Hi there. Steny Hoyer should resign immediately as Democratic House Whip.

[Poll_Blind]

We've got 17 fucking House Democrats voting to cite Eric Holder for contempt of Congress. Hoyer needs to go. Pelosi should have gone in 2010 after we got our asses kicked. The House Leadership is shit or we're giving such a fucking pass to any NeoCon who wants a Democratic Party endorsement that we'll give it to anyone.

Take your pick but somethin's gotta give. We can't have our own fucking House members (in numbers like that) trying to cripple the President in an election year. If it was one or two...whatever, I guess. But seventeen?

PB

[villager]

1. But this has been true for quite awhile...

[BlueCaliDem]

2. Well, they'll just tell you they don't do group-think like so many DUers

say here.

[Poll_Blind]

9. And that's fine...for an internet forum. Not so great for the House of Representatives.

Imagine how that's going to play on the evening news. The whip's job is to prevent shit like this happening. Correction: The whip's job is usually to prevent far less embarassing things from happening. If Hoyer can't reach into his whip's bag of carrots and sticks and pull out something to bribe or beat house members with on a vote like this, then he should be able to turn to Pelosi and she should have something. And if neither of them can pull off the job, it's time to see what the administration can do.

I believe a few of these House reps indicated, publicly, days in advance they would vote this way. For a whip not to be able to stop that is feeble.

PB

[jenmito]

3. There were supposedly going to be 30-35 Dems. 17 is fewer than expected. They

feared getting their votes held against them by the NRA which said they were "scoring" today's vote.

[aquart]

7. Way fewer. I'm impressed.

I think walking out with the Black Caucus gave a lot of cover.

[Poll_Blind]

10. Can you give me a cite where you picked up that 30-35 number?

I hadn't seen anything like that.

PB

[DURHAM D]

11. Heard it on tv several times the past three days.

[russspeakeasy]

4. Steny should resign retroactively.

[Autumn]

5. As I've been told, they represent all the people.

I agree with you.
"The House Leadership is shit or we're giving such a fucking pass to any NeoCon who wants a Democratic Party endorsement that we'll give it to anyone."

yeah seventeen.

[sadbear]

6. As distasteful as it is, we're not republicans

We don't do lockstep like the masters. I'm not sure how we can get around that.

[Poll_Blind]

12. We're constituents. They're party representatives and the President is the head of the Dem. Party

They don't get to play Joe Lieberman in the House. Pretty Princess games are for senators. This is not some ambiguous issue, this is the spearhead from the GOP to take out the President before the elections through Holder. For whatever reason, the President decided to play the Executive Privilege card for this Holder issue and now Obama and Holder are far too close in the same boat for my comfort.

And I disagree with the President almost daily. And that's my privilege, and yours and every other Democrat. We're constituents.

But the moment you have Democratic Party representatives not just having some difference of opinion with the President, but working with the Republicans to take him down...then there's a big problem.

And it's up to Hoyer, at least, to head off problems like that.

PB

[Zalatix]

23. +1,000!

[MADem]

27. Hoyer has control of a big PAC for reelection funding.

You can be sure that those who didn't walk out and shout SHAME with Steny will not be getting any treats from the PAC, and they may even find themselves with a primary opponent if the incumbent is waffly.

[Scootaloo]

26. We're not Republicans, but it's sure looking like at least 17 Democrats in congress are

[MiniMe]

8. The BlueDogs

[Carla in Sequim]

17. Actually, after today

I shall now and forever refer to them as the yellow dogs. Voting for this contempt charge with the dark side was disgusting and will be dealt with one way or another in their districts. It is not something we can control as a whole.

Having said that, I dismiss the premise that it warrants the call for the resignation of Steny Hoyer. Is that what we need right now? C'mon now, let's stay focused on trying to get the house back, not throw Hoyer under the bus. It is as counterproductive as the vote itself!

We are the good guys. We have a big tent which can cause frustration at times but it's a hell of a lot better than being a group of organized bigots that hates just about everything and everybody.

I hate threads like this.

[Art_from_Ark]

22. Um, "yellow dogs" are people who always vote Democratic

[madokie]

25. Thats what I am a Yellow Dog Democrat

Down and dirty cut to the bone yellow dog democrat actually

[Carla in Sequim]

29. Um, then perhaps we should change it

n/t

[DURHAM D]

13. Settle down - it was going to pass anyway and

just 17 votes is better than expected.

[Poll_Blind]

14. Do you want to see Holder taken down? It's clearly no big deal to you.

PB

[DURHAM D]

15. you have a bad connection

check out the pics - maybe this will make you feel better:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/101737504

[savalez]

16. Nah, it's just politics.

It was a meaningless witch hunt. Everybody knows it. They had their reasons and most likely none of them were related to them actually thinking Holder was in contempt. Again it's just politics.

[MiniMe]

18. But is the Justice Dept really going to investigate this?

Holder investigating himself. That is what they voted for.

[Poll_Blind]

19. Not criminal, but they could file civil charges in Federal court, like we did to Miers and Bolton.

I wouldn't put it passed them just to drag it on and on. That's their point: Keep it in the headlines as long as possible.

PB

[jeff47]

20. And that did nothing to Miers and Bolton.

And I really, really want the 17% approval rating Congress to make a ton of noise about how they're not working on jobs.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

21. Some times it makes sense to let your own off the proverbial hook...

... if their vote wasn't going to help anyway. If you have someone running in a tight race it doesn't make sense to give the pigs more ammunition. Not saying this is the case in all 17 votes.

Of course, sometimes the pigs will have some of their own switch votes to make it look like we missed winning by the exact number of defections or missing votes.

They did that to Kerry in 2004. He was out campaigning and didn't bother to come back to DC to cast a vote that wouldn't help anyway. The pigs switched a couple of their own votes to make it look like Kerry screwed the pooch and cost us a win. IIRC, it was something about the elderly and of course the pigs fired up the Wurlitzer and claimed Kerry hates old people.

[loyalsister]

24. Maybe they're just mad about the pot policies

and also want to take down Holder by any means necessary.

[Egalitarian Thug]

28. The Party Leadership seems to fall into only two categories, cowards and outright republican.

Far past time for some new blood, and I don't care who's turn it is.