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Former U.S. congressman Christopher Lee (R-N.Y.) abruptly resigned from the House of Representatives Wednesday after the Gawker website reported he had sent flirtatious e-mails, including one with a bare-chested photo of himself, to a woman he met on Craigslist.
This morning, D.C.’s “Black Snob” blogger Danielle Belton posted an exclusive interview she scored with the woman at the heart of the scandal. Belton described her as to FishbowlDC as “African American. Tall. Pretty. Trendy. Long-legged. Great shoes.”
Belton posted the following story on the blogsite Loop21.com:
In the midst of an embarrassing scandal broken by the gossip and media blog Gawker, Rep. Christopher Lee (R-NY) resigned from his seat in shame. In less than three hours from when the story broke on Wednesday he was suddenly in retreat. Denials of a computer hack turned into needing to spend time with the wife. But who was the woman at the center of the drama? And how did it all really go down?
“Dating in D.C. sucks,” she said as we chatted by phone late Wednesday night, mere hours after Lee’s resignation. “You know the women outnumber the men and therefore the men have their way. It’s like easy pickings for the men. They have so many options. They have people in Maryland. They have women in D.C. They have women in Virginia. They have women on the Internet. Therefore, living in D.C., everything is at your disposal. A lot of women take people’s word as bond. They don’t investigate.”
But she did. And the end result was a resignation from Congress.
Sarah Palin took a shot at Michelle Obama during Sunday’s episode of her reality TV show, “Sarah Palin’s Alaska,” alleging the first lady’s anti-obesity campaign attempts to deprive Americans of dessert.
While searching for s’mores ingredients on a family camping trip, Palin remarked: “Where are the s’mores ingredients? This is in honor of Michelle Obama, who said the other day we should not have dessert.”
Mrs. Obama has been a key proponent of an initiative to improve children’s health by encouraging better diets and sufficient exercise. In May she announced her “Let’s Move” program, which promoted dessert alternatives, among other dietary suggestions.
One in 3 American children is overweight or obese, putting them at higher risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and other illnesses. Obesity is even more prevalent among black and Hispanic children. Some public health experts say today’s children are on track to live shorter lives than their parents.
But Palin has maintained that Obama’s effort to combat child obesity — which was recently aided by the passage of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act — is one that seeks to take away “God-given rights to make our own decisions.”
During an appearance on Laura Ingraham’s radio program last month, Palin complained: “Instead of a government thinking that they need to take over and make decisions for us according to some politician or politician’s wife priorities, just leave us alone, get off our back.”
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SIDEBAR – Listen here missy, gun toting Mama,wannabe politician,ego tripping gal. Slow your damn roll!
Today is a new day. You may or may-not like or agree with President Obama decisions, but you should
respect him as your “President”. After all we put up with your GED mentality, I want to see the paper
work Sarah because I don’t believe you. Believe this everything happens for the good “PERIOD”. It takes
a person that forgives there self everyday, a person that loves themselves everyday, and a person that
thanks God daily for all. For we are all one, there is no separation. Get a grip Palin!
The Senate has voted to repeal the “don’t ask, don’t tell” law, ending the legal ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military.
It passed the Senate in a 65-31 vote. Earlier six Republicans joined Democrats in a procedural vote that brought the measure to the floor.
President Obama announced he would sign the repeal of the 1993 law, one of his priorities in the lame-duck congressional session.
The House passed the bill this week 250 to 174.
The repeal allows gays and lesbians to serve in the military without fear of prosecution for their sexual orientation. More than 13,500 people have been dismissed from the military under the law.
Jobless benefits will run out for 2 million people during the holiday season unless they are renewed by a Congress that’s focusing more attention on a quarrel over preserving tax cuts for people making more than $200,000 a year.
It’s looking iffy at best whether Congress will renew jobless benefits averaging $310 per week nationwide that are presently claimed by almost 5 million people who have been out of work for more than six months.
An extension of jobless benefits enacted this summer expires Dec. 1, and on Thursday, a bill to extend them for three months failed in the House.
Democrats brought the bill to the floor under fast-track rules that required a two-thirds vote to pass. Republicans opposed the legislation because they were denied a chance to attach spending cuts, so the measure fell despite winning a 258-154 majority.
In Thursday’s vote, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats in favor. Eleven moderate-to-conservative Democrats opposed the bill.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., promised to bring the measure back to the floor after Thanksgiving to try to enact an emergency measure that extend benefits at least through the holidays.
Most watchers on Capitol Hill don’t expect the ethics trials of Reps. Charlie Rangel and Maxine Waters’ to begin until after midterm elections in November, reported The Hill on Monday.
It’s feared that the trials could overly politicize the ethics process, but for both Rangel and Waters, the charges have already been wrought with political controversy.
