THOUGHTS ON CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING AND GERRYMANDERING

Watch the legislatures of the several States now that redistricting is afoot! The Cook Political Report recently made public a couple of charts that reflect political volatility in the marketplace of partisan ideas and ideologies.

Cook's first chart, the 2012 COMPETITIVE HOUSE RACE CHART, lists by party those districts and Members of Congress vulnerable to being picked off. Cook lists three categories, likely, lean, and toss up, for each party. The second chart is Cook's report on HOUSE MEMBERS WHO WON WITH 55% OR LESS.

Missouri, known for being a traditional bell weather state has one District listed as "Lean Democratic" by Cook. That is Missouri's Third Congressional District which Cook gives a Partisan Voting Index (PVI) of D+7.

In Missouri three Members of Congress won their 2010 races with 55% or less of the vote. Kansas City's Emanuel Cleaver held off his Republican opponent Jacob Turk to win a fourth term. This will be Cleaver's fourth term. He has now defeated Turk three times. Cleaver's winning percentage in 2010 was 56.1% The Cook PVI for the Fifth Congressional District in Missouri is D+10.

Republican Vicky Hartzler bested long time Democratic Representative Ike Skelton to win her first term in Congress. Republican redistricting efforts paid off for them in Missouri. I recall when Missouri's Fourth Congressional District was a small pocket of counties immediately to the East and South of Kansas City's Jackson County. Missouri's Fourth Congressional Index has a PVI of R+14.

Today the Fourth Congressional District goes deep into the heart of Southwest Missouri. It includes places like Lebanon, Missouri which used to be in the Seventh Congressional District. The Seventh Congressional District is a Republican Stronghold having produced Representatives Roy Blunt, Gene Taylor, and Durwood G. "Doc" Hall.

Russ Carnahan has been the Democrat representing Missouri's Third Congressional District since 2005. After Dick Gephardt retired Carnahan won the seat in 2004. This will be Carnahan's fifth term. He squeaked by his Republican opponent, Edward Martin, Jr., with a winning percentage of 48.9%. The last time the district lines changed in Missouri was 2003.

The Census Bureau has made available an online map to let you see which states will gain seats and which states will lose. It is located at: http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/.

Missouri is going to lose a seat in Congress after the redistricting dust settles. This will set up a contentious redistricting between the Governor, Democrat Jay Nixon, and his Republican controlled legislature. You can bet that in Missouri Republicans will want to continue whittling away at Democratic districts. Nixon will try to shave Republican areas back from seats currently held by Democrats.

The process will be more complicated in other states such as Arizona and Texas. These states have both the legislatures and the executive offices controlled by Republicans. Their dilemma is that each have to add seats and how do they splinter the vote so that the newly districts created are not Democratic? Much of the calculus for the population increase in these states is attributable to Hispanic voters, primarily non-Cuban Latinos. Due to the harshness of the Republican stance on Latinos, especially in these two states, drawing those lines will be difficult.

The Gerrymander

Expect to hear much discussion in the next two years about Gerrymandering. That is the process of drawing district lines to maximize your party's dominance and minimize the oppositions chances at being elected. The term originated in 1812 after redistricting in Massachusetts resulted in a district somewhat resembling a salamander. The name of the Governor, Elbridge Gerry, combined with the reptile to give the process a name.

About.com provides an excellent tutorial for those wanting to learn more about the process of Gerrymandering. Read it online at: http://geography.about.com/od/politicalgeography/a/gerrymandering.htm.

THE CASE AGAINST LYNN JENKINS CHAPTER 53 - SHE VOTED AGAINST THE FIRST RESPONDERS TO THE WORLD TRADE CENTER

This is Lynn Jenkins, she does not represent us

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010, H.R. 847 is all about providing relief to American heroes. These particular heroes rushed into the World Trade Center after the attack on America, September 11, 2011. The air they breathed was not safe. These folk are sick, suffering, and dying because they did what first responders from any part of America would do. They rushed into harm's way for the sake of others.

Oklahoma's Republican Senator Tom Coburn, who is so ashamed of being a United States Senator that he asks to be called Doctor and not Senator, finally came around to striking a deal on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010, H.R. 847. Yesterday morning New York's two Democratic Senators, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand got down to brass tacks with the Oklahoma Republican. after Oklahoma First Responders got down to brass tacks with him first. Oklahoma's finest, police and firefighters, stood proud with the American heroes who rushed into the WTC after the most dastardly attack against the United States since Pearl Harbor.

