Feinstein Censure Killed Without a Vote

The California Democratic Party killed without a vote the resolution to censure Senator Feinstein Saturday night in a crowded committee room, just a stone's throw from Disneyland. The destiny of the censure resolution was clear from the outset. Because the resolution had been submitted within 10 days of the meeting, it was on the agenda of the resolutions committee as a "late" resolution (because Senator Feinstein's most recent actions occurred in that timeframe). The rules state that if any one member of the committee objects to a specific late resolution, that resolution is dead; it is not heard, not voted upon and not considered in any way.

When the resolution was brought up late in the session, the Party's senior advisor and long time chief spokesperson, Bob Mulholland, stood and shouted from the side of the room, "Object, and object!" There were other shouts from the room as committee members joined in. Committee Co-Chair John Hanna objected and then others objected and then, as if to make sure that we got the point, everyone who wanted to join the chorus of objections demanded that their objections be counted, too. It was a sort of pile on moment, in which one veto simply would not do. It all happened within about a minute.

Senator Feinstein's best friend, campaign chair and DNC member, Roz Wyman, had sat in the room all day, just a few feet from me. When all of the objecting was over, Bob Mulholland came over to her for a quick chat, Roz stood and said, "I'm going home," she patted a few people on the back and off she went. Mission accomplished.

Curiously, the next resolution but one, entitled "Defining 'Waterboarding' as torture and eliminating its practice by the U.S. government," met the same fate. Mr. Hanna objected to this resolution as well. The CDP refused to take a stand on the substance of a bill that Senator Feinstein herself has already signed on to support with Senator Kennedy.

While the censure resolution failed on procedural grounds, the movement succeeded in changing the entire conversation. As Brian Leubitz noted at Calitics, CDP Chair Art Torres addressed the plenary session of the executive board Saturday morning, extolling the long and virtuous record of Senator Feinstein, pleading against censure. The chairman said he had called the senator and told her that people were upset. Chairman Torres chose to frame the anger at the senator at only two specific (and odious) votes, ignoring the fact that this is part of a long term pattern of breaking ranks with other Democrats and voting to support President Bush. But Mr. Torres got the point. Without this impending threat, he would never have bothered to give this speech. We can only hope we had some impact on Senator Feinstein, which we'll know soon enough.

Obviously, we still have a lot of work to do. Friday's Guardian (UK), reporting on the censure movement said, "(CDP senior advisor and long time spokesman Bob Mulholland) blasted the bloggers and activists supporting the censure resolution as "fringe" and "pre-nursing home."

"The Democratic party's purpose is to remind armchair activists that the duty is to elect a Democrat to the White House so we can end the Iraq mess", he said. "Nothing should get in the way of that."

As the story moved around the room on Sunday, people became incensed. Mr. Mulholland waited until the 90-second procedural discussion about the censure resolution to physically block a video camera that had been recording the day's events. When asked to move, he would not. When later asked by several delegates to talk, he shouted out "you are all worse than Bush." This is how the CDP treats those who volunteer their time to work within the system to make change, rather than just bolting.

Any goodwill that Chairman Torres had engendered by addressing the censure resolution evaporated when the chairman's employee chose to stifle democracy and literally block out transparency. And still, the only discussion of the resolution was speech after speech against it, with no voice permitted to rise for it. The party officials had stated publicly in advance that the resolution would fail, but it did not. It was simply buried.

That said, let's take stock: Two weeks ago, people all over the country and especially in this state were angered and dejected because Senator Feinstein had, in quick succession, voted for an apparently morally bankrupt man for federal judge and then for judge Mukasey as attorney general. This followed on the heels of earlier votes that extended the rights of the federal government to spy on us without warrants. And the senator was signaling that she would vote to give retroactive immunity for such spying to telecom companies, which she may yet.

Thanks to very agile and determined grassroots organizers at some 40 Democratic Clubs and organizations in California and nationally, such as PDA and the Courage Campaign (of which I am founder and chair), along with our good friends at MoveOn.Org, more than 32,000 individuals signed a petition to support the censure resolution. This online petition carried enormous weight, making clear that this was not, as Mr. Mulholland insisted, a few "pre-nursing home" whack jobs. MoveOn steps up yet again.

Max Follmer's reporting at the Huffington Post forced party employees and consultants as well as senator Feinstein's staff, to respond. The Sacramento Bee's Shane Goldmacher, the UK's Guardian newspaper and the AP all filed stories. The blogs have covered this matter extensively, leading the way as usual.

We wanted the California Democratic Party to pass this resolution, but that's not the way it works. Even though Leninism is long dead, his democratic centralism rules the day in the party structures: we can disagree behind closed doors but once in public, we must follow party doctrine. We have to defend "our own" no matter what. The problem, of course, is that those who are not part of the system stop registering as Democrats. Today, approaching 20 percent [PDF] of registered voters in California are "decline to state" (not affiliated with a political party) because they increasingly see the parties as pale reflections of each other. People want honesty and transparency, they want to vote for people who will stand for principles and get stuff done, not just work to win an election.

We make our own leaders stronger when we tell them that we watch them as closely as we watch those who have led our country into its current state. In many ways, we owe it to ourselves, to Senator Feinstein and to the Democratic Party to hold all on our "side" to higher standards than those who overtly trample on America as the Bush administration has for seven years.

We had an impact this weekend. The "club" was breached and put in a public spotlight. People were made uncomfortable because they were watched. Some reacted to the openness literally with violence. I do not overestimate the effect of the combined actions that reframed the entire conference this weekend, but the path is clear. We will continue to hold our leaders and our party accountable. Transparency is the ultimate persuader. If voters can see clearly what is offered and what is delivered, then and only then do we have a chance for a sustainable democracy.

Comments

[JimR]

I am no fan of Feinstein and disagreed with her vote on Mukasey, but...

Now lawmakers are going to censure lawmakers simply for casting a vote, because it wasn't the vote they wanted? What's next, they won't let her sit at the same lunch table?

This Congress is PATHETIC.

[booker52]

Diane will be voted out of office if she keeps this up. And she should be for this.

[Kontessa]

Good commentary and great thread.
As for Feinstein, it has become crystal clear that she like so many other legislators is a Zionist first and loyal American second. Like so many other legislators who are absolutey insisting upon this disasterous blitzkreig and occupaton of Iraq and supporting the Republicans to the hilt in their imperial occupation of the Middle East ------ a strange war btw, there is Iraq with mega bases being built and the ultra fortified, largest embassy being built, all of that bulding quizzically proceeding nicely amidst what I can only imagine since we NEVER SEE ANY FILMS OR PICTURES of the holocaust we have wrought in Iraq ----- I think all she and her ilk care about America is that it needs to be preserved and maintained, only in order to exist as Israel's protector and bankroller.
Bush's murderous invasion of Iraq and the insane support he has received for it from the poweful Quilslings in our govt. has really opened my eyes. I was asleep before, now I know what it's really all about.
How sad that the Democratic Party has to swallow its principles and ethics, sell its soul out, let itself be blackmailed, in order to hang on to whatever influence it has left and that the alternative, the total domination of our country by the Republican fascists, is just too unbearable to even contemplate at this moment.

As for the Quislings, I am always amazed that these bloviating war mongers ALWAYS on the march to war never seem to have THEIR KIDS out on the front lines themselves, never..... how many kids does war fanatic Lieberman have? What are they doing with their sheltered little iives?

Not that the military gives a damn that we who hate, depise and loathe this war give a damn about what's happening to them in Iraq.

[mtlion2]

Since the Feinstein votes, I have dropped any money support to the Democratic party. I will only support Mov-on and groups that stand on freeing this country from inside Washington millionairs....

[Merg]

Well, this thread is winding down. I guess I think that Feinstein is now looking toward her retirement. I don't think she will run again since she will be about 80 years old in 2012 when her term ends. She is probably a bit concerned about her retirement coffers. $$$ and a bit about her legacy. Maybe she will behave a little bit like a DEM if we keep on her for the next 4 years so that her legacy isn't tarnished by a censure vote, but I think that is important for Rick Jacobs and others to continue to gather signatures for a censure petition to be presented at a future meetint of the CA Democratic Committee and for that committee to realize that the 32,000 signatures were gathered in ONLY ABOUT 3 DAYS. If there is more time, there could truley me a deluge of signatures for Censure, We will not allow Feinstein to line her retirement coffers with purchased votes at the expense of Constitutional law. We are watching and we are still preparing to block betrayals and investigate any thing that may hint at inappropropriate conflict of interest. Let's keep this petition drive alive and active, even if we wait to re-introduce it to the Committee.

