Daily Kos

Jefferson Used Natl Guard While Others Awaited Rescue...

by ihlin

Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 10:55:46 AM PDT

Sorry, but it doesn't matter if it's a Dem or GOP, black or white, abusing public resources for selfish purposes while people are dying is inexcusable. William Jefferson used the natl guard to visit his house, check on his belongings for an hour, letting all the Natl Guard and their resources sit around while people were drowning and trapped in their houses. Now Rush Limbaugh is already reaming him out for it, but to show how we the left differ from the right, i say cast him out. don't make no difference what party he's from

Story reported by ABC News:

http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/HurricaneKatrina/story?id=1123495&page=1

Jefferson is one of the members of the CBC who has consistently sold his people out. One of the CAFTA 15 Dems, he also supported the bankruptcy bill, the IRaq War, and ending the estate tax. Black Commentator is on his case.

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0422-20.htm

Never mind also the FBI raids on his house. Hopefully, the fact that his house survives, means they got something good on him and he can be tossed out of office soon. the folks of New Orleans deserve better.

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Permalink | 32 comments

  •  Despicable (4.00 / 2)

     He should resign now.

    The cake is a lie.

    by Anderson Republican on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 10:52:51 AM PDT

  •  Humph (4.00 / 4)

    Food sat on overpasses for 9 hrs during Bushie's visit, and hospital patients were denied chemo treatment too.

    When's Bushie resigning ?

    Get your Democracy Bond and help build a 50-state Democratic Party!

    by RobertInWisconsin on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 10:58:33 AM PDT

  •  I agree (4.00 / 2)

    This is reprehensible and should not be "swept under the rug"

    I'm not going anywhere. I'm standing up, which is how one speaks in opposition in a civilized world. - Ainsley Hayes

    by jillian on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:00:15 AM PDT

  •  Maybe It Doesn't Matter (4.00 / 2)

    But you never pass up an opportunity to slam Dems or traffic in stereotypes.

    For instance, let's look at your some of your  most recent diaries:


    Kinky Friedman for Gov of Texas
    [Not the Dem, the guy likely to keep the Dem from winning]
    Abortions have gone down under Bush too...
    [Because we have to be fair to Bush...]
    Liberal elitists and the Supreme Court
    [Intent obvious]
    Right wingers hate Fred Phelps too
    [Yeah, heaven forbid right wingers get a bad rap]
    Black voters agree with the Christian Coalition...
    [Sure, because Dems take black voters for granted]
    How Kerry/DNC screwed up Latino outreach
    [Sure, because Dems take Latino voters for granted]
    Carter endorses CAFTA--ick
    [Oh, Dems, ick]
    DEMS selling out on CAFTA
    [Yeah, let's focus on the small minority of Dems]
    Happy May Day-- US Labor in crisis
    [Of course, because they're a pillar of the Dem party, so they must be in crisis]
    Pew Report confirms Deaniac/blogosphere stereotypes
    [Because we have to propogate those stereotypes]
    Dean vows to reach evangelicals
    [Because Dems generally hate evangelicals]

    Your schtick got tired and transparent long ago.

    The revolution will not be televised, but we'll analyze it to death at The Next Hurrah.

    by DHinMI on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:00:29 AM PDT

    •  Earlier diaries don't matter to me (4.00 / 3)

      I'm as liberal as it comes and this Dem is despicable, to say the least.

      by rockmoonwater on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:02:09 AM PDT

      [ Parent ]

      •  Separate But Related and Relevant Issue (4.00 / 2)

        Ihlin just drops in to slam Dems, and has done so forever.  

        The revolution will not be televised, but we'll analyze it to death at The Next Hurrah.

        by DHinMI on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:04:52 AM PDT

        [ Parent ]

        •  Obviously... (none / 0)

          ...he has some deep seated issues to deal with.  

          by rockmoonwater on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:06:38 AM PDT

          [ Parent ]

        •  Looked at the history and don't think I agree (none / 1)

          I hear a more centrist view than ussually seen here in some ways but "just drops in to slam dems" is not fair.  

          I never want the left and dems to be "lockstep" robots that now typify the Republican party and differening views should be heard.

          Moreover - it's still true that the battle ground is in the middle.  Too often democrats have forgotten that and its part of why we are where we are.

          -4.63,-3.54 If the people will lead the leaders will follow

          by calebfaux on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:15:31 AM PDT

          [ Parent ]

        •  yup, right (none / 1)

          i slam Dems when i do NOT see them standing up for progressive principles and selling out working class (on CAFTA), labor, minorities and giving into Corporate whorism. i speak about faith issues because i have seen up close how this is affecting us electorally and a big reason why we are losing.

          i guess i could be one of those posters who calls for Bush's impeachment, hates Roberts, joins the get your hands off my body abortion crowd, thinks Republicans are all evil and bad (which they are btw), constantly bashes the Religious Right but then what the hell would i be adding to the discussion? you have enough people doing that already.

          by ihlin on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:30:37 AM PDT

          [ Parent ]

    •  Interesting - but doesn't negate the point (4.00 / 2)

      one thing I truly dislike about the Republicans is their total hypocrisy - so when it occurs on our side I don't find it more defensible.  

      That said - I nver trust much of anything Rush says - its ussually a total distortion for political spin.

