How do you feel about Kerry/Edwards no show for Senate

[cidliz2004]

votes? Neither one of them were present for votes. After Bush's commercial on Kerry's lack of participation in voting -

[onehandle]

1. Fine about it. Bush was baiting them.

F*ck Bush.

[blm]

2. I think David Horowitz is well paid.

.

[katieforeman]

3. The vote today was just procedural.

They said they would be back to vote no on the actual ammendment but would not be back to vote on the procedural votes. They can't let the Republican led Senate jerk them off the campaign trail at will.

[JI7]

5. yup, remember what they did when kerry showed up to vote

on the military benefit bill ? they cancelled the vote just because kerry showed up.

[beaconess]

17. And on several bills, they got just enough Republicans to vote with Dems

to make it appear that Kerry and Edwards' absence affected the outcome and caused the measure to fail by 2 votes. However, had they made the vote, the Republicans would have pulled a couple of Republicans back to make sure they won the vote.

It's a game and they're good at it. We have to be careful not to fall for it by beating up on our candidates - which is exactly what the Republicans want us to do.

[demigoddess]

35. Repubs just want to keep Kerry off the campaign trail if he falls for it.

Just another campaign tactic.

[JI7]

4. i'm glad they are out campaigning rather than let the republicans control

what their schedule is. the republicans would love nothing more than to have them hang around the senate voting on things which made no difference in the outcome whether or not they were there.

just like the republicans cancelled a vote on military benefits when kerry showed up to vote on it.

[Thrill]

7. They can't vote and campaign

Getting Chimpy out of the WH is more important to the American people than friggin gay marriage

[Longhorn]

6. Doesn't bother me at all!

They will be there if the votes are close and the Republicans haven't rigged the vote in advance, as happened when Kerry cancelled a campaign trip to be there for an important vote only to find it postponed by Frist or arranged for a Republican to change his or her vote to make it look close.

[hlthe2b]

8. And, how do YOU feel?

A non-story IMO, given this was not the vote on the bill, but simply a cloture vote. But since you asked, I guess you must think it somehow important?

On edit, I don't mean to be cranky, but why not post your views, rather than simply asking for others.

[cidliz2004]

14. Don't know how I feel about them not showing for the vote

I don't like it on one had, but on the other hand I don't know how important that their votes actually are.

[Toucano]

24. I can help you.

Their votes on this issue were entirely unimportant.

[Seth Gecko]

9. my opinion doesn't matter

it won't change anything.

[freetobegay]

10. Why do they have to be there?

What the hell is the Senate voting on that is so Important? Gay Marriage? Or the language the President of the Senate (Cheney) uses? :shrug:

[tom22]

12. Absolutley nothing

of importance will come before the senate this year. It's the political silly season. And that most liberal member of the senate lable is taken on the few votes Kerry cast last year. Actually hias record is somewhere around the 20th most liberal member of the senate. basically a moderate. and a war hero. The country will know this in a coupls of weeks and then it will be over.

[Catch22Dem]

11. I hope someone can answer this...

How often was Bob Dole present in 1996?

[RichV]

26. Very little...

Dole resigned his seat to run for the presidency. Something Lieberman, Kerry, and Edwards have failed to do. I understand why for all of them, but it does look kinda bad.

[beaconess]

29. Looks bad to whom?

To Republicans? To Democrats?

Would it be better if they resigned and gave the Republicans an even greater majority in the Senate?

Let's not fall into the trap the Republicans are setting. They're scheduling votes the way they are specifically in hopes that short-sighted Democrats will beat up on our own candidates. Please don't buy into it.

Stay focused. Eye on the Prize.

[RichV]

32. To the electorate

Looks like skipping votes and skipping work to people who don't know any better. However, we know the votes typically aren't pivotal and that staffs can keep the office up to speed. With Lieberman, running for Sen. while running for VP looked like a lack of confidence in the ticket. I stated in my post above that I understood why they could not resign, however. And you elaborated on that just fine so I won't bother.

[blm]

34. The big difference with Dole is that he was also Senate Majority Leader

and was responsible for setting the Senate agenda and calendar. He resigned so he wouldn't be seen as trying to politicize the schedule to advance his own campaign fortunes.

The Democrats are the minority and gave no say in the scheduling so have no way to pursue or manipulate for any campaign goals.

[w13rd0]

13. Considering I'd vote for the HamSandwhich/BrainEatingZombie ticket...

...over Bush/Cheney, I don't give a fuck.

Bush/Cheney. Yeah, Bush had LOADS of legislative experience, and the votes Dick showed up for, he was one of the five most radically right wing "fuck yourself" Republicans in Congress.

Thanks, I'll take Kerry/Edwards over War/Terror GOP ticket.

[FighttheFuture]

15. Better out campanging than waisting time on useless cloture votes for....

bullshit Republikkkan diversions!!

Let's face it. Any gay person that votes for Bush or the Repuglikkkans at this point will deserve it when they are rounded up as meat for the faitful!

