Tammy Baldwin, Silent Senator

Posted by Jerry Bader on

She's not the only one. Interestingly, most of the senators on this list are Democrats,(although Politico tries to paint four democrats and two republicans as "bi-partisan"). Baldwin has a very curious explanation for this:

“I hired a communication director for a reason,” Baldwin said, only after trying to evade a reporter twice by talking to a staffer and just before hopping on a subway car to whisk her away from the crowd of media. “It’s just like in signing on to bills, I have legislative staff because I expect them to advise me.”

So, the reason Baldwin hired a communications director is so she'll never have to face the press directly? Meanwhile, over at Right Wisconsin(subscription required) Collin Roth has another take on Baldwin as a silent senator on civil liberties. Roth points out that while fellow Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson joined Senator Rand Paul's filibuster on the confirmation vote CIA Director nominee John Brennan, Baldwin, like most other Senate Democrats, was nowhere to be found. Roth points out this makes Senator Baldwin much different from Congresswoman Baldwin:

In fact, then-Congresswoman Baldwin was one of the most outspoken members of Congress in opposition to the Bush administration’s post-9/11 national security policies.  In 2001, Rep. Tammy Baldwin was one of just 66 members of congress to oppose the original Patriot Act over concerns about civil liberties. And Rep. Baldwin opposed subsequent extensions and re-authorizations of the Patriot Act.
The filibuster, of course, was driven by the Obama Administration drone policy. So Tammy Baldwin thinks the Patriot Act was a greater threat to civil liberties than are potential drone attacks on U.S. Citizens on U.S. soil? If she spoke to reporters, we might be able to ask her.
 

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