Reid to McCain: Cut the Crap

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid had some words for John McCain about his ongoing sour grapes. And he put them in a letter addressed to the Maverick, and CC'ed Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham and Kelly Ayotte because they are now being insufferable assholes on this Benghazi thing.

"I refuse to allow the Senate to be used as a venue for baseless partisan attacks... 

...You already have the opportunity to engage more fully in the fulsome and ongoing investigation in the events in Benghazi... [but] failed to attend a classified briefing held by the Senate Homeland Security Committee on this very issue."

In other words, you're making a fool of yourself. Knock it off, you idiot.

View the full letter here.

Fightin' Harry Reid Not Backing Down

Last week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid stated he spoke with someone who claimed Mitt Romney hadn't paid taxes in 10 years.

Reid suggested that Romney’s decision to withhold tax information would bar him from ever earning Senate confirmation to a Cabinet post. Then, Reid recalled a phone call his office received about a month ago from “a person who had invested with Bain Capital,” according to The Huffington Post. 

Reid said the person told him: “Harry, he didn’t pay any taxes for 10 years.” 

“He didn’t pay taxes for 10 years! Now, do I know that that’s true? Well, I’m not certain,” Reid told HuffPo. “But obviously he can’t release those tax returns. How would it look?”

Good question, Harry. It would look pretty shitty, especially considering Romney's tax plan would give even more tax cuts to the have mores, and cut social and medical programs to pay for it. The burden of proof is on Romney. He can shut down all of those claiming he's got something to hide by releasing his returns. It's really that simple.

Reid's comments have caused an apoplectic fit among the right, with RNC Chairman calling Reid a "dirty liar" on the Sunday talk shows. I would take their protests seriously if they hadn't been so completely silent on the Birther issue looking the other way when anyone in their party asked for proof of President Obama's citizenship.

Well Reid and his office aren't backing down just because poor, little Reince Priebus and Lindsey Graham get their panties in a knot calling Reid a liar. In fact, it's only gotten harsher.

“They’re a bunch of cowards, and they’re avoiding the issue,” said David Krone, Reid’s chief of staff, in an interview with POLITICO on Sunday night. “Lindsey Graham, Reince Priebus — they’re a bunch of henchmen for Romney, and they’re all reading off the same talking points. They couldn’t hold a candle to Harry Reid.” 

Krone added: “What Harry Reid said is the fact of what he was told. To turn it around, all their childish rants this weekend about calling Reid a ‘liar’ and all that, it just shows you how scared they are that Harry Reid was telling the truth.”  

As far as I'm concerned, it's political gamesmanship. This time though, the GOP is crying foul because they're on the short end. So if the GOP has been unwilling to publicly put the Birther issue to rest once and for all, if they continue to embrace the Tea Party when Tea Party leaders insist that President Obama release his medical records to prove he's not a gay crack addict, if they're willing to call Harry Reid a liar but keep mum on Mitt Romney's blatant lie that the Obama administration is trying to suppress the military vote in Ohio, then game on, motherfuckers.


(Cross-posted at ABLC)

A Small Price To Pay

So once again, Weeper of the House John Boehner shows his toothless bite when it comes to bringing his side of the aisle in line for a vote not to raise taxes. Yes, you read that correctly, NOT TO RAISE TAXES.

The Senate came together to pass a two month extension of the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance by a bipartisan vote of 89-10, and while that may not be an ideal situation, it staves off an automatic increase on taxes for 160 million Americans when the current payroll tax cut expires, hardly something to sneeze at in the current economic state of affairs. But that wasn't good enough for Tea Party Republicans who rejected the bill.

“When we met last week, Speaker Boehner requested that Senator McConnell and I work out a compromise,” [Senate Majority Leader Harry] Reid said, referring to the minority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. “Neither side got everything they wanted, but we forged a middle ground that passed the Senate by an overwhelming bipartisan majority.”

Well, that was last week, Senator Reid. This week Boehner's got new marching orders from the extreme right.

