Now That Obama Has Closed the Deal...

(cross-posted at JackandJillPolitics.com)

As being reported by the AP, my colleague, Jack Turner, has rightly pointed out, it's time to get down to business.

In the short time I've blogged here, I've read numerous comments about housecleaning in the Congressional Black Caucus. I recently posted about the CBC Monitor Report card, and we can always use some volunteers to track bills. More on that later.

The fire is hot, and it's time to strike. Now that the "inevitable" Democratic nominee is being told to take a hike as I write this, she's implying she'll concede if Obama puts her on the ticket.

As another colleague, Rikyrah, would say, "Hell to the NAW!"

I agree. She hasn't buck danced enough apologies to start the healing process yet.

At this moment, we have a bunch of CBC Hanky Heads that are scrambling for cover, because they are hearing loudly from their districts; many of them that went overwhelmingly for Obama, while they were toting Missy Clinton's water. However, merely fielding challengers to the incumbents because they supported Clinton defeats the entire Democratic process, such as it is. There are other reasons for challenging them. In case you're not aware, allow me to list a couple:

Iraq War Funding

Refusal to Filibuster bills that had no business passing

Bankruptcy Bill

Internet Neutrality

Campaign Finance Reform Laws that would make funding of National Campaigns Public Financed only and kicks out Lobbyists and Corporations (they refused to cosign on a bill introduced by Obama himself)

Hate Crime Study Bill (now you know such a bill is to reintroduce COINTELPRO)

Slinging a fellow member (Cynthia McKinney) under the bus for protesting about being molested by the Capitol Hill police, while providing a crooked member (Dollar, Dollar Bill Jefferson, y'all) total cover.

Colluding with Fox Network to Host a Presidential Debate.

There isn't enough room on this blog to list them all. But at least 25-40% of the Caucus voted on those atrocious bills; many of them with districts that could ill afford to have those bills pass.

Rep. Mel Watt once shouted at me that the CBC Monitor should have been looking at the Caucus' voting records on Civil Rights issues, like Ebony, Black Enterprise and Essence Magazines do. When I reminded him that the job of the Congressional Black Caucus wasn't just to vote on Civil Rights legislation (usually getting a damned Post Office named after a Black Luminary - face it, since the passage of MLK's birthday into a National Holiday, the caucus hasn't done much), he called me a damned blogger and one of my colleagues at CBC Monitor walked up to see why the Congressman was yelling at me before deciding whether or not to get in that arse.

We started CBC Monitor with the precise intention of putting a spotlight on why the Caucus was being infested and infected with DLC tendencies. When you examined the voting records, you found clear evidence that at least 30% of the Caucus was taking two and few payola from Corporate interests, and it wasn't even Tom DeLay-type cheddar, either.

The CBC sells out on the cheap, and leave the few remaining warriors hanging in the wind. That is what has to stop.

Donna Edwards has already done it. Al Wynn is gone, and being the ingrate he is, he's forcing the state of Maryland to pay for a special election that will give Ms. Edwards the seat earlier than January; but then she has to run again in November. The SOB didn't want to stick around, and has taken a job with one of those corporate interests he sold out to - DicksteinShapiro, one of the biggest energy lobbying firms in DC.

My friend, Kevin Powell, is trying to unseat Eldolphus Towns this year. When willing candidates with progressive records come forward and state they want to challenge the incumbents who have sat in Congress so long, their asses are glued to their offices, I say we hold fundraisers, canvass, pass out copies of the Report Card, so their constiuents get informed as to how well their interests have been represented.

One comment listed the following for primary challenges either in November or in 2010:

Stephanie Tubbs-Jones (Hanky Head)
Sheila Jackson-Lee (she's been banned from flying on American Airlines for acting a fool)
Kendrick Meek (he didn't learn jack from his mama)
Edolphus Towns
Artur Davis (DLC candidate recruiter)
Emmanuel Cleaver

Here's a few I want to add:

Hank Johnson (AIPAC funded him to oust McKinney)
David Scott (DLC money man)
Yvette Clarke (Replaced a competent Congressman in Major Owens and is stinking up the joint)
Bobby Rush (the former Black Panther co-authored the bill to restrict the Internet, y'all)
Danny Davis (strong ties to the Moonies)

Here' some we need to keep until we can train their replacement

John Conyers (we don't need his wife as his replacement - too ghetto and I wouldn't like to turn on C-Span and see her reaching across the aisle to tear off someone's weave or wig like she's in a Detroit club)
Barbara Lee - my home representative who fights the good fight
Bobby Scott and Jim Clyburn - they fight the good fight, especially for the brothers in the joint coming out and trying to reacclimate to being out of jail.

Some of you have said Maxine Waters should be on the list of those who got to go. I don't know; while she's made some mistakes, her voting records on the issues that matter to us has been stellar, and she's one of the few members of Congress still fighting to get legislation passed for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Now that Obama has closed the Deal, I say it's time to send a message to those CBC members who are cowering in fear that they're going to get challengers to their seats, and that they're going to actually have to work to get re-elected, instead of mailing in their performances as legislators. And I'm all for that.