Senator Coburn complained about the price tag. Really Doc? As I recall you were part of the filibustering minority in the United States Senate that held the people's business up until you could get an extension of the Bush Era Tax Cuts for the most wealthy American taxpayers. And Doc, that FAT CAT TAX BOONDOGGLE cost $700 billion, which was unpaid for, and added to the deficit, for folks who neither create jobs nor rush into harm's way when the Republic is attacked. Oh Doc, you got it so wrong.

After Senator Coburn used a chain saw to slash $2 billion from H.R. 847 the United States Senate passed the bill by Unanimous Consent.

This bill was first brought up, on a motion to Suspend the Rules, in the House of Representatives on July 29, 2010. Since passage on a suspension of the rules requires a ⅔ majority vote the bill failed. The margin was 255 in favor to 159 opposed with 18 Members not voting.

H.R. 847 returned in regular order, being reported out of the Rules Committee, on September 29, 2010. This time it required only a simple majority to pass. The first margin of victory in the House on H.R. 857 was 268 to 160.

Yesterday. in the waning hours of the 111th Congress, on the last Roll Call vote of that Congress, the pared down version of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010, H.R. 847 passed the House by a margin of 206 in favor to 60 against with 168 Members not voting. While only requiring a simple majority by the House, H.R. 847 exceeded the ⅔ majority vote on final passage.

Lynn Jenkins, who also bellyaches for the FAT CAT TAX BOONDOGGLE and complains about unemployment benefits not being paid for, has managed to vote against First Responders at every opportunity. On three votes in the House to do what the Republicans in the United States Senate finally did, pass the bill by Unanimous Consent, and Jenkins said no three times. There is simply no excuse for Lynn Jenkins' voting record in general or her votes on H.R. 847 in particular.

And now a word about the 160 Members who did not vote. Most, if not all, of these Members left Washington to return home for the holidays before the work was done. Shame on them. They were the largest bi-partisan block the House has seen in a long long time. Frankly I expected more from Dennis Moore. Ike Skelton, the best damn Congressman I ever had, stood tall and kept voting to the last. Skelton finished like a pro! Sam Graves and Jerry Moran, like Moore, wimped out early.

The most amazing wimp out of all came from the Speaker of the House - designate, John Boehner of Ohio. Boehner was missing in action for the only Roll Call vote on December 22nd. That, Mr. Boehner, is not leadership.

Isaac Newton "Ike" Skelton - was the best damn Congressman I ever had

Ike Skelton

I am 61 years old. During my life Missouri's Fourth Congressional District has been served by only three persons. George Christopher, William J. "Bill" Randall, and Isaac Newton "Ike" Skelton, IV.

George H. Christopher

George Christopher, who was born on a farm near Butler, Missouri, started his Congressional career representing Missouri's Sixth Congressional District, January 3, 1949-January 3, 1951, and ended in the Fourth, January 3, 1955 - January 23, 1959. George Christopher term ended with his death. The seat was vacant until March 3, 1959.

Jackson County Eatern District Judgde Bill Randall speaking at 1949 event unveiling a statue of county namesake Andrew Jackson

Bill Randall, an attorney and WWII veteran, was elected to Congress succeeding Christopher. From 1947 to 1959 Randall served as a Jackson County Judge. Despite the judicial appellation, Randall did not sit on the bench of Missouri's Sixteenth Judicial Circuit. In those days Jackson County, Missouri was run by a three person "court". Harry Truman served as Presiding Judge of this Executive Branch of Jackson County government from 1927 through 1934. Randall was an ally of President Truman. Randall served on the Armed Services Committee and was the first Chairman on the Select Committee on Aging. Bill Randall was in the Congress from 1959 to 1977 when he retired. I vividly remember a large billboard just east of Knobtown along what was then U.S.50 Highway urging the retention of Bill Randall in Congress. It stayed there for years! Bill Randall returned home to his law practice. He died in 2000.

"Ike" Skelton IV became a Congressman following Bill Randall's retirement. Ike hails from Lexington, Missouri. It is a small town, by big city standards, but large in history from any perspective. Ike's father met Jackson County's Presiding Judge Harry Truman in 1928, the two became friends. Ike attended President Truman's inauguration in January 20, 1949, Ike was 17, I was two months and a day old.

Ike was an Eagle Scout. He attended Lexington's Wentworth Military Academy, the oldest Military Academy west of the Mississippi River, where he earned his A.B. degree. Then Ike matriculated to Missouri's big school, MU. Ike graduated with an L.L.B. degree, they don't give those out anymore (now you have to earn a juris doctor or J.D.). Ike also attended Scotland's University of Edinburgh.

Skelton came home to practice law in Lexington. He ended up serving as Lafayette County's Prosecuting Attorney before his six year career as a State Senator. Ike Skelton became Missouri's Fourth District Representative to Congress in 1977.

Ike Skelton is a lot more conservative than me. That's okay with me. I have been represented in Congress by Democrats and Republicans from three states. My representatives included a House historian, Democrat Richard C. "Dick" Bolling; a conservative Republican stalwart and used car salesman, Gene Taylor; the poster boy for governmental penny pinching, Republican Jeff Flake; and the worst example of a corporate shill serving Wall Street rather than Main Street, the non-caring about anything but herself, Republican and Tea Party Caucus member Lynn Jenkins. Prior to Jenkins was Nancy Boyda the Republican turned Democrat turned defeated Congresswoman who was never hot or cold in staking out her partisan territory . Like the scripture suggests, voters rejected the lukewarm Boyda two years ago after her single term.

I never had better representation in Congress than I did by the good work and steady effort of Ike Skelton. Even after I left the district I believed Skelton's service to West Central Missouri bode well for America. I rested a bit easier each night because Ike was on the job.

In the outlandish and highly distorted campaign reports of Ike's voting record naught was said of how the bills he produced were passed by overwhelming bipartisan majorities. The debates on those bill were marked by effusive politeness and cordiality. I never saw any of the harsh rancor and name calling associated with the work of the Congress Chairman Skelton rose.

If Vicky Hartzler turns out to be a Lynn Jenkins clone then all the worse for America, Missouri, members of our Armed Services, veterans, and all who want the gridlock brought to a halt. We will feel the loss of Ike Skelton in Congress. Wall Street Fat Cats and special interests are the winners if Hartzler follows the Jenkins path. All I can say to my friends from Lexington to Lebanon is follow the money and turn FOX Propaganda off.

Ike Skelton was the best damn Congressman I ever had.

DAVID KOCH IS A RICH RABID RIGHTWING REPUBLICAN WHO WON'T PUT HIS NAME ON HIS SCANDALOUS ADS AGAINST SKELTON AND MOORE

In the Kansas City television market two very similar ads have been running. These ads target Congressman Ike Skelton and Congressional candidate Stephene Moore. Skelton is the long standing Congressman from Missouri's Fourth Congressional District in West Central Missouri. Moore is running to replace her retiring husband, Dennis Moore, in Kansas' Third Congressional District representing Kansas City, Kansas (Wyandotte County) and parts of Johnson County.

The ads attempt to align Skelton and Moore with the Speaker of the House, the President, and some vague "liberal" agenda. In sum, the ad is a distortion short circuiting reality. This propaganda want to blame the Democratic Party for the economic shambles which President Obama inherited. The truth is that Republican economic policies, two wars waged off the books, and tax breaks for the richest of the rich brought our national economy to its knees. They Republicans in Congress have done naught to govern during the 111th Congress.

The obvious question screams at my mind. "Who is this group running these ads , who are the Americans for Prosperity?" Indeed, aren't all Americans for Prosperity? Americans are for healthy children, mom, apple pie, low blood pressure, a cure for cancer, and prosperity. There was the first clue.

Who is it that hides behind the divisive illusion that those who disagree with this group must be Americans for Privation! What gobbledygook! Who are the Americans for Prosperity? Here's a hint, one lump or two?

That's right, there is a great big connection between the rich rabid right wing Republican s who pretended the nation into believing there was actually a grass roots movement called the Tea Party and the alleged Americans for Prosperity. And that connection is money.