This may be easy for me to say, but if having taxes raised (yes, Republicans are sitting idly by and breaking the Norquist code of raising taxes at any cost) is what needs to happen to make the general public aware of how intransigent the current Republican Party has become, and the result is a mass termination of House GOP jobs via the 2012 election, then it's a small price to pay for progress.

The House is currently in session to have another vote by 6:30pm which Boehner expects to fail. The system isn't broken. The Republican Party is broken.

Shut Up, Harry

Why can't we go more than a couple news cycles without someone making stupid comments that only cause more distraction from real stories?

Senate Majority Leader and pulchritude appreciator Harry Reid believes that New York Senator Kirsten Gillebrand is his “hottest” colleague.

Heckjuva job, Harry.

Adding... Speaking of distractions...

Coward

"The First Amendment protects freedom of religion," reads a statement from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's office (D-Nev.). "Senator Reid respects that but thinks that the mosque should be built someplace else. If the Republicans are being sincere, they would help us pass this long overdue bill to help the first responders whose health and livelihoods have been devastated because of their bravery on 911, rather than continuing to block this much-needed legislation."

This is what's wrong with the Senate Democratic leadership. He has no balls. He can't even stand up for Constitutional protections guaranteed to its American citizens without fear of losing in November to a nutcase Teabagger.



Heckuva job, Harry.

Definition of a Wingnut Teabagger

So Sharron Angle wins her primary to run against Harry Reid in Nevada's Senate race, but when confronted with her stance on the issues by the Reid campaign with her own defunct website, she orders a cease and desist letter.  I mean, why should voters know how Angle really feels?

Harry Reid's Wife In Accident

If you pray, pray for Harry Reid's wife.

AP: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's wife remained hospitalized Friday with serious injuries suffered when a tractor-trailer rear-ended the minivan she and their daughter were riding in on a suburban Virginia interstate, officials said.

Landra Reid, 69, suffered a broken back and neck in Thursday's crash, but her injuries were not believed to be life-threatening. Mrs. Reid and their daughter, Lana Barringer, 49, were taken by ambulance to Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Va. The daughter was released Thursday night, hospital spokesman Tony Raker said.

Wanda Sykes Comments on Reid Quote and Calls Out Michael Steele

(Video via C&L)

The Wrong Side of History

For anyone who still believes the Grand Obstructionist Party is stalling the ongoing health care debate and doesn't want reform to pass for the right reasons instead of their own self-serving ones, comes word that no matter what emerges from this debate, no matter how much the Democrats compromise, they're going to hold their breath and their votes.

Senate Republicans predicted on Wednesday that the 40 members of their caucus would unanimously oppose health care reform despite changes made by Democratic leadership to make the product more palatable to conservatives.

Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) told the Huffington Post that he did not think the dropping of a public option for insurance coverage from the bill would be enough for Democrats to win even the support of moderate Republican Senators Olympia Snowe or Susan Collins, both of Maine.

So even before the Congressional Budget Office scores the current bills sent to them, the GOP is saying no way. Even without any form of public option, the bill makes rescission illegal, outlaws insurance denial due to pre-existing conditions and ends caps on what insurance companies pay out for care.

And still 30% of the population identifies with this sorry excuse for a political party. A party that cares more about the profits of corporations than the constituents they are elected to represent.

ADDING... The Republican party is rudderless. And while Sen. Harry Reid's slavery comparison may be a little over the top, although in my opinion it was apropos since Reid's emphasis wasn't the issue so much as the consensus around the issue, isn't it ironic that the leader of the RNC should call someone else an "incompetent leader?" And good job by Donny Deutsch in calling out Michael Steele and not letting him get away with a simple dismissal.

Quote of the Day

"Instead of joining us on the right side of history, all the Republicans can come up with is, 'slow down, stop everything, let's start over.' If you think you've heard these same excuses before, you're right. When this country belatedly recognized the wrongs of slavery, there were those who dug in their heels and said 'slow down, it's too early, things aren't bad enough.'"

- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

Rahm Meeting With Reid About Senate Health Care Bill

This is going to be a very telling meeting.

TPM: At 2:30 this afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will host Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel in the first of several meetings presaging the merger of two major health care bills. The foursome is expected to discuss key issues at the heart of the reform process--affordability, Medicare, the public option, revenues--but no decisions are expected today.

The talk has been about Reid and how he'd better not exclude a public option in the bill they are proposing, but just a couple of hours ago I heard Ed Shultz on his radio show saying he trusted Reid and quoting him as saying this on the Senate Judiciary Committee floor:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) joined the push to eliminate the [insurance industry's anti-trust] exemption Wednesday morning, saying at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, “It’s something that should have been done a long time ago.”

As for insurance companies, “There isn’t anything we could do to satisfy them in this health care bill. Nothing,” Reid said. “They are so anti-competitive. Why? Because they make more money than any other business in America today. . . .What a sweet deal they have.”

So it would seem that Harry Reid, being in favor of revoking anti-trust exemption laws favoring the insurance companies, would have no trouble increasing competition and adding a public option to the bill. Unless Rahm helps him changed his mind.

Did Harry Reid Just Sink Health Care Reform?

AP: Senate Democratic leaders on Thursday abandoned plans for a vote on health care before Congress' August recess, dealing a blow to President Barack Obama's ambitious timetable to revamp the nation's $2.4 trillion system of medical care.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., delivered the official word on what had been expected for weeks, saying, "It's better to have a product based on quality and thoughtfulness rather than try to jam something through."

His words were a near-echo of Republicans who have criticized the rush to act on complex legislation that affects every American.

I'm at a loss for words. On one hand, I can understand the logic in making sure we get this right and that it's deficit neutral. On the other hand, we all know that the longer this takes, the more likely it is that any reform with teeth could be killed by special interest groups. What I don't understand is the "after the August recess" part.

If the Senate wants to take the time to go over it carefully, then don't wait for a month before starting. Do it now. Stay in Washington. By the time they get back, another 50,000 Americans will lose their health care and another estimated 400,000 with lose it because they will lose their jobs. I hope Harry Reid can live with that.

Rahm Got The Message

It's been extremely frustrating to hear non-definitive talk from White House officials when it comes to a strong public option for healthcare reform. Especially if it comes from the supposed arm-twister, Rahm Emanuel. Yesterday, Emanuel seemed to be a little mealy mouthed when discussing the possibility of a final healthcare plan without a public option. Now this was according to the Wall Street Journal, which is now owned by Rupert Murdoch. Enough said. But the doubts still lingered - enough for President Obama to make a statement from Russia (with love):

"I am pleased by the progress we're making on health care reform and still believe, as I've said before, that one of the best ways to bring down costs, provide more choices, and assure quality is a public option that will force the insurance companies to compete and keep them honest. I look forward to a final product that achieves these very important goals."

So what was with Rahm and the mixed signals? Why is the possibility of accepting a compromise like a trigger or a co-op even being thought about? I know that in the world of Obama being The Great Mediator, they can't just say flat out that the President will veto any bill that doesn't contain a strong public option. They at least have to act as if all options are on the table rather than piss people off and slow things down to a crawl. But still, be firm and consistent with your message.

Well it looks like Rahm got the message.

After initially indicating his support for a public plan “trigger,” White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel reassured House Democrats tonight that he strongly backs a public plan. Progressive Caucus Co-Chairwoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) said she told Emanuel that support for a “trigger” would cause health reform to lose Democratic votes:

“We have compromised enough, and we are not going to compromise on any kind of trigger game,” Woolsey said she told Emanuel. “People clapped all over the place. We mean it, and not just progressives.”

Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) said Emanuel reassured him that he “doesn’t stand by that trigger.”

It's gotten to the point that the bill would lose more Democratic votes than gain Repubican ones if a public option is not part of the plan. This combined with Harry Reid's instructions to Max Baucus to drop the proposal of taxing health benefits and stop trying to garner GOP votes looks promising for the public option.

