House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) was quick to issue a concerned statement when reports of President Obama's intention to shut the prison at Guantanamo Bay hit the press.
"There are important questions that must be answered before the terrorist detainee facility at Guantanamo Bay can be closed," he wrote.
"The key question is where do you put these terrorists?
Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) said he's sorry for remarks about Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) that were criticized on CNN as sexist.
"What I meant is that Janet is a person who works 24/7, just like me," Rendell said Wednesday, according to First Read.
Rendell said that Napolitano, chosen by President-elect Barack Obama to become Homeland Security secretary, was "perfect" for that post "because for that job, you have to have no life."
He added: "Janet has no family. Perfect. She can devote, literally, 19-20 hours a day to it."
CNN's Campbell Brown said that the remark would perpetuate stereotypes of mothers and single women.
Rendell admitted Wednesday that he was guilty of "fractured logic."
"I guess, if you stretch it, it could be taken by some people the wrong way," he told reporters. "I certainly didn't mean it the wrong way. Janet is a friend of mine. She's a great, great governor, and she'll be a great director of Homeland Security. And if anyone out there was offended, I apologize."
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said he doesn't want Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) to remain as chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
"I'm one who does not feel somebody should be rewarded with a major chairmanship after doing what he did," Leahy said on Vermont Public Radio on Friday.
Daily Kos's terjeanderson was the first to spot Leahy's quotes.
Leahy criticized Lieberman, a supporter of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) during the presidential campaign, for attacks on Barack Obama while he was the Democratic presidential nominee.
"I thought they went way beyond the pale, that they were not fair, that they were not legitimate, that they perpetuated some of these horrible myths that were run about Sen. Obama," Leahy said.
Leahy also said that he didn't think he would keep his chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee if he had acted as Lieberman had.
Sen. Joe Lieberman spoke with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) by phone this week, a Democratic aide said Friday, as the controversial Connecticut Independent fights to keep his chairmanship of a key committee.
Aides to the senators would not say what the two men discussed, but Lieberman spoke by phone with Reid just days after the two men held a private meeting in Reid's office where a resolution could not be reached.
Lieberman's fate will be put to the test Tuesday when Senate Democrats vote on whether to punish Lieberman for his outspoken criticism of Barack Obama and staunch advocacy of John McCain during the presidential campaign.
Momentum seems to be on Lieberman's side to keep his chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Governmental Committee, since Democrats worry that taking his gavel away would jeopardize their ability to win his support on close votes. Instead, Lieberman faces the possible loss of seniority on other committees he sits on, or he may lose chairmanships of subcommittees he chairs.
A website aimed at getting Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) removed from the chairmanship of the Senate Homeland Security Committee is redoubling its efforts by asking supporters to call Lieberman's colleagues.
"Lieberman Must Go" had hosted a petition that was signed by 43,000 people last summer that called for the removal of Lieberman from his post. The letter went to members of the Senate Democratic Steering Committee, which makes recommendations over chairmanships to the full Democratic caucus. That petition was sent when Lieberman had begun attacking the Democratic presidential nominee, Barack Obama.
Now that Obama is the president-elect and the next Senate is nearly set, the site this week listed phone numbers of the steering committee members and has urged its readers to call them.
Here's the script that the website wants supporters to use when they make their calls.
Senator _________, my name is _________. I'm a registered Democrat and a [your state] resident. I urge you to vote to strip Joe Lieberman of his committee chairmanship when the Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee meets to discuss his future. A man who spent the entire election season demeaning Senator Obama's patriotism and his qualifications for office cannot be trusted with oversight authority over the Obama administration. Joe Lieberman is not a Democrat, and he should not enjoy the privileges of being a member of the majority party. Will you vote to strip Lieberman of his committee chairmanship?
The top two lieutenants to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) want Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) ousted as chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, according to Newsweek's Howard Fineman.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) both want Lieberman out, Fineman said Monday on MSNBC's "Countdown." Durbin and Schumer are both Assistant Senate Majority Leaders. Two other veteran Democrats, Sens. Chris Dodd (Conn.) and Evan Bayh (Ind.), want Lieberman to be able to retain his seat, Fineman said.
Firedoglake has posted the video, which can also be seen below.
A spokeswoman for President-elect Barack Obama confirmed that Obama is open to having Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) caucus with Senate Democrats, even though Lieberman campaigned vigorously against him.
"President-elect Obama looks forward to working with anyone to move the country forward," Stephanie Cutter wrote in an e-mail to TalkingPointsMemo. "We'd be happy to have Sen. Lieberman caucus with the Democrats. We don't hold any grudges."
Lieberman's support for the Iraq war and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has made him a bete noire of liberal Democrats. Bloggers have called for him to be removed from the chairmanship of the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
But Cutter said that Obama wouldn't get involved in whether Lieberman keeps his post.
"We aren't going to referee decisions about who should or should not be a committee chair," Cutter wrote in the e-mail to TPM.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) celebrated news Friday that the U.S. and Iraq have agreed to a troop withdrawal time line, but blasted President Bush and his Republican colleague for blocking previous attempts pushing for withdrawal.
"While the Administration has spent the last two years doing everything in its power to block a change in course that would made America more secure, it appears the Bush Administration is finally inching toward adopting key elements of the strategy long advocated by Senate Democrats on Iraq
As expected, the Senate on Wednesday defeated by wide margins a trio of amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) overhaul, clearing the way for final passage later in the afternoon.
By votes of 32-66, 37-61 and 42-56, senators defeated three amendments that would have struck down or restricted retroactive legal immunity for telecommunications companies that complied with the Bush administration's electronic surveillance program. The amendments were offered by Sens. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) and Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.).
The legislation, which is considered a victory for the White House, would revamp the 1978 FISA program. The fight over whether to immunize telecom firms had frozen talks between both parties and both chambers for several months.
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) delayed final FISA votes until 2:15 p.m., to allow time for a Republican lunch, but passage is likely.
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