Saturday, November 18, 2006
Call Their Bluff
The day after the election, George W. Bush said
I intend to work with the new Congress in a bipartisan way to address issues confronting this country.... The message yesterday was clear: The American people want their leaders in Washington to set aside partisan differences, conduct ourselves in an ethical manner, and work together to address the challenges facing our nation.He didn't waste any time demonstrating that "bipartisan" means "both parties give me everything I want." One of the first things he did was renominate six judges who were completely unacceptable to the Democrats the first time around. So what makes him think they'll be approved now? Senate Minority Leader-elect Mitch McConnell spells it out:
McConnell ... told the conservative Federalist Society Friday not to feel bad about the Senate election results because Republicans will hold 49 seats in a body that requires 60 votes to end a filibuster and bring legislation or presidential nominees to a final vote. If the "Democrats want our cooperation, they'll give the president's judicial nominees an up-or-down vote," McConnell said.There's only one reasonable answer to that threat. Senate Majority Leader-elect Harry Reid should say, "Remember threatening us with the nuclear option because you didn't like us using the filibuster? We remember."
More blogs about politics.