NO MORE EXCUSES!

Franken makes 60 votes. Get your spineless Democrats in order, Senator Reid... that includes you.

Reality check... I know the magic number 60 is more symbolic than anything else. Think about it. Sixty senators in the "Democratic" Caucus means the inclusion of Joe Lieberman, Arlen Specter, Ben Nelson, Mary Landrieu, Diane Feinstein, Evan Bayh and the list goes on. We know that Democrats don't march in lockstep like the distinguished douchebags on the other side of the aisle, but the thought of "60" looming in the feeble brains of the GOP is more of a psychological effect than the reality of having to deal with Blue Dogs, GOP converts and two Independent members (one a former DINO, Lieberman, and a true Indy who is more of a Democrat in Sanders).

Still, it's nice to have something to rub GOP noses in.

Douchebag of the Week: Harry Reid

It's only Wednesday but I don't even have to wait until the end of the week to nominate Senate Majority Leader Harry "Have You Seen My Balls?" Reid for Douchebag of the Week honors.

“Guantánamo makes us less safe,” the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, said on Tuesday at a news conference where he laid out the party’s rationale for its decision. “However, this is neither the time nor the bill to deal with this. Democrats under no circumstances will move forward without a comprehensive, responsible plan from the president. We will never allow terrorists to be released into the United States.”

That's right, Harry. All 241 detainees are "terrorists" that we're just going to let out into the streets. There's no possible way that some, if not most of these men who were swept up randomly and have been held for years without benefit of charge or trial could quite possibly be innocent. The fact that of the 29 men that have been tried in the Bush administration's sham of a military tribunal deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, only four were found guilty even with the deck stacked against them bears no significance in your view.

Even if it were true that some, more than some, most, or even all of the detainees were the worst of the worst, I'm trying to follow the thought progression of fearmongering to the point that Reid, most Senate Democrats* and all Senate Republicans are such incredible piss in their pants, weeping pussies, that they don't even want these people on US soil, behind some of the world's tightest security supermax prisons. It confounds logic.

Do they have special powers? Is Allah going to come down and flatten the prison for an easy escape? Does the specific frequency of their Islamic extremist jihad shriek pulverize concrete walls and melt steel doors? I've said it before but it bears repeating: if we can keep some of our most dangerous criminals, mass murderers, serial rapists and pedophiles, drug lords and mafia leaders safely behind bars, but can't expect the US penal system to be able to handle suspected "terrorists", what does that say of our correctional institutions? What does it say TO our institutions?

Our congressional leaders are all crying NIMBY while small towns are willing to take prisoners in order to bolster employment during a recession that's bleeding them dry. But the politicians we voted into office are more worried about their re-election bids than doing the right thing and closing Gitmo - the biggest recruitment tool going for anti-American sentiment - and Harry "The Gelding" Reid falls right into the trap of the fear of being called weak on national security while actually weakening national security by keeping Guantanamo open. Keeping us "less safe" using his own words.

Harry E. (the 'E' stands for 'eunuch') Reid: Douchebag of the Week

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* Only Senators Durbin (D-IL), Harkin (D-IA), Leahy (D-VT), Levin (D-MI), Reed (D-RI) and Whitehouse (D-RI) voted against cutting the funds to close Gitmo.

That Didn't Take Long

posted by Armadillo Joe

Arlen "Spooky" Specter hasn't even been a Democrat for a week and already he's found a way to adhere (against the better interests of his new party) to the Rules of Engagement in Washington D.C., which is to say that whatever happens is good for Republicans and bad for Democrats and bi-partisanship means kicking a Dirty Fucking Hippie and voting for what the GOP High Command wants.

Besides voting against the president's agenda twice out of two possible votes, he's also gone on national television and denied pledging to be a loyal Democrat (even though he did), has an oft-stated and well-established hostility to pro-union legislation (in a largely blue-collar state) is actually rooting for the guy from the other team to prevail in Minnesota and regrets keeping a racist thug (Jeff Sessions) off the federal bench 20 years ago just because he's now a fellow Senator.

