Showing posts with label tennessee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tennessee. Show all posts

Thursday, November 15, 2018

The Blue Wave Was Real


Yes indeed, there was a Blue Wave during election 2018 and some of the races are still ongoing. There were some disappoints to be sure: Ted Cruz beat out Dem rock star Beto O'Rourke for senate in Texas; insidious Marsha Blackburn summoned both Trump and Pence to Chattanooga, Tennessee, for a huge last minute rally to help her blast Democratic moderate Phil Bredesen; and somehow racist Steve King hung on in western Iowa while the rest of the state turned solid blue. Due in part to election day chaos, Dems Andrew Gillum and Stacey Abrams are barely hanging onto governor races in Florida and Georgia respectively while recounts and lawsuits are ongoing.

But in spite of those blips, there WAS a Blue Wave. The House of Representatives will now be have Dem Leadership on every committee and they are ready to investigate Trump and all his cronies in depth. TThe Blue Wave was great for women and minorities, sending a diverse group of House newbies to Washington to speak for the people starting in January. Dems have turned nearly every New England state blue from their state legislatures up, with only Republican Senator Collins hanging on in Maine. Some blue states are almost solid blue now, such as California, which ousted many Republicans at every level. And there were wild cards - a seat pickup in Oklahoma, and a vote in Idaho to expand Medicaid.



















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Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Trump Confusion over Andrew Jackson

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Previous Related Posts:
Trump Eats Cake While Bombs Fall
Sean Spicer Fails with Hitler Analogy
Trump Lies or Alternative Facts
Trump's Cuckoo Press Conference
Kellyanne Conway Invents Fake Bowling Green Massacre

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As a Tennessean, I am ashamed that President Andrew Jackson is from my state. He was a slave-owner/racist who cruelly dispossessed the peaceful native Cherokee Indians when gold was discovered in North Georgia, killing hundreds as they were forced by the military to march to Oklahoma on the Trail of Tears. Jackson was just removed from the twenty-dollar bill because he is such a controversial figure.

But President Trump seems to glorify Jackson and see him as a soul-mate, which makes sense - a racist who in modern times is mainly associated with money. Trump would love to see his own face on currency, maybe with the much derided native Pocahontas on the other side? *Shudder*

From CNN
. . . in an interview with Washington Examiner columnist and CNN contributor Salena Zito.... The president asked: "Why was there the Civil War? Why could that one not have been worked out?"
Trump compared his 2016 presidential campaign to that of President Andrew Jackson, whose home and grave he visited earlier this year. "I mean, had Andrew Jackson been a little later you wouldn't have had the Civil War....he had a big heart. He was really angry that he saw what was happening with regard to the Civil War, he said 'There's no reason for this.'"

Twitter had a field day with this:





















































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Friday, November 20, 2015

GOP Attacks Syrian Refugees After Paris Attacks

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Previous Related Posts:
Paris Attacks Friday Nov. 13, 2015
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Leave it to the Republicans - they can always go lower. And like all bullies, they enjoy finding new victims for their aggression, especially those already suffering, those without a voice, those without a proper home. After the ISIS attack on Paris, the GOP is focused on blaming all Syrian refugees, even mothers and babies, and are hell-bent on keeping them out of red Republican states, even if they have been settled there previous to Paris. Never mind that the guys who blew up Paris were Europeans born and raised, with only one coming into the country with a group of Syrian refugees. No, blame them all, punish them all - who needs facts?

If it smells like Facism and Nazi-ism, then it probably is.





















Haslam rolls back rhetoric after Casada debacle







































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Sunday, July 19, 2015

Chattanooga Mourns Military Deaths

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On Thursday, July 16, 2015, a lone shooter went on a rampage in Chattanooga, Tennessee, targeting Military Recruitment offices. When it was over half the city and state was suddenly on lockdown, and the entire world was watching.

Four Marines died that day, while a wounded Navy Reservist succumbed to his wounds a few days later. A total of six people died, including the shooter, who was killed by police on the scene.

