ALERT: DEMINT BILL OPPOSING "FAIRNESS DOCTRINE" EXPECTED TO PASS SENATE BY WIDE MARGIN

FOX NEWS | 2/26/2009 | SENATOR DEMINT

[kellynla]

DEMINT BILL OPPOSING "FAIRNESS DOCTRINE" EXPECTED TO PASS SENATE BY WIDE MARGIN

[Blood of Tyrants]

When a bill is tabled, they are essentially voting to stick it under the rug and forget about it.

[Repeal 16-17]

Poison pill?

Well, the House could simply vote to remove that from the bill and then demand to go to conference. To clarify, that amendment also says the DC government would not have the authority to pass any gun control legislation.

[Blood of Tyrants]

However, Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin also won approval for an alternate amendment that would order the Federal Communications Commission to encourage radio ownership "diversity."

Encourage = force.

[Repeal 16-17]

UPDATE #2:

The Senate has passed the District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act, as amended, by a vote of 61-37.

[Danae]

Liberals would be STUPID to force the MSM to give fair time to Republicans! Forget talk Radio, yea conservatives own that, but liberals own everything else, and that’s a LOT bigger. No way will libs force their PR offices (MSM) to give a fair rendition of the Conservative point of view!

[top 2 toe red]

What makes you think any did? ...or is it you just can’t pass up a chance to slam Republicans?

[peace with honor]

ya know, I’m getting confused

[topfile]

Wonderful......let’s see if O’bummer signs it.

[cc2k]

Here's the votes from the Senate web site:

On the DeMint Amendment:

Alphabetical by Senator Name

Akaka (D-HI), Yea Alexander (R-TN), Yea Barrasso (R-WY), Yea Baucus (D-MT), Yea Bayh (D-IN), Yea Begich (D-AK), Yea Bennet (D-CO), Yea Bennett (R-UT), Yea Bingaman (D-NM), Nay Bond (R-MO), Yea Boxer (D-CA), Yea Brown (D-OH), Yea Brownback (R-KS), Yea Bunning (R-KY), Yea Burr (R-NC), Yea Burris (D-IL), Yea Byrd (D-WV), Yea Cantwell (D-WA), Yea Cardin (D-MD), Yea Carper (D-DE), Yea Casey (D-PA), Yea Chambliss (R-GA), Yea Coburn (R-OK), Yea Cochran (R-MS), Yea Collins (R-ME), Yea Conrad (D-ND), Nay Corker (R-TN), Yea Cornyn (R-TX), Yea Crapo (R-ID), Yea DeMint (R-SC), Yea Dodd (D-CT), Yea Dorgan (D-ND), Nay Durbin (D-IL), Yea

Ensign (R-NV), Yea Enzi (R-WY), Yea Feingold (D-WI), Yea Feinstein (D-CA), Nay Gillibrand (D-NY), Yea Graham (R-SC), Yea Grassley (R-IA), Yea Gregg (R-NH), Yea Hagan (D-NC), Yea Harkin (D-IA), Nay Hatch (R-UT), Yea Hutchison (R-TX), Yea Inhofe (R-OK), Yea Inouye (D-HI), Yea Isakson (R-GA), Yea Johanns (R-NE), Yea Johnson (D-SD), Nay Kaufman (D-DE), Yea Kennedy (D-MA), Not Voting Kerry (D-MA), Nay Klobuchar (D-MN), Yea Kohl (D-WI), Yea Kyl (R-AZ), Yea Landrieu (D-LA), Yea Lautenberg (D-NJ), Yea Leahy (D-VT), Yea Levin (D-MI), Yea Lieberman (ID-CT), Yea Lincoln (D-AR), Yea Lugar (R-IN), Yea Martinez (R-FL), Yea McCain (R-AZ), Yea McCaskill (D-MO), Yea

McConnell (R-KY), Yea Menendez (D-NJ), Yea Merkley (D-OR), Yea Mikulski (D-MD), Yea Murkowski (R-AK), Yea Murray (D-WA), Yea Nelson (D-FL), Yea Nelson (D-NE), Yea Pryor (D-AR), Yea Reed (D-RI), Nay Reid (D-NV), Yea Risch (R-ID), Yea Roberts (R-KS), Yea Rockefeller (D-WV), Nay Sanders (I-VT), Nay Schumer (D-NY), Yea Sessions (R-AL), Yea Shaheen (D-NH), Yea Shelby (R-AL), Yea Snowe (R-ME), Yea Specter (R-PA), Yea Stabenow (D-MI), Yea Tester (D-MT), Yea Thune (R-SD), Yea Udall (D-CO), Yea Udall (D-NM), Yea Vitter (R-LA), Yea Voinovich (R-OH), Yea Warner (D-VA), Yea Webb (D-VA), Yea Whitehouse (D-RI), Nay Wicker (R-MS), Yea Wyden (D-OR), Yea