[beaconess]

16. Kerry and Edwards didn't fall for the Republican trick

This was a cloture vote - meaning that the Republicans had to get 60 yes votes. If they didn't get 60 people to vote yes, it doesn't matter how many people voted no. In this case, the Republicans managed to cobble together only 48 votes - a huge defeat for them. Even if no Democrat voted and there was not a single no vote, the Republicans still would have lost this one. A no vote on cloture is purely symbolic - it has absolutely no impact on the outcome.

Unlike with regular up or down votes, not voting on cloture is the same as voting no - the important thing was not to vote yes. Kerry and Edwards did not vote yes and that's what mattered.

The Republicans tried to set them up with this vote and they didn't fall for it. They hoped that Kerry and Edwards would so fear criticism (like that we see right here) for missing the vote, that they would upend their campaign schedules and return to Washington. They'll be pulling this kind of thing through the summer and fall - their mission will be to throw our guys off their game, thereby making them less effective against Bush, who is not bound by similar constraints. It's important that we remember that it's much more important to get a new president and vice president who will change the agenda in Washington than to scamper back to Washington for meaningless votes and the only way to do that is for the Johns campaign hard and steady - which will mean that they sometimes miss votes.

Let's keep our eyes on the prize.

[mourningdove92]

20. Wow, good answer!

I sure am glad you are on our side.

[beaconess]

30. Thanks - I am, too. n/t

[Hippo_Tron]

22. If their states had dem governors I'd suggest that they resign

But unfortunately that's not the case.

[beaconess]

31. NC Governor is a Democrat

But that still shouldn't prompt Edwards to resign. Even if he were to resign and the Governor appoint a replacement, there could be sufficient lag time between the resignation and appointment for the Republican majority to do all sorts of mischief with the shift in the balance - with the Senate so evenly divided, even one less Democratic senator can make a huge difference.

It would also impact other issues, such as seniority and commitee assigments. Even though he'll be gone a lot, Edwards still wields a lot of clout in the Senate. The newly appointed senator would not have the same position as Sen. Edwards and would not be nearly as effective.

We're all better off with Kerry and Edwards keeping their seats, even if they're not warming them 24/7.

[SW FL Dem]

18. A non-vote on a procedural issue doesn't bother me at all n/t

[ibegurpard]

19. I feel fine.

How are you?
:hi:

[Hippo_Tron]

21. As pro gay-marriage as I am, I think their stance and actions are perfect

The fact is, that gay marriage isn't going to be legal nationwide for quite some time. What Kerry and Edwards are doing is making it so that Bush can't make a major issue out of it.

[DrFunkenstein]

23. Kerry And Edwards Is The Most Pro-Gay Ticket In History

Don't expect Kerry to fall into every trap laid for him.

[beyurslf]

25. We know where they stand and they aren't trying to hide it. No big deal.

[oasis]

27. F-9/11 exposes Chimpy being constantly absent from work. Plus AWOL.

[ngGale]

28. I'm fine with it and the Repubs didn't get that much...

mileage out of that political ploy. Actually, it kind of back fired on them just enough! People are getting smarter and wiser.

[funnyshirts]

33. Not a fan of Bush?

If you are unsatisfied with the Bush/Cheney Administration, why not express it with comical t-shirts? Visit www.stopbushshirt.com !

[tom_paine]

36. I don't. Fuck the Busheviks and their Pravda!

[Tom Rinaldo]

37. On substance I don't mind

They would have shown up to vote against it if needed. Politically I am less sure if it does them less damage to not go on record as it would have to go on record with that vote.

[zoeyfong]

38. Just when i thought my opinion of Kerry/Edwards couldn't get

any lower, it does. Geeez. I would rather have had them show up and vote *for* the damn thing, than to dodge the vote in another display of spinelessness and duplicity.

[beaconess]

40. OH, please . . .

As I explained earlier, this was a cloture vote in which the Republicans had to get 60 votes to proceed. If they didn't get 60 votes, they lose, regardless how many or few no votes there are.

Because yes votes were the key, the important thing was to not vote yes - either by voting no or by not voting at all. Do you really think that John Kerry and John Edwards should have completely upended their campaigns for the day to rush back to Washington in order to not vote yes on a bill that stood no chance of passing anyway?

Why?

Neither one of them "dodged" this vote. They have always made clear exactly where they stood on this measure, repeatedly speaking out against it.

The Republicans rushed that bill onto the floor that day - at the last minute, mind you - for two reasons: 1)to try to show that the Democrats are weak on "family values;" and 2) to either get Edwards and Kerry to disrupt their campaigns for the day (giving Bush a free campaign day) or, if Edwards and Kerry didn't fall for that, to get their supporters to act as Republican surrogates by beating them up for not falling for it.

Of course, the first plan fell flat, since several Republicans crossed the party lines to scuttle the Republican foolishness. And Kerry and Edwards were too smart to fall for the okie-doke, refusing to allow White House to pull their strings and yank them off the campaign trail, the only place they REALLY needed to be that day. Unfortunately, if your comments are any indication, they have apparently found some success with their effort to get some Kerry and Edwards supporters to play Republican surrogate.

Please don't fall for this crap.

[Protected]

39. They're working right now for the greater good.