With friends like Specter, who needs Republicans? Why exactly are we glad he's in our caucus?

Spooky's an opportunistic, scheming, vote-chasing fence-sitter who always makes noise like he's going to make the wise and moral choice on any given vote in the senate, then votes for the GOP line anyway. He made it loud and clear that he is switching parties so that he can continue to be a senator, it had nothing at all to do with principle. With him, it never does. His whole political existence is about electoral expediency. In the World's Most Exclusive Club™, it is all about protecting the membership and if Specter needs to switch parties to keep his job, the other 99 (or 98, in this case) will do whatever they can to help. Look at what the national Dems did for LIEber-douche in Connecticut when the state Democratic party rejected him.

If the Obama team had a lick of sense about how to handle this toad (or if Harry Reid had any cojones), they'll threaten him into shutting up, falling in line and being a reliable vote for the president's agenda or face a well-financed primary challenge... then finance a primary challenge anyway. He's served his purpose by embarrassing the Senate GOP caucus, now squeeze him and make him behave or dump him. We don't need Arlen Specter. That seat does not belong to him, it belongs to the good people of Pennsylvania who deserve to send whoever best looks after their interests. In his heart of hearts, that is why he wants Coleman to prevail in Minnesota, for the same reason all those other senators wanted LIEber-douche to prevail in 2006: because they are chummy-chummy in their comfy little club and any means necessary to protect each other (regardless of party) will be taken and exploited. He really thinks that seat belongs to him personally and if he has to wear a different colored tie or part his hair differently or switch political parties to keep it, fine. Arlen Specter will only look after the interests of Arlen Specter.

This all better be some kind of Obama Kung-Fu, because as much fun as it was seeing the GOP lose its collective freaking mind over the weekend, the blush has already worn off and Arlen Specter needs to become Progressive Enemy #1. Until he's gone from the Senate, I ain't giving a dime to the DNC. I'm sending money to whoever announces a primary challenge from Specter's left.

Arlen Specter is, as ever, an unfulfilled promise, a "dependable" vote, just not ever when it really matters, when all that is good and righteous and just and the very future of humanity hangs in the balance. Now, because he has a "D" next to his name, he won't change his essential nature. He's going to enjoy being feted and courted to top this made-up 60-vote threshold (what happened to 51%?) the Rethugli-goons successfully imposed on the Senate in the last eight years. He's a scorpion and we frogs should be wary.

I'm Back!... Wha'd I Miss?

So after some fun in the sun and 95%* completely tuned out to 24/7 cable chatter (which I highly recommend to anyone on a semi-regular basis), I come back to find that Arlen Specter has the Swine Flu?, Air Force One flew over New York City, President Obama completes his first 100 days in office and has a news conference (love it!), and the GOP is becoming the 21st Century Whig Party faster than Norm Coleman can file another suit. I should go away more often.

On Specter - when I first heard about this I thought it's obviously a huge blow to the GOP but I still have my reservations. Just because you can switch your party affilation on your voter registration card doesn't mean that you can switch your vote or your thought process overnight. Arlen Specter calling himself a Democrat might be more of a thorn in the side of the Democratic party rather than a help. That's a powerful 60th vote and he knows it. I don't think Harry Reid's "deal" that Specter can keep his seniority is going to be very helpful either. Reid steps in shit again. Thanks, Harry.

Swine Flu - Seriously? I mean, I know it's an important issue... but so was Avian Bird Flu. How many of us were affected by that again? Come on, people. Stop those Spring Break Cancun vacations and grinding on the dance floor with someone who is coughing in your face. Wash your hands and move on.

Air Force One Flyover Outrage - I get it... just enough for the people in the area to be concerned. I'm sure no one north of Canal Street knew anything about it until the outrage, the UNMITIGATED GALL, I TELL YOU!, to have an Air Force One photo-op and not tell anyone. Except local law enforcement. And certain public officials. But it almost seems comical that certain New York politicians who didn't know were using the opportunity for their own photo-op. Couldn't they just release a statement?

