Tuesday, March 27, 2007

 

The Truth About Tort Reform?

Since the State is looking to throw several of my clients in jail this morning, I will be brief.

It appears that the Pacific Research Institute is going to unveil a comprehensive study on the costs of the legal system today called "Jackpot Justice." The focus of the study is on civil tort remedies.

No doubt that most trial lawyers will not like the results, but I can't comment further because (as I stated) I have to hotfoot it to court.

I'll try to have more later.

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Monday, March 26, 2007

 

Thompson Surging; "Evangelicals for Romney" Skewered

Lots of midday political news related to the 2008 race.

First, Fred Thompson is simply on a roll, folks. I heard several distinct conversations at the courthouse today regarding Fred, and they ranged from politicos to average everyday citizens. All were positive, all knew that he was considering a run for the White House, and all seemed supportive (except die-hard Democratic lawyers, who, of course, will vote for the candidate most resembling Lenin).

And (note to A.C. - pay attention) it isn't just in Tennessee. Word today comes of a poll out of Iowa that shows Thompson in third, ahead of Governor Mitt Romney who has been in full-fledged campaign mode for well over a year. Also of interest is a straw poll out of Georgia that had Thompson beating all of the GOP candidates. I don't mean that Fred just won - I mean that he beat the totals of all of the other candidates combined.

Not bad for a guy who isn't even campaigning yet.

Second, it appears that Nancy French's website of choice, Evangelicals for Mitt, is being skewered due to its ties to those in the campaign. (I warned of this many moons ago, and anyone who didn't think that this wasn't going to surface had their head buried in the sand.) Check out the trail from Elephant Biz (run by Bill Hobbs, who has been more than fair to Romney - to the point where I thought Hobbs was jumping on the Romney bandwagon) to The American Spectator.

Nancy's husband, David French, a Harvard-trained attorney for the Christian group the Alliance Defense Fund, attempts to rebut the American Spectator piece. If you read David's piece carefully, you can start to see the holes in the story.

Bottom line: I like Nancy and David. They are great people, and the political process needs more like them. However, the ties to Romney's campaign are obvious. That isn't a crime or anything of the sort; it just makes the site another Astroturf effort at grassroots campaigning. The truth is that I don't know any evangelicals (outside of Nancy and David) who are supporting Governor Romney. (In fact, I don't know any supporting Guiliani or McCain, either, but there isn't an "Evangelicals for Rudy" site that I am aware of.)

And, David, your cries of implied bias by the author of the Spectator piece are silly. You threw stones at Thompson. Someone who likes Thompson threw them right back. He just happens to have a bigger audience than you, but that doesn't make his piece unfair or unpredictable.

Things are beginning to heat up - and I don't just mean the temperatures outside.

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Getting the Week Off on a Good Note

(Pun intended.)

I love my Sirius - best Christmas present that I received this year. Between using the receiver in my truck and in the office, I'm listening to more music than I have in a long, long time. The best thing about Sirius is that I am hearing new music all of the time, even if I do listen to the 90s, 80s, and Outlaw Country stations more than any others.

So what do I look forward to most of all? Right now it has to be The Killers' "Read My Mind." This is one of those songs that is like ones from a few years back; when it comes on and you just lose yourself in the song. (That's a good thing - until the officer flashes the blue lights and brings you back to reality. Luckily, I haven't had that happen in a long while.)

To top it all, I learn that one of the versions of the music video (see below) has an Elvis impersonator in it. It's almost too perfect...



No, I have no idea what the heck the green thing is, so don't ask.

Now that you've heard that song a few times, get out there and take on the work week! Millions of people stealing from Social Security Disability are depending on you!

UPDATE: Here are the lyrics for "Read My Mind":

On the corner of main street
Just tryin' to keep it in line
You say you wanna move on and
You say I'm falling behind

Can you read my mind?
Can you read my mind?

I never really gave up on
Breakin' out of this two-star town
I got the green light
I got a little fight
I'm gonna turn this thing around

Can you read my mind?
Can you read my mind?

