the only honest dem in congress and he is being punished for standing up for his beliefs. no wonder this is the worst congress in history run by the dems.
On Oct 30, 6:48 am, "mike [move on] 532" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Lieberman Likely to Lose His Gavel in Massive Reshuffle Being > Discussedhttp://www.truthout.org:80/102908S > Democratic leaders are discussing a major reshuffling of Senate > committee chairmanships, according to multiple sources, and the > proposed changes include ousting Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) from > his > coveted chairmanship. > > Lieberman, a former Democrat who supports Sen. John McCain (R- > Ariz.) for president, is likely to lose his gavel on the Homeland > Security Committee he has chaired since January 2007, say the sources > who see him being replaced by Sen. Daniel Akaka (Hawaii), the > committee's third-ranking Democrat. > > Lieberman spokesman Marshall Witmann dismissed the speculation, > saying Lieberman "is focused on doing all he can to elect John McCain > as president rather than post-election Washington politics." > > One Democratic source said Lieberman is not likely to lose his > position in the Democratic caucus, even if the party picks up several > seats in next week's election. While Democrats could approach or > exceed the filibuster-proof threshold of 60 votes, they may still > need > Lieberman's vote often. > > "There's no sense in cutting off our nose to spite our face," one > source said. > > The proposed shakeup is hardly final, but it has begun to be > sketched out on paper. It depends largely on a victory by Sen. Barack > Obama (D-Ill.) in the presidential election, which would result in > Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), Obama's running mate, giving up his > chairmanship on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. > > The shift also hinges on Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) stepping down > as chairman of the powerful Appropriations Committee, which aides say > is included in the proposed changes. Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) > would replace him. Byrd, who turns 91 in November, has been > hospitalized three times this year and some have questioned if he is > capable of leading the committee. > > Other moves include Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) taking over > the > Senate Commerce Committee, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) taking > over the Senate Select Intelligence Committee and Sen. Charles > Schumer > (D-N.Y.) moving to the helm of the Senate Rules and Administration > Committee. > > There is no set plan to replace Biden, but one source cited Sen. > Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) as a possibility. > > However, another Democratic source said Dodd is likely to hold > onto his chairmanship of the Senate Banking Committee and be > available > to replace Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) on the Senate Health, > Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, should Kennedy's > health fail. > > Kennedy, who is battling brain cancer, signaled Tuesday that he > would be returning to Washington and has requested workspace on the > second floor of the Capitol. > > Two sources say the request is "ongoing" to allow Kennedy some > kind of work space that will allow him to focus on his signature > issue, healthcare, with a Democratic presidency. Kennedy already has > a > third-floor hideaway in the Capitol, but work is ongoing to provide > him with a second-floor space to eliminate the need to climb stairs > or > walk back and forth to his regular office in the Russell Senate > Office > Building. > > Kennedy spokesman Anthony Coley said Majority Leader Harry Reid > (D- > Nev.) offered Kennedy S-219, a room adjacent to Reid's office, which > Democratic leaders currently use for press conferences. > > "The majority leader was gracious and kind enough to offer > additional space and Sen. Kennedy is very appreciative," Coley said. > > Dodd himself said he has discussed the possibility of taking the > helm of the Foreign Relations Committee from Biden, saying in an > interview with The Hill last month that Biden has joked that Dodd > only > wants Obama to win the presidency so he can take Biden's > chairmanship. > > A Dodd aide suggested that the Connecticut senator is inclined to > stay where he is, noting that Dodd remains focused on the committee's > role in addressing the economic crisis. > > "Sen. Dodd is focused on a substantial agenda in each of his > committees, both for the remainder of this Congress and next year," > said spokeswoman Kate Szostak. "As chairman of the Banking Committee, > he will be conducting vigilant oversight of the Treasury Department's > implementation of the recently enacted financial rescue law, as well > as examining additional steps to strengthen the U.S. economy." > > Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.), who is currently the Democratic > Conference Secretary but has only a subcommittee chairmanship, is > likely to take over the Veterans' Affairs Committee, while Sen. > Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) would likely stay chairman of the Judiciary > Committee. > > Leahy still wants the chairmanship of the Appropriations > Committee, sources said, but also wants to be a key player in any > Supreme Court nominations from an Obama presidency. > > If Dodd does give up the Banking Committee, the responsibility is > likely to fall to Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) instead of the next-most > senior Democrat, Tim Johnson of South Dakota, who suffered a stroke > in > December 2006 and returned to the Senate in September 2007. > > Underscoring the delicacy of the changes being considered, > senators themselves are stridently avoiding any comment. > > "I haven't talked to anyone, and no one has talked to me," said > Reed, who was in the Senate Tuesday for meetings. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
