Legislation

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) is calling on Congress to ban the Department of Defense (DoD) from using tax money to fund "propaganda."

Kerry, along with fellow Democratic Sens. Byron Dorgan (N.D.), Bob Menendez (N.Y.), and Frank Lautenberg (N.Y.), is planning to introduce a companion bill to House legislation instituting such a ban, Kerry's office said today. The House version, introduced by Rep. Paul Hodes (D-N.H.), was included in the 2009 Defense authorization bill.

The bill defines propaganda as "any form of communication in support of national objectives designed to influence the opinions, emotions, attitudes, or behavior of the people of the United States in order to benefit the sponsor, either directly or indirectly."

Prompted by the influential New York Times story, in April Kerry called for a Government Accountability Office investigation into the Pentagon's placement of military analysts on U.S. news networks leading up to the Iraq war.

In a upcoming article in Foreign Affairs, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice writes that the United State did not invade Iraq and topple Saddam Hussein in order to spread Democracy throughout the Middle East but to rid itself of a threat.

"The United States did not overthrow Saddam to democratize the Middle East. It did so to remove a long-standing threat to international security," Rice writes in the July/August edition of Foreign Affairs.

"It is important to remember that we did not overthrow Adolf Hitler to bring democracy to Germany either. But the United States believed that only a democratic Germany could ultimately anchor a lasting peace in Europe," Rice adds.

Rice's claim conflicts with former White House press secretary Scott McClellan's memory of events.

In his much discussed book, McClellan writes that the Bush sold the American public on the war using faulty intelligence because he knew his vision of spreading Democracy throughout the Middle East would not be enough to sway the country.

Rice herself infamously said during the run-up to war in 2003 that she did not want the "smoking gun" on Iraqi WMD to come in the form of to a "mushroom cloud."

McClellan's account puts Bush's vision on Democracy in the Middle East front and center in the President's mind during the push to war, a claim Rice seems to refute.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) just praised a bill pushed by Barack Obama to put more pressure on Iran.

The bill, proposed last year by Obama and Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and then-Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), seeks to make it easier for U.S. investors to divest themselves from assets controlled by companies tied to Iran.

Reid said the bill would "place severe costs" on the Islamic state.

"More senators should join this," Reid said.

He did not mention Hillary Clinton in the Iran portion of his address.

Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Byron Dorgan (D-S.D.), as well as Reps. Mike Michaud (D-Maine) and Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), will call for a review of all existing U.S. trade agreements tomorrow.

The four members will join Teamsters leader Jim Hoffa for a press conference outside the Senate, where they will unveil legislation mandating a review of trade agreements and outlining a process to renegotiate them. The members are calling their bill the Trade Reform, Accountability, Development and Employment (TRADE) Act.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) railed against "unprecedented Republican filibustering" that has delayed the debate over a climate change bill.

Though senators from both parties agreed Monday to proceed with debate over the bill, which calls for mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions, Reid said that Republicans had tried legislative maneuvers to stall the measure.

Republicans, who worry that the bill will lead to more energy costs, had asked for 30 hours of debate before the amendment process could begin.

"Republicans have every opportunity to debate this bill in public and to negotiate in private," Reid said on the Senate floor Tuesday morning. "They have always been welcome to come to us with ideas for compromise. Their legislative right -- and obligation -- is to argue and cajole in an effort to convince our members to join their side."

Reid continued: "But the unprecedented Republican filibustering we've seen renders the legislative process impossible. Their only goal seems to be running out the clock -- like a basketball team with a lead in the fourth quarter. The only difference is Republicans don't have the lead. They may think that they are scoring political points, but they are leaving our country to suffer."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and his Republican colleagues likened the climate change bill now before the Senate to a tax hike.

McConnell, who opposes the bill along with other GOP senators, pointed to a federal study by the federal Environmental Protection Agency that said that the measure would raise gas prices by 53 cents. The bill seeks to place mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions.

"With gas prices being the number-one issue in America, they bring up a bill... that objective analysis concludes it's going to raise gas taxes 53 cents," he said. "We're happy for this debate. We're thrilled about it. I've never seen my members so excited in recent times over getting out on the floor and talking about a really, really bad proposal."

The bill is being pushed by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and John Warner (R-Va.). Many Democrats, including Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.), also back it.

Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.), appearing with McConnell, said that the $6.7 million price tag for the bill, which proposes funding for research and development of new energy sources, won't be paid by energy companies.

"It's going to be passed right through to you and me as consumers," Bond said. "Whether the bill sponsors admit that their bill is a hidden tax hike or not, we know it will hurt families and workers. We know, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it is a duck. And that is a tax hike."

Billionaire hedge fund manager George Soros said that "fundamental" underlying factors such as global warming are contributing to record oil prices.

Soros, testifying before a Senate committee hearing on the manipulation of energy markets, said that speculation in oil trading has helped increase energy costs by distorting "the otherwise prevailing balance between supply and

Former Vice President Al Gore is praising Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) for her work on the Lieberman-Warner climate bill, which is now being debated in the Senate.

"I want to commend Senator Boxer for her leadership of the Environment and Public Works Committee," Gore said in a statement yesterday. "Thanks to her vision and dedication, we have the first global warming bill in history that is comprehensive, bipartisan and that enjoys support across the country -- from labor and agriculture to the business and the environmental communities. Of course the bill needs to be stronger, but it's vital that Congress begin to act. While it's important that people change their light bulbs, it's even more important that we change the laws."

Boxer chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

President Bush argued against the cap-and-trade climate change proposal the Senate is debating Monday, calling it a "huge spending bill fueled by taxes."

Bush, in remarks to the press about the economy and tax cuts, said that the bill being pushed by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and John Warner (R-Va.) would cost about $6 trillion, a price tag too high for the U.S. economy.

"You know, there's a much better way to address the environment than imposing these costs on the job creators, which will ultimately have to be borne by American consumers," Bush said. "I urge the Congress to be very careful about running up enormous costs for future generations of Americans."He continued: "We'll work with the Congress, but the idea of a huge spending bill fueled by taxes increases isn't the right way to proceed. And the right way for Congress to proceed on taxes in general is to send a clear message that these tax relief we passed need to be made permanent."

The Warner-Lieberman bill calls for specific caps on greenhouse gas emissions by industries. It also proposes a system through which companies could buy and sell credits that allow them to give off emissions.

Most Americans want oil released from U.S. reserves and for oil companies to drill in protected areas, according to a poll released by Gallup.

The poll found that 58 percent of Americans want oil released from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, while 57 percent want Congress to allow oil companies to drill in U.S. coastal and wilderness areas now off limits.

Republicans in Congress are now pushing a plan, unveiled last week, to lower gas prices, which includes both releasing oil from the strategic reserve and expanding drilling rights for oil companies.

The poll surveyed over 1,000 Americans aged 18 or older. See the results below. Read more...