An Interview with Nancy Pelosi

Digg Dialogg: Nancy Pelosi

The voting period has ended and you've picked the top questions that Digg CEO Jay Adelson asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the first Digg Dialogg, live from the Democratic National Convention.

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1505 Questions

maverick999, on 08/25/2008, -48/+1187Please describe what Net Neutrality is and your position on the issue.
Commodus, on 08/25/2008, -45/+789Will the Democrats do the right thing if Obama wins the presidency and vote to repeal anti-freedom measures such as the Patriot Act, ban warrantless wiretapping, and make sure that all prisoners held by the US enjoy the same civil rights (including habeas corpus)?
adroit, on 08/25/2008, -99/+782As a taxable resource, what stops marijuana from being legalized, for medicinal or recreational purposes, throughout the country?
inactive, on 08/25/2008, -31/+613Does your support for telecom immunity have anything to do with the fact that your husband has millions invested in AT&T?

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/ ...
dinsy, on 08/25/2008, -75/+594Why has the Democratic Party failed to stand up to or oppose the Bush Administration on anything of any significnace in the last eight years?
nirvanix, on 08/25/2008, -53/+470You were given a mandate by the people of the United States to end the war in Iraq. You did not keep your promise. Why not?
carynyao, on 08/25/2008, -31/+425Why do you not ask the CEOs of Bear Stern, Freddie Mac, and Fannie Mae to pay for the losses they have created? But instead, you ask the the everyday taxpayers to bear the burden on top of their own burdens?
WaterMedia, on 08/25/2008, -25/+348In 2001 you voted for the Patriot Act. In hindsight, do you regret this?
WaterMedia, on 08/25/2008, -20/+333You've called the Iraq war both "grotesque mistake" and "a failure". Since then Democrats approved the two largest bills continuing to fund this war. How can young Americans trust your party says when their actions and message don't match?
danielrh9, on 08/25/2008, -54/+350Many believe that the recently elected Democrat controlled congress has in a sense "rolled over and played dead". As you may know, this is because they feel that this congress has done little to stand in the way of the ever expanding power of the executive branch, and has done little to negate controversial legislation passed by the Republican controlled congress before you.

To sum it up, you may remember that Jon Stewart frankly called you a bunch of pussies. And I don't entirely disagree.

I've always considered myself to be a Democrat, but the unwillingness of this congress to act has made me question that. Why should I continue to believe that a majority of Democrats in our government can effectively lead? And if you don't believe that your congress is playing dead, explain why.
joestump, on 08/25/2008, -52/+288Bush is both a lame duck President and has some of the lowest approval ratings ever for a sitting President. Given the overwhelming evidence of abuse of power along with Bush's constant attack on habeas corpus and the Constitution, how can you continue to stand by your policy of not moving impeachment proceedings forward?
nova77, on 08/25/2008, -26/+243Dear Madam Speaker,
Why is science being left out the presidential debate? We had a major forum on faith and several questions related to it, but almost nothing on science. That seems particularly odd considered the impact science has in our world.
ReallyRick, on 08/25/2008, -38/+248How do you explain Congress having the lowest approval rating in history? Are you being blocked by a Republican President? Is the media being unfair in it's reporting of what you have been able to accomplish? What can you do to ensure the voters that the Congress is not in gridlock and can make inroads in the future? http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-65840
moolcool, on 08/25/2008, -20/+224FISA: Why did the democrats back it?
buddapalm, on 08/25/2008, -14/+191The national debt has exploded in the last 8 years to 9.6 Trillion. It's clear the United States is spending at an unsustainable rate and it threatens the country's status as an economic power.

Assuming you see this as a problem, what's the multi-year strategy to get away from this and keep the United States economically competitive?
sarge96, on 08/25/2008, -27/+193I'm 15, and my generation gets to pay the national debt when we come of age. Bush likes to blame Congress for the deficit since it became Democratically controlled, and while that's not actually true, you haven't exactly turned things around. The Republicans are obviously no longer the fiscally responsible party, so that leaves the Democrats. When and how will you attempt to turn this around?
Willravel, on 08/25/2008, -33/+172Speaker Pelosi,

Your decision not to pursue the impeachment of President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, and other administration officials has been very controversial among Democrats and Independents. When asked about your decision you often cite the divisiveness that Democrats are trying to heal, warning that impeachments would prevent Democrats from pursuing other goals, such as ending the war, expanding health care and creating jobs. I must confess, however, that I believe removing the divisive, dangerous, and irresponsible current administration would likely make these goals closer to reality. In addition and more importantly, it would demonstrate to future potential Bushes that their terrible behavior cannot and will not be tolerated. I'm sure you would agree that another presidency like George W. Bush's would be devastating and should be avoided at all reasonable costs.

