Dems Miffed That Black Lawmakers Have To Testify Last At Sessions Hearing

[DonViejo]

Source: Talking Points Memo



By CAITLIN MACNEAL Published JANUARY 9, 2017, 12:53 PM EDT

Senate Democrats are pushing Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee to let members of the Congressional Black Caucus testify at the confirmation hearing for Donald Trump's attorney general nominee, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Politico reported Monday.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), chair of the Judiciary Committee, told Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), the committee's ranking member, that he was willing to let members of the CBC testify at the hearing, according to Politico. However, Grassley said that Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and other black lawmakers would only be able to speak after a panel of outside witnesses testifies at the hearing, per Politico.

Democrats are unhappy with this arrangement, arguing that lawmakers typically testify at hearings before outside witnesses, Politico reported.

Grassley spokeswoman Beth Levine told Politico that Democrats requested that members of the CBC testify ahead of witnesses who had already been called to speak at the hearing.

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/democrats-sessions-hearing-congressional-black-caucus

[msongs]

1. dems should call it what it is - back of the bus treatment, but they won't nt

[Lindsay]

3. That was exactly

my thought when I read the post.

[arithia]

2. Bigots protecting bigots.

No shocker there. Watch them pull a "there isn't enough time for them to testify" after making the CBC get to the "back of the bus".

[BumRushDaShow]

5. Democrats should either put a hold in place and boycott the hearing

or don't bother coming back to their constituents and fold.

[raging moderate]

6. Plus maybe hold a shadow hearing?

In Britain, the opposition party that is out of power elects a "shadow cabinet," don't they? I heard that this "shadow government" dogs the footsteps of the party in power, criticizing their decisions, holding hearings of their own when the other side is holding hearings. There is a notice on DU that the Democrats are planning to livestream a late-night meeting from the Senate chambers, right? Maybe they could let America hear what these Black members have to say. And use it to pressure the other side to drop their antebellum attitudes and stop refighting the Civil War.

[BumRushDaShow]

7. The Democrats have done that before

with Sandra Fluke when the GOP men felt that they knew more about women's bodies than women themselves and refused to include any as part of their hearings on contraception.

Whatever they choose to do must go viral in some alternate form because the M$M will surely not cover it, preferring to follow Drumpf around like puppy dogs as they lap up his every inane tweet.

[Xipe Totec]

8. Here's the answer to the question: "What have you got to lose?" nt