And on the Durbin Amendment

Alphabetical by Senator Name

Akaka (D-HI), Yea Alexander (R-TN), Nay Barrasso (R-WY), Nay Baucus (D-MT), Yea Bayh (D-IN), Yea Begich (D-AK), Yea Bennet (D-CO), Yea Bennett (R-UT), Nay Bingaman (D-NM), Yea Bond (R-MO), Nay Boxer (D-CA), Yea Brown (D-OH), Yea Brownback (R-KS), Nay Bunning (R-KY), Nay Burr (R-NC), Nay Burris (D-IL), Yea Byrd (D-WV), Yea Cantwell (D-WA), Yea Cardin (D-MD), Yea Carper (D-DE), Yea Casey (D-PA), Yea Chambliss (R-GA), Nay Coburn (R-OK), Nay Cochran (R-MS), Nay Collins (R-ME), Nay Conrad (D-ND), Yea Corker (R-TN), Nay Cornyn (R-TX), Nay Crapo (R-ID), Nay DeMint (R-SC), Nay Dodd (D-CT), Yea Dorgan (D-ND), Yea Durbin (D-IL), Yea

Ensign (R-NV), Nay Enzi (R-WY), Nay Feingold (D-WI), Yea Feinstein (D-CA), Yea Gillibrand (D-NY), Yea Graham (R-SC), Nay Grassley (R-IA), Nay Gregg (R-NH), Nay Hagan (D-NC), Yea Harkin (D-IA), Yea Hatch (R-UT), Nay Hutchison (R-TX), Nay Inhofe (R-OK), Nay Inouye (D-HI), Yea Isakson (R-GA), Nay Johanns (R-NE), Nay Johnson (D-SD), Yea Kaufman (D-DE), Yea Kennedy (D-MA), Not Voting Kerry (D-MA), Yea Klobuchar (D-MN), Yea Kohl (D-WI), Yea Kyl (R-AZ), Nay Landrieu (D-LA), Yea Lautenberg (D-NJ), Yea Leahy (D-VT), Yea Levin (D-MI), Yea Lieberman (ID-CT), Yea Lincoln (D-AR), Yea Lugar (R-IN), Nay Martinez (R-FL), Nay McCain (R-AZ), Nay McCaskill (D-MO), Yea

McConnell (R-KY), Nay Menendez (D-NJ), Yea Merkley (D-OR), Yea Mikulski (D-MD), Yea Murkowski (R-AK), Nay Murray (D-WA), Yea Nelson (D-FL), Yea Nelson (D-NE), Yea Pryor (D-AR), Yea Reed (D-RI), Yea Reid (D-NV), Yea Risch (R-ID), Nay Roberts (R-KS), Nay Rockefeller (D-WV), Yea Sanders (I-VT), Yea Schumer (D-NY), Yea Sessions (R-AL), Nay Shaheen (D-NH), Yea Shelby (R-AL), Nay Snowe (R-ME), Nay Specter (R-PA), Nay Stabenow (D-MI), Yea Tester (D-MT), Yea Thune (R-SD), Nay Udall (D-CO), Yea Udall (D-NM), Yea Vitter (R-LA), Nay Voinovich (R-OH), Nay Warner (D-VA), Yea Webb (D-VA), Yea Whitehouse (D-RI), Yea Wicker (R-MS), Nay Wyden (D-OR), Yea

The actual text of the Durbin amendment isn't available yet online. But "Statement of Purpose" shown on the vote results page is "To encourage and promote diversity in communication media ownership, and to ensure that the public airwaves are used in the public interest."

So, more than likely, all the Democrats voted for a "Fairness Doctrine" before they voted against it.

Demint's idea here is to get the Democrats on record so they can't come back later and change their votes. But Democrats do that all the time.

In the House, on February 10th, 236 Democrat Congress Critters voted to post the H.R.1 conference report online for 48 hours before voting on the conference report. Then, on Feburary 13, all but 7 Democrats (the same ones) voted to pass the H.R.1 conference report less than 18 hours after it was posted on the internet.

Democrats have no honor. And getting them to vote one way today won't mean anything when they vote the other way next Tuesday.

