We do not need to work with the Democratic party. They need to work with us. This is not about making a compromise that everyone can live with. This is about ending the nightmare of the Bush administration NOW. The Democrats on Capitol Hill, to borrow and repurpose a phrase, are either with us or they're against us.

End the occupation of Iraq. Impeach the Bush Administration. Aggressively pursue a national sustainable energy policy (wind and solar, not nukes or liquid coal). Leave the WTO. Simple, obvious stuff, IMO.

NMBill

I spent about a month or two checking out and participating over at mydd. After several reads and posts, I came to a very similar conclusion.

Overt willingness for main edops to support(pander, give favor to?) Blue-dogs, Obama (at least optimistically), and Edwards. Mydd mission appears to focus on new media technology and its use to advocate and push "liberal" agendas into the political landscape. Political operatives intent on swaying public. Even if that means backing blue dogs. interacts w/kos -networks. I came out of there wondering what the hell liberal and progressive meant to them. I don't know if that is really to important. I don't see social change as much as technology change? I mainly see it as a left-leaning, upstart- media network intended to supplant FOX and broadcast in general.

They be lobbying in DC. There's a reason they make the Hill, TAP, and get the politicians. Politicians might assume mydd is reaching progressives maybe because mydd is convincing when they label themselves progressive., "direct democracy(!)" but no Mike Gravel? Mydd forums mock direct democracy advocate Mike Gravel. (Then again Gravel is a former chairman of AdTI)

gyptian said: "experts at stringing along desperate progressives and paleo-liberals into believing that they really support that constituency's issues and beliefs You couldnt have said this better. !!!"

I agree too!

If anyone is wondering what a Clinton Presidency would be like look no further than Pelosi.

Hmm...Let's see. Unbelievable quotes from discredited sources:

"I'm from the IRS and I'm here to help."

"Fox News--fair and balanced"

"I'm no crook"--Richard Nixon

"I'm Nancy Pelosi and I'm on the Left's side"

The Poet feels a song coming on:

With apologies to bob Dylan I present:

Nancy's Song
It ain't no use to sit and wonder why, babe
It don't matter, anyhow
An' it ain't no use to sit and wonder why, babe
If you don't know by now
When your rooster crows at election's dawn
Look out your window and we'll be gone
You're the reason we're trav'lin' on
Don't think twice, it's all right

It ain't no use in turnin' on your light, babe
That light we never knowed
An' it ain't no use in turnin' on your light, babe
We're on the dark side of the road
Still we wish there was somethin' you would do or say
To try and change your mind and not stray
But you never did too much listenin' anyway
So don't think twice, it's all right

It ain't no use in callin' out our names, gal
Like you never did before
It ain't no use in callin' out our names, gal
We can't hear you any more
We're a-thinkin' and a-wond'rin' all the way down the road
We once trusted a woman, a progressive we were told
We gave you our hearts but you sold out your soul
But don't think twice, it's all right

We're walkin' down that long, lonesome road, babe
Where we're bound, we can't tell
But goodbye's too good a word, gal
So we'll just say fare thee well
We ain't sayin' you treated us unkind
You could have done better but we don't mind
You just kinda wasted our precious time
But don't think twice, it's all right

With friends like these...

Great song, Poet.

And by the Way, Nancy, we all know what you mean when you say universal health care. And it's not single payer. It's meant to put a smile on the faces of insurance CEOs.

MEDICARE FOR ALL

Insurance companies: get your bean counters out of our healthcare decisions and your hands out of our wallets! Please explain why we should spend 30% of our healthcare dollars on you, and force our healthcare providers to spend 20% of their earnings justifying their charges to you? Medicare For All can do all this for less than 3% of our healthcare dollars without denying treatment or cherrypicking patients. You're ruining our economy and our lives. So get out. And Nancy, you should be ahamed of yourself for pandering to these people instead of the voters you're supposed to represent.

Ms. Pelosi, I'll believe it when I see it. Talk is cheap. Actions speak louder than words. Put your money where ........well, you get it.

YAWN. Pelosi used all her political capital months ago. She is lame.

Yes.. Pelosi may be too late in waving her wrinkled flag. The idea is to step up and take action when it is needed. She balked at the 'I' word for King George and then she balked at stepping in and being a voice to stop the war ASAP. They all just signed away 'hope' when it was right in front of their faces. Now, after the fact, the democrats are getting brave again. Has a familiar ring to it doesn't it?

Bullshit!