The good old days, the honest man;
The restless heart, the Promised Land
A subtle kiss that no one sees;
A broken wrist and a big trapeze

Oh well I don't mind, you don't mind
Cause I don't shine if you don't shine
Before you go, can you read my mind?

It’s funny how you just break down
Waitin' on some sign
I pull up to the front of your driveway
With magic soakin' my spine

Can you read my mind?
Can you read my mind?

The teenage queen, the loaded gun;
The drop dead dream, the Chosen One
A southern drawl, a world unseen;
A city wall and a trampoline

Oh well I don't mind, you don't mind
Cause I don't shine if you don't shine
Before you go
Tell me what you find when you read my mind

Slippin’ in my faith until I fall
You never returned that call
Woman, open the door, don't let it sting
I wanna breathe that fire again

She said
Oh well I don't mind, you don't mind
Cause I don't shine if you don't shine

Put your back on me
Put your back on me
Put your back on me

The stars are blazing like rebel diamonds cut out of the sun
When you read my mind

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Feminist: Embrace Motherhood if You Feel You Should

An interesting article ran in the New York Times a week ago, but I didn't read it until this weekend. It's about Rebecca Walker, the daughter of Alice Walker of "The Color Purple" fame, and how she became a symbol of feminism but has flourished as a mother. Walker has even written a book about her views and experiences entitled "Baby Love: Choosing Motherhood After a Lifetime of Ambivalence."

Walker told the Times:

“I keep telling these women in college, ‘You need to plan having a baby like you plan your career if it’s something that you want,’ ” she said. “Because we haven’t been told that, this generation. And they’re shocked when I say that. I’m supposed to be like this feminist telling them, ‘Go achieve, go achieve.’ And I’m sitting there saying, ‘For me, having a baby has been the most transformational experience of my life.’ ”

It's an intriguing article, and I imagine that the book would be similarly stimulating. Perhaps it will make it on to my endless (or so it seems) reading list.

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Friday, March 23, 2007

 

Thompson Train Picking Up New Passengers

The "Draft Fred Thompson 2008" campaign is still gaining steam. There are now over 4,000 committed volunteers in all 50 states that are ready to give their all to make sure that Fred is the next President of the United States. The organizers believe that they may have as many as 10,000 volunteers signed-up soon.

Bumper sticker requests are pouring into Nashville at an astounding rate.

I have spoken to a few more people this week that are/were close to Fred, many of them former members of his staff. It seems to be split 50/50 on the issue of whether or not Fred will run or not. The interesting thing, though, is that those who think he will run are adamant, passionate about their position, while those who don't think he will run are reluctant to say that there is no way that Fred would run and tend to hedge their bets.

I've started to come around over the course of the past few weeks. I didn't think we'd be seeing Fred Thompson's name on the ballot in the primary - even if I longingly wanted it there - but I'm starting to believe that the likelihood of a Thompson candidacy is great.

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Killer Loss

With the unexplainable lack of timeouts, bizarre substitution pattern, and going away from a press that got you to this point, there is only one person to blame for what many will remember as the most painful loss in Tennessee basketball history:



But when you lose a 20-point lead on a neutral court...

A coach is supposed to control the tempo so that such a thing doesn't happen.

I love Bruce - we wouldn't be where we are without him and even with his shortcomings he is easily one of the best coaches in America - but this loss is hard to stomach. Several losses this year can directly be related to his inability to use timeouts to stop the runs of opposing teams. It's one of his only weaknesses, and it has been discussed ad nauseum on the Vol message boards this year.

The defense - well, it looked a bit like BuzzBall tonight.

I hope with all that is Big Orange that Chris Lofton comes back for his senior season, because this team could be special. While some will jump my case for saying this, this team will be better with Dane Bradshaw gone. Dane was a great player for UT last year and will always have a special place in the hearts of all Vol fans, but he was not so spectacular this year. A lot of his poor play could be contributed to his failing body (tendinitis in both shoulders), but opponents outscored UT more with Dane on the court than any other Vol player (think of a +/- stat like they have in hockey).

