Democrats recognize a good line

Democrats recognize a good line
Candidates recycle campaign material
By Glen Johnson, Globe Staff, 8/17/2003

MASON CITY, Iowa -- Senator Joseph I. Lieberman was so angry that the White House had blocked union protection for members of the new Homeland Security Department that he let President Bush have it last week as he sat beside his rivals for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination.

"Did anybody ask the firefighters and the police officers, all of whom were union members, whether they thought once about that before they went into those burning buildings on Sept. 11 and risked their lives, whether they were going to choose between the unions and security? No way!" the Connecticut senator said in Philadelphia, during a candidate forum arranged by the Sheet Metal Workers International Association.

A few minutes later, Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts expressed similar outrage.

"This president is so quick to give speeches about the heroes of New York City," Kerry said. "Well, I look forward to reminding him that every single one of those heroes that went up those stairs and gave their lives so that someone else might live was a member of organized labor."

To the audience, it may have sounded like Kerry was lifting from Lieberman, but in reality, it was Lieberman who was clipping from Kerry.

more........................

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2003/08/17/democrats_recognize_a_good_line

Johnson doesn't get around to discussing the substance of the argument.

The press is trying to stir up this stupid stuff. I'm glad to see that the candidates are laughing it off. :-)

But if all of the candidates are aware of the situation and laughing it off, then I guess I'll do the same.

If anything Lieberman, an author of the the Homeland Security Bill, stole the idea from Kerry.

No fan of Joe here, but I do remember the controversy when W wanted the right to hire and fire at will and speeches made at the time that "unions are like terrorists". It was because he needed to change the bill as it existed.
I don't know/care much wich of the two said it first, I am glad it's said and it gets circulated , albeit in a superficial, horserace script. It is important, it's more than "a good line"

and are all getting on the same page.

and when they're on the same page, the press says they're stealing each other's lines.

Oh, well. It's the whores. I guess I'll "lighten up" like this reporter suggests in his answer to my email:



We write plenty about substance. You can take everything in a negative
light or, like the candidates did in the interviews, lighten up once in a
while.

Glen

Gee, he said practically that same thing to me when I took the Globe to task on the lack of followup on the AWOL president and on its overfocus on Kerry's ethnicity.

Guess everything is just a big joke to ol' Glen.

but where do you really stand?

I had to look this up, since the stupid Boston Globe article didn't think it was important to say what the fuck the dems were even talking about.

http://www.abc.org/newsline/august022002/davisbaconnl02.html

<snip>

The Senate Government Affairs Committee July 25 approved legislation that would expand the Davis-Bacon Act to apply to all projects financed in whole or in part by the newly established Department of Homeland Security. ABC strongly opposes the provision, included in Sen. Joe Lieberman's (D-Conn.) substitute amendment to the National Homeland Security and Combating Terrorism Act of 2002 (S. 2452).

The legislation would call for an enormous expansion of the Davis-Bacon Act, and would require Davis-Bacon to cover everything from disaster relief funds to preparedness grants.

more...