Knollenberg Continues His Hold On Bush's Coattails -- Even as 77% of the Public Disagree!!!

Knollenberg is still holding onto George W. Bush's coattails -- all the way into the history books as the worst President -- and therefore the worst Congressman -- in history.

More Than Three Quarters of US Oppose Knollenberg
Now, 77% of Americans think the war in Iraq is going badly. That is over three quarters of the population! That is up from 2 months ago when it was a mere 2/3rds of us who thought Iraq was going badly. With nearly half of us saying it is going VERY badly.

Even the surge is failing. The surge is now in place, yet less than 20% of American's think it is working. That would be the same 20% that are still supporting Bush and Knollenberg.

Knollenberg thinks our troops should stay indefinitely. He has opposed all timelines. And he has supported Bush's switch from training Iraqi's to "stand up so we can stand down". Our troops are not training the Iraqi's anymore. Instead, our troops are on the front lines in Iraq.

These recent polls are remarkable considering that the country has divided nearly 50/50 in the last 2 Presidential elections. Remember how they were claiming some of the Country was Red and other parts were blue. These polls show that the 'red' wasn't quite as blind as Bush and Knollenberg had hoped.

According to CBS News,

Kathy Frankovic, CBS News director of surveys. "But the combination of shrinking support for the war in Iraq and opposition to domestic initiatives like the immigration bill has made assessment of this administration especially negative. "Americans don't only disapprove of the president; they overwhelmingly see the country as on the wrong track,"

Congress as a whole has poor approval ratings too -- a mere 27%.

It looks like Knollenberg and Bush are having a race to the bottom of the polls.

DCCC ad holds Joe accountable for not supporting the troops

On Monday the following ad will start airing in the Detroit market holding Joe Knollenberg accountable for not supporting our troops.

Click here to hear the ad.

Knollenberg's Inaction Defies Conservatives

As noted in the previous post, Vice President Dick Cheney is now asserting that he is above the law -- and Knollenberg is supporting him!!!!

Apparently Cheney is so out of control that even the most conservative of conservatives, Bruce Fein, is now calling for his impeachment. Fein was Reagan's associate deputy Attorney General.

When conservatives call for the impeachment of the "Corrupt King of Conservatives", you know it is bad a bad day at the White House.

But apparently "La La La" Knollenberg is either blissfully unaware of reality or he is supporting Cheney's unlawful activities. Of course it is impossible to tell from his "La La La" website -- it doesn't provide any information on any of the critical issues facing us today!! (What is the point of a website if it doesn't provide useful information?)

It gives new meaning to the term "Tricky Dick". Seems that Robert Bork is to Nixon what Knollenberg is to Cheney.

Knollenberg believes Dick Cheney is Above the Law

According to Joe Knollenberg, Vice President Dick Cheney is above the law.

For the past 4 years, Dick Cheney has refused to comply with an Executive Order (signed by the current President) that puts the National Archives in charge of monitoring classifed information in the White House. According to the NYT:

For four years, Vice President Dick Cheney has resisted routine oversight of his office’s handling of classified information, and when the National Archives unit that monitors classification in the executive branch objected, the vice president’s office suggested abolishing the oversight unit . . ..

So rather than just comply with the law, Cheney decided to try to eliminate the pesky little law so it wouldn't bother him anymore.

When that didn't work, Cheney asserted asserted that he did not have to comply with the Executive Order because he was not in the Executive Branch of Government. That is not only a tremendously weak argument, but it is quite bizarre since Cheney has previously refused to release information on the grounds that it was protected by Executive Privilege.

Rather than argue about whether the Vice President was supposed to obey the law, Congressman Rahm Emanuel cleverly called Cheney's bluff -- he proposed an amendment that said that since Cheney wasn't a part of the Executive Branch, then he wasn't eligible for funding that was for the Executive Branch. That would mean that there wouldn't be any funding for the VP's mansion, his staff, etc.

But according to Joe Knollenberg and Dick Cheney, the laws of this country are supposed to bend to conform to Dick Cheney's will.

Knollenberg voted against the Emanuel amendment. In short, Knollenberg thinks Cheney should continue to receive funds even though Cheney asserts that he is not eligible for the funds.

Moreover, Knollenberg continues to support Cheney even though Cheney is violating the law by not allowing the National Archives to have oversight of how his office handles classified documents.


What has Joe KNollenberg done about this matter?
As usual, "Do Nothing" KNOLLENBERG HAS DONE NOTHING!

