Robert Byrd D WV

[JVS]

Poll question: Robert Byrd D WV

Just checking opinions here.

[GainesT1958]

1. The facts...and the video as well...

Bear out the latter, loud and clear!:D

Two great Democratic natives of North Carolina who stood up for the Constitution at crucial times: Sam Erwin and Robert Byrd! :7

:kick:

B-)

[MASSAFRA]

2. I'm going to get in trouble here....

Byrd did more to prevent the invasion of Iraq then Kerry did.
(I will be voting for Kerry)

[AntiCoup2K4]

16. You may very well get in trouble, but it's the truth.

Byrd had the balls to stand up and speak out against this bullshit invasion and vote against it. Unlike all the tutu wearing Bush appeasing sellouts including you know who.

[MasonJar]

3. The statesman of the new century and only in his 80's. I love him.

Why do I have to be embarrassed with Mitch McConnell, who came out today criticizing the 9/11 Commission? I guess the committee didn't spend enough time repealing finance reform or organizing corporate bailouts to suit the husband of our cherished (not) Secretary of Labor. Or Jim Bunning, whose most recent claim to infamy is his description of his opponent (in the Senate race) as looking like one of Sadaam's dead sons?
Oh, Wild and Wonderful neighbor, West Virginia, can we Kentuckians share Senators Byrd and Rockefeller with you? Please?

[SideshowScott]

4. I love Byrd BUT hes a GOP poster child for his early days..

When he was in the KKK. Ive met MANY a right winger who bring him up in the debate of Liberals and Dems being racist. Even though he has said countless times how sorry he is of that and has been fighting for civil rights ever since hes seen the light. I guess redemption and forgiveness is only for those in the Republican party.. With that said i respect Byrd alot for fighting the GOP when no one else would. Hes no Zell Miller who's still a Dixiecrat who was too dumb to switch when the Dems took out the trash.

[JVS]

5. No, he is certainly not perfect.

However that is no reason to forget his good points

[AntiCoup2K4]

17. Hey, nobody's perfect right?

Byrd used to be a Klansman before your parents were born, now he's a good guy. Kerry used to be a liberal, now he surrounds himself with PNAC'ers and votes for their agenda.

Guess which one I'll forgive sooner.

[sangha]

6. Here's Byrd opposing Clinton on global warning

He's allied himself here with Hagel and the US Senate Republican Policy Committee to help energy corps. You remember them, right? They're the ones that got us into Iraq.

http://www.senate.gov/~rpc/releases/1997/Gwupdate-mw.htm

Administration Expected to Defy Byrd/Hagel Resolution,
and to Sell Climate Change Treaty as Painless
On Wednesday, the President is expected to announce his proposal of targets and timetables for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. This announcement will coincide with the opening of the Climate Change "workshop" in Bonn, the last scheduled negotiating session prior to the Meeting of the Parties of the Framework Convention on Global Climate Change in Kyoto, Japan, in early December. Although it is not yet known what the specifics of the Administration's position will be, the best guess is that it will propose a target of achieving 1990 levels of emissions by 2010, or perhaps 2015.

Defying Byrd/Hagel Resolution. On July 25, 1997, the U.S. Senate sent the President a clear message in passing S. Res. 98 (the Byrd/Hagel Resolution, Roll Call Vote No. 205), by a vote of 95 to 0. The resolution expresses the sense of the Senate that the United States should not be a signatory to any treaty that "would result in serious harm to the economy of the United States" or that would impose new greenhouse gas emissions reductions on the economically developed countries unless it "also mandates new specific scheduled commitments to limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions for Developing Country Parties within the same compliance period."

In apparent defiance of this, the President earlier this month announced his determination to commit the United States to "realistic and binding goals" for greenhouse gas reductions in a treaty that will legally bind the United States and the other economically developed nations. The President did not condition such a treaty on new commitments by the developing countries of the World. The hubris of this President on this issue appears to be based on his confidence that he can use his bully pulpit not only to indoctrinate the American people with the controversial view that Global Warming is catastrophic and immediate, but also on the notion that curtailing energy use will be practically painless, and even good for us...

[sangha]

7. Here's Byrd arguing for nuclear energy

and "decreasing our reliance on foriegn producers by increasing domestic production", code words the Repukes use. Also "clean" coal,

http://www.netl.doe.gov/ppii/pdf/webbyrd.pdf

[sangha]

8. Byrd fighting to let mountaintop coal mines continue dumping waste

http://www.ecomall.com/activism/sec49.htm

"1.) Congress Approves Small, Across-the-Board Budget Cut:

The Associated Press (November 18) reports that White House and congressional negotiators have agreed on a final FY'00 $390 billion budget bill that includes a 0.38% across-the-board cut for federal programs. The budget deal, which covers five of the 13 annual spending bills including the Interior appropriations bill, does not include a proposal by Senator Robert Byrd (D- WV) to let mountaintop coal mines continue dumping waste into valley and streams. U.S. Public Interest Research Group reports that the bill "contains a much weaker version of the oil rider and a somewhat weaker version of the hardrock mining provision on millsites, but would still allow that many destructive mines to go forward. The big victories were on removing bad forest riders, and blocking the Byrd mountain top and utilities' clean air riders. Not clear if Byrd will still try to attach mountain top to something else before they leave."

