[Davis Democrats] Defend Progressive Champion Jim McDermott(D-Washington state)-the psychiatrist in Fahrenheit 911 movie who called false alarms false alarms

[John Chendo]

------ Forwarded Message
From: "Roger Hickey & Robert Borosage, CAF" <manager at ourfuture.org>
Reply-To: <notice-reply-ii7e7n3495bxiwe at ga3.org>
Date: Mon, 08 May 2006 19:55:14 GMT
To: John Chendo <jac07 at dcn.org>
Subject: Defend Progressive Champion Jim McDermott

  <http://www.ourfuture.org/>
Campaign for America's Future | www.ourfuture.org
<http://www.ourfuture.org/>
 
  
Please contribute today to help defend progressive champion, Rep. Jim
McDermott from Republican attack, and support his historic fight against
Republican corruption. GO » <http://ga3.org/ct/X1Nowd41LXOI/>

Dear John,
 
As part of our continuing work to confront Congressional corruption, we're
reaching out today to support a progressive champion -- Rep. Jim McDermott
-- who House Majority Leader, John Boehner, has attacked as a payback for
successfully exposing and punishing Republican corruption. Please help
counter Boehner's attack, and continue to fuel the fight against corruption
in Congress by contributing today to the Legal Expense Trust of progressive
champion, Rep. Jim McDermott.
 
Please contribute today <http://ga3.org/ct/X1Nowd41LXOI/>  to help defend
progressive champion, Rep. Jim McDermott.

Rep. McDermott came under attack from Boehner for successfully confronting
Republican corruption that was spearheaded in the nineties by Newt Gingrich,
Boehner, and other Republican leaders. Here's some background on what
prompted Boehner's attack....

In 1997, the House Ethics Committee recommended that then Speaker of the
House, Newt Gingrich, face an unprecedented reprimand from Congress and pay
$300,000 for what they deemed an "intentional or...reckless" disregard of
House rules. They concluded that Gingrich had used tax-deductible money for
political purposes and supplied inaccurate information to officials
investigating the issue. Conceding to the Ethics Committee, Gingrich agreed
not to make any public comment on the matter, or direct surrogates to
mischaracterize it before the House voted on a punishment. 1

Soon after this agreement was made, however, Rep. Boehner participated in a
conference call with Gingrich and other Republican leaders and planned a
direct violation of the agreement. A Florida couple intercepted Boehner's
cell phone signal and recorded the conversation.  They brought the tape to
the Democratic co-chair of the Ethics Committee -- Rep. Jim McDermott -- who
played it for a New York Times reporter and set into motion events that led
to Gingrich's resignation. For that act, Jim is still paying today.
 
Majority Leader Boehner was recruited to sue Rep. McDermott in civil court
for invading his "privacy". Boehner's suit against McDermott went up and
down the court system. Unfortunately, two of three judges of the Washington
D.C. Appeals Court recently ruled against McDermott. If not reversed, he
must pay fines, penalties, and Boehner's legal costs.
 
If not reversed, this judgment will set an ominous precedent that will
impede the flow of information on Congressional corruption to the press.
Throughout this long ordeal, Rep. McDermott has been fighting to protect
first amendment rights. On April 8th, a Washington Post editorial concluded:
"This ruling can't be right; the full court ought to intervene."2

Congressman McDermott had no choice but to appeal this decision, and he has.
It will be costly.  Please contribute today
<http://ga3.org/ct/X1Nowd41LXOI/>  to help defend progressive champion, Rep.
Jim McDermott, and support his historic fight against Republican corruption.

Republicans under investigation have Legal Expense Funds into which money
pours from Republican supporters.  In fact, over the years, Boehner has
raised thousands to pursue this case against McDermott.
  
81% of the voters in Rep. McDermott's district sent him back to the House in
the 2004 election. Rep. McDermott needs to focus on fighting for health
care, getting our troops out of Iraq, and continuing to tell the truth to
people who don't want to hear it  --  not raising money to appeal this case.

Jim McDermott should not have to do this alone.
 
Please help defend this progressive champion. Please contribute today
<http://ga3.org/ct/X1Nowd41LXOI/>  to Rep. McDermott's Legal Defense Fund,
and help spread the word by passing this email along to your friends.

Thank you again.

Sincerely,

 Roger Hickey, Co-Director
Campaign for America's Future Robert L. Borosage, Co-Director
Campaign for America's Future


1 "Ethics Panel Supports Reprimand of Gingrich"
<http://ga3.org/ct/X7Nowd41LXOu/> ,  John E. Yang and Helen Dewar,
Washington Post, January 18 1997
2 "Ban Snooping, Not Speech" <http://ga3.org/ct/XdNowd41LXO7/> , Washington
Post, April 8, 2006
 
  

 
 

   
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