Not A Good Month To Be Speaker Of The House

May 19. 2009

Nancy Pelosi

This is not a good month to be a speaker of the house. First, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi got her butt handed to her by America’s spy agency the CIA, when she was outed as having lied, about being lied to, regarding former president George W. Bush’s torture program. Did you get that or do I have to rephrase it. People are calling for Pelosi to step down.

Then in Britain, Speaker Of The House, Michael Martin is in quite a bit of trouble. People are trying to force him to resign, due to an expense scandal that has swept the House of Commons in London, with the people apparently not wanting the Speaker to speak in Parliament anymore.

Michael Martin

The British public has a right to be upset, as the tax rate currently extends from 36% to 61%. It is in the British government’s best interest to revise the tax code, as the lower income and middle class folks, small businesses included, should not be asked to shoulder such a heavy tax burden.

It will also encourage businesses to relocate, which is a shame, as Britain is a good place to do business, with good offices, intelligent workers and a sizable population of 60,000,000 people.

In closing, in light of the political thrashing both Pelosi and Martin have received, boy am I glad I’m a writer.

However, if I were a politician, number one, I would make a very fine one (grin). Number two, I would not go along with heinous, inhumane torture practices in violation of the Geneva Conventions, then lie to the public about it, nor would I be fleecing the taxpayers, by padding my expense accounts or be complicit regarding said conduct from other members of government.

Lastly (yes, I know I wrote “in closing” already) members of legislative houses of government around the world, must remember, it is a privilege to serve one’s country in said capacity.

You have the opportunity to shape policy and improve your nation for current and future generations. You are also well paid, so do give the people their money’s worth and focus on the task at hand.

Pelosi should 'present the evidence or apologize' to CIA, Boehner says

May 18, 2009 - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has accused CIA officials of misleading lawmakers during the Bush administration about whether waterboarding was being used.

Washington -- House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) "ought to either present the evidence or apologize" in the wake of her comments that CIA officials misled her about the use of controversial interrogation techniques on terrorist suspects.

"Lying to the Congress of the United States is a crime," Boehner said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” "And if the speaker is accusing the CIA and other intelligence officials of lying or misleading the Congress, then she should come forward with evidence and turn that over to the Justice Department so they can be prosecuted."

He added: "And if that's not the case, I think she ought to apologize to our intelligence professionals around the world."...

http://www.latimes.com

Black Star News Editorial

Speaker Nancy Pelosi's days may be numbered. Eventually she may have to resign.

The speaker needs to command respect and credibility in order to get the President's work accomplished; and this president has an ambitious agenda. Pelosi can no longer marshal the support she needs from both parties.

She has engaged in a fight she cannot win with the CIA...

To begin with, we don't believe that "secrecy" should protect a lawmaker when it involves clearly illegal actions. Waterboarding is clearly torture –indeed, Japanese who waterboarded Allied troops during World War II were executed after their defeat; and it is illegal.

Therefore, Pelosi is saying that she chose to hide and protect a crime for the sake of "secrecy."

The second point is: why is Pelosi making a big deal that she was not informed in 2002 that the CIA was weatherboarding Al-Qaeda suspects and that she only learned about it in 2003? For that distinction to make any sense at all it would mean that had she learned earlier she might have done something about it.

Yet the same "secrecy" argument she is now using to try and explain why she never said anything in 2003 would conceivably also covers 2002...

The answer is clear. Pelosi's tenure as Speaker has become untenable.

http://blackstarnews.com

MPs' expenses: Speaker Michael Martin says sorry but refuses to quit

Published: 8:00AM BST 19 May 2009 - The fate of Michael Martin is in the hands of Gordon Brown after the Speaker of the House of Commons was involved in a dramatic confrontation with MPs.

Following a 15-minute exchange in Parliament, Mr Martin was told that he had signed “his political death warrant” over his handling of the MPs' expenses scandal.

One MP described him as a “dead Speaker walking”. Another said that he would remain in the job for a matter of days after the leaders of the three main parties withdrew support.

The Prime Minister will choose whether to allow MPs to debate a motion of “no confidence” in the Speaker which would almost certainly force him to quit.

One senior Labour MP said: “It’s up to Gordon now. He decides whether the motion is debated. He has to decide if he’s willing to put an end to all this.”

In astonishing scenes in the Commons, MPs ignored centuries of convention and openly argued with the Speaker as he struggled to get to grips with the crisis engulfing Westminster, caused by The Telegraph’s expenses investigation.

Despite making an unprecedented apology to the country, Mr Martin’s statement descended into chaos with MPs on all sides urging him to go.

One veteran Tory MP likened the mood to that of the Norway debate in 1940 when Neville Chamberlain was urged: “In the name of God, go.”

Mr Martin will meet all three main party leaders.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk