Katherine Harris: Turtle-Lover, Friend of the Working Dog
Forget all the awful things you’ve heard about Rep. Katherine Harris (R-FL). Did you know she loves animals? The New York Times is first with the scoop:
When a supporter. . . said he once witnessed Ms. Harris leave her vehicle to escort a turtle across a highway, [Harris] became gravely serious.
“All of my life I have stopped for turtles,” [Harris] said firmly, even defensively, as if someone had challenged her commitment to turtle safety.
That’s not all. If elected to the Senate, Harris vows to train seeing-eye dogs:
Ms. Harris explains that she intends to participate in a program that provides guide dogs for volunteers to train.. . . She will care for the dog for 18 months, spending nearly all her waking hours with it. “You can’t let them sleep in bed with you,” Ms. Harris said. “Which is going to be harder on me than the dog.”
As the old saw goes, if you want a friend in Washington get a dog. And given the shabby way the White House and Beltway Republicans have treated her, getting a dog is probably a smart move for Harris. (NYTimes)
Specter won’t subpoena telecom executives
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said Tuesday he will hold off subpoenaing the telecommunications chiefs while he works with the White House on his legislation that would ask a secretive federal court to review the constitutionality of Bush’s surveillance operations. In exchange for deferring action on the phone companies, Specter said Cheney has specifically agreed to work with him on his legislation. Democrats accused Specter of abdicating Congress’ oversight responsibilities. “Why don’t we just recess for the rest of the year?” the committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Pat Leahy of Vermont, asked sarcastically. “Vice President Cheney will just tell the nation what laws we’ll have.” (AP)
DeLay Reportedly Unsure About Future Plans
If there was an award for understated irony, it should go to Roll Call today for their article on outgoing Rep. Tom DeLay’s future plans. Remember, the guy is the target of multiple federal probes, and in one his former senior aides have already pleaded guilty and are cooperating with the feds:
While more legal expenses are clearly in DeLayâs future, nothing else appears certain.
Asked what he will do after he leaves public office, DeLay said, âI really donât know. I do know that I want to push the conservative cause and go out to the country and talk about important issues, help people get elected. Right now thatâs all I know. … Iâm going to take my time and just see where the Lord needs me.â
Would he consider becoming a lobbyist?
âI donât think so,â DeLay said.
It’s probably safe to say that the Lord doesn’t want anybody to become a lobbyist these days. But what about serving time in a federal prison, Tom? Would you consider going there? If that’s where the Lord wanted you? Or a jury of your peers did? (Roll Call)
Second Auction of Cunningham Goods Tomorrow
Items on the block include more rugs and some leaded-glass doors once owned by the crooked former congressman Randy “Duke” Cunningham. Some of the pieces were won at the first auction of Cunningham’s stuff, but the buyers reneged on their bid; others were recovered too late to be included in that auction. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
House GOP Blocks Funding for N.Y., D.C.
House Republicans blocked a vote Tuesday on restoring millions of dollars in counterterror funds to big-city targets, refusing to bust budget targets over slashed grants to emergency first responders. New York City-area Democrats pleaded to add $750 million to spending plans to fund the Homeland Security Department in the 2007 fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. But Republicans rejected the measure even as they vowed anew to investigate how Homeland Security could justify cutting funding to New York and Washington — the two targets of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks — by 40 percent. (AP)
Steering and Policy Committee Asks Jefferson to Appear Wednesday
Spurred into action by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), members of the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee met late Tuesday and issued an invitation to Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.) to appear before them on Wednesday afternoon. If he accepts, Jefferson will have a chance to argue the case for keeping his seat on the influential Ways and Means Committee as the legal process unfolds. Steering and Policy, a collection of 50 Democrats mostly loyal to Pelosi, makes recommendations to the entire Democratic Caucus about which House committees Democrats are assigned to, and it often plays the decisive role in such matters. By the same token, the panel can recommend whether a Member should have assignments revoked. (Roll Call)
Gonzales defends Jefferson office search
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Tuesday defended the FBI’s search of a congressman’s office last month, saying it was an “unusual step” but a necessary one. Gonzales compared the May 20-21 search of Rep. William Jefferson’s office to past investigations of federal lawmakers and searches of their homes and vehicles.”There have been searches before by the executive branch of the legislative branch,” Gonzales said. “We’ve searched before the homes of members of Congress. We’ve searched before the cars of members of Congress, even when they are parked in the garage on Capitol Hill.” (AP)
Boehner gets an earful on Jefferson raid protest
House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) hinted yesterday that he heard a number of complaints during campaign stops last week protesting congressional opposition to the search of Rep. William Jeffersonâs (D-La.) Capitol Hill office. âThere was some concern raised,â Boehner said about the feedback he heard from voters at fundraisers during last weekâs recess. (The Hill)