Words don't count. Actions count. We've seen Pelosi's actions. She promised right after the last election she'd deliver the war funding uncut and with no strings attached, and she's delivered on her promise to the power brokers. She promised before last election she'd help protect Bush and keep him in office and make sure there was no impeachment, and she's delivering on that promise.

From her actions, I know exactly who's side Pelosi is on.

The best thing we can do to 'alter the political climate' would be to kick all the Congressional Democrats the heck out of office and replace them with Greens and Independents. The Democrats are not the solution to the problem. The Democrats are the problem.

To some of the comments above ...

-- we already know what a Clinton presidency would look like. We had 8 years of it. Been there, done that, had a t-shirt, but sold it at a yard sale years ago.

A Clinton presidency means trade deals that favor corporations and send our jobs overseas. It means 'welfare reform', and 'the era of big government is over.' It means illegal wars overseas, and supporting and funding right-wing terrorists (see plan Colombia). It means passing 'anti-terror' legislation when bad wiring makes an airplane blow up. It means 'logging riders' that give the logging companies the rights to destroy our forests. It means a 'jobless recovery'. It means forget about campaign finance reform because they'll be hustling dollars in exchange for sleepovers in the Lincoln bedroom. And on and on and on. My reaction to the last Clinton presidency was to vote for Nader in 2000. I'm sure not in any hurry for a second.

And ... 'Clinton liberal' is an oxymoron.

Sorry to keep adding comments, but this stuff is just too funny ...

"'We will have legislation that will change the mission in Iraq from engaging in combat to training the Iraqi troops, to fighting terrorists and also to protect our forces and our diplomats there and to protect our interest in the region,' Pelosi said."

BTW, that's exactly what Bush says the 'mission' is in Iraq today. Even when she's trying to suck up to 'the left', she's still backing Bush 100%!

Nothing short of a revolution or mass secession can help us now. Bush is the 2nd worst president ever, Lincoln is the absolute worst for not letting the confederacy/Jesusland go its own way. Slavery was on its way out and wouldn't have lasted another 20 to 30 years at most. An independent "Yankeeland" would have been very similar to Canada or western Europe politically and culturally. The Confederate States of America would have been somewhere between Yankeeland and Mexico, but probably closer to Mexico culturally/economically and in terms of how powerful the state is.

".... Pelosi's aides believe that they have successfully changed the debate on the war in Iraq and that the public's frustration with the course of the war has provided an opening to be more confrontational with Bush and to pursue tougher measures to end the war."

The solution is simple. If they don't cooperate, file criminal charges against them! Is there not sufficient evidence among whistleblowers to put these people in jail?

How much longer do the citizens of this country have to endure this political game-playing before something constructive is accomplished to benefit "everyone" and not just the minority elitists who control the money?

The G.W. Bush administration has made Richard Nixon's crew look like boyscouts!......and worst of all, Congress has done nothing to stop this insanity.

Let me also point out (while I'm expressing my outrage) that under the Nixon administration, this country was fiscally solvent!

Enough said.

"..protect our interest..." That means military.

Manifest Destiny: remember that terms from 8th grade history? The military has always played a role in opening markets, and enabling theft of resources.

NP is all talk. Just another politician who got bit by the Gospel according to BushCo and saw the light.

Put impeachment front and center and then tell us that the dems will not condon the stealing of Iraqi oil which should equal bringing all the troops home soonest!Turn back the assaults on the Constitution then I think we can talk.Tony

Each of the comments above is an indication that CommonDreams IS the home of the progressive community. The disgust with Pelosi's policies is universal here. That is inspiring! I'd add only one piece. The article says, ". . . she is constrained by a diverse caucus, the inability to muster 60 votes in the Senate to pass legislation . . . "

As is typical of most status quo, corporate Democrats, she will not take a stand against such a non-democratic model as a disproportionate Senate with such rules that 41 Senators representing mostly small states (and as little as 25 percent of the population) can block the democratic wishes of the majority of the American people. The progressive platforms of The Green Party of the United States, of Kucinich, of Nader, and of many of the state progressive caucuses in the state Democratic Parties advocate proportional representation. If California with nearly 40 million had the same representation as Wyoming in the Senate (with 500,000 people), it would have 160 senators. She and other corporate Democrats like her won't challenge such electoral nonsense, just like they won't impeach; won't call the occupation an occupation; won't call the Iraq invasion a crime (not a "mistake"); won't call for war crimes trials for Bush, Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld and the others who destroyed that nation; won't advocate REAL universal health care; and, in fact, won't advocate for ANY major progressive position from the progressive platform. So the commenters above are right: she has words of support for progressives, but she is not one of us. To use the superb language in Charles Derber's book, Hidden Power, she is a fervent, dedicated supporter of the third corporate regime--in contrast to Kucinich and Gravel, who on domestic, foreign and electoral policies, are advocates of a new progressive regime. The contrast could not be more clear. But I say what we readers at the "Home of the (True) Progressive Community" already know. Bravo to the commenters above! You all give me great hope.

