The Washington Independent

Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013

Posts by John Tomasic

Hitchens’ death leaves craven people in power to sigh with relief

By | 12.16.11 | 3:38 pm | More from The Colorado Independent

Christopher Hitchens died yesterday of cancer. He was a learned and caustic cultural critic who wrote for the popular press and who was at his best when eviscerating the hypocrisy and pretense of people in power. He famously hated organized religion. It’s easy to imagine that, had Hitchens ever trained More…

U.S. called ‘immoral’ at United Nations climate conference

By | 12.07.11 | 9:57 am | More from The Colorado Independent

As the United Nations climate talks in Durban progress, they are becoming increasingly combative, offering a soft preview of the kind of political atmosphere destined to prevail in a world where agriculture in vulnerable regions of the planet begins to succumb to catastrophic drought and flooding. The United States and More…

Only 40% of Miss. GOPers think interracial marriage should be legal, underscoring folly of subjecting rights to a vote

By | 04.07.11 | 3:58 pm | More from The Colorado Independent

A recent survey of Mississippi Republicans conducted by Public Policy Polling (pdf) found that a majority of them believe inter-racial marriage should be illegal. According to the poll, 46 percent of the Republicans told PPP staffers that interracial marriage should be illegal and 14 percent of them said they More…

GOP budget would cut funding for public broadcasting

By | 02.14.11 | 9:15 am | More from The Colorado Independent

The Republican House majority put out a shocker of a budget Thursday that would slash spending by $32 billion in the next seven months. Among the glaringly ideological Republican targets are environmental protection programs and public broadcasting. The “war on Big Bird,” as some fans of PBS have called More…

Rep. DeGette voices further concern over anti-abortion bills in House

By | 02.11.11 | 2:27 pm | More from The Colorado Independent

MSNBC host Chris Matthews this week asked Colorado Rep. Diana DeGette, head of the congressional Pro-Choice Caucus, about how the anti-abortion bills introduced as a top priority in the Republican-controlled House might affect Americans should they become law. DeGette said that, from the perspective of women’s health care, the bills More…

Pro-Choice Caucus chair DeGette leads defense of abortion rights in House

By | 02.09.11 | 8:39 am | More from The Colorado Independent

Image by Matt MahurinColorado Representative and head of the Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus Diana DeGette is surprised to find herself doing heated battle on a number of fronts in the war over abortion rights this early in the year. This session of Congress was supposed to be about jobs and the economy,

Members of Congress propose withholding money U.S. sends to Egypt

By | 02.04.11 | 12:31 pm | More from The Colorado Independent

As the Obama Administration tentatively feels its way through the political crisis in Egypt, some key lawmakers on Capitol Hill are sending a strong message to embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, who chairs the subcommittee that approves foreign aid and who has voiced strong opinions More…

Breitbart, Live Action post Planned Parenthood video in shadow of Congressional abortion debate

By | 02.01.11 | 4:00 pm | More from The Colorado Independent

A new conservative activist hidden-camera video dropped on the internet Tuesday as part of a multi-state effort to catch Planned Parenthood staff on tape offering assistance to men running a child prostitution ring. The immediate aim of the video and its wide distribution is to strip Planned Parenthood of More…

Shove it! Dan Choi won’t pay the government for his being discharged under DADT

By | 01.27.11 | 12:16 pm | More from The Colorado Independent

The Defense Department, after discharging gay soldiers under the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, apparently sends them bills requiring them to pay back “unearned portions” of their contracts. High-profile discharged soldier Dan Choi received his bill this week from Defense Department Finance and Debt Services in the amount of $2,500. More…

In wake of repeal, a look back at how ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ failed one servicemember

By | 12.21.10 | 6:13 am | More from The Colorado Independent

Image by: Matt MahurinDemocrats and Republicans joined together in an inspired last-ditch effort that succeeded in repealing the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” military policy banning gay soldiers from serving openly. The 17-year-old policy reflected a confused transitional moment in U.S. history. Even though the policy’s end came too late to prevent the More…

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