Chattanooga is my hometown, and it is no exaggeration that this crime put all Tennesseans in a state of shock. I had just been at Erlanger hospital that morning for short procedure. After that my husband and I drove home past the Lee Highway recruitment center, just remarking on what a pretty day it was and how green the trees were, and chatting about what to have for breakfast. After a leisurely meal we went home and five minutes later discovered that the shootings had occurred, the hospital was on lockdown, and police were in a manhunt for the killer on Amnicola Highway near our son's college, Chattanooga State. And people were possibly dead.















Later I would find out that the shooter, Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez, attended my alma mater, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, just a few miles from where the four Marines were shot, and where my youngest is working towards a similar Engineering degree. He attended high school with my future son-in-law, who owns a copy of the Yearbook in which he wrote “My name causes national security alerts. What does yours do? -Hijabman.”

If this shooter had wanted just to kill citizens, he could have shot at cars on the highway, or shot at students and families on the Riverwalk, or shot through the windows of any restaurant. But he clearly targeted the military and the police. He had a plan - we could all see that. This wasn't a random crime, but an act of terrorism.

We still don't know everything about him, but we know that he lived among us as a Chattanoogan all his life and then one day, for whatever twisted reason, he woke up and decided to kill regular folks only because they wore military uniforms. For someone who didn't want to be judged by his own name, it is the ultimate act of selfish hypocrisy.

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From CNN
People who knew Abdulazeez were stunned to hear he was the man who sprayed a military recruiting center at a strip mall with bullets, then drove seven miles to assault Navy Operational Support Center Chattanooga. He killed a sailor and four Marines, and wounded two more people, before being killed by police.
Friends described Abdulazeez as a once-devoted, disciplined mixed-martial-arts fighter; a top student known for smarts, charm and humor; and a devout Muslim who kept in touch with his roots in the Middle East.
The FBI hasn't released much information on Abdulazeez, saying it doesn't yet know what motivated the bloodshed but it is working on an assumption. "We will treat this as a terrorism investigation until it can be determined that it is not," FBI Special Agent Edward Reinhold said.























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Friday, April 17, 2015

Hallelujah ~ Tennessee Tries (And Fails) To Make the Bible the State Book

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At least once a year, someone in the Tennessee Legislature writes a bill to make the Holy Bible (King James Version Only) the State Book, and they will literally swear on a Bible that this is Constitutional because they are protecting their own religious freedom.

I mean, why not? It's not like Tennessee has anything else on the agenda, like passing Medicaid for the poor, or solving school funding problems. Oh, wait ...

There are people in the TN Legislature who have apparently never read the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the Constitution. Amendment I states unequivocally:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

From Nashville Public Radio
. . . the state's attorney general, Herbert Slatery, released an opinion Tuesday that stated the proposal violates both the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Tennessee Constitution. In fact, Slatery said, the state prohibition on government involvement in religion is actually stronger than at the federal level, barring not only the establishment of a church, but also preference for any "mode of worship."
Several lawmakers warned of legal challenges if the proposal passes.

But support for the proposal has come from across the political aisle. The most passionate on Tuesday was a Democrat, Rep. John DeBerry of Memphis. He said Christians have become "too accommodating" toward people of other faiths, and the bill represents a chance for them to stick up for their beliefs.
"Won't you stand for something? Stand for something, and stop falling for everything."
DeBerry's speech drew a standing ovation. But even some religiously conservative lawmakers are opposing the proposal.

Rep. Jeremy Faison (R-Cosby) says it demeans the Bible and goes against the principles laid out by the nation and state's founders.
"They knew better than to enter in the personal relationship with God with the portion of the laws that govern us."

Tennessee has another sacred book anyway - the Tennessee Blue Book, which is handed out to visitors to the Capitol and school children across the state. It lists the current members of State Government, but also fun stuff like pictures of the state flag, the state flower (iris), the state wildflower (passiong flower), the state animal (salamander), and the state bird (mockingbird). Luckily for our state, even some Republicans think it is silly or even disrespectful to list the Holy Bible alongside the state salamander.

We could just make the Tennessee Blue Book the State Book.

