten to filibuster a bill that contains a Public Option that is overwhelmingly wanted and needed by an ever-increasing majority of the people in your state and in the country?

Well, if your name is ol' "Blue Dog Evan Bayh" it's real easy-- you just keep your eye on your stock portfolio every time you vote in your own personal interest (and in the interest of your wife's company), and you simply tune out the cries and screams of the people who are suffering because they either don't have health care, or can't afford their ever-increasing WellPoint premiums.

And if you are the despicable Joe Liberman you first talk in your 2006 re-election campaign about how you are strongly committed to universal health care and that you should be re-elected because you have the power and the connections and the experience in the Senate to be able to achieve real universal health care reform, including reform of the health care industry-- if only the good people of Connecticut will just send you back to the Senate for another term.

Then, after you get re-elected, Joe, you turn your back on the voters without batting an eye, and boldly announce that you are a whore for the insurance industry. Prostitution is a crime, Joe, and so is your behavior. Stop the hypocracy and go ahead and join the GOP. We expect them to act this way.

It's almost Halloween, normally a scary time of year in and of itself. This year, it's extra scary, but not just because of the gools and goblins knocking on our doors for candy. This year, it's extra scary because we have 535 goons and hooligans in the House and Senate dressing up like Statesmen playing tricks on the voters and treating themselves.

It's time to unmask them, shine bright lights on their behavior, and hold them all accountable. Let's do it in honor of the founding fathers.