i love C-D, but i think articles like this reflect their basic orientation.
ALL of you are pissed to the hilt at pelosi & co.
www.wsws.org

"We will have legislation that will change the mission in Iraq from engaging in combat to training the Iraqi troops, to fighting terrorists and also to protect our forces and our diplomats there and to protect our interest in the region," Pelosi said.

THERE'S the problem right there. The United States have NO legitimate interests in the region. You Americans seem to think the world is yours for the taking. You've depleted your own resources so you're after everyone else's... I'm sure Iraq would be happy to sell you oil on the global market... instead you need to take over their country to let your bloodthirsty companies rape the country.

The #1 problem in this world is the UNITED STATES. Evil, greedy, stupid and self-rightous.

There's no real difference between your two parties... just varying degrees of evil. The US has NEVER been the "Shining city on the hill"... Your country was founded on blood and has demanded it ever since. So you can't say you've lost your way... you never were on the right path in the first place!

Pelocchio
http://la.indymedia.org/news/2007/05/199825.php

B.ring
U.S.
S.oldiers
H.ome!

Action, Nancy, action.

Re: Mike Gravel and his work with the AdTI, there is nothing sinister there. Gregory Fossedal wrote the book on the Swiss practice of direct democracy (all of our US ballot initiative laws were copied from the Swiss around the turn of the century). In the last 15 or more years of effort which Mike has put into empowering the people with the ability to participate directly in making the laws which govern our lives, www.nationalinitiative.org, Greg and Mike had many worthwhile opportunities to work together to promote direct democracy.

from Google: AdTI - Alexis de Tocqueville Institution, information on French author and statesman Alexis de Tocqueville, research on the spread and perfection of democracy.
www.adti.net/

Re: Impeachment off the table

Which theory recommends telling people in advance that they will not be held accountable?

I feel like we're being governed by 5-year olds.

Madame Pelosi is in charge of the brothel and caters to special interests in the middle...
and of course she has favorite customers like W.

I never liked her opinion of Hugo Chavez when she descibed him as a thug for calling our thug of a president the devil...non of these miserable politicians have a sense of humor nor ever exhibit it if they do...but they are awfully good at laughing at the people of this country.

When Pelosi could hardly wait to announce that impeachment was "off the table" last November, blog comments by progressive Democrats claimed that this was a shrewd and canny rope-a-dope strategy. What she really meant, it was suggested, was that impeachment was off the table "for now"; once the various Democratic committee chairmen promptly and aggressively conducted hearings to probe into the various crimes committed by the Executive Branch cabal, impeachment would be returned to the table as the centerpiece.

I wanted to believe, but I had my doubts. The doubts were confirmed when the Democrats caved on the Iraq supplemental funding issue. They are indeed the Enabling Party, the Republican Lite Party, or at best the Trying Party (i.e. they're always trying their best to do the right thing, but they're simply outgunned and outmanned).

Pelosi and Reid, and the so-called "top tier" of Democratic candidates, are no more anti-war that Bush and Blair. They are, however, experts at stringing along desperate progressives and paleo-liberals into believing that they really support that constituency's issues and beliefs. They don't. They are wealthy elitists, and pro-Zionist to boot. After 2006, this disaffected independent isn't taking the bait again.

As someone once said: "There's an old saying in Tennessee. I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee, that says: 'Fool me once... shame on... [pause] Shame on you... [pause] If fooled, you can't get fooled again.'"

Hello Nancy. Ummm, I have been around for a while and I remember what someone told me when I was young and I'd like to share it with you.

"Action speaks louder than words"

So I have one thing to say to you at this time when you continue to do things that will shorten your career.

Stop talking, shut up and do something! These are the times when great Americans find a place in history. So what's it gonna be speaker, fame or mediocrity?

The system is so corrupted by big business dollars, and money from foreign governments looking to by support for their repressive regime, it is hard to imagine any meaningful change coming out of the national government. They are all bought and paid for. The problem is capitalism as socio-political system. See Amy Goodman's interview with Ken Silverstein regarding the power of lobing firms, this is the perfect example of why capitalism is a miserable failure as a socio-political system.