What is it with these rich elitists? Why do Paris Hilton and Dick Cheney think they are so important that they should be above the law? The devine right of "kings" was eliminated by the Magna Carta in 1215. We are a country that follows the rule of law, not the rule of individuals.

Joe Knollenberg Doesn't Stand Up for Oakland County.

Radio ads attacking Knollenberg hypocrisy start next week

In the Detroit Free Press 6/29.

Radio ads over Knollenberg and troops bonuses to begin next week in Detroit
June 28, 2007

By TODD SPANGLER

FREE PRESS WASHINGTON STAFF

WASHINGTON – A Democratic campaign committee that has targeted Oakland County Republican Congressman Joe Knollenberg for defeat next year is taking radio ads out against him in metro Detroit beginning next week.

Chris Van Hollen, the Maryland congressman who heads the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said the ads are meant to let voters know that while Republicans including Knollenberg may talk about patriotic themes over the July 4th holiday, “the rhetoric is not matched by the votes.”
Read the rest of the story, Click Here.

DCCC Targets Knollenberg Over Independence Day

(Crossposted at MichiganLiberal)

The DCCC blog "The Stakeholder" reports that they will be running ads in 14 competitive districts over Independence day. Beginning Monday, be on the lookout for this blitz in the 9th!

Joe Knollenberg, who won with only 51% of the the vote last year, is being targeted for his awful voting record on the military. Besides being a supporter of the "surge", Knollenberg has voted to cut veterans benefits by $15 billion...including "cuts to disability benefit payments to former soldiers and reductions in money for GI bill benefits and health care."

9th district voters do not support these policies! It is excellent to see the DCCC working to bring light to Joe's record.

Attention from the DCCC, as well as rumors that former State Senator Gary Peters will enter the race certainly indicate the 9th will be the district to watch in Michigan as we look to expand our lead in the House!

Read the full text of the ad at The Stakeholder, and see what other districts are targeted.

Knollenberg: Wrong Again, Naturally

If he keeps it up, I might just have to start feeling sorry for the guy.

Joe Knollenberg is wrong once again.

Today, the Free Press reports that Joe Knollenberg "introduced legislation he says will push the Japanese government to end 'the manipulation and severe misalignment of its currency,' weakening the yen to the point where it essentially provides billions of dollars in export subsidies to Japanese automakers.

First, the Freep's writing here isn't very good. On the surface it looks like Knollenberg's legislation would result in "weakening the yen" further. That would be silly because that would just incease their effective subsidy of their automakers. Even Knollenberg couldn't do anything that stupid. (Well, maybe he could do something that stupid. He does report to lobbyists you know. They tell him what to do and he just blindly agrees.)

Even Knollenberg's Best Efforts Are Barely Even Meaningless Gestures

Just for the sake of argument, let's assume that Knollenberg is trying to reduce the effective subsidy by pressuring Japan to stop manipulating the value of the yen. What is going to do? Threaten to have George Bush invade them too? Or maybe he could sick Dick Cheney on them. That oughta scare them.

Just like Bush failed to understand the culture when he invaded Iraq, Joe Knollenberg has just let the world know that he doesn't understand either the auto industry or the Japanese economy.


Knollenberg Has Just Brought Himself More Bad PR
What is really amazing though are the comments from average voters about Knollenberg's "plan" (where by "plan", I mean empty and shallow Press Release rather than real legislation to help the auto industry).

They just slap him. And these were not comments that were planted by the "liberals". These are not even the normal posters who fight about the political issues. These are just people who found KNollenberg's idea so stupid, they took the time to comment on it!

Here are some of the comments:

- Yet another example of legislative disconnect. Why don't those two explain the US dollar devaluation of the last 30 years??? Through administrations of both parties to boot, so they're all to blame. When I went to Japan in 1975 I got 282 yen for a dollar, now what is it, around 100 or so??? They complain about other countries while we do the same, and we wonder why sometimes foreigners just shake their heads. This, like many other things in Congress lately, is pathetic. [DownriverDude]

- I'm sure Tokyo is, right now, shaking in utter despair at the thought of these wo numbskulls coming up with 'legislation' to stop the 'manipulation' of the Japanese iscal markets. And people wonder why Michigan is in the shape that it is? Get real! [bigsmoke]


- Bush is just hoping that the dollar can kind of hold where it is until he gets out of office. When the dollar reaches its true value, it will not be pretty. [umich07]


- I'm confused on this one. To me that would be the same as saying the United States has spent 7 1/2 trillion dollars over the past 30 years artificially holding the dollar low. Doesn't spending 1/2 trillion more than total annual revenue weaken the US dollar? [DexterRiley]


- Elected officials are on a propaganda campaingn? The USA deValues its currency by policy. Is that currency manipulation? The USA dollar has been deValued by over 53 % since Bush has been in office! ....Political posturing, and propaganda by elected that prefer to lie to the people will not change anything. US policy, and deficits; cause world speculators, and traders, to dump worth less dollars causing USA "inflation!" [Liberty Writer]

Funny thing about Joe Knollenberg. Knollenberg hasn't woken up and realized that the people are paying attention to him even if he isn't paying any attention to us.

