Montanans Aren't Cowards, Its Just That Their Congressional Representatives Are.

I had to put a fine line on what Gail Collins had to say in her excellent, snark filled column today. The NIMBY fears in Montana are obviously all about their Senators and Representatives in Congress, not about the citizens who put them there:

Instead, consider the case of Hardin, Mont., a community of 3,400 people just down the road from the place where Custer made his Last Stand.

Lately, things have not been going any better for Hardin than they did for the general. Unemployment is rife. “You go look at our downtown, there’s many closed businesses ... you’ll see drunks laying in the street. It’s not a pretty sight,” the head of the town’s economic development authority told National Public Radio. The town built a $27 million, 464-bed prison under the theory that other parts of the state would pay to have Hardin look after their problem residents. But it’s been empty since it was declared open for business nearly two years ago, and the construction loans are in default.

So, with the town council’s enthusiastic support, Hardin volunteered to take the Guantánamo prisoners.

It’s unlikely that the White House would have accepted the offer, but it was certainly an example of pluck and you’d think everyone would give Hardin three cheers. Instead, Montana’s Democratic senators went ballistic.

“We’re not going to bring Al Qaeda to Big Sky Country — no way, not on my watch,” said Max Baucus.

“If these prisoners need a new place, it’s not going to be anywhere near The Last Best Place,” said Jon Tester.

This shows us two things:

1) Montana has given itself many nicknames.

2) Montanans are more easily frightened than Manhattanites.

Think about it. New Yorkers live in the top terror target in the nation. This week four new would-be terrorists were arrested for plotting to blow up synagogues in the Bronx. On the same day, President Obama announced that the first Guantánamo prisoner to be tried in the United States would be coming to court in Lower Manhattan.

Even though it appears the guys involved in the Bronx case were deeply, deeply inept, this is still not the kind of news package you want to hear. But nobody had a fit over it. “Bottom line is we have had terrorists housed in New York before,” said Senator Charles Schumer.

I really believe that if someone were to go around and poll the citizens living in the vicinity of SuperMax prisons you would find that none of them are afraid of having GITMO detainees housed there. Its just that the bubble is so strong in the beltway that CongressCritters, espcially Democrats, are afraid that pulling the trigger will hurt them come election time. You see its not the citizens are afraid, its the lawmakers and that is a very dissappointing development.

Ask And Ye Shall Receive

Senator Diane Feinstein continues the pushback on the GOP NIMBY fearmongering.

Can We Have More Of This Damnit!

Dick Durbin gave a speech on the floor of the Senate that I have been calling for for weeks. Its time for Democrats to own this issue and pushback on stupid ass right wing talking points about bringing GITMO detainees to American prisons. And I am hoping that maybe this will be the first step in Dick Durbin replacing Harry Reid as Majority Leader!

Can We Just Fire Harry Reid Already?

If you thought Congressional Democrats had changed their stripes just because President Obama got elected you would be wrong. The are still political cowards especially in the Senate where they are led by the perinnial bed wetter Harry Reid. I can't describe how frustrated and angry Reid's statement today on closing GITMO makes me. And the truth is this has nothing to do with he public good. It has everything to do with being too much of a pussy to get in front of the American people and fend of partisan attacks from Republicans about the "dangers" of putting GITMO detainees in American jails. Lets take a look at this dithering idiot's words.

Accepting the right wing’s baseless premise, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) declared in a press conference today, “We will never allow terrorists to be released into the United States.” In several tense back and forths with reporters, Reid said he opposes imprisoning detainees on U.S. soil, saying flatly, “We don’t want them around the United States”:

REID: I’m saying that the United States Senate, Democrats and Republicans, do not want terrorists to be released in the United States. That’s very clear.

QUESTION: No one’s talking about releasing them. We’re talking about putting them in prison somewhere in the United States.

REID: Can’t put them in prison unless you release them.

QUESTION: Sir, are you going to clarify that a little bit? …

REID: I can’t make it any more clear than the statement I have given to you. We will never allow terrorists to be released in the United States.

Later, Reid repeated that he would not support Guantanamo detainees being transferred to U.S prisons..."

Update: After the press conference today, Reid's office released the following statement:

"President George W. Bush, Senator John McCain, Secretary Colin Powell, President Obama and I all agree – Guantanamo must be closed. President Obama’s approach is a responsible one. [...]

“The amendment Chairman Inouye has offered today recognizes that it would be premature for Congress to act before the Administration proposes its plan. I support his amendment. On two important points, however, we do not need to wait for any instruction – and there should be no misunderstanding. Let me be clear: Democrats will not move to close Guantanamo without a responsible plan in place to ensure Americans’ safety. And we will never allow a terrorist to be released into the United States.

“This amendment is as clear as day. It explicitly bars using the funds in this bill to ‘transfer, release or incarcerate’ any of the Guantanamo detainees in the United States. When the Administration closes Guantanamo, we will ensure it does so the right way.”

What a steaming pile of feckless cowardly bullshit! Who the fuck is really scared of people locked up in a supermax prison or a military facility? And yet here is Harry Reid giving Republicans and their fearmongering arguments all of the legitimacy they have never deserved and all in the interest of politics. Make no mistake about it this is just a political game of cover your ass. Its the same political game that gave us that shitty assed FISA bill last year so as to not "hurt Democratic chances in the election". Now that we have a damn near filibuster proof Senate and the Presidency and the House by a wide margin this muthafucka still doesn't have the balls to do the right thing instead of the most politically correct thing. If there are any Democrats who disagree with Harry Reid I hope they ring the bell loud and often and hopefully someone could challenge his dumb ass for the Majority Leader's seat. What fucking difference does it make to elect Democrats if at the first sign of Republicans attacking they fold like cheap lawn chairs?

Fucking unbelievable.


(h/t gunny)