Bush Indictment in Vermont

[mkemse]

CHICAGO - A longtime Republican district fell to the Democrats Saturday when a scientist snatched former House Speaker Dennis Hastert's congressional seat in a closely watched special election.

Democrat Bill Foster won 52 percent of the vote compared to 48 percent for Republican Jim Oberweis. With 564 of 568 precincts reporting, Foster had 50,947 votes to Oberweis' 46,125.

Foster's special election win means he will fill the remainder of Hastert's term, which ends in January. The two will square off again in November, for a new, full term.

The 66-year-old Hastert, who lost his powerful post as speaker when Democrats took control of Congress, resigned late last year.

The race between Foster and Oberweis spawned a contentious campaign that saw both men turn to high-profile supporters to help sway voters in the longtime GOP district.

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama made a TV ad praising Foster; Oberweis had fundraising help from the apparent Republican nominee, John McCain, and Hastert's backing.

"It is a stunning rejection of the Bush Administration, its Republican allies, and presidential nominee John McCain," said Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Chris Van Hollen in a statement.

The district will have a rookie congressmen after years of enjoying Hastert's clout.

During his 21 years in Washington, Hastert funneled millions of dollars to the district that stretches from Chicago's far western suburbs to almost the Mississippi River.

Hastert's is one of three open seats in Illinois this year because of GOP retirements.

Reps. Jerry Weller, who represents a district from the suburban sprawl south of Chicago to the farmland of central Illinois, and Ray LaHood of Peoria are also stepping down. Democrats' chances to pick up one of those seats improved when the Republican nominee to replace Weller dropped out of the race.

Besides poking at each other with negative TV ads, Foster and Oberweis have clashed on issues from immigration and health care to the Iraq war.

During a recent TV appearance, Foster said he would be a "good vote in Congress to change President Bush's policy" on Iraq. Oberweis contended the troop surge there was working, saying: "Things are getting better in Iraq."

Oberweis also has blasted Foster for being a proponent of big government because Foster says he wants to move toward universal health care. Foster claims Oberweis' approach — he favors tax incentives to help people buy their own insurance — only works for people who are "healthy and wealthy."

I REST MY CASE THIS IS FACT NOT THEORY

[John56{vg}]

Wmrs,

Your smug rudeness to anyone who disagrees with you and then then whining when you think you have been treated ruly is kinda funny, and, as THorne has stated, EXACTLY from the neo-con pundits' and apologists' playbook. YOU are the one spouting the party line.

The FACTS are that this president has done the most to damage the constitution of anyone in the history of the presidency. He has unilaterally ordained himself OUT of the system of Checks and Balances in the Constitution. He has eliminated the Writ of Habeas Corpus the law of the land for Hundreds of years in several countries.

He has instituted signing statements that completely counter the intent of the Congress' constitutionally given job of writing laws.

He is trying to make of himself a petty dictator. He has lied and continues to lie about everything under the sun.

His surge IS NOT working as planned. There are some areas of Iraq that are safer, but the country is still fighting an occupying force, the U.S.! American soldiers, wonderful men and women. are still dying for George Bush's war. Iraq had NOTHING to do with 9/11 and Afghansistan is falling apart again, becasue Bush wants to fight a losing battle for oil in Iraq.

And you are insulting mkemse and Thorne and me and then whining when we respond to your STILL baseless claim.

Your ideas, which are NOT common knowledge and in fact are contrary to common knowledge, are still not based on ANYTHING but that you have sais them. And then said something about the fact that Liberalism and Communism is based on the same logic tstructure, sorry but this doesn NOT make senses.

If you CAN substantiate or explain your ideas without turning it on your detractors to do your work for you, maybe I could debate you. Without and with just smug observations and insults, I can do neither.

I am a journalist. I think, I research and I study history, unlike the neo-cons I don't rewrite history. I would like to respectfully ask you to give me SOMEATHING to work with. If you don't have that, which I have to conclude is the case, then no one can debate you. Which, I feel, is what you want. You don't want to be intelligently debated because you have NOTHING to support your positions.

[Alex Bragi]

Politics is always going to be a volatile topic. I'm not sure there's ever a right or wrong, or black and white, just differing opinions. It's all too often all too easy to say, or in this case post, something abrasive only later to wish you'd expressed your opinion differently.

Let's close this thread for 24 hours and take some time to cool off. Ok?