By being a "Do Nothing" Knollenberger, he was able to avoid controversy and things were going relatively well for the first 8 years he was in office. Clinton was at the helm and we were at peace, our allies trusted us, and the economy was booming. So people didn't pay much attention to Slo' Joe.

But things are different now.

People are watching. The public is more interested in the next election than ever before. Even the most conservative of voters want to "throw the bums out." Inaction most of the time accompanied by a few hollow gestures won't sway them. Ba Ba Bye Joe.

Vote NO on JOE!

Knollenberg Is Not Even True to His Own Words

We know Joe Knollenberg doesn't listen to constituents. But now we know he doesn't even listen to himself!

Here is what Joe Knollenberg had to say earlier this year about the disaster in Iraq:

As to Bush's plan to escalate the war, on January 11, 2007, the Detroit News ran an article that noted that Joe Knollenberg supported Bush's "surge" of troops "but only with the condition that real progress is seen within about 90 days."

So if Knollenberg was a man of his word, then he would have re-evaluated the situation on April 11, 2007. But April 11, 2007 passed and Knollenberg didn't indicate that "real progress" was being made.

But he must have thought things were going well since on April 25th, KNOLLENBERG voted AGAINST setting timeframes for withdrawing troops.

Instead, listening to George Bush and sleazy lobbyists like Trent Wisecup, Knollenberg once again gave Bush a blank check and an open ended commitment to keep U.S. troops in Iraq.

Radio station WWJ AM has a similar statement, also dated January 11, 2007, attributed to Knollenberg on their webpage:

“His leadership is on the line here and he knows it,'' said Rep. JoeKnollenberg,
a Republican from Oakland County's Bloomfield Township. The congressman said he
would only offer ``conditional support'' for the plan andwanted to see
significant progress in the next three to four months.”

Even though it was the same day, this time Knollenberg gave himself up to 4 months to reevaluate the situation in Iraq to determine if there had been "significant progress".

That means he should have evaluated the situation by May 11, 2007. But rather than listen to the reports from the Generals and other experts, Knollenberg ignored them and voted to keep spending endless amounts of money and to sacrifice more and more American troops in the bloody civil war in Iraq.

So, although Knollenberg said he would only support the "surge" in Iraq if it showed progress within 3 or 4 months, Knollenberg ignored the reports from experts stating that there wasn't any progress. In fact, the situation was getting worse.

Apparently, even Joe Knollenberg doesn't listen to Joe Knollenberg.

Knollenberg only listens to George Bush and sleazy lobbyists.

We Can't Afford Joe Knollenberg Anymore.

It's Official: BUSH & KNOLLENBERG Have Turned Iraq Into a Failed State

It is official, Joe Knollenberg and George Bush have turned Iraq into a failed state.

According to Reuters,

Iraq has emerged as the world's second most unstable country, behind Sudan. . .

The 2007 Failed States Index, produced by Foreign Policy magazine and the Fund for Peace, said Iraq suffered a third straight year of deterioration in 2006 with diminished results across a range of social, economic, political and military indicators. Iraq ranked fourth last year.

Afghanistan, another war-torn country where U.S. and NATO forces are battling a Taliban insurgency nearly six years after a U.S.-led invasion, was in eighth place.

Joe Knollenberg has walked lockstep with George Bush on the fiasco in Iraq.

Joe Knollenberg has voted for every single funding bill Bush has asked for and against every single bill that would put any timeframes on withdrawing troops.

Joe Knollenberg has not introduced a single piece of legislation to address the problems in Iraq.

Joe Knollenberg has voted for whatever George Bush asked for on Iraq. That makes Joe Knollenberg just as responsible for the failure of Iraq as George Bush.

In fact, if you want to know Joe Knollenberg's opinion on just about anything, ask George Bush. After all, Bush told Joe what his opinions were 96% of the time last year. Sleazy Lobbyists like Jack Abramoff and Trent Wisecup tell him what his opinion is the rest of the time.

