You need to know this. House Democrats are for the first time trying to implement majority rule within their own party. Congressmen Peter DeFazio – Jim McDermott – and Jay Inslee are circulating a letter in opposition to President Obama’s tax cut deal. They hope to convince 60 members of the House Democratic Caucus to sign on to it and force a vote within the caucus on whether or not the tax cut package should be brought to the House floor. As Congressman DeFazio says, “We want to have a record vote in the caucus on a resolution that says this resolution should not go to the floor without a majority of Democratic votes." Democrats have been in the majority in Congress for two years. Yet - the legislative proposals supported by the majority of the party - have repeatedly been torpedoed by the interests of a minority of Blue Dogs. Progressives are right to ensure that this vote – likely to be one of the last of a Democratically controlled Congress - reflects the majority will of the party. If they had used this strategy earlier – the 2010 midterms may have turned out differently.

-Thom

(Were they right? What do you think will happen now? Tell us here.)

Organ vampires making house calls?

DREAM Act - is it creating cannon fodder for the Military

In 2003, after my book Unequal Protection was first published, I gave a talk at one of the larger law schools in Vermont. Around 200-300 people showed up, mostly students, with a few dozen faculty and some local lawyers. I started by asking, “Please raise your hand if you know that in 1886, in the Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad Company case, the Supreme Court ruled that corporations are persons and therefore entitled to rights under the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.”

Almost everybody in the room raised their hand, and the few who didn’t probably were new enough to the law and hadn’t gotten to study that case yet.

Nobody questioned the basic premise of the statement.

And all of them were wrong.

Read about how I discovered the truth that the legal profession has got wrong ever since then in chapter ten, "Wal-Mart Is Not A Person!", of "Rebooting the American Dream" (on Kindle too).

Read an excerpt here, and buy the book!

Thom and Louise Hartmann founded the New England Salem Children's Village in New Hampshire in 1979. With states delaying payment for the children they entrust to the village, they need help with cash flow urgently. Please help if you can.

Listen Live