I love the bit about where Pelosi is quoted as saying "This is urgent … the special interests are entrenched,". That is rich, does she realy thik we don't know who keeps her in power? It certainly is not the democratic base in her own district.

Pelosi is a centrist at best, and se is pandering to the "left" whatever that is. If it were up to me I would lace the water coolers in congress and the senate with some realy potent LSD.

The next 2 years are going to be quite telling.

"experts at stringing along desperate progressives and paleo-liberals into believing that they really support that constituency's issues and beliefs."

You couldnt have said this better !!!

The human tragedy is this: our leadership and mainstream America are incapable of looking ahead to the future to realize what is essential to our well-being, and too blind to the past where history has already shown consistently what happens when we act like we are doing now. So the war will continue, sowing the seeds for the next war.

I'm not saying its easy to make a change, but we first have to make the change in our minds before we can make the change in our actions.

I voted for Nader the last two elections (switched temporarily to Kucinich for the last primary) but mostly I have to write off the democratic party (with few exception like Rep. Barbara Lee and Rep. Lynn Woolsey).

I am looking for a candidate whose first allegiance is to the common good.

so it goes,
AG

http://www.notonemore.us/staythecourse.htm - Bush Stays the Course

Lots of nice talk; little, if any, action. Pelosi sold us out when she took impeachment off the table. Her Democrats have squandered the opportunity to bring ab out change. They blew it. In the future, my vote will go elsewhere because of the failure of the congress she leads.

I agree. If she is so hot to show her sympathy for the left how about putting impeachment back ON the table. Is it only neocons who can change course, and only for the worst purposes?

Nice words and sentiments, but let's see some follow through Pelosi. We're ready, and waiting, for the change that you're advertising.

Earthian, Thank you a butt load for having the ability to tell it like it is...and not be afraid to do so. I am 63 yoa and it shames me to think that in just a few years my granddaughter will be old enough to say, "Pop, what did you do to help stop the assault on democracy in the early 2000s? My history book at school says there were plenty of warnings but no one seemed to care. Why was the president & vice-president called 'Little Caligula and Snarly'? And why didn't someone do something to stop what must have been an unconstitutional administration?" I don't know if I can dream up an answer in 15 years.

"'We will have legislation that will change the mission in Iraq from engaging in combat to training the Iraqi troops, to fighting terrorists and also to protect our forces and our diplomats there and to protect our interest in the region,' Pelosi said."

In other words: They will continue to keep American forces in Iraq indefinitely. These korporatists in Democratic clothing are SICKENING, and are exactly why We The People are sick of them.

DEADlines (not non-binding "timelines") are what our troops are on! IS. SHE. SCHIZOPHRENIC? Madam Lallapeloser's neither talked the talk nor walked the walk. Stop Bush wars NOW; put IMPEACHMENT back on the table YESTERDAY!

Looks like she's smoking a fattie

TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE, PELOSI. YOU HAD YOUR CHANCE AND BLEW IT. RESIGN. YOU'RE A SAMPLE OF WHAT WE'D GET IF HILLARY GETS IN. RESIGN.

I have some questions.

Do the Democrats have the necessary votes to override a president's veto?

Has anyone here ever carefully studied Nancy Pelosi's voting record and or read what she really says on many important issues, and why at times she has to speak most carefully so as not to show her hand, until it is the right time to lay the cards on the table?

Did anyone consider that although someone may say, "Such and such, is not on the table" and be pissed hearing it, but not consider that the time to prepare the goose and set the table would be at an appropriate time in the future?

It takes time to line up ducks in DC. Lots of wind there.

I wonder, wonder if we will ever all pull together? We'll see!

She NEEDS to smoke a fattie. Or drop some good acid (if she can find some). She definitely needs her Doors of Perception cleansed, that's for sure.

--More likely, she's drinking RepubliKKKan Special Reserve Fascist Kool-Aid...

Pelosi was never part of the progressive Left. She was always and is a Clinton liberal and says all the things the Left wants to hear ... in other words a consummate politician. Her heart may be in the right place but her convictions are not. If she wasnt playing politics she could easily bring Congress to a screeching halt and end funding to the war.

Yeah, right, Nancy. Prove it.

I went to "MyDD.com" and searched for the name "Gravel" and "Kucinich" and it's nowhere to be found. For that matter I can't find Pelosi. So I looked all over this site and sure enough alternative view are not there!

So this is where Pelosi like to hang out. Yes they start to get worried when their approval rating goes below 30%, then it's time for a media blitz to prop themselves back up.

