The GOP Says No To Rest
…for the troops.
Following their sterling performance in the drowning of the Constitution, 43 Republicans and the LIEberman voted to filibuster a bill that would have given the troops an even break.
Democrats’ Push To Limit Troops Thwarted
(AP) Democrats’ efforts to challenge President Bush’s Iraq policies were dealt a demoralizing blow Wednesday in the Senate after they failed to scrape together enough support to guarantee troops more time at home.
The 56-44 vote — four short of reaching the 60 needed to advance — all but assured that Democrats would be unable to muster the support needed to pass tough anti-war legislation by year’s end. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., was seen as the Democrats’ best shot because of its pro-military premise.
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“In blocking this bipartisan bill, Republicans have once again demonstrated that they are more committed to protecting the president than protecting our troops,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
So the GOP Senators own the war along with the Shrubbery, but we already knew that.
Look, guys, you attach it to the House appropriations bill and when the House and Senate bills are in conference committee it stays as part of the bill. Conference appropriation bills get a straight majority vote. Stop screwing around with these Senate dramas, and start getting things done. If/when the Shrubbery vetoes it tell the Repubs it’s their turn to get a bill passed.
9 comments
How’s that list compare to the folks that voted to deny cloture on habeas restoration?
Pretty much the same group. The amazing thing is that Reid has been able to get the Democrats named Nelson [Nebraska and Florida] to vote with the party. He is imposing some control for a change.
Do we have all the Democrats on both of these issues?
And of those, who among them voted to take away our habeas in the first place? (though this should probably be on the other thread)
Looks like it. Johnson of South Dakota still isn’t back, and some of the Repubs are not voting which is the same as a Nay, with less of a political penalty.
“The 56-44 vote — four short of reaching the 60 needed to advance…” – CBS News
I cannot help resenting CBS’s obfuscatory framing of the fact that Senate Republicans are filibustering every bill that comes before them. This was a cloture vote, dammit, not the vote on the respite for the troops. I presume everyone reading this thread knows what a filibuster is, and what a cloture vote is. These filibusters are certainly hypocritical coming from the very same people who howled in outrage when Dems filibustered during the GOP majority. Put it this way: 60 is the new 50-plus-1. Or just call it “minority rule.”
Be that as it may, it could be coming to the point that even members of the public who do not understand basic Senate rules nonetheless understand that Dems support the troops for real… support giving them realistic breaks between tours… and GOPers don’t.
As you said, Bryan… they need to tack it onto the damned appropriations bill, leave it in during reconciliation, and stop screwing around. Maybe Harry and Nancy can handle that approach.
That, or else they need to go back to Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and make a filibuster a real filibuster. If the Republicans are so bloody interested in debating the merits of this bill (instead of just playing obstructionist-as-usual), then let them be the ones to talk and talk and talk and talk about it until the cows come home or they run out of Depends and collapse from exhaustion. Meanwhile, none of their legislation goes anywhere, the Boy Who Would be King gets no action on his new AG-wannabe, and we tie the Iraqi albatross even more firmly about their necks.
It’s a football game. The Democrats have the ball but to score a first down they have to get 60 votes. The Republicans are the home team.
The problem is that the media is treating this like a game, and forgetting what these bills are about. It would be nice if there was some straight reporting.
Forcing a real filibuster would get back to the issues in these bills. Nothing is going to move while these games are being played, so move nothing, and let people see the bills going nowhere because Republicans want to filibuster.