Siegelman spends election in court as witness recalls flights in corruption trial
While other candidates spent election day amid the hubbub of last-minute campaigning, former Gov. Don Siegelman was in federal court Tuesday for procedural tedium and testimony about his flights on a political insider’s plane in the late 1990s. Siegelman said he was trying to act as much like a candidate as possible Tuesday and when court ended for the day at midafternoon, he said he was going to campaign outside several polling places in the Montgomery area. (AP)
McKinney, Capitol Police quietly work on deal
The Congresswoman’s staff and prosecutors are said have been talking about ways to avoid a full-blown confrontation in court. (Raw Story)
Personal data on 2.2 million troops stolen
Personal information on about 2.2 million active-duty, National Guard and Reserve troops was stolen last month from a government employee’s house, officials said on Tuesday in the latest revelation of a widening scandal. Personal information on about 2.2 million active-duty, National Guard and Reserve troops was stolen last month from a government employee’s house, officials said on Tuesday in the latest revelation of a widening scandal. (Reuters, Washington Post)
Senators question Bush administration’s targeting of journalists
At a Senate hearing Tuesday, administration critics accused the Justice Department of trampling press freedom in its zeal to protect secrets. Senators from both parties vented frustration over the administration’s lack of openness. Tensions erupted at the Judiciary Committee hearing when Matthew Friedrich, chief of staff of the Justice Department’s criminal division, declined to answer questions about the effort to search Anderson’s old files. “I would think the department would send somebody up here to testify that could answer our questions, if they had any respect for this committee,” complained Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa. “They don’t have any respect for this committee,” Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said to Friedrich. “Why on earth were you sent up here? … Is there any question you’re allowed to answer?” (KR, WaPo)
Defense lobbyists rethink their M.O.
Defense lobbyists expect this yearâs bills to yield fewer earmarks than in the past and thus to have a knock-on impact on lobby-shop revenues. âThis year there may be a lot of people that are going to have some unhappy clients,â one lobbyist for a large general practice said. âThey may have to renegotiate their rates and hope that this year may be some anomaly and next year will be back to normal.â (The Hill)
DeLay: GOP’s ‘panic, depression’ risk losing elections
The former No. 2 House leader criticized his Republican colleagues for “panic, depression and woe-is-me-ism,” and predicted they will lose control in November “if they continue the attitude they have right now.” (USA Today)
Miller to renew push for labor bill in DeLayâs absence
Democratic Rep. George Miller (Calif.) is expected to reintroduce legislation today that seeks to reform immigration and labor laws in the Northern Mariana Islands. Miller is using the occasion of Rep. Tom DeLayâs (R-Texas) last week in Congress to build support for a bill the former majority leader would not bring to the House floor. Miller, the ranking Democrat on the Education and the Workforce Committee, has repeatedly suggested that DeLayâs opposition to the bill is a function of his relationship with disgraced Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who formerly represented the government of the Marianas. (The Hill)
House Ethics Panel to Hold Rare Public Hearing
The House ethics committee is scheduled to hold a rare public hearing this afternoon as it wrestles with possible rules changes on privately funded travel for Members and staff. It is the first recorded public hearing for the ethics committee, sources close to the panel said. (Roll Call)
House GOP Seeks to Keep Promise on Earmarks
Although House leaders have yet to appoint Members from their chamber to smooth out differences between House and Senate lobbying reform bills, they are working to make good on their pledge to appropriators that any new earmark disclosures apply equally to all committees. A GOP leadership aide said that Republican leaders are working with each of the relevant committees to find a way to make earmark disclosures uniform for any bill that contains earmarks. (Roll Call)
Democrats Guard Legislative Power
Angered over recent media reports that President Bush has effectively disavowed hundreds of laws enacted during his tenure, a handful of House Democrats are now pushing measures to shore up Congressâ legislative authority. (Roll Call)
Ugly AP Reward to Solomon Reveals State of Play Between Big News Orgs and Blogosphere
There’s something deeply perverse about the fact that AP brass rewarded John Solomon for his unfair reporting on Harry Reid because of the attention from the blogosphere — after all, the enormous reaction among bloggers to the story was overwhelmingly critical of it. At bottom, the absurdity of this really does perfectly illustrate the state of play between the big news orgs and the blogosphere — and not in a way that should be to any of our liking. (Horse’s Mouth)
The CQPolitics Forum: As Goes San Diego, So Goes America?
Should the California 50 special election, regardless of the outcome, be seen as a harbinger for the November congressional elections â or are special elections such as these too idiosyncratic and isolated to be given such a broader meaning? (CQ Politics)
Jack Abramoff’s Lost Holocaust Comedy
How Abramoff turned away from producing The Day The Clown Cried because of ethical problems. (Looker)
Rep. accused of trying to bribe Nigerian
Rep. William Jefferson called the package he allegedly delivered at midnight to the suburban Maryland home of Nigeria’s vice president “African art.” Authorities say the “art” was meant to be cash â lots of it. (AP)