We Can't Afford Joe Knollenberg.

Knollenberg's Iraq War & U.S. Troop Deaths

This is a graph illustrating the rate that U.S. troop deaths are increasing.






The numbers came from the Washington Post and http://www.icasualties.org/.

Note that the numbers for 2007 and beyond are projected -- assuming that the increase is linear.

Given the rapid jump in U.S. Troop deaths this year, it is unlikely that the increase is truly linear. It is more likely that the actual increase in the rate of U.S. troop deaths will actually be significantly higher than predicted.

But look at how quickly the rate of U.S. troop deaths rises. The more troops Knollenberg keeps in Iraq, the more casualties we can expect.

Yet, all the experts agree that there is no military solution to the problem in Iraq.

What has Joe Knollenberg done to resolve the crisis in Iraq? NOTHING.

He has not taken a lead role in the Iraq crisis. In fact, if you were to read his website, you'd be hard pressed to even find any information at all about Iraq. If he mentions it at all, it is under the category of "war on terror".

Joe Knollenberg has not proposed a single strategy, or single piece of legislation aimed at resolving the crisis in Iraq.

The only official activity Knollenberg takes part in is that he has approved every single dollar that Bush has requested for Iraq. No questions asked. Knollenberg just issues blank check after blank check.

Knollenberg's spending record on Iraq is matched only by his wasteful spending through earmarks. (Earmarks are special line items in appropriations bills where Knollenberg directs millions of dollars in taxpayer money to his campaign donors, sleazy lobbyists, and friends.)

Oakland County Can't Afford Joe Knollenberg Anymore.

234 Americans Killed

234 more U.S. Troops have died since Joe Knollenberg voted against a timetable to withdraw from Iraq.

234 more of our friends, neighbors, co-workers.

234 more mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers.

234 more sons and daughters.

234 more Americans have died since Joe Knollenberg voted against a timetable to withdraw from Iraq.

234 more Americans have died Since KNOLLENBERG

VOTED NO on redeploying the troops

How many more have to die before Joe Knollenberg will actually do something to stop this slaughter?

Joe Knollenberg is TOO Extreme for Oakland County

Knollenberg Votes To Increase Abortions Worldwide!

Joe Knollenberg voted to restrict contraception and increase the number of abortions in the world. The legislation would also have reduced the spread of AIDS in Africa and other poor countries.

Knollenberg voted against HR2764 today even though the bill was described byRep. Nita Lowey, who chairs the committee responsible for the legislation, as legislation to "reduce unintended and high-risk pregnancies and abortions ... and save the lives of mothers." But Joe Knollenberg voted NO.

The legislation passed the House, but Bush has threatened to veto it. This is just another in the litany of examples of Joe Knollenberg blindly obeying the will of George Bush.

Why does Joe Knollenberg hate women so much?

Joe Knollenberg is too Extreme for Oakland County.

Joe on H.R. 811, the Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act or 2007

H.R. 811 is important legislation to improve voting technology in this country and assure that that there are paper trails to be able to recount in the event of a close election and give voters more confidence in their ballot being counted accurately. I do hope that Joe will support this legislation.

Joe's position on the Employee Free Choice Act

What Joe didn't mention in his letter is that he voted against this important legislation making it easier for workers to join and form unions. Unions are important to middle class Americans being able to earn decent incomes to achieve the American dream. But that's of no real interest to Joe Knollenberg.

Rochester/Birmingham Eccentric take note of Knollenberg Race

The Knollenberg race and the volume of Letters to the Editor have been noticed by the local media. Today's Rochester and Birmingham Eccentric ran the article below as proof that Joe is concerned about his race in 2008.

Knollenberg Thinks Embryos Belong in an Incinerator

When fertility specialists fertilize embyros for implantation, they make extra embryos in case the implanted embryos are not carried to term. The extra embryos are frozen in case they need to be used in the future. Once it is determined that the extra ones are not going to be used for fertility purposes, they are then disposed of as medical waste. Since medical wastes are generally incinerated, the embryos are incinerated.

So, by voting against using those leftover embryos for stem cell research -- research that could result in dramatic advances in medical science -- Joe Knollenberg was effectively voting to mandate that those stem cells be incinerated.

Today we know why Joe Knollenberg voted the way he did. Because George Bush told him to vote against the bill. George Bush vetoed the second stem cell research bill this year.

So once again, Joe Knollenberg has voted the way George Bush wanted him to vote.