Yeah, this one's gonna hurt for a while. We've only made the "Sweet 16" four times. We've never made the Regional Final ("Elite Eight").

At least the Orange & White Game for UT football is only 8 days away...

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Wednesday, March 21, 2007

 

When Good Spin Goes Bad

I love that Chief Deputy Republican Whip Eric Cantor and his staff have made innovative efforts to take their case to the grassroots, including their reaching out to conservative blogs.

However, this is an example of when a good idea goes bad, resulting in evidence (which is probably faulty) that the staff might have too much free time on their hands:




My reaction? I laughed. I know I shouldn't have, but I did.

Cantor's staff probably tried very hard to produce this piece, but it just isn't very effective. I applaud their effort, but I can't say that same for the resulting video.

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Red-light Cameras Survive

Once again, the Tennessee House has failed to stand up to the Communist Republic of Knox County. Congratulations, inept House Members!

Nevertheless, I won't vote for any of the sitting council members - or the mayor - who oversaw this idiotic process. In fact, I will donate money to anyone who runs against Knoxville City Council incumbents - whether they be Democrats, Green Party, Constitutional Party, whomever - and pledges to void the red-light camera contract.

The system is ridiculous. Attorneys across Knox County are already developing strategies aimed at challenging the system. Since our General Assembly can't protect us, we'll have to look to the judiciary.

(See, this is an example of a time when not everything that attorneys do is bad. Taking on the corrupt government in Knox County and the City of Knoxville - is there a more noble cause?)

Thanks to Blount County Representative Joe McCord and Knox County Senator Tim Burchett for spearheading this effort, even if Naifeh's minions made their efforts for naught.

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Quote of the Day

"For a lawyer or a legislator to publicly profess Biblical or Christian principles today, let alone submit that they were the original basis for the common law and the American legal system, is to invite contempt, scorn, disrespect, and disgust. Such attacks arise either out of an ignorance of our nation's legal heritage or out of contempt for Christianity itself."

- Richard Honaker, who was re-nominated as a federal district judge by President Bush yesterday.

Honaker's right, of course, and the "contempt, scorn, disrespect, and disgust" isn't just from the Democrats. There's a good deal of it from those who are supposedly on our side of the aisle, too.

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Tuesday, March 20, 2007

 

TTLA Correction

I received a call from the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association today in reference to my earlier post regarding a reported meeting to rally the troops against tort reform. It turns out that this was not an official TTLA event, that it was being put on by a national group, and it never went off in the first place due to lack of interest.

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Fred Thompson, 300, and Iranian Sensitivities

Click on over to Terry Frank's site to listen to Fred Thompson's monologue on Iranian complaints to the United Nations depicting the "bad guys" in the movie 300 (which I plan to see this week).

According to Michael Silence, this monologue is one of the hottest items on the Net.

And, as Mike writes, the Fred-Head Train is only picking up steam...

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Tuesday Lagniappe

Various headlines from around the Net:

An Army of One - America has an Atheist Congressman (And it's a real shock that he's from California...)

Planned Parenthood's Financial Motive

Aborted Fetus Sings (A bit lengthy and a reprint, but certainly a powerful read.)

Roberts, Alito may split on Free Speech Case (Curious questions by Chief Justice Roberts. I do predict that Alito will be in the majority here, and that free speech (and the Tinker doctrine) will live to fight another day.)

Dirty Duty Brings Civil Liability (This report is of a New Jersey appellate decision that held a company liable as a third party for failing to stop an employee from viewing child pornography on his company computer. It will be interesting to see how far this goes. For instance, if a Tennessee corporation knew that an employee was cheating on his wife with another company employee, do they have a duty to stop it or be faced with a suit for infliction of emotional distress by the wife? Someone could argue that they could face such liability if a Tennessee court latched on to the New Jersey court's reasoning.)