      -4.63,-3.54 If the people will lead the leaders will follow

      by calebfaux on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:07:38 AM PDT

      [ Parent ]

      •  Correct (none / 1)

        I'm not defending Jefferson; he may have been headed back home to get another stack of cash out of his freezer, like the one the FBI found a few months ago.

        But it's no surprise to me that it was Ihlin who jumped on this.  

        After all, how many of us listen to Rush?  I know MikeS listens to some of the wingers, but he completely rejects their stereotypes.  Ihlin often parrots them.

        The revolution will not be televised, but we'll analyze it to death at The Next Hurrah.

        by DHinMI on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:49:10 AM PDT

        [ Parent ]

        •  I sometimes listen to Rush (none / 0)

          just to get the winger talking points so I know where the enemy is coming from.

          Usually I can only take about 20 minutes of it before I start to get dizzy from hypertension.

          The Best Anti-McCain Ad [-4.25, -5.33]

          by GTPinNJ on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:55:40 AM PDT

          [ Parent ]

        •  this diary (none / 1)

          should be about jefferson, not attacking the messenger. geez, i thought only the GOP tried to do that. i got it from reading ABC news, not Rush. though it's not surprising the douchebag would pick up on it.

          we already know about Republican criminal incompetence in Katrina. i was just bringing up a story about one who happens to be a Dem. i like to hold my party accountable just as much as we hold the GOP accountable. sorry if that bugs ya.

          by ihlin on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 12:02:49 PM PDT

          [ Parent ]

          •  I agree myself (none / 0)

            one thing that truly bugs me is that Republicans almost never hold their own accountable unless absoultly forced to - one way dems can appeal to the public is by making clear we will do that even if Repubs won't.  Its about faith and trust.

            -4.63,-3.54 If the people will lead the leaders will follow

            by calebfaux on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 12:23:09 PM PDT

            [ Parent ]

  •  Agree (4.00 / 2)

    This guy is an ignorant ass who, I hope, will be ushered out of office in the near future.

    by rockmoonwater on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:00:39 AM PDT

  •  I hope when he gets 'cast out' (3.71 / 7)

    ... he grabs onto Joe Lieberman's arm and drags that asswipe with him.

    by Bob Johnson on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:06:03 AM PDT

  •  I agree this needs to be addressed. (4.00 / 3)

    Any politician--I repeat--ANY politician who uses his power as an elected official to obtain perks, priviledges or money to the detriment of the public needs to be thrown out of government and, depending on the seriousness of his/her transgressions or ethical lapses, prosecuted.  There should be no exceptions!  Never forget these people are our employees as taxpaying citizens.  There is no excuse for this, I don't care what party you belong to.

    Although I heard Rush's rant yesterday & he took every opportunity when mentioning Jefferson's name to point out that he was a black Democrat.  He then went on to point out how we can donate to his legal defense fund as a sarcastic snark.  I would have loved to call up & also ask him how I could donate to the legal defense funds of Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-CA) and Rep. Tom DeLay (R-CA).  I'm sure that would have pissed Rush off.

    We need to have a zero tolerance policy for all corruption in government.

    The Best Anti-McCain Ad [-4.25, -5.33]

    by GTPinNJ on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:13:31 AM PDT

  •  trent lott? (4.00 / 3)

    what sort of resources did lott use to visit his once lovely home?  they needed resources in his home state too.

    Bill Sali

    by sophiebrown on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:20:31 AM PDT

  •  Damn straight. (none / 0)

    Please recommend. I was going to do a diary on this today, but obviously was beaten to the punch. Jefferson has had a horrible reputation among Louisianans as a corrupt official for years (in a state where that's an all-too-familiar refrain), and the National Guard garbage is simply untenable.

    Quite frankly, he's a stain on the Democratic party, and we need to hold him accountable. This is put up or shut up time for us -- if we really want to be the party of responsible, ethical government, we need to run this SOB out of the party on a rail.

    (Just a suggestion -- punch up the title a bit, add a few more links to the previous stories re: FBI investigation?)

    by Green1010 on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:21:01 AM PDT

  •  Need for independent investigation (none / 0)

    If these allegations are true, Jefferson should be censured by Congress and by the Democratic Party, and should be prosecuted for any violations of the law.

    However, this incident also illustrates the need for an independent investigation into the Katrina response.  Can anyone expect that a Congressional committee will fully investigate wrongdoing by Republican and Democratic politicians and their appointees?

    Ihlin, I suggest that you edit the beginning of the diary to identify Jefferson--e.g. "Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA)."

    by devadatta on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:41:41 AM PDT

  •  No arguments here (4.00 / 2)

    I don't care whether a person is a Democrat or a Republican.  Bad behavior is bad behavior. As others have stated though, this just underscores the need for an independent investigation-I want to know EVERYONE who screwed up.

    There's no point for democracy when ignorance is celebrated...insensitivity is standard and faith is being fancied over reason.-NoFx

    by SairaLV on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 11:52:51 AM PDT

  •  sure focus on the minor misuses by little people (none / 0)

    Don't focus on the electricity that went to oil pipelines rather than hospitals because of a Cheney phonecall

    or the rescue copters grounded for 8 HOURS, so Laura and W could have photo ops

    Not like they have used this tactic before or anything?

    How dumb are the news folks?

    fact does not require fiction for balance

    by mollyd on Thu Sep 15, 2005 at 12:41:21 PM PDT

Permalink | 32 comments