• "Brunch with Bernie" with Senator Bernie Sanders, Independent of Vermont.


• FISA passed in the House of Representatives 293-129. Roll call.


• 'Anything Goes' Friday.


• The show will be broadcast from Denmark all next week.

Topics, guests, upcoming events, quotes, links to articles, audio clips, books & bumper music.

Friday 20 June '08 show

• Tomorrow Thom and Louise are flying to Denmark; the show will come from Danish National Radio all next week. Thom will be interviewing the author of the study which said that Denmark is the happiest country; a bookmark to his trip to Sudan, which must be one of the unhappiest countries. He'll also be interviewing members of parliament.
  
• "Brunch with Bernie" with Senator Bernie Sanders, Independent of Vermont. Gas, oil prices. energy policy. The replies he got. Early in July he's going to a laboratory in New Mexico to look into solar thermal plants. At a hearing last week, T. Boone Pickens who is into wind was before the Energy Committee (video). Hedge funds. Steny Hoyer caving on FISA. "When the president does it, that means it's not illegal". Richard Nixon. Quest knew it was illegal and did not do it. Energy. In Denmark they all have health care for half the price. Other alternative energies. Gas prices. Cheney spoke with big energy and the Bush administration has fought to make sure the minutes never were made public. It has worked out very well for the oil industry. Someone should filibuster or something to stop the FISA bill. Bernie has not been involved in discussions about it. Thom has called Hooley, and they did not know/say how she would vote. House today, Senate next week. Judicial Watch has copies of the maps Cheney used of oil fields, thanks to FOIA. Cars, mpg. Honda has a hydrogen car on sale in Japan. Republicans, gutless Democrats.
  
  There is an extreme right wing party, and Democrats are centrist with some conservatives. Democrats do not represent people against big interests, but they are much better than the Republicans. 51-49 majority including Joe Lieberman who votes with Republicans on foreign policy issues. They need 60. Most votes are efforts to end debate, not actual votes, on Iraq. Bill to prevent pardons? Not that he knows of. Single payer health care. HR 676 national health insurance act, why no companion bill in Senate? The health care system.
  
  Cost of living index, it's important to social security recipients, yet excludes food, gas. The 2% rise this year is nowhere near enough to match the actual cost of living. The House tried to come up with a different index for seniors. Laptops are cheaper, and they are included in the index, but seniors rarely buy them. They buy health care. It didn't get passed. More Siegelmans this summer? House hearings, Bernie is not sure about in the Senate, there are so many hearings. Development this week, especially vets, Bush indicated legislation for new GI educational bill for post 9/11 similar to www2 (he had opposed it, but very popular so he changed his mind). How much do hedge funds make off gas? It's a secret. Some managers are making billions. They are controlling more and more of capital. We need to re-regulate energy markets. Morgan Stanley is the largest holder of oil. Vice President Bernie? FISA. One of biggest disappointments, they are not listening. Toguba on Abu Ghraib. Investigation. Voter suppression.
  
• Bumper Music: Nothing On But The Radio, Gary Allan.
  
• Bumper Music: It's My Life, The Animals.
  
• 'Anything Goes' Friday.
  
• Steny Hoyer caving on on FISA, why else other than money could there be for them to go on with it? Russ Feingold called it a capitulation, the New York Times, an assault on the constitution. Let us hope that Senate can block it. Bernie is not on the relevant committee, we need somebody to put a hold on it and let the clock run out, or to filibuster. Thom is glad he does not do suck up interviews. Ask tour members of congress how they voted on it, so can decide how to vote in November.
  
• Public health. Local departments can no longer inspect local grocery stores.
  
• Clip:
  "I've always felt the nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help'." Ronald W. Reagan.
  
• Article: Constitutional expert: FISA bill 'is an evisceration of the Fourth Amendment'. Jonathan Turley on MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann, June 19, 2008.
  
• Hedge funds make money when the market is going up or down, not when it's static.
  
• If we could put man on the moon, we should be able to do fuel cells etc.
  
• Clip: "The energy crisis is real. It is worldwide. It is a clear and present danger to our nation. These are facts and we simply must face them. Moreover, I will soon submit legislation to Congress calling for the creation of this nation's first solar bank, which will help us achieve the crucial goal of 20 percent of our energy coming from solar power by the year 2000.
  
  What I have to say to you now about energy is simple and vitally important. Point one: I am tonight setting a clear goal for the energy policy of the United States. Beginning this moment, this nation will never use more foreign oil than we did in 1977 -- never. From now on, every new addition to our demand for energy will be met from our own production and our own conservation.
  
  The generation-long growth in our dependence on foreign oil will be stopped dead in its tracks right now and then reversed as we move through the 1980s, for I am tonight setting the further goal of cutting our dependence on foreign oil by one-half by the end of the next decade -- a saving of over 4-1/2 million barrels of imported oil per day."
  Jimmy Carter televised "Crisis of Confidence" Speech on July 15, 1979.
  
• Bumper Music: Anything Goes, Harpers Bizarre.
  
• FISA just passed 293-129, Hooley voted no. 129 nos, all but 1, Johnson of Illinois, were Democrats. 13 did not vote. List of some who voted against. Roll call. Democrats saying yes included Brian Baird, Jane Harman, Steny Hoyer, Nancy Pelosi. Thom is absolutely horrified. If Thom's representative had been on the 'yea' list, Thom would have supported her opponent. Call the ones who voted no and say 'thanks, I know it may have cost you contributions from the telcos'. Look for people to take on those who voted 'yes' at their next election. Infiltrate the Democrats to look for good candidates, pass on information. Encourage house members not to vote for Hoyer as leader. The leader does not understand the 4th amendment. Don't wring your hands and say 'to hell with it', that's what they want. People fought and died for the constitution.
  
• Article: House Approves Unconstitutional Surveillance Legislation: Allows government monitoring of Americans without warrants and gives telecom companies a retroactive pardon. June 20, 2008. Caroline Fredrickson, director of the ACLU's Washington Legislative Office, said:
  "It's Christmas morning at the White House thanks to this vote. The House just wrapped up some expensive gifts for the administration and their buddies at the phone companies. Watching the House fall to scare tactics and political maneuvering is especially infuriating given the way it stood up to pressure from the president on this same issue just months ago. In March we thought the House leadership had finally grown a backbone by rejecting the Senate's FISA bill. Now we know they will not stand up for the Constitution.
  
  No matter how often the opposition calls this bill a