Affair with Teacher Leads to Slaying (I received several calls prior to court yesterday from fellow attorneys letting me know that fellow Knoxville Bar Association member Bruce Poston had been on the "Today Show" and "Good Morning America" regarding this case. Good for Bruce, and he may find a sympathetic jury on this one. Personally, I'm not big into cases that hit the media. The D.A.'s seem to be more difficult to work with when your case is splashed all over the front page of the newspaper.)

"Homosexuality is Not Hardwired," says Human Genome Project Head

When Rendering Decisions, Judges are Finding Law Review Articles Irrelevant (Well of course they are! Most law review articles are written by law students, and everyone knows that they are too busy writing bills for Senator Jamie Woodson. Urgh...)

The Right to Bear Arms in Washington, D.C. (An interesting historical column by George Will.)

McCain Says that he needs Evangelical Support to Win (Guess he lost, then, because I don't know of any evangelicals who are supporting him.)

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Quote of the Day

"If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein."

- Justice Jackson, in the majority opinion in West Virginia v. Barnette.

Jackson wrote these words in 1943. Apply them to your local and state government. Do they still ring true?

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Monday, March 19, 2007

 

Quote of the Day

"And where there is no moral community, there will not long be one country. For in a religious or culture war, there is no peaceful coexistence.

One side wins, the other side loses."

- Patrick Buchanan

(Hat Tip: Terry Frank)

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Trial Lawyers Mobilizing Against Tort Reform

A little bird told me that the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association is holding a mobilization meeting on Tuesday afternoon in an effort to "educate" trial lawyers on how to frame the issue of whether there should be a cap on damages against doctors in malpractice suits.

Those of you (particularly those in the Tennessee General Assembly) who are for tort reform and trying to improve the standard of care that our doctors provide - especially in the field of obstetrics - should be forewarned. The liberal trial lawyers aren't going down without a fight.

UPDATE: Yep, the rumor is true (although the program is framed as a CLE opportunity).

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March Madness



No, my bracket isn't completely busted. I still have 7 of my Elite Eight teams alive in the tournament, with Wisconsin being the only team that failed to survive the first weekend. (Daggone overrated Big 10...)

Of course, in an annual tradition, the VOLConWife's bracket is in much better shape than my own. She has 13 of the Sweet 16 and 7 of her Elite Eight still alive, and she is sitting in 3rd place in our 45-person group (filled of sports fanatics run by Duke Law Alumni Thomas Burns). Typical...

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Interesting Views on Gay Marriage

"I'm not condemning homosexuality. I'm not condemning committed gay relationships," he says. But "the best institutional friend that children have is marriage, and if grownups make a mess of it, the children are going to suffer."

He may sound like a conservative Christian, but Blankenhorn says he's a liberal Democrat.

***

Check out the story on David Blankenhorn, founder of the liberal think tank Institute for American Values, in last week's USA Today.

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Return from Hilton Head

I've never had a bad trip to Hilton Head, but it wouldn't be in error to say that this trip was my best ever. Here are a few pictures of last week's festivities.


As can be expected, lots of tennis was played. (For those of you who might have forgotten, I used to play for ETSU back in the day. When I was in the junior ranks, I spent a good deal of time in the summers at Van Der Meer's Tennis Academy in Hilton Head.) Incidentally, Hilton Head is a good place to find good deals on tennis shoes, as both the VOLConWife and I picked up a pair there last week.


As anyone who has ever been to Hilton Head will tell you, the way to get around the island is on bike. The VOLConWife is shown here prior to our ride down the beach to the end of the island.


While I won't dwell on this too much, a great deal of our time on Hilton Head is spent eating. (With all of the activity, you need some calories, right?) I am not a fan of sweets or desserts, but I make an exception on Hilton Head because of Marley's, a Caribbean eatery near the entrance of Sea Pines that also has an ice cream stand. The items above are the banana splits offered at Marley's. While I'm not a big ice cream eater, I couldn't resist a few of these over the course of the week.


Here I am at South Beach with three parrots. We have made a ritual of biking down to South Beach and grabbing lunch at The Wreck of the Salty Dog. However, The Wreck was closed last week, so we had to settle for the original Salty Dog.