[schmuckwithearlaps]

Here we go again. The neo-perfectionists fighting hard to assure another four more years of right wing terrorism in Washington because no flesh and blood Democrat is perfect enough.
Mr. Jacobs mentions Lenin. Very appropriate, because Lenin and his crew rejected anyone who displayed the imperfection of not accepting Lenin's brand of socialism, and the end result was Stalin and twenty million dead in the fields and the camps. We are putting hundreds of millions of Americans at terrible risk by assuring four more years of right wing horror because of our inability to create a consensus. Tearing down good people, is, of course, easier than building a consensus, and liberals are, at the moment, looking rather lazy.

[Christo2020]

What a shame. I signed the circular to have her censured. I lived in San Francisco during her tenure as supervisor, and then when she became mayor. So I've watched her for years (actually-decades), and I've seen her evolve from a caring and progressive liberal, to nothing more than a Joseph Lieberman wannabe!

The fact the vote to censure was blocked really doesn't matter. The voters in California are tired of her, and she will not be re-elected...which is good!

[TXfemmom]

I sent the California Democratic Party and Holland an e-mail telling them that they were wrong...this woman is thoroughly detested by Democrats and many Independents because of the votes she has passed.

She is helping her war profiteering husband, Bush, Cheney, the neocons and AIPAC, to the detriment of this country and the slut needs to either shut up and vote like a Democrat or end up in prison along with Bush, Cheney, and their henchment.

[Lemeritus]

I happened to catch Bob Mulholland on the radio this afternoon (K-Talk in L.A.) The man is a pol to the soles of his Gucci loafers, but -- hey! -- that's what he gets paid to do. It was good to hear several callers try to take him to task regarding the disconnect between so many in the Democratic base and Democratic 'leadership'.

Slippery as they come was Mr. Mulholland -- the clear message being 'leadership' is all about winning elections. Period. And since -- for liberals -- the Democratic Party is the only game in town, there doesn't seem to be much concern about the dissatisfaction expressed so often here.

Interesting point, however.... After doing the standard two-step around the impeachment issue, Mulholland indicated that if impeachment was pressed and did not prevail, the Bush administration would be exonerated for all time. Does anyone know whether a failed impeachment would discharge Bush/Cheney from any further punishment?

[Dantheman99]

>"The Democratic party's purpose is to remind
>armchair activists that the duty is to elect a
>Democrat to the White House so we can end the
>Iraq mess", he said. "Nothing should get in
>the way of that."

The sheer gall and nerve of that statement is breathtaking and outrageous.

If the Democrats won't use the Congressional powers of defunding and filibustering themselves to end the war, and if Hillary won't commit to withdrawing the troops, just what is a Democrat in the White House going to do again?

Oh, that's right. Triangulate against the base while making corporate campaign contributors happy, just like Clinton I, and just like any of the other establishment Democrats will do.

[afgail]

The threat of censure scared Feinstein. So much so that she bailed out of her stated position to support retroactive immunity for the telecom CEO's. These are the guys who let the Bush adminstration use of their networks to spy on Americans. The Senate Judiciary Committee of which Feinstein is a member reported out the bill sans her proposed retroactive immunity provisions. Hurray for hardball politics - Mulholland not withstanding.

[chouwalker]

"Armchair activists"? Don't we usually just call those citizens or voters? The arrogance is amazing.

Politicians who ignore the people do so at their own peril. We are watching, we care, we want transparency, we want principled leaders, and we vote.

I don't care if you're a democrat or not, if you're a rubber stamp for Bush you're not representing my interests and you've lost my vote.

[globalcitizenlinda]

About time that the Democratic Party faithful put the spot-light on these Bush-lite Democrats who stand in the war of progress on the fundamental issues of civil rights, war, poverty.

Some long-term serving members of Democratic Caucus seem to think that they don't owe their constituents a vote on principal.

These Dynasty-Democrats are the ones who make the congress ineffective

[rabun666]

The State of Calif., has a recall process and it should be tested with Feinstein to determine whether it's applicable to those elected to federal offices, Senators, the only two in the state. It's obvious that Feinstein is corrupt and is bribed for her Bush votes.

[KRANKY]

I disagree with those that say we should give up and let the party potentates win. That is a truly defeatist attitude.
What is needed is MORE involvement.
I sit on our county central committee, and was the one that introduced the resolution for censure. Even though it was not voted on, I am sure that the message was communicated. Being an activist, one has to be ACTIVE!
I am also a DNC member.
You want these porch climbing pols to NOT listen? Abdicate, go Green, tell them you have NO influence.
You want them to pay attention? It does not take much. In some of the smaller counties, a faction of 20 committed souls could take over the party structure. It is usually quite easy to do.