Besides the fact that we have three major airports in the area; JFK, LaGuardia and Newark. I have planes flying over my head all the time. I live 10 minutes away from LaGuardia and they land a couple of miles away. Everyone needs to take a breath and calm down. Did we all of a sudden stop taking our shoes off at the airport? Have we stopped the racial profiling at the TSA security gate?

President Obama's First 100 Days - The President had another news conference. (Did anyone else notice he didn't call on Fox for a question? Heh.) Isn't it nice to know what's going on on a regular basis and hearing it from the horse's mouth rather than the previous clown having what, like 10 news conferences in his 8 years? Obama's going after the Most Presidential News Conferences record like Tiger Woods is tracking down most PGA Majors won. 100 days down, 2,820 days to go. Suck it, Rove.

GOP Implosion - ...Huzzah!

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*I caught about 10 minutes of the news conference.

Breaking News...

guest-posted by Armadillo Joe

...Harry Reid discovers that water is wet:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid took a moment Friday to lament Supreme Court Chief Justice John Robert's tenure on the court so far, which in Reid's opinion has been far more conservative than expected. "He didn't tell us the truth," Reid's said

We bloggers out here in Left-Wing-Hippie-stan all tried to tell you fucking people that Roberts was a lying conservatard sack of shit who would smile as he slid the ideological knife between your ribs, tried to get you smug SOB's to stand and fight, fight, fight when that asshole came up for confirmation, tried to get you to do your fucking jobs as representatives of voters who believe that Rethugli-goon ideas about representative democracy amount to undermining it at every opportunity and oppose a guy who was young enough to distort court decisions to more nefarious ends for possibly two generations, tried to tell you. We tried to tell you, but then we're all just a bunch of bitter partisans with no real political power besides being able to vote in large numbers, which ain't nothin' unless some dollars are attached, I guess. We tried, but you people took the scorpions at their word, that they wouldn't sting you.

Jokes on you, eh? Or all of us.

The Leon Panetta Thing (The post where I tell Diane Feinstein and Harry Reid to shut the fuck up.) - UPDATED

It seems that Senator Diane Feinstein (D[INO]-CA) must have been travelling to a different country to get some kind of stem cell procedure done in order to grow the spine she was missing these last few years. Why else would she say something like this about Obama's choice of Leon Panetta to head the CIA?

"My position has consistently been that I believe the agency is best served by having an intelligence professional in charge at this time."

Really, Senator Feinstein? Then why say this back in 2004 after George W. Bush nominated Porter Goss for the same position?

"I believe the President should have the prerogative to appoint who he wants to be the DCI..."

Oh, right. It's because the President was a Republican, wasn't it? And we all know that Democrats in Congress are so used to bending over and taking it in the ass that it was only natural that you say something like that.

And you dared let your ego get the better of you and have a hissy fit. When Bush nominated Porter Goss for the same position you thought Goss' credentials were fine. Then Goss himself said he wasn't qualified for the position. (Why he accepted is another story.) So why should you really be kept in the loop as to who is nominated? You've proven that sometimes credentials don't make someone good at their job.

Jay McDonough: Both Senators Feinstein and Rockefeller had ranking positions on the Senate Intelligence Committee and were completely ineffectual at stemming the abuses of the Bush Administration and, in fact, in most cases sided with the Administration on key policy issues. It was just a week ago that Vice President Cheney confided they had shared information about the Administration's illegal surveillance programs with key Democrats (this, most certainly, included Sen. Rockefeller) and those Democrats advised Mr. Cheney the programs should continue and the Congress needn't be involved.

Well, I'm weally sorry you got your wittle feewings hurt by not being informed initially, but get the fuck over it. Take your hurt feelings, and your Donna Reed motherfuckin' hairdo and your fucking FISA vote and get the fuck outta here. You too Jay Rockefeller, you fat fuck.