Americans for Prosperity is the ultra conservative Republican pressure group from whence the Tea Party emanated. The Kansas connection is the kooky filthy rich David H. Koch of Wichita's Koch Industries. He earlier founded a group called Citizens for a Sound Economy. Americans for Prosperity left the Citizens for a Sound Economy. The jilted group renamed themselves Freedom Works. It must have been an amicable divorce. Freedom Works is Dick Armey's little lobbying/propaganda enterprise heavily involved in the Tea Party.

David Koch and his brother Charles Koch own Koch Industries. Koch Industries is Big Oil and Gas in America's heartland. Koch Industries is America's second largest privately held company. Aqui es mucho dinero. David Koch is the second richest man in America. He is number 19 worldwide. I can only guess that he'd be number one except for the millions he has squandered on politics. But then maybe he paid for the government [deregulation] he wanted.

Don't get all confused thinking David Koch is just like you or me, that dog don't hunt. Koch is the son of petroleum industry innovator Fred Koch. He didn't go to a Kansas public school or any of our higher institutions of advanced learning. No David Koch went to the elite Deerfield Academy in Deerfield, Massachusetts. He graduated from M.I.T. The only good thing I can say is that he was a better than average basketball player setting a single game scoring record of 41 points in 1962/ That record was broken in 2009 by Jimmy Bartolotta. Say, my high school girlfriend married a guy named Bartolotta. Maybe she's related. But that's a different story.

Here's the skinny. David Koch gave $1,000,000 to the Tea Party. What? That's crazy, that's not a tax deductible gift. MIT's high scoring David Koch should know better. You better believe he does. The gift came from the Claude R. Lambe Charitable Foundation. That's a 501 (c) (3) bona fide tax deductible organization started by David's brother Charles Koch to further the Science of Liberty. Well, maybe the liberty of rich people to amass obscene wealth at the expense of regular folk. So yes, David Koch just had his cake and ate it also.

Open Secrets says Koch Industries is a heavy hitter. in 2008 they gave Republicans $1.7 Million. For the 2010 cycle the figure is up to $700,000. Now that doesn't count the Americans for Prosperity.

Frankly I don't give a rat's behind if David Koch wants to throw his money around. I do care that he does it behind the scenes. When you give this kind of cash to influence politics you ought to be required to sign your name so folks can make an honest assessment of your arguments.

Believe me, the only prosperity David Koch cares about is his own, not ours!

H.R. 5136 EXPANDS HEALTHCARE REFORM FEATURE TO TRICARE

A couple of days ago I read a story from the Washington Post "Popular benefit of health-care law excludes military families" by David Hilzenwrath. That link is: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/25/AR2010052501685.html.

In all the anxiety surrounding the debate about Health Care Reform military families were concerned that they'd lose the good plan they already have, TRICARE. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates requested Congress exclude military families and TRICARE from the overhaul.

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates

It turns out that "Obamacare," as the Republicans are want to call Health Care Reform, isn't so bad as the Health Insurance/Republican propaganda said it was. Now America's military families are wanting to get some of what the rest of the nation's families got.

Remember the problem that occurred in the coverage of American young adults. When they were 18 and not in school their health care was being canceled by the insurance industry. I remember on particularly painful incident involving former Kansas City Royal, Fred Patek. Patek's daughter, Kimberly. was no longer on the family's plan and her coverage had not yet begun. She was paralyzed in an automobile accident. The bills were massive. Several fundraisers were held to assist in paying those fees.

Under Health Care Reform that can't happen anymore. American families are seeing the benefit of their college age kids not being put at risk by the insurance industry. Military families rightly want the same.

That takes us back to H.R. 5136, the Defense Appropriation Bill. Specifically Section 708 titled "EXTENSION OF DEPENDENT COVERAGE UNDER TRICARE." This will cover the older military "brats" until they reach age 26 unless they can enroll in an eligible employer-sponsored plan.

For those who want to read chapter and verse of the TRICARE expansion, link up at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c111:2:./temp/~c111rb7Dp6:e369786: or link to Thomas.gov and search using the keyword TRICARE or the bill number H.R. 5136.

Representative Martin Heinrich

The Washington Post reports that the TRICARE expansion amendment to this bill was proposed by New Mexico's Democratic Representative Martin Heinrich. Heinrich is from Albuquerque and is a freshman in the Congress.

