TPMDC
Protests

Wisconsin State Legislature

Wis. Dem Senator: State Senate GOP Are 'Creating A Police State' (VIDEO)


Wis. State Senators Chris Larson (D) and Glenn Grothman (R)

After hearing that State Senate Republicans had issued a resolution calling for his arrest, along with 13 AWOL Wisconsin Dems, Chris Larson (D) said the state GOP is creating a 'police state.'

On MSNBC's The Last Word Thursday night, Larson had an intense debate with GOP State Sen. Glenn Grothman, who had appeared on the show earlier in the week calling some protestors in the capitol building "slobs."

TPM SLIDESHOW: Mad In Madison: Wisconsin Workers Protest Against Governor's Budget Proposals

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Topics: Chris Larson, Glenn Grothman , Protests, Scott Walker, Wisconsin , Wisconsin State Legislature

Libya

K Street Firm Explains Why It Lobbied for Libya Then Abruptly Cut Ties


Fmr. Rep. Bob Livingston (R-LA)

Former Rep. Bob Livingston (R-LA) severed his firm's lobbying contract with the Qaddafi-controlled government of Libya in the fall of 2009, after Qaddafi's son welcomed the individual convicted of bombing Pan Am Flight 103 back to his home country as a conquering hero.

"Saif Qaddafi gave him a really public greeting broadcast around the world to welcome him home as a hero of the state -- that was just too much," Livingston told TPM in a telephone interview.

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Topics: Bob Livingston, Egypt, Hosni Mubarak, House of Representatives, Libya, Lobbying, Muammar Qaddafi, Protests, Saif Al Islam Al Qaddafi, Senate, Trade

Violence

Indiana Dep. AG: Use 'Live Ammunition' Against Wisconsin Protesters


Indiana Deputy Attorney General Jeff Cox

This week, a Mother Jones editor named Adam Weinstein got into a Twitter tête à tête with an Indiana lawyer who called on riot police in Madison to use "live ammunition" to clear protesters out of the state Capitol.

It turned out that lawyer, Jeff Cox, is a deputy attorney general in the state. And -- perhaps unsurprisingly -- he's left a long online trail of controversial statements and diktats.

TPM SLIDESHOW: Mad In Madison: Wisconsin Workers Protest Against Governor's Budget Proposals

"[A]gainst thugs physically threatening legally-elected state legislators & governor?" he tweeted back at Weinstein. "You're damn right I advocate deadly force."

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Topics: Indiana, Labor, Mitch Daniels, Protests, Scott Walker, Violence, Wisconsin

Wisconsin State Legislature

Wis. Dem Senator: When Gov. Walker Sits With Us, Then We'll Come Back (VIDEO)


State Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-WI)

More than a day after their decision to go AWOL, it's still unclear as to whether Wisconsin's Democratic Senators will return to Madison.

And on FOX's Studio B With Shep Smith Friday afternoon, State Sen. Jon Erpenbach put the ball firmly in Gov. Walker's court, when asked what it would take for the missing Dems to come back.

TPM SLIDESHOW: Mad In Madison: Wisconsin Workers Protest Against Governor's Budget Proposals

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Topics: Fox News, Protests, Wisconsin , Wisconsin Protests, Wisconsin State Legislature, public employees, unions

Elena Kagan

Right-Wing Youth Group Rallying Against Kagan Today


Protesters outside the US Supreme Court building.

Right-wing youth will gather in D.C. at 12:30 today to call on the Senate not to confirm Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. The event, hosted by the conservative Young Americans for Freedom, will include speeches by leaders from the libertarian CATO Institute, the Heritage Foundation and the tea party movement.

The event, coming four days into the Kagan hearings and after the end of Kagan's public testimony before Congress, is the first organized demonstration for or against Kagan this week. So far, the hearings have been relatively controversy-free (outside the hearing room that is), with only Capitol Hill mainstay Randall Terry and his followers showing up each day to attack Kagan over abortion rights.

Today's protest also includes talk of abortion, but will focus on other conservative attacks on Kagan as well.

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Topics: Elena Kagan, Protests, Supreme Court, Supreme Court vacancy

Health Care

Protesters Bring Coffin To Rep. Carnahan's Home


Russ Carnahan (D-Mo)

Missouri press are reporting that Rep. Russ Carnahan's (D-MO) home was targeted by protesters with a coffin over the weekend after he voted in support of the health care reform bill.

Local television stations reported the coffin was brought to Carnahan's St. Louis home. KMOV posted an item suggesting that a Tea Party protest held at Carnahan's district office on Wednesday included a coffin.

A Carnahan spokesman this morning confirmed the account written by the Associated Press:

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Topics: Anti-Health Care Violence, Health Care, Protests, Russ Carnahan, Threats to Congress

Health Care

TPMDC Video: Costumed Anti-Abortion Protesters Heckle Congressional Staffers

Anti-abortion groups regularly station morning protesters at the Capitol South Metro stop on the House side of the Capitol building as staffers head into work. Today they went with a Halloween theme, dressed as Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Harry Reid covered in blood and chained together.

TPMDC was on the scene and captured some video of the group as they orchestrated a scene of Pelosi and Reid being tortured by demons thanks to (presumably) supporting abortion. They also were opposed to the health care bill revealed today.

"Staffers, Hill rats, join Nancy Pelosi in hell!" they shouted as Metro riders walked by. They also shouted they wanted to "Kill the bill, not babies."

I took a few photos and shot the video you can watch after the jump.

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Topics: Abortion, Health Care, Protests

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