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My own feeling is that the Bible wasn't written in Tennessee, so why should it be the state book? Obviously our red-state Legislature isn't going to choose Al Gore's book on global warming, but how about the famous All the President's Men by Robert Penn Warren? Nope - too cerebral for Tennessee, where most wouldn't know the author's name. But there's the blockbuster Roots by Alex Haley - everyone's heard of Roots, right? Never mind - that's a black experience book, and any bill that puts forth a black writer is going to be tabled anyway. The beloved Christie by Catherine Marshall might work because it's so religious, but then, the author was Presbyterian and not Evengelical enough. How 'bout something by Cormac McCarthy, James Agee, or Wilma Dykeman? Oh wait - some of those books have ideas that might not jive with the Holy Word of God. Cormac McCarthy has some bad words and sex, and Wilma Dykeman wrote an early book about family planning - can't have that. And James Agee went to Hollywood and wrote "The African Queen" - no Africans, please - they might be related to that Kenyan in the White House. Don't remind us.

Anyway, Governor Haslam was probably going to veto the Bible Bill anyway, but luckily for him the state Senate killed it yesterday. A blessing for everyone. Amen. At least until next year when they bring it up again, because they always do.



































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Saturday, April 11, 2015

The #NRA Comes to Nashville

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The gun-loving horde called the National Rifle Association descended on Nashville, Tennessee, this week. Ironically, loaded guns were not allowed within the venue - can you say hypocrites? They could have gone to Texas or some state where everyone could open carry everywhere, but they are concerned for their own safety. Thus, the NRA Convention was held in a "Gun Free Zone" which they say they are against.

It's probably a good thing - these gun nuts always end up shooting themselves in the foot, and they know it.

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My state of Tennessee has a love-hate relationship with guns. Clearly they are part of our heritage, from Davy Crockett to Sergeant York. But now that the true crazies have taken over the Tennessee Legislature, and hunting has become more popular than Bible-thumping, the NRA has more political pull than the Southern Baptist Convention.

However, not everyone is thrilled with the NRA - like me, for instance! I don't own any guns, and never will. And my father was a veteran who won badges for marksmanship, but amazingly he came home from WWII and never saw a need to shoot anybody. My Tennessee ancestors probably shot squirrels to make gravy, but that was for survival. I think they liked ham and fried chicken better...

But anyway, let's talk about our Governor, Bill Haslam, who is more of a bird-watcher than a hunter. While it's true that he just signed an ill-thought-out bill allowing "Guns in Parking Lots" (because people have guns in their cars anyway - so just give up on that), he sometimes ignores politics and vetoes crazy bills sent to him by the TN Legislature.

The latest is a "Guns in Parks" bill that was pushed through just in time for the NRA goons to arrive in town. The bill would also allow guns within the public buildings of the state capital. That's getting too close to home for Haslam, and he probably has too many enemies in the Tea Party to feel comfortable if they are packing heat - there could be one of those "accidental shootings" that responsible gun owners cause. And I truly believe he knows that parks are supposed to be peaceful places for families and not gun-fights between rednecks. We are a tourist state, and Nashville is a tourist city, end of story.











I'm thrilled that the NRA doesn't like Bill Haslam, and I think he will listen to cooler heads and veto the "Guns in Parks" bill.

But the convention gave many of the GOP 2016 hopefuls a forum, sort of a mini-GOP convention, where they were assured of a warm welcome. Yes, unlike the real world. The only two not invited were Rand Paul and Chris Christie.




























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Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Haslam Medicaid Plan Halted in Tennessee by Koch Brothers

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Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam stalled and waffled for two years while trying to come up with a way to expand Medicaid in Tennessee without starting a Tea Party frenzy. Last year it was obvious that the ill-fated TennCare wasn't working, but he waited until after the November elections to bring up his new plan "Insure Tenn." There was even a hint of optimism in the air last week, as hospital officials, doctors, nurses, the the disabled came to Nashville to testify before the Legislature that insuring the poorest of the poor would be good for everyone.