And they know the Party Propaganda Ministry (formerly "the media") won't call them on it. There will be no reporting of their flip flopping.

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

That’s the idea. The left wants to move too fast for us to have time to think. DeMint, God bless him, is a patriot. But there’s also Turban Durbin and his proposals.

[buccaneer81]

You realize that this was an amendment to the DC congressional representation bill, right? And The DC bill just passed, 61-37. And you know which RINOs voted for an unconstitutional bill that would simply increase the 'Rat majority? You guessed it:

Specter

Collins

Snowe

Voinovich

[buccaneer81]

The “gang of Four” RINOS voted with the ‘Rats. Voinovich, Collins, Snowe, Specter.

[Fishtalk]

And so I’ve studied this and have, as expected, some thoughts.

My own two fine Democratic Senators voted FOR the Demint bill and voted FOR the Turbin bill.

I ask them, so what’s it gonna be?

What the Dems are doing here is going on record as being AGAINST the fairness doctrine, not because they will fool Rush Limbaugh and the like. The conservative talk show guys will be ranting over the attempt here to have it both ways.

Voting FOR the Turbin bill gives an opening for community groups, much like the infamous ACORN group that they may bastardize the wording (as they did with the Community Reinvestment Act)to squelch our free speech.

But they vote FOR the Demint bill that they may fool those who DON’T listen to talk radio that ...hey, lookit here, I voted AGAINST reinstating the fairness doctrine, don’t accuse me of being against free speech.

They learned well with that CRA thing and now all they gotta do is have ACORN go out and protest that WLOC is not giving us guys a chance to talk. The quasi-ACORN groups can then harrass the local radio shows to total distraction until they, in exasperation, just shut down Rush, Hannity, etc.

Of course, heh, that door swings both ways.

What’s needed here is for the pubbies, yes those with the fine suntans and head hairs that never budge from their appointed places, to get out and TEACH the public what’s going on here.

It’s not going to be easy but Rush et al can’t do this. Rush’s audience already gets it.

And the pubs, lord they hate to mess up their tans and head hairs and to cast aspersions on the motives of their Dem colleagues presents them from calling them “my friend”, gets them some head hair mussing pressure from the MSM, and often gets them uninvited from the best DC cocktail parties.

But THIS, ladies and gems, is important. We have got to fight it, along with Rush, by pressuring your local pub and risk mussing head hairs and smearing fine tans, and by giving back what is given.

We gotta do the same thing ACORN does is what I’m saying here.

[redgolum]

The end around is the other bill, which is much worse than the fairness doctrine.

Sound and fury, signifying little. Amazing how the GOP only grows a spine when they are out of power.

[The_Reader_David]

Unless the ‘local content’ rule is so extreme that 30 hours of non-local content per week would violate it, or so transparently an attempt to quash Rush by requiring local content at exactly the hours he’s on that the courts would overturn it, I don’t think there’s much to worry about unless you’re fond of one of the lesser conservative talk show hosts who isn’t based in your area. It will be the lesser right wing talkers, and folks like Dr. Dean Edell and George Nori who will get replaced by local stuff. Rush and the more popular market-by-market of Hannity and Savage will keep their place, since they are the big advertising draws.

Actually, since conservative talk is what sells, a localism rule will mean local versions of Rush in every market, and it will be the left that gets screwed by their own rule.

[OafOfOffice]

which encourages radio ownership "diversity."

Radio station diversity stimulus in other words. Free money to minorities or marxists wanting to own a radio station.

[Victory Rocks]

I couldn't agree more. God bless Jim DeMint, one of the last few REAL conservatives in the GOP.

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

So Stabenow and Schumer, two of the most vocal recent proponents of the Fairness Doctrine voted “Yea” on the DeMint Amendment, opposing something they publicly supported mere days ago.

They’re divorcing themselves from the language of the “Fairness Doctrine”, which has tested badly in polls, and adopting the language of “media diversity” in the Durbin Amendment to achieve the exact same end.

The DeMint Amendment, as well intentioned as it was, has done nothing but provided them cover for their continuing assault on free speech.

[Sequoyah101]

These stupid SOBs better get the message that we are fed up and damn fast.

We have seen two things positive today and one simply unacceptable from the Senilate...the Senilator for DC is completely unacceptable.

Next is the damn fool budget proposal by obambi and the crap and trade foolishness and the tax increase proposals.

I love America but I hate the government.

Take out the air conditioning in DC...that will keep them away most of the year. Maybe then we could have a little peace.