Thursday, June 28, 2012
Presidential politics Ross joins Republicans in vote to hold Holder in contempt
Posted by Max Brantley on Thu, Jun 28, 2012 at 1:28 PM
The core elements of the Republican complaint — administrative complicity in allowing guns to reach illegal hands — are no longer in question. If any problem existed, it was a lack of sufficient gun laws to justify prosecutions against people who buy guns in bulk to put in the hands of criminals.
This is about embarrassing the Obama administration and Eric Holder. The NRA, which cooked up a typically insane theory about the matter, has made this an election year test for politician.
The only thing I wondered about going in was whether gun lobby toady U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, the lame duck Democratic congressman from Arkansas, would kiss NRA butt again. Silly me to think he'd do anything but cover himself with more shame, along with 16 other Democrats. Ross statement:
“I believe the people of Arkansas and our nation deserve answers to questions regarding the unsuccessful “Operation Fast and Furious” gun-tracking program. I recognize that holding the Attorney General in contempt of Congress is a serious and significant action, but in this case, it is necessary because the failures resulted in the loss of the life of a U.S. Border Patrol Agent. That fact alone requires a full and transparent investigation, which is not possible if documents are withheld. I voted in favor of holding Attorney General Holder in contempt of Congress as Congress must have the opportunity to review all related documents to ensure this doesn't happen again.”
Speaking of...
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James Lee Witt endorses Mike Ross for governor
May 16, 2013Does the endorsement of James Lee Witt, Bill Clinton's FEMA director, now a bigtime lobbyist/consultant, help Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Ross? /more/
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Has Arkansas deregulated guns or not?
May 8, 2013John Lyon of Stephens Media examines at some length today a simmering topic in the gun nut community that is of general interest. /more/
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Tuesday topics
May 7, 2013The line is open. Final words: * THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT HAS DESIGNS ON ARKANSAS: Church and State magazine reports on plans by the American Renewal Project, a Religious Right organization, to politically target 12 states including Arkansas in 2014 to "restore America to its Judeo-Christian heritage." /more/
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A.M. Report: A confederacy of stooges and a money quest
May 7, 2013Some other odds and ends that floated in overnight: * JOHN BOOZMAN, STOOGE OF THE NIGHT: I can't find a clip yet, but multiple readers report that U.S. Sen. John Boozman joined Sen. Mark Pryor in David Letterman's pantheon of "stooges of the night" for his vote against broadening background checks for gun purchasers. /more/
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Asa Hutchinson on the NRA speakers platform today
May 3, 2013Good to be associated with the extremists of the NRA? In Arkansas Republican circles, the answer is a big ja wohl! /more/
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Dumas: The perils of accommodation for Pryor and Ross
May 2, 2013"The hardest thing about any political campaign," Adlai Stevenson said at the end of his last race, "is how to win without proving yourself unworthy of winning." /more/
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Mark Pryor: Stooge of the Night on Letterman show
April 27, 2013As several have noted, David Letterman made Mark Pryor his stooge of the night last night for his vote with the NRA to defeat legislation to expand gun purchase background checks to gun shows. /more/
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There goes Barack Obama, agreeing with Mike Ross again
April 26, 2013Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Ross has said he would have opposed the recent legislative effort to strip funding from Planned Parenthood for sex education and other health programs (not abortion). /more/
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Room in the middle for Arkansas politicians?
April 25, 2013Recent events recommend former U.S. Rep. Mike Ross' plan to emulate Gov. Mike Beebe as a middle-of-the-road Democrat. Moderation is appealing. /more/
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Planned Parenthood plans to press Mike Ross on record
April 22, 2013Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Ross made encouraging sounds about looking out for women's medical services and the ability to choose abortion when he announced last week. /more/
- More »
Comments (18)
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