The only way we will get enough votes to pass a veto proof stem cell law is to put a Representative in Congress who understands the importance of technological advances and supports scientists in their quest for new and exciting discoveries.

Oakland County deserves an independent voice in Congress.

What Is Joe Knollenberg Trying to Hide?

What is Joe kNOllenberg trying to hide?

"Do Nothing" kNollenberg is notorious for doing favors for lobbyists and campaign donors. Like the time kNOllenberg arranged an $8 million dollar earmark for one of his biggest campaign donors.

But now Joe kNOllenberg is trying to hide something from the public. CNN contacted every member of Congress to find out what "earmarks" they snuck into legislation for FY2008. Joe Knollenberg refused to respond to CNN.

Last year, Congressman like Joe kNOllenberg snuck over $67 billion worth of earmarks into appropriation bills.

Even Republican's are disgusted with kNOllenberg's earmarks. Here is what the ultra conservative Republican Senator Coburn says on his webpage:

For example, Lason Services Inc.’s Beltsville office received a $5.4 million earmark to “make the historical climate record from the mid-1800s available online.” According to OMB Watch, a D.C.-based liberal nonprofit, Lason was awarded two more sole-source contracts totaling $4.7 million for the same purpose in 2006.

When we asked who sponsored the Lason earmarks, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s budget and public affairs office couldn’t tell us. Same response from the legislative office of the U.S. Commerce Department, NOAA’s organizational parent. Ditto NOAA’s Climate Data Modernization Project in Asheville, N.C., which was to receive Lason’s work product, and the House Appropriations Committee staff.

Nobody at Lason would talk, either, even though the firm could be considered by some an odd choice to get federal tax dollars. Lason filed for bankruptcy in 2001, and its CEO, COO and CFO were all either convicted or charged with fraudulently inflating company revenues two years later.

Finally, a spokesman for Rep. Joe Knollenberg, R-Mich., whose congressional district includes Lason’s headquarters in Troy, Mich., admitted the congressman had asked in 2003 that the financially troubled company be allowed to participate in NOAA’s climate history project.

So there went nearly $10 million down the drain. Joe kNOllenberg has one of the worst records in Congress in terms of how much he wastes on earmarks for his friends.

Again, the information above came from a Republican Senator's webpage. This is not Democratic Party information, nor information from some group who opposes kNOllenberg.

And of course, Joe kNollenberg wants to keep wasting tazpayer money.

That is why Joe kNollenberg consistently votes against legislation that would require that he make his earmarks public so we can see how he wastes money. [HRes 6, RollCall #9. See also, HRes 1000, Roll Call #449.]

Call Joe Knollenberg and ask him what earmarks he has put into legislation lately. I bet he won't tell you.

Joe Knollenberg has a reputation for wasting taxpayer money.

Oakland County cannot afford Joe Knollenberg.

Knollenberg's Real Record on the Auto Industry

Joe Knollenberg's lobbyist has been putting editorials in the local papers saying how Joe Knollenberg is a "champion" of the auto industry.

Joe Knollenberg's voting record shows that he is not only NOT a champion, but he isn't even a supporter of the industry.

1. Knollenberg voted YES on NAFTA (Rememberg Ross Perot's prediction that it would create a big sucking sound of our jobs to Mexico?)


2. Knollenberg voted YES on CAFTA (so that we could ship jobs to Central America in addition to the ones that have been outsourced to China and India).


3. Knollenberg voted YES on a Singapore trade agreement that undermines our industry's ability to compete.


4. He has voted to give fast track authority to the President so that he can just sign trade agreements without allowing Congress to amend them (even though amendments would be necessary to help our domestic auto industry).


5. Knollenberg supported the interests of the United Auto Workers ONLY 6% of the time in 2004.

None of the bills listed above are even remotely supportive of the Auto Industry. In fact, they hurt the auto industry and white collar and blue collar workers. The only ones who benefited are the CEOs and CFOs who always take care of themselves first. They got millions while you may lose your pension.

Knollenberg has NEVER introduced legislation to directly benefit the auto industry.

His lobbyist is writing letters to the Press now complaining about legislation that could be proposed some day, but Knollenberg has DONE NOTHING. That of course is where he gets his nickname, "Do Nothing" Knollenberg. It is a very fitting nickname.

Joe Knollenberg doesn't represent the interests of Oakland County voters.

A Picture That is Worth Over a Thousand Words

Father's Day for Peace

Joe, being a father, perhaps you can make a donation to help out a victim of the tragedy in Iraq.