Free Republic

House Democrats on the powerful Ways and Means Committee are meeting Thursday to decide whether short-fused Rep. Pete Stark should take over as chairman for Rep. Charlie Rangel, with questions being raised about the California Democrat's temperament. Though Stark is the next most-senior member on the panel and was said to be in line for the post after Rangel stepped aside amid an ethics probe Wednesday, many Democrats are fretting that Stark is too volatile to lead such an important committee. His racially, sexually and politically charged remarks have gotten him in trouble in the past. Rep. Danny Davis,...

With Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-N.Y., temporarily stepping down as chairman of the House Committee of Ways and Means under an ethics cloud, it appears Rep. Fortney “Pete” Stark, D-Calif., will take his place. Stark is a “colorful” fellow, to say the least. Below are some of his more entertaining moments.

Before she became House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi promised that if Democrats won control of the House, she would "drain the swamp" in Washington. How is she doing? Last week, the House ethics committee scolded House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel for corporate-sponsored travel to the Caribbean. In that the panel had yet to resolve multiple charges involving Rangel's personal finances, rank-and-file Democrats joined GOP calls for his ouster as Ways and Means chairman, while Pelosi remained publicly silent. Wednesday, Rangel temporarily stepped aside as chairman. Now for the funny part: Next in line to chair the tax-writing committee is...

Rep. Pete Stark (D – CA) (Charlie Rangel's replacement) says that the more debt we have the wealthier we are. When questioned about it, he tells Jan Helfeld to “get the f**k out of here” and then threatens to throw him out the window. Nice choice, Nancy. Video here

Rep. Pete Stark took the gavel of one of the House's most powerful committees today — at least temporarily. Stark, D-Fremont, will be interim chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, with jurisdiction over all taxation and other revenue-raising measures, as well as other programs such as Social Security; Medicare; unemployment benefits; foster care and adoption programs; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a federal welfare program; and child-support enforcement. The committee's second-most-senior Democrat, Stark has served as the Health Subcommittee's chairman. Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-N.Y., temporarily gave up the committee's chair Wednesday, days after the House Ethics Committee publicly...

Wow. The chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee is the gift that keeps on giving. With Charlie Rangel taking a 'leave of absence' which everyone but Rangel knows will eventually become permanent, the powerful chairmanship is up for grabs, with Pete Stark of California to the most senior member and therefore most likely to receive the position. Don't know Pete Stark? Well, he is the Democrat version of Jim Bunning...a kook that is often off the reservation.

If you work in Washington long enough, there are some things you get used to. One of them is the tradition of burying news by releasing it on a Friday afternoon. Or even better: on Christmas Eve. That's when the House Ethics Committee quietly announced the launch of an ethics probe into California Congressman Fortney 'Pete' Stark: The Chair and Ranking Republican Member of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct (the Committee) have jointly decided to extend a matter regarding Representative Pete Stark, which was transmitted to the Committee by the Office of Congressional Ethics, for a 45-day period......

Must watch to the end(Hat-tip to Goldberg at NRO)

A key House liberal suggested Thursday that party moderates who've pushed for changes in health care legislation are "brain dead" and out for insurance company campaign donations. Moderate Blue Dog Democrats "just want to cause trouble," said Rep. Pete Stark, D-Calif., who heads the health subcommittee on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee. "They're for the most part, I hate to say brain dead, but they're just looking to raise money from insurance companies and promote a right-wing agenda that is not really very useful in this whole process," Stark told reporters on a conference call. Kristen Hawn, spokeswoman for...

Republicans danced on tabletops last week after Bloomberg News reported that longtime Rep. Pete Stark, D-Fremont, claims a Maryland home as his "principal residence," thereby snaring a tax break. "My message to Pete Stark," said Ron Nehring, chairman of the California Republican Party, "is that California is a wonderful place to visit — and it's an even better place to live. He should try doing that. "It's an outrage," Nehring added, "for someone to purport to represent California but take a tax deduction claiming that they don't live in California." A senior member of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee,...