How about a publicly funded "radio free Democrats" to get the truth out about how good democrats really are? Except; Kucinich and Gravel aren't invited because they will ruin it for everybody else.

Don't get exited people; nothing has changed!

OK, so how about a good faith offering? Kill the 'Secret' trade deal. You know the one, crafted behind closed doors so the public couldn't see Rahm and Rangel kissing lil' George's behind. Kill it dead - then we can talk about your liberal credentials.

BuyMoreAmmo, you have one thing wrong in your post. The history books are going to say G.W.Bush was a courageus President who led our Country in liberating Iraq. A liberation that brought Democracy like we have done all over the World (except Cuba and some other stubborn assholes-wont say this but the message is there)as God meant our Wonderful, charitable and loving Country to do.
This is how the history books will read this episode of insanity as they have read the insanities of the past.
Your granddaughter probably will agree since "thats what my teacher said" and you wil be seen as a testie old curmudgeon.

elmysterio--You are 100% correct. But if we want to alter the future by changing the current directional course, we cannot dwell of past events too much.

As for Pelosi, she continues to NOT uphold and defend the Constitution from all enemies foreign and DOMESTIC which she swore an oath to do before congress and the public, which makes her a liar before congress--a felony. The same is true about every congresscritter not supproting Kucinich's bill for impeachment. Thus the Felonious Government I mentioned a few days back.

The time for words has passed. Action is not required. July 4 is Impeachment Day for Independence.

Poet, great song, teared me up. put it to music and sing below pelosi's window in 'Frisco

COMarc, the tautology also made me keel over in laughter.

Earthian, tight summary of main progressive platform.

Evelyn Smith is worth a second thought. Pelosi may be a better poker player than many of us who are honest but not cunning enough to survive in that pool of sharks. Though RichM's argument is hard to gainsay - - impeachment may have been tough first off, but the war funding stoppage didn't need any poker.

Mike I like. Kucinich has a good heart, but he is no Bobby Kennedy. There are almost no minorities participating on this blog as the idiom, the cultural clues and language sense reveal, and the same problem with Kucinich, Nader and others. They are not reaching out to minorities and working to form the old FDR coalition. Without monorities, the progressive white working class and intellectual community that is represented here in droves, but nationally is less than half the white population in the country is not going to win with greens. dems may be bad, but monorities are scared shitless, unlike you folk, by the feral right wing whites. They need a big tent and protection from Bush's KKK which will spare you but gas them.

I don't want to introduce race here, but that's reality. a true FDR coalition should be the goal. Find a white candidate somehow like FDR, and at this moment in history you can obliterate the Rethugs for 50 years.

Aymon

"We will have legislation that will change the mission in Iraq from engaging in combat to...

.... protect our interest in the region.

Ahhh, now I see the hang up.

La de da. The low regard for Congress is due to its wimpish action on Iraq - - but also to its addiction to pork, its unwillingness to adopt tough ethics rules, its craven allegiance to corporate lobbyists, its timidity in confronting a power-mad administration, and its general inability to forge ahead on combating our serious national and world problems. The public wants action, Nancy, not pious words.

In 2002 Congress authorized funding specifically for military action against the Afghan Taliban regime and the terrorists it harbored. President George W Bush diverted $700 million of that funding for preparing his illegal attack on Iraq. In other words, the President of the United states stole $700 million from US taxpayers and spent it on an unauthorized military action. Theft of $700 million from the American people qualifies as a misdemeanor, and makes the President a criminal. The Constitutionally-mandated remedy is removal of this criminal from public office, and the method is impeachment. If Pelosi and the Democrats value this Republic and hope to pull it back from the abyss it has been pushed into by the criminals in our highest offices, they'd start impeachment proceedings now. I think the majority of Americans will back them on this, and the Dems will shed the "spineless" image the opposition, and many of its drifting supporters, feel currently defines the Democratic Party. Impeachment now would make disenchanted citizens forget about the Democrats's shameful acquiescence to the President on the most recent Iraq War Supplementary Spending Bill. Cleansing the Executive will cleanse the country and start the healing. The country needs the opposition to be strong and impeach now.

Pelosi one of us? That is like saying Bush is on the side of the Iraq people. Pelosi promised high ethical standards and then turned around to endorse Murtha of ABSCAM disrepute. SHe promised action on climate change and gave us a very weak CAFE standard Bill of 35MPG. Pelosi runs her empty mouth about a wage for the poor and turns around an enacts another 4K raise for her and her bought and paid for friends.

70% of the American people despise these scum in congress. Piss on pelosi.