And here is Angela on the pier at Harbor Town. There weren't as many mega-yachts in port this time as there were last year (during the PGA Tour stop in Hilton Head).

All in all, a fantastic trip to Hilton Head. I think the VOLConWife is scheming to have us relocate to South Carolina. Since we have so much fun there, I guess I can understand why.

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Saturday, March 10, 2007

 

A Little R&R

I'm going to be taking a few days off, as I am headed to the beautiful paradise known as Hilton Head Island in a matter of hours. (As mentioned dozens of times in the past, just mention that you saw a post about my Dad's Hilton Head condo on VOLuntarilyConservative and receive a discount on the quoted rate. Then you, too, could be heading to South Carolina for a little R&R.)

To save time and energy, I thought I would re-run my post beginning my last vacation. Enjoy.



Too many fools
Lost on the highway
What could we do today
that we can't do tonight?

Pull off the road
Roll down the windows
Lie back and doze
to the song of the wind in the pines.

Too many fools
Crammed into that city
What could we do in a crowd
that we can't do at home?

Damn I feel young
My, you look pretty
What have we ever done worth doing
we can't do alone?

It's always springtime
In the Low Country sunshine
They sunbathe away every cold winter day
just like the Fourth of July.

I'm driving my new bride
from here to the ocean
Imbibing the sweet life
from Eden to goshen.
Gathering souvenirs. Hallelujah.

These lines are from "Gathering Souvenirs," a song by The Floating Men. The group is out of Nashville, but songwriter/lead vocalist Jeff Holmes is from Enoree, South Carolina. I always play this song on my way to the Low Country of South Carolina, which is where I am headed today to recharge my batteries.

So, if posting seems a bit slow over the next few days, well, that's all part of the plan...

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Wild About Fred

I started noticing the drumbeat for my former boss to step into the 2008 fray about 3 weeks ago. I had mentioned his name over the past few months (along with J.C. Watts) as dream candidates that I wished would enter the GOP fray as conservative options to the liberal Guiliani, McCain, and Romney. However, business started to pick up over the past three weeks.

I was receiving multiple e-mails/phone calls a day from around the nation asking if I had heard anything about Fred being interested in the White House. To each of them, I gave the same response:

His name is going to come up because he would win the nomination. Some of his former operatives have been conspicuously quiet since the start of the new year, which means that they could be busy sewing the seeds of candidacy. However, after spending some time with Fred in the fall, I just don't see him doing it.

My response has been the same for a while now. However, much like Neo in The Matrix, I'm starting to believe.

Maybe it's the dozens of daily posts by Michael Silence and A.C. Kleinheider on the subject. Maybe it's Gingrich's attempt to take an obvious general election issue away from the Dems so very early while talk of a real threat to his staked out position with conservatives begins to reach a critical mass. Maybe its the knowledge that the AP story about Wamp networking in the House for Fred is true.

Maybe it's the first time that I have been excited about the 2008 election cycle. After all, the reason that I haven't written much about 2008 thus far is that I had no horse in the race. As I have told anyone who has asked for the past year, there is no way that I could vote for or support the GOP nominee if his last name is Romney, Guiliani, or McCain. I would sooner vote for Ron Paul or Chuck Hagel running on a third party ticket than support a liberal Republican candidacy. (Pundits have asked where conservatives draw the line in their dance with a national Republican party that treats them like a slave class - well, here it is.)

Brownback's organization seems shaky right now (but that's a story for another day), and Huckabee has the pesky record of raising taxes in Arkansas (although he sure plays a mean guitar). Both also have fundraising questions. If the Corker/Bryant/Hillary race taught this grassroots activist (I guess I should embrace the term, since that is what I have been labeled as over the past year) anything, it's that money is a bigger factor in races than I ever admitted. Just the rumor that you may have trouble matching funds with someone like a Massachusetts millionaire or the chieftain of the Yankee mayors also tends to tighten wallets of fence-sitting potential donors, as well.