We've all been worried about obstructionist Republicans, but it looks like the real problem might actually be Democrats who feel they can't be pushed around anymore... by a new Democratic president who has vowed for more transparency than ever before. Does this make any fucking sense?!

Now Majority Capitulater Harry Reid is all of a sudden become Captain Opposite Man, insisting that there was no way in hell he was going to seat Roland Burris to Obama's vacant Senate seat... unless of course Reid copped out and would seat him if he had the proper credentials; and he didn't bother trying to seat Al Franken for fear of a Republican block. And yet, he says this about his relationship with the President-elect:

Reid stated, "I don't believe in the executive power trumping everything... I believe in our Constitution, three separate but equal branches of government."
"If Obama steps over the bounds, I will tell him. ... I do not work for Barack Obama. I work with him," he said.

'Atta boy, Harry. Good thing you followed you own rules for the last two years when you blocked every move Bush made and called him out when overstepping his bounds; stopped him in his tracks when he thought he was above the law with all those signing statements and.... oh, wait. Nevermind. You didn't do any of that did you? You caved, didn't you? And now we can expect six more years of caving to the Republican minority... well, a minority at least until the Democrats blow it again and Republicans regain control of Congress.

Fuck cloture votes. Until Reid makes the Republicans actually filibuster something they're opposed to and not pee in his pants with just the threat of a filibuster, I'll apologize and take it all back. Until then, Harry Reid can shut the fuck up too, that worthless shit.


UPDATE (1/8/09 10:25am):

Politico: The Majority Leader thinks former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens shouldn't face jail time for his seven-count federal conviction last year, telling our Manu Raju, who was also in the room, "My personal feeling, you guys, I don't know what good that [would do]... He was a real war hero too, you know. He's been punished enough."

Punished enough? Please explain the punishment, Senator Reid. Please explain how Stevens didn't understand the procedure when he was recorded saying that the worst that can happen to him is a fine and a little jail time. Please explain how he didn't understand the rules changes. He's a goddamn Senator, for fuck's sake! If he doesn't know the rules, then he shouldn't fucking be there. I was always taught that ignorance of the law is not an excuse. I guess that is unless you're a member of the US Congress, of course.

And by the way, I think that it's a pretty big fuck up to get your home renovated for free. He didn't know there was something wrong with that? And what a fucking disgrace that the US Senate thought it appropriate to give a convicted felon a standing ovation on his last day there. That was a goddamn embarrassment.

Yeah, like I said, Reid needs to SHUT. THE. FUCK. UP.

(H/T Bob Cesca)

Senator Al Franken!

MINNEAPOLIS (REUTERS) -Democrat Al Franken will be declared the winner of the tight U.S. Senate contest in Minnesota, emerging from a ballot recount with a slim margin over Republican Norm Coleman, state officials said on Sunday.

But the party of smaller government wants the courts to continue to intervene until something falls in their favor. Remember 2000?

But Coleman, the incumbent, has asked Minnesota's supreme court to require that a few hundred additional absentee ballots be included in the recount -- and he could then ask the court to investigate the contest all over again.

...Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, [who's job it was to oversee the recount process] said unless the supreme court acts on Coleman's request and orders more ballots to be counted, he will reconvene the state's Canvassing Board on Monday to certify Franken as the winner of the November 4 contest.

Even so, Coleman's campaign said it will likely challenge the result, which would require the state supreme court's chief justice to appoint three judges to investigate its claims.

Now of course you know that the wingnuts will be calling this a "stolen" election because... well... because every eligible vote was counted! Plus they need a new weekly thing to bitch about. But the fact is that if the Minnesota Supreme Court becomes involved and overturns the hand recount required by the state in an election this close, it will be the exact opposite. Franken will be the one who'll have gotten robbed. It makes you wonder what these last four years would have been like had John Kerry stuck to his "every vote must be counted" rhetoric and become President in 2004.

Franken is supposed to be certified at 2:30pm this afternoon, with Republican Senators vowing they will not seat him and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is asking Coleman to concede.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say, "Congratulations, Senator Franken."