Coalition for a Healthy Tennessee has a great webpage on Who Falls Into the Tennessee Medicaid Gap

But they were outnumbered by loonies, including a crazy lay-preacher from Dayton, Tennessee - of Scopes Monkey Trial fame - to pray against Medicaid because it's just big government trying to oppress sick people. Just embarrassing and sad.










And another group showed up - Americans For Prosperity - goons backed by the Koch Brothers, sent to remind the Tennessee GOP where it's money comes from. Thus the Insure TN plan was doomed, and never got out of committee for a vote.

From NBC News
NASHVILLE-In December, Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, a Republican, got the deal he wanted from the Obama administration: Tennessee would accept more than $1 billion in federal funding to expand Medicaid, as allowed for in the Affordable Care Act, but Obama aides would allow Haslam to essentially write staunchly conservative ideas into the program's rules for the state. He dubbed the reformed Medicaid program "Insure Tennessee."

But the state's chapter of Americans for Prosperity, the national conservative group whose foundation is chaired by controversial billionaire David Koch, argued Haslam was just trying to trick conservatives into implementing Obamacare in their state by giving it a new name. AFP campaigned aggressively Haslam's plans for the next six weeks, even running radio ads blasting GOP state legislators who said they might vote for it.

. . . When the legislators walked into a hearing Tuesday morning to debate the measure, they looked out from the dais to a room packed with more than 100 people wearing red "Americans for Prosperity" t-shirts. Some of the activists had traveled on an AFP-chartered bus from Knoxville, more than two hours away, to pack the hearing well in advance of its 9:00 AM start time. . . . The sea of red crowded out representatives of the Tennessee Hospital Association, one of the big advocates of the Medicaid expansion, who were left to stand in the back or unable to get into the room at all.



From MSNBC
And what did the AFP activists have to say for themselves?
“I’m skeptical of government-run programs,” said Louis Stans, a retired engineer who was part of the AFP group. Medicare, Stans said, was “better” and he had “paid into it my whole life.”
Those two sentences tell us a great deal about the state of the debate. Here’s a retiree who doesn’t like government-run programs, instead preferring a government-run program. In other words, an AFP activist traveled to the state capitol to condemn a conservative version of Medicaid expansion, because what he really wants is a socialized system like Medicare.
Levi Russell, a national spokesperson for Americans for Prosperity, told NBC News, “I would hope other governors look at Tennessee as an example.”

And just like the government-paid goons in our national Congress who keep trying to "Repeal Obamacare," the Republicans in Tennessee have no other plan for the poor except to bill the hospitals. They got nothing.

However, Gov. Haslam, to his credit, isn't dropping the subject. He mentioned coverage for the poorest citizens in his State of the State Address. This may seem like lip service, but I actually think he means it. Whether he can persuade the Tea Party to actually vote for something that will help the state is debatable. They'd rather talk about Guns and the Bible.

From the Nashville Banner
“Last week, the decision was made not to move forward with Insure Tennessee. However, that does not mean the issues around health care go away. Too many Tennesseans are still not getting health coverage they need in the right way, in the right place, at the right time,” Haslam said in his address to top lawmakers.
“Last week, I talked about coming here not just to make a point but to make a difference. It’s about looking for answers, not just having an agenda. With great power comes great responsibility. So, though the special session has ended, I hope we can find a way to work together to address those problems,” he said.
















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Saturday, August 9, 2014

Stacey "Don't Say Gay" Campfield Voted Out in Tennessee

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Previous Related Posts:
GOP has Crazy Time Over Boston Bombing
Why the dickens does Stacey Campfield Want Tennessee Kids to Play Hunger Games? ~ UPDATE 2: Calls Child a "Prop" - UPDATE 3: Bill Withdrawn!
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God Bless Knox County, Tennessee. They got rid of crazy state senator Stacey Campfield on Thursday in the Republican Primary.

Campfield had several famous snafus over the years that have drawn national attention, mainly because he is really really profoundly stupid.

He wanted to pass a "Don't Say Gay" law for the schools, and toss teachers into jail if they ever mentioned the subject. Plus, he went on the record with his views about AIDS being a disease for people who "have sex with monkeys" and never for heterosexuals. *facepalm*

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Actor George Takei pushed back with "Just Say Takei" Plan

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Then he wanted to tie foodstamps and welfare for families to the grades their children were making in schools. Yeah, because kids having trouble with school shouldn't be able to eat, and neither should their parents and siblings. Are there no workhouses?