H.R. 5136 was before the House last night in the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, to make amendments.  If you want to see our elected leaders acting like adults with true bipartisan effort, you should see them pass one of Ike Skelton's bills.  H.R. 5136 remains as unfinished business, last night was all about making amendments.

H. R. 5136 - AN INITIAL BREAKDOWN ON DEFENSE SPENDING

H.R. 5136, the Defense Department authorization bill is now available on the House Rules Committee website. Here is a brief summary of where our tax dollars will be going in F.Y. 2011.


Army- $5.986 Billion for aircraft
           $1.631 Billion for missiles
           $1.616 Billion for weapons and tracked combat vehicles
           $1.946 Billion for ammunition
           $9.398 Billion for other procurement

Navy & Marine Corps-
          $19.132 Billion for aircraft
          $3.350 Billion for weapons, including missiles
          $15.724 Billion for shipbuilding and conversion
          $6.450 Billion for other procurement

Marine Corps-
          $1.379 Billion for procurement

Navy & Marine Corps-
          $871.991 Million for ammunition

Air Force
          $15.355 Billion for aircraft
          $672.420 Million for ammunition
          $17.911 Billion for other procurement

Defense-Wide-
         $4.399 Billion for procurement

That is a broad view of Defense Department spending for next year. You can tell by these figures that the Army is carrying the brunt of battlefield duty. Why else would they need nearly $2 Billion for ammunition when the Marine Corps is looking for just under $872 Million and the Air Force is seeking $672 Million for ammunition. We need to remember that we are at war. We need to support our Troops.

President Obama has our military on track fighting the correct war against the true enemy, is using Predator Drones to strike at the leadership of Al Qaeda, and has a plan for drawing down our operations.

We also need to be smart with our money. Apparently the Navy, or some shrewd lobbyist on behalf of the Military-Industrial Complex, wants every cent appropriated for aircraft, all $19.132 Billion (by the way that's more money for aircraft than the Air Force is getting) spent this year. It is the clause in H.R. 3156 I could find only one such clause in the bill like this. Here it is:

§122 (h) (2)


‘‘(2) USE OF EXCESS FUNDS.—The Secretary of
Defense shall ensure that any excess funds are obli
gated or expended for the advance procurement or
procurement of F/A–18E or F/A–18F aircraft under
this section, regardless of whether such aircraft are in
addition to the 515 F/A–18E and F/A–18F aircraft
planned by the Secretary of the Navy.


This may be a good idea, this may be Pork! A million years ago, I was hitchhiking back to K.C. from Springfield, Mo, where I went to SMSU. That was when I first encountered this practice of spending every last cent of appropriated funds. Again, that was a long time ago when hitchhiking wasn't so dangerous! I had a large brown suitcase with a massive Budweiser sticker on it. That was my main attention getter; and it got me lots of free rides. No, I did not travel with brew!

Anyway, my last car had left me in the infamous Grandview Triangle, which the Missouri Department of Transportation (Mo. Dot.) is now trying to call the "3-Trails Crossing," with limited success. It was a lovely spring day, kind of like today. My eye was drawn to a bridge. The bridge spanned two hills and did not connect to any road or highway.

What a waste of money, I thought. If I'd been smart I'd have claimed ownership of the "Bridge to Nowhere" title right there and then. I wasn't that clever. But I did know where Mo. Dot. had their offices. I looked them up in the phone book. No, cell phones were only the subject of science fiction back then, and we accessed the University's computer with "IBM cards." There was no internet. I managed to get through to lead engineer on the project.

"Why did you spend all that money building that bridge when it doesn't connect to anything," I asked him. "To save money," he replied. He went on to explain that building the bridge now would save money because Mo. Dot. had every reason to believe that construction costs were going to rise. We got tomorrow's expensive bridge at today's lower cost.

Ike Skelton

I've got nothing but respect and admiration for Congressman Ike Skelton, the Chairman of the House Committee on Armed Services - who introduced this bill. I trust his judgment. We don't agree 100% on everything, but he is a damn good Democrat and I believe in party unity. Nonetheless, I think I'll keep reading the bill and see if anything else perks my interest.

You should read it too. Go to Thomas, http://thomas.loc.gov/ and plug the bill number in the search bar.