I freely admit it - I have sent a message through backchannels to my former boss encouraging his entry into this race. I want it for America. I want it for conservatives everywhere. I want it for myself, because I am much happier working for peanuts for a candidate that I believe in than immersing myself in my law practice.

Run, Fred. Please.

You left D.C. because the Senate was toxic, being one voice in the bickering body of 100. Meanwhile, there is only one Executive. Pardon the pun, but the President is a roll written with you in mind, one that you were born to play.

You have lived one of the most amazing lives - Vanderbilt Law, Watergate counsel, critically-acclaimed actor, United States Senator, husband and father. It just seems natural to me to add "44th United States President" to the list.

I certainly hope that I return from my vacation with news that Fred is forming an exploratory committee. Nothing could make me happier.

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Friday, March 09, 2007

 

A Real Civil Rights Victory in D.C.

I just saw that the District of Columbia's handgun ban has been lifted as a result of a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

My old colleagues at the NRA's Office of the General Counsel (including Robert Dowlut and Stefan Tahmassebi, who submitted amici briefs in this case) had long been working to make sure that the residents of D.C. had the same Second Amendment rights that those of us who live in free states enjoy in regards to being able to protect ourselves.

Today's victory in Parker v. D.C. is a blessing, indeed, for those that still believe in a free society.

MORE:

SayUncle (I, II, and III)
Instapundit
Volokh

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Wednesday, March 07, 2007

 

Al Gore's Real Motivations

I haven't seen "An Inconvenient Truth" (although, if I have enough rum for pina coladas on vacation, I might see the comedy), but it seems from the following clip that Al Gore is just using the film as a vehicle to get what he wants.



No, not the Presidency. Al wants all of the ho's to dress accordingly.

He's not doing it for the environment. He's doing it for the sake of all mankind.

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Monday, March 05, 2007

 

Thomas Jones Traded

Yes, I am as ill as I have been in about two years, and this just made me feel worse.

Congrats, Jerry Angelo, Bears General Manager! You just traded a 1,300 yard running back and one of the only competent members of your offense and a second round draft pick for a second round draft pick. You must be a genius!

Now Bears fans can look forward to watching Cedric Benson - the overpaid, overhyped RB who seems to enjoy tripping prior to the line of scrimmage on at least one out of every three plays - carry the load. Unless there is some secret RB that Chicago is going to sign (and with Travis Henry and Ahman Green gone, I kinda doubt that), Benson will have to carry the load while "Turnoverasaurus Rex" keeps his job behind center.

Early prediction: Based on the Bears' lack of activity in the free agent pool, ability to anger one of their best defensive players, tough road schedule, and now the self-inflicted loss of the heart of the offense, I am predicting a 7-9 year in 2007 for the defending NFC Champions.

But it's OK - being a Cubs fan, I would expect nothing less.

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Friday, March 02, 2007

 

Democrats Threatening the Lives of Those Who Vote Against Unions

The House Democrats, including sponsor Congressman George Miller (California) and co-sponsors Lincoln Davis (Tennessee) Steve Cohen (Tennessee), Jim Cooper (Tennessee), Bart Gordon (Tennessee), John Dingell (Michigan), Barney Frank (Massachusetts), Alcee Hastings (Florida), Sheila Jackson-Lee (Texas), Dennis Kucinich (Ohio), Henry Waxman (California), Rick Boucher (Virginia), Rahm Emanuel (Illinois), Heath Shuler (North Carolina), and Maxine Waters (California), amongst others, are willing to put the lives of American workers at risk in order to satisfy the socialist labor unions that fill their coffers every election season.

The bill is HR 800, officially titled the "Employee Free Choice Act of 2007" by its Democratic sponsor. (I won't say author because anyone who has worked on The Hill knows that the labor union attorneys wrote every word of the bill.)

This bill will eliminate voting by secret ballot in matters of unionization. People familiar with the election activities of unions in states like Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Illinois over the past few election cycles know what this means for workers. They will either have to vote to join the union or either themselves or their loved ones are going to die.

Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA), the Republican Chief Deputy Whip, is not resolved to letting the Democrats push this bill through like they have done so many other pieces of legislation in 2007. Cantor is rallying the troops against what he calls the "American Worker Compulsion Act," including producing the video below:





Cantor calls the activity by the unions that would result from this bill "coercion tactics." I guess he's right, as much as a gun to the head is a "coercion tactic."

As usual, I am very disappointed in the Tennessee Democrats - Davis, Cooper, Gordon, Cohen. At least Tanner's name isn't on as a co-sponsor yet. And, as predicted here, Heath Shuler has become the lackey of the Left, lending his support to whatever bill Nancy Pelosi tells him to get behind.

Feel free to e-mail these gentlemen at the addresses below to let them know that you don't appreciate them selling out America's workers so that they can collect their rewards from the unions come election time. Tell them that you are dismayed at seeing their names lined up alongside those of the most liberal/socialist members of the Congress - names like Waters, Kucinich, Frank, and Hastings. Tell them you will remember their actions in 2008.

Lincoln Davis - Tennessee's Fourth (Enter ZIP 38556)
Steve Cohen - Tennessee's Ninth
Jim Cooper - Tennessee's Fifth
Bart Gordon - Tennessee's Sixth (Enter ZIP 37130)
Heath Shuler - North Carolina's 11th (Enter ZIP 28801)

UPDATE: Well, that was fast. I started a draft of this post early Thursday, and by Friday it was already obsolete. Pelosi must have had a big dinner on the unions' tabs for this weekend, because she hustled this bill through a roll call vote. HR 800 passed 241-185. But, you see, it was bipartisan - two Democrats voted against it! (The two Dems were Rep. Boren (Oklahoma) and Rep. Gene Taylor (Mississippi), if you were interested.)

The good news (if there is any here) for Americans is that Senate Minority Leader McConnell has pledged to block cloture on the bill, and President Bush has vowed to veto the legislation if it somehow came to his desk. (The 241 aye votes being well short of the 2/3 needed to override a Bush veto, I doubt that it makes it that far.)

Don't let that stop you from letting the Congressmen linked above from having it, all of them having voted in favor of unions over American workers. By all means, let 'em have it!

MORE: Reactions from around the Blogosphere:

Ankle Biting Pundits
Jason Pye
This Side of Purgatory
The Countertop Chronicles
JammieWearingFool
Blue Crab Boulevard
Betsy's Page
Constitutionally Right

And from the Land of Make-Believe - The John Edwards '08 Blog.

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Latest from Center for Bioethical Reform

Just a note: the Center for Bioethical Reform's latest newsletter is up.

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Too Tired to Blog

Sorry, guys and gals, but this week has made it too difficult to spend any time blogging, returning e-mail (if you sent me something this week, I'll try to get to it this weekend), or otherwise living.

Besides being sick as a dog, I have billed more hours in the past week than in any other week this year. And the irony there is that this week was supposed to be a light week, one where I catch up at work and rest enough to remain healthy. The best laid plans...

Right now, I am on pace to bill more hours than most of my friends at the major firms who pull down what is known as in the legal arena as the "big bucks." Long and short of things - I need a vacation.

Thank God one is right around the corner. Seven more days...

UPDATE: My dad has asked me to comment on the subject of vacations. As regular readers know, I take my vacations at my Mom and Dad's condo on Hilton Head Island. No matter how many times I go there, it never gets old.

He also wanted me to mention that he still has the last week in March (March 24-31) available for rental. Mention that you saw this post on VOLuntarilyConservative and he will give you a discount. I believe he also has one week left in May (May 12-19) and two weeks left in September (September 1-8 and September 8-15) for this year. Everything else in March, May, July, and December is already gone.

The condo comfortably sleeps 6 (there are two bedrooms and a sofa sleeper), has a full kitchen, gas grills, washer/dryer, and jacuzzi tub.

You can e-mail me (UTLegalEagle-at-yahoo-dot-com) or my dad (rhud12345-at-yahoo-dot-com) for more information.

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