Congressman Kucinich, in his heroic, yet futile attempt to bring the impeachment to the floor has been undercut by Democratic leadership repeatedly.

My questions are this: have you discussed the case of impeachment with Congressman Kucinich? Under what circumstances, in your opinion, would impeachment be appropriate?

Thank you for your time and service.
cephelo, on 08/25/2008, -18/+154What are you doing to rectify the abomination that is the draconian intellectual property rights in the US? Examples: software patents, dubious patent claims, DMCA, and IP rights. They are killing US innovation to benefit a few corporations and costing us future jobs and future prosperity to benefit shareholders of today.
an0nymous, on 08/25/2008, -14/+146Now that Rove has been held in contempt by the Judiciary Committee, why has the House not sent the Sergeant at Arms to arrest him?
Is a finding of contempt a meaningless gesture without penalty?
eric1743, on 08/27/2008, -43/+153How are the Democrats working to keep literal interpretations of the bible out of our science class rooms, And what more do you think should be done to ensure the separation of church and state.
duhduhduh, on 08/25/2008, -33/+136Why isn't congress encouraging development of more nuclear power plants?
inactive, on 08/25/2008, -12/+110Since your family's net worth is over $25 million and most politicians are of the wealthiest percent of the United States, do you feel that our governmental system adequately represents the working class and poor that live within our borders? If you don't feel that the system adequately represents the average individual in this country and you believe that our government is specifically designed to care for the people not just the rich percentage, then what are you doing to change the current state of government?
Tenlow, on 08/26/2008, -18/+115Why is it that congress has repeatedly failed to uphold the constitution?
waxesstatic, on 08/25/2008, -13/+107The members of Congress sell their votes everyday to lobbying groups. Why is this not an option for the general public i.e. selling one's vote on e-bay?
sealbeater, on 08/25/2008, -13/+102Why, despite Dennis Kucinich's articles of Impeachment, do you still refuse to pursue impeachment hearings against Bush and Cheney and the rest of the administration? Don't you feel that the Congress has given up it's obligations to the people under the Constitution?
Polidave, on 08/27/2008, -10/+95Hello Mrs Pelosi,
I as a college student have a question, why has the cost of entering a higher institution gone up in the past several years and the aid, be it loans or grants, has not changed substantially to match the cost, especially the loans for those of us who don't qualify for the Pell Grant or other need based aid?
fairley7, on 08/25/2008, -22/+105In 2006, San Francisco voters passed a resolution to "call on our elected federal and state representatives to immediately invoke
every available legal mechanism to effect the impeachment and removal from office of President George W. Bush and Vice
President Richard B. Cheney." How do you justify defying the will of your own constituents?
fezzic, on 08/25/2008, -22/+98Why is it that the Democrats under your leadership have continually backed down to the Republicans and sacrificed what you supposedly believe in? Is it because you say anything to get elected and don't really care, or that you've sold out, or just that you're scared of the minority Republicans?
StigNordas, on 08/25/2008, -11/+85What can you say to a generation who has become disillusioned with government. A generation who has no trust in government. A generation which was blatantly lied to, and nothing was done about it?
bmdhacks, on 08/25/2008, -18/+92Do you feel that the Bush administration has overstepped the constitutional limitations on presidential power? For example, does the president have the authority to unilaterally withdraw from treaties? Is executive privilege an adequate excuse for refusing to testify in front of Congress? Is the president immune from repercussions when violating certain laws such as FISA? Can we hold you to these views if a Democrat is elected president?
hdrkid, on 08/27/2008, -18/+90Why is impeachment off the table?
Jeffers0n, on 08/25/2008, -68/+132Why should young Americans support the Democratic party instead of the Republican party?
jimjoebobbillyb, on 08/25/2008, -21/+83Speaker Pelosi:
2 questions-
1) Exactly how much money do you have invested in companies doing business in Iraq, and does that have anything to do with why you have failed to get us out of there like you promised? (despite having a majority vote)
2)Are you afraid that you will be taken down along with Bush if you pursue impeachment?
Wookie, on 08/25/2008, -13/+75What will you do about the unelected "Federal" Reserve--the private banking cartel that controls our money supply--in order to stem the devaluation of the dollar caused by them printing too much money and to reassert Congress' Constitutional role "to coin Money, [and] regulate the Value thereof" set forth in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution?
mediaspree, on 08/25/2008, -17/+78Can you explain the record low approval ratings of congress under your watch?
DooM, on 08/25/2008, -21/+80Under your tenure impeachment has been strictly off the table, telecoms are off the hook, no meaningful investigations are taking place, and the President has won nearly every battle worth fighting. My question, Madam Speaker, is simply are you aware of the Congress' role in Executive Branch oversight, and if so how do you defend this Democratic Congress' lack of action..?
SoCalChris, on 08/25/2008, -17/+76Democrats were elected to the majority of congress on the promise of getting us out of Iraq. Why is funding for Iraq still being approved, and why is there no pullout date yet?
cctoronto05, on 08/27/2008, -16/+74Why take the impeachment of George W. Bush off the table? Thank you.
MarkCiccone, on 08/26/2008, -4/+59In 1920 Congress passed the 18th Amendment which made it illegal to consume or manufacture alcohol. The hope was that in banning alcohol there would be a significant drop in crime and immoral behavior. By 1933, however, it became apparent even to the staunchest supporters of Prohibition that the 18th Amendment had actually caused more damage than it had solved. Murder and crime rates were through the roofs, gangsters controlled cities like Chicago and murdered anyone who stood in their way.