An interesting note here is that during the Clinton impeachment, Clinton cut a deal with Byrd. Clinton would support Byrd in his fight to continue polluting wetlands, and Byrd would vate against impeachment. Clinton ended up going back on his word, and I'm glad he did.

[sangha]

9. Bush's energy plan supported by gas, coal industries - February 26, 2001

Bush's energy plan supported by gas, coal industries - February 26, 2001
http://www.statejournal.com/Archive2000/art360322001.cfm

"...On hand with Bush was U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., who had introduced in January a bill that may become the backbone of Bush's energy policy - at least as far as coal is concerned - the National Electricity and Environmental Technology (NEET) Act...

...Bush's overall plan was released in draft form during the campaign last fall and is being put together in final form.

It would provide energy assistance to low-income households, address shortfalls, promote the development of energy security as a priority of U.S. foreign policy, promote the development of coal, oil and gas resources to meet the demands of the New Economy, while protecting the environment and developing alternative energy sources..."

[sangha]

10. Byrd-McConnell Bill: Godsend for King Coal?

Byrd-McConnell Bill: Godsend for King Coal?
http://www.umwa.org/journal/VOL112NO2/marclean.shtml

The UMWA-endorsed Byrd-McConnell bill (S. 60) would spend more than $1 billion over 10 years and provide up to $6 billion in tax breaks during the next decade for utilities to refurbish plants or build new plants using CCT. The legislation provides a measure of burden-sharing to cushion the cost of improving the environmental performance of existing coal-based generating facilities. The National Electricity and Environmental Technology Act calls for: ...

[sangha]

11. Byrd being thanked for training next generation of polluters

http://www.nis.wvu.edu/Releases_Old/byrd.htm

Sen. Robert C. Byrd to be honored at WVU
U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd will be the guest of honor and keynote speaker at a tribute to the senator acknowledging his support of energy and environmental programs at West Virginia University.

The tribute will be held Saturday, Nov. 9, at 2 p.m. in the assembly room of the National Research Center for Coal and Energy (NRCCE) on the Evansdale campus of West Virginia University in Morgantown. A reception will follow the tribute, and tours of the NRCCE building will be offered. The program will be broadcast locally on public access Channel 3.

During the past 15 years, Sen. Byrd has obtained more than $90 million in federal funds to support energy and environmental research, training and service programs at WVU. This includes $21 million for construction of the NRCCE building, completed in 1993, and equipment for the NRCCE and other University laboratories...

[sangha]

12. CLEAN COAL IS A DIRTY DEAL

CLEAN COAL IS A DIRTY DEAL
http://www.tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/4127

"...Senator Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., and Senator Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., representing respectively the second and third highest coal-producing states, have introduced Senate Bill 60. So far, another ten Democrats and ten Republicans are co-sponsoring the bill, including Republican Senators Mike Enzi and Craig Thomas from the top coal producing state of Wyoming.

The bill would blow $1 billion of taxpayer money in ten years for "clean coal" research and would toss $6 billion in tax breaks to power plants. It exempts coal burning plants for ten years from Clean Air Act provisions that, among other things, require the plants to measure mercury and acid rain forming pollutants. Strange, why does "clean coal" need to hide from the Clean Air Act?

This corporate welfare would subsidize coal at the expense of less polluting natural gas. The bill works against truly clean energy sources such as wind, solar and fuel cells. It works against taxpayers' wallets, lungs, children and common sense. ..."

[sangha]

13. The money behind Byrd

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/indus.asp?CID=N00002200&cycle=2004

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/contrib.asp?CID=N00002200&cycle=2004

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/sector.asp?CID=N00002200&cycle=2004

[sangha]

14. Byrd is tight with Agri-Energy Rountable

http://www.agribusinesscouncil.org/aer.htm

Read between the lines. It's a food for oil program.

[kentuck]

19. Great men have great enemies, sangha...

You're great sangha!

[sangha]

21. And sometimes, they have evil friends, kentuck

Byrd helped torpedo Kyoto. If not for that, the pressure to garauntee a steady supply of oil would not be so great, lessening the pressure on the US for using military force to ensure a steady supply.

[AntiCoup2K4]

18. Here's Sangh* spamming the board again

[sangha]

22. Information isn't spam

except in the single dimensional world you inhabot

[JVS]

15. kick for saturday crowd

[JVS]

23. kick because it fell like a stone

[AbbeyRoad]

20. I thought he was a voice in the wilderness...

before the invasion of Iraq began.