brad miller

I had the honor of representing Jim Neal at the Alamance County Democratic Convention today, and luckily, he showed up just in the nick of time so I could avoid the public speaking aspect of my surrogate duties (whew).

I'm sure I would have done just fine, but since I actually live in Alamance County, it's not like I could just fade away and never come back if I tumbled over a chair ala "America's Funniest Home Videos" or accidentally dropped an F-bomb while speaking. While they may not be as horrific as the nightmare where you show up at school naked, these things were playing in the back of my mind, nevertheless.

Here's our glorious and recently face-lifted courthouse where the Convention took place:

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives General Counsel filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of the House Judiciary Committee to enforce subpoenas issued by the committee seeking information on the U.S. Attorney firings. The defendants in the case are former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten who were cited by the House for contempt of Congress last month. Contrary to federal law, the Department of Justice (DOJ) refused to present the House-passed contempt citations to a grand jury.

“The Bush Administration’s claim of executive privilege goes well beyond any privilege recognized by any court decision,” said Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC) who worked closely with House leadership to help pass the contempt resolution.

Washington, D.C. – Amid a GOP walkout in the U.S. House of Representatives today, lawmakers approved contempt citations against White House officials which will implement a two-part strategy that allows Congress to pursue the matter in both criminal and civil court.

Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC) worked closely with House leadership to help pass the contempt resolution. The action comes after Harriet Myers, former White House counsel, and presidential chief of staff Josh Bolton ignored subpoenas from Congress to cooperate with an inquiry into whether the firings of U.S. Attorneys were politically motivated at the direction of President Bush.

Republicans boycotted the vote and staged a walkout.

I heard that Senator Obama asked a question of former Senator John Edwards recently. It went something like this;

"Senator Edwards, who is a good guy, he's been talking a lot about 'I'm going to fight the lobbyists and the special interests in Washington.' Well, the question you have to ask is: Were you fighting for (citizens) when you were in the Senate?" [h/t cosbo]

Ellinorianne at daily kos gave a pretty thorough response to that question.

- I've bumped this, not because it was a candidate diary, but because it is such a great story of overcoming adversity.

The Sunlight Foundation and Matt Stoller, who blogs at Open Left, have organized a live blog tomorrow at TPMCafe about the foreclosure epidemic. We’ll talk about the legislation that Linda Sanchez (D-California) and I introduced to allow bankruptcy courts to modify predatory mortgages.

Can you believe it? I bet you can. I actually bet most people don't really mind it either. But the House of Representatives voted to officially recognize the importance of Christmas and the Christian faith.

Rolling Stone.....Wanna see my picture on the cover
Rolling Stone......Wanna buy five copies for my mother
Rolling Stone......Wanna see my smilin' face
On the cover of the Rolling Stone


Rep. Brad Miller might not have actually made the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine, but he was interviewed for and quoted in an article about the unchecked power of the Bush administration and the politicization of the Inspectors General.


If you haven't read the article yet, please head on over and read it. Here is the opening:

IN OCTOBER, WITH OSAMA BIN LADEN still at large, the Central Intelligence Agency announced the creation of a new spy unit. Headed by a top deputy and staffed with a select corps of agents, the operation was charged with gathering intelligence on a single man — a foe who was threatening to undermine the president's War on Terror.

Please Join Congressman Brad Miller

For a discussion hosted by Ruby Sinreich of OrangePolitics.org and Brian Russell of Yesh.com about the impact of blogging on today's political environment.

When: Thursday, November 29, 5:30pm - 7:30pm
Where: Mill Town Restaurant, 307 E Main St, Carrboro, NC

Speaker Pelosi will hold a press conference with North Carolina Congressmen Brad Miller and David Price tomorrow (Friday, Nov 2nd).

Update: Still no word from McIntyre or Etheridge. Please call them and see if we can get them to take a position on the Clean Water Protection Act (HR 2169.) Thanks!

The Clean Water Protection Act (HR 2169) would reverse the Bush Administration’s 2002 decision that the toxic “waste” created by mountaintop removal could be defined as “fill material,” and recklessly dumped into our water ways. This practice has already destroyed over 1200 miles of American headwater streams, and eliminated access to safe, clean potable water for many communities. The CWPA (HR 2169) currently has 107 co-sponsors, and a lot of momentum. But we need more to get out of committee and onto the floor.

We have 5 of 7 Democrats from NC onboard, and we need to know if Bob Etheridge and Mike McIntyre are “wit’ us” or “ginst us” on HR 2169. Please ask.

If you have a moment, please see if your Congressman is a co-sponsor, and take a moment to call Etheridge (202-225-2731) and McIntyre (202-225-2731), politely but forcefully asking that they co-sponsor the Clean Water Protection Act (HR 2169), and take a stand against mountaintop removal.

A quick report on our NC Dems and mountaintop removal below…