Today we are under a similar act, but it has a new name: the war on drugs. Drug use and drug related crime has steadily increased, just like the 13 years of Prohibition. In 2003 the European Drug Policy Fund said in a statement to the U.N. Commission on Narcotic Drugs that the United States war on drugs has "failed" and that "drug consumption is in effect on the rise in both industrial and developing countries, as are drug-related crime and other social ill-effects". Is it time to end the so called 'war on drugs' and look to alternatives? In 2001 alone, 723,627 people were arrested on marijuana offenses. Are these people really criminals, and aren't these laws causing more crime than it solves?
mahoneycutt, on 08/25/2008, -7/+60Madam Speaker - each time I see you interviewed on television, most of your responses end up blaming the republicans. Frankly, the game that both sides play of "gotcha politics" gets tiresome. Leadership, from Democrats or Republicans, demands more than such games. Question: What specific items will the Democrats accomplish if I give them my (independent) vote in November?
trigger119, on 08/26/2008, -4/+56Speaker Pelosi,
Would you say things like FISA, Real ID, and the Patriot Act are direct attacks on our Constitution?
vexingmodstwo, on 08/25/2008, -15/+67Speaker Pelosi, can you explain how a windfall tax on oil companies will lower the price of fuel?
navyrain, on 08/25/2008, -6/+58When 52% of the American population believes Bush should be impeached for his warrantless wiretapping program and other abuses of the executive branch, you refuse to pursue the topic. Why do you believe your opinion trumps the opinions of the majority of the nation?
T440, on 08/27/2008, -4/+55Year after year, America falls further and further down the list of countries in terms of broadband speeds. According to Communication Workers of Amercia, we now rank 15th among all industrialized nations and that number continues to fall. For a comparison: on average, Japan's broadband speed is 30x that of ours while it cost nearly half as much.

So my question is, with the future jobs, small businesses and economy of our nation relying so heavily on our need to be able to compete with other nations in terms of broadband speed, why does is seem that no one in Washington will take this issue seriously? And what do you believe we should do about it?
xprojects, on 08/26/2008, -9/+58Why is impeachment 'off the table' and why are the Bush Administration alleged war crimes not being examined by congress.
trigger119, on 08/26/2008, -7/+56Do you think our founders would approve of us having over 700 military bases around the world?
DonAlf600, on 08/25/2008, -15/+64In any job, a person can be fired if he or she fails to perform the tasks assigned to the person. Why isn't there a system in place for politicians to be fired if they fail to perform the tasks they volunteered they would do to be fired?
TehDoctor, on 08/25/2008, -6/+55As our nation was founded with the goal of implementing a fair government whose power lied with the people, why are rights and privileges taken away from Americans instead of granted? Why do we have legislation like the Patriot Act, warrantless wiretaps, and a government run by a relatively small group of 'familiar faces' who have been in politics for years, and yet lack democratic things like public initiative and recall?
Dustin00, on 08/25/2008, -13/+62You said impeachment would be a waste of time. So over the last 2 years we debated:

How much has ex-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales politicized the DoJ?
(and now we must review a pile of employees that may not be qualified for the positions they were awarded)
Is the Vice President a member of the Executive or Legislative branch?
It is fair that men can get Viagra covered by Medicare, women cannot get birth control pills.
What happened to all the White House emails that were supposed to be backed up?
What power is left to Congress now that citizens simply ignore Congressional Subpoenas without penalty?
Can carbon dioxide from industry be classified as different from auto emissions?

My questions are:
Did we really save time by not impeaching the President and Vice President?

Is this really the world you wanted to leave for your daughters to clean up?
pwnshaman, on 08/25/2008, -10/+58Nancy, you have been the House majority leader for almost two years. Can you point to any significant legislative accomplishments in foreign or domestic policy, during your tenure as House majority leader, in which your party has thwarted the Republican agenda?
Best Regards,
pwnshaman
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