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When he came across some little children and their mothers protesting his ideas in the hallways of the Statehouse, he mocked them by saying their parents were using them as "Props." That also made the national news. The Moms were not amused, to say the least. I bet they would love to see Campfield's report cards!

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Campfield also posted what he thought was a humorous picture of a weaponized pressure cooker after the Boston Bombing. He was apparently trying (and failing) to say that it's as useless to ban assault rifles as it is to ban pressure cookers, or something like that - except that most pressure cookers are not weaponized, and people were either dead or in the hospital! He later removed the blog post after uproar ensued. Then he tried to gloss over it with an equally asinine statement about the Sandy Hook Massacre, which he also later moved, but I made a copy of it. Total genius at making a jerk of himself in the most insensitive way possible.

"Here Comes Feinstein Again"

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Inappropriate? Me? Never!
I Just got a call from the media saying they had gotten a few calls (about a blog post I did) saying it was inappropriate after the Boston bombing.
Really?
If my post was inappropriate talking about "crock pot control" then where is the outrage from the left when they push for gun control after the Sandy Hook shooting? Im sorry if I exposed your double standard....
Well, not really.
~ Tenn. State Sen. Campfield responding to media questions about why he posted a tasteless picture of a pressure cooker on his previous blog post

During the election campaign, there was a parody play showing in Knoxville called "Stampfield," making fun of Campfield's positions:



From the Tennessean
Tennessee state Sen. Stacey Campfield, R-Knoxville, who has made national headlines for backing controversial bills and making statements lampooned by late-night comedians, lost his bid for a second Senate term decisively Thursday.
Campfield, a mainstay at the legislature since being elected to the House in 2004, finished with 5,824 votes, just 28 percent of the overall vote, compared to 13,977 votes, 67 percent, for Richard Briggs, a Knox County commissioner.
He was still being an offensive moron even this year:

From The Knoxville Sentinal
Most recently, Campfield made national news when he compared the federal health care law to the forced transportation of Jews to concentration camps during the Holocaust in a blog post.

"Democrats bragging about the number of mandatory sign-ups for Obamacare is like Germans bragging about the number of mandatory sign-ups for 'train rides' for Jews in the 40s," he wrote. The misspelling of "mandatory" appeared in the original text.

Campfield's remark drew swift condemnation and demands for apology from both Democratic and Republican leaders in the state - including the governor.

"Words matter, and to make the comparison to the Holocaust is wrong, inappropriate and insensitive," said Republican Gov. Bill Haslam, a former Knoxville mayor.
Always charming!

After he lost the election, Campfield didn't make a formal statement, but merely put the Frank Sinatra song "My Way" on his blog. By Saturday morning, the video had been taken down due to copyright. Seems like a fitting end - he didn't get his way after all.

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Friday, September 27, 2013

Smackdown ~ Senator Bob Corker vs. Ted Cruz on Obamacare

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Previous Related Posts:
Line forms to criticize Ted Cruz after Filibuster Attempt
Talkative Ted Cruz fumbles to Fauxlibuster Finish Line
Green Eggs and Sham ~ The Ted Cruz Fauxlibuster Continues
Ted Cruz Attempts to Filibuster Obamacare

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From Washington Post
The only thing separating them being a single Senate desk, Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) engaged in what Senate rules deem a "colloquy," but what most observers would call an old-style public airing of grievances.
At one point, Corker accused Cruz and Lee of turning Senate proceedings “into a show.” Cruz countered by questioning Corker’s loyalty to the Republican Party by siding with Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.)
The clash lasted roughly 10 minutes, with colleagues watching and cameras rolling. It exposed deep disagreements among Republicans over how they should proceed with the spending bill, which currently includes language defunding the new federal health-care law. But using procedural rules that allow him to make changes to the bill, Reid plans to amend the bill by restoring funding for the new federal health-care law.





































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