Both lawmakers have made it a point to publicly fight their battles, hinting that the scales of scrutiny are tipped heavily against black lawmakers.
Over the summer, the House ethics committee released 13 charges against Rangel. They included damning allegations that the longtime Harlem congressman had tried to use his political sway as chairman of the Ways & Means Committee to woo corporate donors in financing his self-named institute at City College of New York.
Waters faces three charges of her own, stemming from her dealings with OneUnited, a bank in which her husband was a former board member and owned over $250,000 in stocks.
It seems that the chairman and CEO of OneUnited, the bank at the center of the ethics investigation against Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), has a troubled past himself, reports the Washington Post.
Not only has Kevin L. Cohee reportedly been arrested twice on sexual-assault and drug charges-although he has denied the arrests-the federal government also issued a “cease and desist” order to the bank due to his supposed living allowance that allowed him to live in a mansion.
Cohee’s bank purchased or leased luxury real estate for him-including an $880,000 condominium in Miami and a $26,250-a-month mansion in Santa Monica owned by Bruce Springsteen’s drummer-and reportedly paid for his Porsche.
Cohee promoted the bank as a responsible investor in minority communities, which Waters then helped promote in her district. Waters has described herself as a “professional and social” friend of Cohee.
Only 12 members of Congress voted to approve health benefits for “1st Responders” to 911 Twin Towers.
Yes the Democrats overwhelmingly passed it. It has been years since 911 and the folks that involved
their lives to save whomever are now greatly disturbed with health concerns – OK who knew. What the
outcome effects would be. These folks Fire Dept, Police Dept, Medics put there lives on the line to help.
And this is how Congress rewards them for a job well done to the best of their ability – well damn Congress.
And you wonder why – folks are voting for anybody other than the incumbent to stand for there City,
or State reps. How dare you put these folks on the back burner. Do you have no shame or guilt what you
are doing to these folks. Understandably the economics in this country are steep, why do you think that
President Obama wanted the Health Care Reform bill past. Not just for future clients, but present ones in
need as well. Congress when are you going to get off your azz and stop throwing a rock and then hiding
your hand. You took your offices with a “vow” to pledge and help your constituents of your state and
others. Do not turn a blind eye to the needs of Americans, families are involved here and future generations.
Have you thought about what your legacy would be when you depart your office? Was it to help or hinder
the causes of citizens of the USA? Or is it money talks and bullshyt walks Congressmen Republicans.
House investigators today officially accused veteran New York Rep. Charles Rangel of 13 violations of congressional ethics standards, throwing a cloud over his political career and putting Democrats in a pickle throughout fall elections.
The allegations – which include failure to report rental income from vacation property in the Dominican Republic and to report more than $600,000 in assets on his congressional financial disclosure statements – came as lawyers for Rangel and the House ethics committee worked on a plea deal.
One was reached, sources tell the Associated Press, but Republicans indicated it was too late.
The deal between the lawyers will have little meaning if the committee members don’t approve it, and Republicans said at the proceeding they were insisting on going forward with a trial. The panel is evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans.
“Mr. Rangel was given multiple opportunities to settle this matter. Instead, he chose to move forward to the public trial phase,” said Rep. Jo Bonner of Alabama, the senior Republican on the ethics panel
Many Democrats had urged Rangel to settle the case to avoid the prospect of televised hearings right before November congressional elections that will determine which party controls Congress next year.
However, as Friday’s public airing of the charges drew nearer, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi seem resigned to the case proceeding.
“The chips will have to fall where they may politically,” she told reporters. Pursuing ethics cases against House members is “a serious responsibility that we have,” she said.
I don’t know if you are aware of this website, but it is awesome. You can look up everything you ever want to know about every politician and congress person before you vote for them or for whatever reason. You’ll find biography, history of entire voting record, stance on current and previous issues, etc, etc, etc.
(sorry, you will probably have to type it in…but it’s worth it)
http://www.votesmart.org/index.htm
The Recession has hit everybody…..
I got a pre-declined credit card in the mail.
Wives are having sex with their husbands because they can’t afford batteries.
CEO’s are now playing miniature golf.
Exxon-Mobil laid off 25 of it’s Congressmen.
A stripper was killed when her audience showered her with rolls of
pennies while she danced.
I saw a Mormon polygamist with only one wife.
If the bank returns your check marked “Insufficient Funds,” you call
them and ask if they meant you or Them.
McDonald’s is selling the 1/4 ouncer.
Angelina Jolie adopted a child from America .
Parents in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and learned their children’s names.
A picture is now only worth 200 words.
When Bill and Hillary travel together, they now have to share a room.
The Treasure Island casino in Las Vegas is now managed by Somali pirates.
Congress says they are looking into this Bernard Madoff scandal. Oh
Great! The guy who made $50 Billion disappear is being investigated by
the people who made $1.5 Trillion disappear!