An Episcopalian Against Alito and…

First, liberal Web logs went after Democrats for selecting Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine to deliver the response to Bush's speech next Tuesday. Kaine's political sins: He was too willing to drape his candidacy in references to religion and too unwilling to speak out aggressively against Bush on the Iraq war. Kaine has been lauded by party officials for finding a victory formula in Bush country by running on faith, values and fiscal discipline. Many Web commentators wanted Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), a leading critic of the Iraq war who advocates a speedy withdrawal, to be the opposition voice on the State of the Union night. Most Democratic lawmakers have distanced themselves from the Murtha position. \”What the hell are they thinking?\” was the title of liberal blogger Arianna Huffington's column blasting the Kaine selection. \”Blogs can take up a lot of time if you're on them,\” Kaine said to reporters Thursday. \”You can get a lot done if you're not bitterly partisan.\” The Virginia Democrat said he will not adjust his speech to placate the party's base. \”I'm not anybody's mouthpiece or shill or poster boy for that matter. I'm going to say what I think needs to be said and they seem very comfortable with that.\” Blogs Attack From Left as Democrats Reach for Center

Jim VandeHei doesn't know what he's talking about.

I was one of the people speaking out against
Tim Kaine giving the response to Bush's SOTU, but it sure as hell wasn't
because of his religious views. Jim needs to quit reading off the clipboard
of convenient arguments and start trying to tell his readers the real problem
with Tim Kaine. It's not his \”faith, values and fiscal discipline.\”

Last time I looked, it was Republicans who were acting against
faith by waging preemptive war and whooping up the global war cry; going against
our values by torturing captives; and ballooning the budget to stratospheric
heights that would have made Lyndon Johnson blush.

Tim Kaine is charisma challenged, that's the nuts and bolts of
my bitching. It's not his pro-life stance either, because I actually believe
more pro-life people should be welcomed into our party. The fact is, even if
Kaine \”placated the party's base\” he couldn't get the job done, because
he's so incredibly un-telegenic people are going to tune him out the moment
he starts to speak. Have we not learned by now that it's not only what you say
but who says it and how? I'm all for Kaine saying what he thinks, but I just
don't want him doing it to a national audience as the rebuttal for George W.
Bush. Could I be any clearer?

Seriously, it's obvious who should rebut George W. Bush. The only
person for that job is Senator Barack Obama, but since the Democratic Party
leadership couldn't even figure that one out, I guess Kaine might as well give
the media another sound bite with which to flog the blogs.

As a Democratic activist of deep faith and committed values, not
to mention a JFK fiscal devotee, I'm outraged at VandeHei's suggestion that,
lumping me in with the \”blogs attack as Democrats reach for center,\”
he implies I'm not part of the mainstream of the Democratic Party, because I
am a blogger who is going after Democrats who are afraid to wage a righteous
fight. Nothing could be more witless.

The Alito nomination is deeply offensive to me, and remember,
I supported Judge
Roberts. But Alito's willingness to give power only to the powerful through
his expansive view of the presidency, goes against the democratic republic envisioned
by our Founders. It threatens the co-equal system, allowing for things like
the illegal domestic NSA spying, which threatens the privacy of every American
in this country.

The piece today by VandeHei is intended to paint people like me,
as well as what I do with my life, as something beyond the mainstream, left
of center, on the far edge of reality, while the Democratic Party powers that
be hail from a higher plain, the center ground. Nonsense.

Nothing you will do this week-end is more important than calling
the senators below and registering your feelings. Be respectful, as these senators
have earned their place through the vote. But let them know how you feel. Get
your family and friends involved, too.

As for Jim VandeHei and Tim Kaine, not to mention Steve Elmendorf,
well, this gun owning, wayward Episcopalian has more faith, values and spirit
in my little finger than all the pompous Democratic Party \”centrists\”
claim to have in these hit pieces on people whose only crime is to spend every
waking day and night trying to manifest a better reality for this great country.

And by the way, for everyone who says we can't win this filibuster
fight. Since when did American rebels fighting for a cause in which they passionately
believe ever worry about \”losing\” when the battle they were waging
was right?

ALL YOU NEED
TO WIN THE FIGHT AGAINST ALITO

These senators need to hear from you… Blanche Lambert Lincoln (D- AR), 202-224-4843 Joseph I. Lieberman (D- CT), 202-224-4041 Thomas R. Carper (D- DE), 202-224-2441 Daniel K. Inouye (D- HI), 202-224-3934 Tom Harkin (D- IA), 202-224-3254 Barack Obama (D- IL), 202-224-2854 Evan Bayh (D- IN), 202-224-5623 Barbara A. Mikulski (D- MD), 202-224-4654 Carl Levin (D- MI), 202-224-6221 Mark Dayton (D- MN), 202-224-3244 Max Baucus (D- MT), 202-224-2651 Frank Lautenberg (D- NJ), 202-224-3224 Robert Menendez (D- NJ), 202-224-4744 Jeff Bingaman (D- NM), 202-224-5521 Jack Reed (D- RI), 202-224-4642 Lincoln D. Chafee (R- RI), 202-224-2921 Patrick J. Leahy (D- VT), 202-224-4242 Maria Cantwell (D- WA), 202-224-3441 Patty Murray (D- WA), 202-224-2621 Herb Kohl (D- WI), 202-224-5653 John D. Rockefeller, IV (D- WV), 202-224-6472 James M. Jeffords (I- VT), 202-224-5141 Filibuster Opponents \”silent and scared\” Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D- DE) , 202-224-5042 Bill Nelson (D- FL), 202-224-5274 Daniel K. Akaka (D- HI) (1,), 202-224-6361 Mary Landrieu (D- LA) (1,), 202-224-5824 Byron L. Dorgan (D- ND) (1,), 202-224-2551 Olympia Snowe (R- ME) (1,), 202-224-5344 Filibuster Opponents Mark Pryor (D- AR), 202-224-2353 Ken Salazar (D- CO) , 202-224-5852 Kent Conrad (D- ND) (1,), 202-224-2043 Alito Supporters - We might as well have Republicans in these seats, because Alito is the Supreme Court fight of our lifetime. Ben Nelson (D-NE) 202-224-6551 Tim Johnson (D- SD) , 202-224-5842 Robert C. Byrd (D- WV) , 202-224-3954 Ted Stevens (R- AK) , 202-224-3004