DC residents pay federal taxes, serve in the armed forces, and serve on federal juries despite being denied voting representation in the Congress that spends their tax dollars, authorizes war, and writes federal statutes.

Eleven of those disenfranchised residents living in our nation’s capital have submitted questions for tonight’s CNN/YouTube debate asking Republican presidential candidates if they support DC voting rights. They include:

Robert Kabel, Chair of the DC Republican Committee

Marcus Skelton, Chair of the DC Young Republicans

To see all the videos submitted, go to DC Vote’s website.

In response to the devastating wildfires in Southern California and San Diego County, our community has come together as never before to help one another. My deepest gratitude goes out to the firefighters, emergency responders, military personnel, and volunteers who worked diligently to protect the lives and property of friends and neighbors. Now, it is my job to ensure that the community has every resource available to continue to do their jobs and to improve fire preparedness and evasion. I have been pleased with the rapid response and willingness to work together of all levels of government, and I know that Senator Feinstein’s Hearing on the wildfires will be an extension of that effort and will help improve our ability to respond in the future.

By any measure, the wildfires that struck Southern California last month were a disaster of monumental proportions. Over this past weekend, we saw even more fire. This time it was the Corral Canyon Fire in Malibu. That fire started early Saturday morning, and has burned nearly 5,000 acres. It has destroyed 53 homes and damaged another 34. Cal Fire has had to deploy 1,156 firefighting personnel, 163 fire engines and one helicopter.

As a matter of fact, I was talking to a friend who was in Mendocino over the Thanksgiving holiday, and he said a member of his family during the holiday lunch was a volunteer for the Mendocino Fire Department, who got a call and left immediately to come down here.

So you might say, in terms of mutual aid, the Malibu fire has affected the entire state. Luckily, no one has been killed as a result of the fire, but eight firefighters have been injured so far. Read the rest of this entry »

Lobbyist Michael J. Werner of The Werner Group says opponents of embryonic stem cell research have falsely politicized the recent stem cell discovery, and that we still need to fund research on embryonic stem cells.

The brave Wyoming men and women serving in our nation’s military make us incredibly proud. I had the privilege of spending Thanksgiving with nine of them in three separate areas of Iraq.

I traveled to Iraq with Senators John McCain, Joe Lieberman, Lindsey Graham, Saxby Chambliss, and Utah Governor Jon Huntsman. First and foremost, we went to say thank you to the men and women of our armed services who are so far away from home.

I wanted to make sure our soldiers are getting everything they need to protect themselves and to get the job done. I also wanted to listen to our men and women in the field to see if we are making measurable progress in the war.

The Wyoming soldiers were very happy to see someone from home. I enjoyed Thanksgiving lunch in Baghdad with Danny Warner of Sheridan and Thomas Gorsuch of Douglas. They wanted to talk about fishing in Lake DeSmet, hunting and family. Read the rest of this entry »

Two new ads from Fred Thompson’s campaign cast Thompson as a reformer and corruption fighter, spotlighting his roles in the Watergate hearings and the investigation that sent former Democratic Tennessee Governor Ray Blanton to jail.

Today is an historic day for my home State of Maryland as it offers the setting for what could bring the solution to decades of devastating conflict in the Middle East. The Peace Summit in Annapolis is symbolic of the hope and courage being exercised by Israelis and Palestinians. I commend all parties who have gathered today to offer their support to this very important cause.

When President Bush assumed the presidency, he introduced a ‘Road Map for Peace’ in the Middle East. Unfortunately, he neglected to assume the critical position of driving the region to the final destination on the map. In fact, he never even got into the car. This peace process has been stalled for seven long years, in part because the Bush Administration neglected to give it the high priority that was deserved.

It is encouraging that at this late hour the U.S. is taking the lead in bringing about a fair and lasting peace, a move that may help begin the restoration of the moral authority of our nation that has been greatly diminished in recent years. I hope that when a new President assumes office in 2009, the continuation of these efforts will begin on the first day, not the eleventh hour.

Bill Richardson released a new ad Tuesday in Iowa, focusing on Richardson’s proposed education policy. Richardson promises he will get rid of No Child Left Behind, create a minimum wage for teachers, make pre-k and kindergarten available to all children and create math and science academies throughout the United States.

While I always believe that it is good for parties in the ME to speak with each other, we have to be careful to not get expectations raised to a level that will ultimately prove impossible to reach at this time.

Perhaps Arab states will now recognize that Israel is not their enemy, but rather radical extremists such as Hamas and Hezbollah, which seek not only to destroy Israel, but also to bring down the leadership of several Arab states.

Much groundwork needs to be done before a settlement can be reached, but having nations such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, who do not have diplomatic relations with Israel, at the conference is a positive sign. Read the rest of this entry »

After sharing the stage with Chuck Norris in his last ad, Republican hopeful Mike Huckabee get serious, highlights his faith and conservatism, in an ad that began airing in Iowa Monday. Huckabee claims his faith defines him and makes sure to point out that he believes “life begins at conception.” The ad also makes a point of branding Huckabee as an “authentic conservative” after criticisms have been levied by leading conservatives, including Bob Novak, that Huckabee is not a true conservative.