WASHINGTON, (AP) -- An anti-war Democratic congressman is demanding to know why there were uniformed Defense Department personnel watching House proceedings from a public gallery Thursday, who they were and what they were doing. "If they were here on official duty, this was an abhorrent misallocation of our military resources at a time of war," Northern California Rep. Pete Stark asserted Friday in a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Stark, an 18-term incumbent known for his liberal positions and outbursts of temper, said he observed the contingent of 20 or so officers, apparently Army generals, in the gallery for...

Newly-announced Obama endorser and superdelegate, Rep. Pete Stark, talking about the California gay marriage decision on XM's POTUS08 earlier today: Rebecca Roberts, XM: Congressman Pete Stark of California, a new super-delegate for Barack Obama. I wanted to get your reaction, by the way, since you're a Californian, on the Supreme Court decision to overturn the ban on gay marriage. Stark: I think that was, you know... California usually leads on these issues of human rights and civil rights. I was quite proud of our state supreme court. We're going to have a big fight, because you know, the born-again Christians...

Here's a dispicable comment that Stark said to a Veteran on his answering machine: Stark's comments to a veteran

WASHINGTON — Democratic Rep. Fortney "Pete" Stark of California apologized Tuesday for comments he made last week suggesting President Bush was sending troops to Iraq to get their "heads blown off for his amusement." The apology came after the House voted 196-173 with eight members voting present to table a resolution introduced by House Minority Leader John Boehner censuring Stark.

House Republican leader John Boehner just stood up on the House floor to put forward a motion to censure Rep. Pete Stark (D) over the congressman's "heads blown off for the president's amusement" remark on the House floor last week. Democrats will move to table -- or kill -- the motion. They will likely succeed. A vote is being taken on the tabling motion now.

Cnn Poll show 7% that Stark should "apoligise" Sorry it doesnt have a Resign option ! This one needs freeping BIGTIME! http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/american.morning/ Quick Vote Congressman Pete Stark accused Republicans of sending troops to Iraq to "get their heads blown off for the president's amusement." Should he apologize? Yes 7% 989 No 93% 12287 Total Votes: 13276 This is not a scientific poll

Stark Raving Madmen Democrat Tourette’s syndrome gone wild. By Mark Steyn On Thursday, Congress attempted to override President Bush’s veto of the S-CHIP debate. S-CHIP? Isn’t that something to do with health care for children? Absolutely. And here is Representative Pete Stark (Democrat, California) addressing the issue with his customary forensic incisiveness “The Republicans are worried that they can’t pay for insuring an additional 10 million children. They sure don’t care about finding $200 billion to fight the illegal war in Iraq. Where are you going to get that money? Are you going to tell us lies like you’re telling...

CNN poll located here: http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/american.morning/ Two sites same Poll The Wacko Left is running a poll on rep. Pete Stark's "comments" on President Bush. Results so far favor the insane left (BIG Supprise) Oh yeah they left out the part of the statement about President wanting to kill your kids !

Congress: One of the most liberal and powerful House Democrats has accused the president of taking glee in the slaughter of U.S. troops. If Democrats refuse to punish him, they malign the soldiers themselves. Rep. Fortney "Pete" Stark from San Francisco's East Bay district has long been one of the congressional Democrats' biggest embarrassments, and they have tried their best to treat him like a family's crazy old aunt and pretend he isn't really there. There was no outrage from his fellow Democrats in 2003 when Stark hurled an obscenity referring to homosexuality at a Republican Ways and Means member...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 19, 2007 CONTACT: Gary Becks (619) 334-1655 San Diego, CA- - - Presidential candidate Congressman Duncan Hunter (R-CA) made clear his displeasure with the recent comments made yesterday by fellow Representative Pete Stark during consideration on the House floor of legislation concerning children’s health insurance. In the debate, Congressman Stark remarked: “You don’t have money to fund the war or children. But you’re going to spend it to blow up innocent people if we can get enough kids to grow old enough for you to send to Iraq to get their heads blown off for the...