senator pete domenici Archives - Where Is The Outrage?

Congressmen Behaving Badly

Republicans and Democrats have proved to us beyond a shadow of a doubt that neither party is beyond moral corruption.

The past week has given us an outstanding example of exactly this. On one hand, we have former Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. Remember, last year, he suddenly had to take a leave of absence. There was a question of whether he had to check himself into some type of “institution.” Was he sick? Was he depressed? Did he have a nervous breakdown? Did he have some sort of serious psychiatric disorder? All these questions were swirling around as Nancy Pelosi and others in Congress wished him a speedy recovery. As it turns out, Jesse Jackson, Jr. was suffering from a federal investigation. Earlier this week, Jesse Jackson, Jr. and his wife pleaded guilty to using campaign funds as their own private piggy bank. It appears that Jesse Jackson, Jr. and his wife are going to be looking at some jail time.

On the other hand, we have former Senator Pete Domenici. The New Mexico Senator was a longtime fixture in Congress. It was revealed yesterday that the former Senator had an affair with another senator’s daughter back in the 1970s. This affair produced a son who is currently a Nevada attorney.

I’m not going to pretend that there is some deeper meaning in either of these examples of personal failures. I will say that I am always skeptical of any politician who wants to legislate moral behavior. It is my opinion that Congress should stick to civil affairs and we, as individual citizens, should find our moral compasses in our churches, our synagogues and our temples.

By ecthompsonmd|2013-11-03T18:19:28-04:00February 21st, 2013|Congress|Comments Off

Calling Pete. We have some questions for ya'

It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy (dripping with sarcasm).

From TP:

A federal grand jury has subpoenaed the records of former New Mexico senator Pete Domenici (R) as part of an investigation into whether “former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, other Bush administration officials or Republicans in Congress should face criminal charges” for the 2006 firings of nine U.S. attorneys. Prosecutors, led by acting Connecticut U.S. Attorney Nora R. Dannehy, are also preparing to interview Scott Jennings, a former aide to Karl Rove.

By ecthompsonmd|2009-02-12T01:45:05-04:00February 12th, 2009|Legal|Comments Off

Random Thoughts

Here are some things that I have been reading about and I think need more discussion:

Remember the U.S. Attorney scandal? Former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias testified before Congress that he got a call from Senator Pete Domenici. During the call Domenici asked about whether or not Iglesias was going to file an indictment against some New Mexico Democrats right before the 2006 mid-term election. Domenici got a slap on the wrist from the Senate Ethics Committee for the “appearance of impropriety.” In my opinion, I think this is terribly mild.
Abstinence-only education doesn’t work. There have been numerous studies to show this. Florida has passed legislation that Florida schools teach sex education. Some teens believe that drinking Mountain Dew or smoking marijuana can prevent pregnancy. I took care of a teenager who injected herself with turpentine in order to prevent herself from becoming pregnant. Representative John Duncan, a Tennessee Republican, said that it seems “rather elitist” that people with academic degrees in health think they know better than parents what type of sex education is appropriate. “I don’t think it’s something we should abandon,” he said of abstinence-only funding. Education– we truly need our children to be educated. (and we need to vote John Duncan out of office!)
Did you see that the Veteran’s Administration is being sued in a class-action? In spite of the official rhetoric out of the Bush administration, a recent RAND report found that “300,000 U.S. troops — about 20 percent of those deployed — are suffering from depression or post-traumatic stress from serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.” They fight for us and we can’t at least give them decent health care when they get back. We have to do better.
Finally, did you see where a government contractor supplied these flash-band grenades that never worked. After the $15 million contract, the Department of Defense found a flaw in the law enforcement weapon and ordered it to be fixed. Pyrotechnic Specialties, Inc. figured out it was cheaper to just print new labels. Three FBI agents have been injured. Company officials were indicted but there was this nugget: Company officials bribed a federal official and paid for a visit to a strip club.

By ecthompsonmd|2008-04-25T06:45:24-04:00April 25th, 2008|Corporate Wrongs, Military, US Attorneys|Comments Off