Reid honors the “holds” of Republican Senators and ignores those of Dems. There was no comity under Bill Frist, who broke one of the longest standing Senate courtesies when he campaigned against Daschle. The Republicans were constantly threatening to use the “nuclear option”.

If the will was there, the way is there. Make the Republicans filibuster. Make it obvious that they are obstructing things. Give the media some visuals for the nightly news. The press releases don’t hack it. Make it a story.

Bryan is right: there is no reason Harry Reid should allow this to go on. The price for Coburn’s blocking majority-supported legislation should be rendered very heavy indeed, but Harry Reid keeps letting Coburn get away with it. We’re not talking about civil liberties issues here, nor about some sort of extremist legislation; we’re talking about ordinary budget matters that should, in almost all cases, be resolved by a majority vote. That’s what majorities are for: the ordinary business of government should not require a supermajority. Reid is allowing the GOP minority to rule even in the most ordinary matters. “Compromise” is precisely what is NOT required here.

He would rather capitulate than lead. The Republicans stand their ground because they know the Democrats will cave in. It is that simple.

First reset to 1-19-2001 and then move forward.

When you are doing a rehab, which is what is necessary with the government:

1. Fumigate
2. Haul off the trash
3. Fumigate again
4. Clean up and deodorize
5. Repair
6. Clean up before showing it.

You are not compromising with the roaches, cleaning only some rooms, repairing a few things – you are bringing it back to a livable condition.

The people who want the current policies to continue are not voting for Democrats.

At the time, they were all quite disgusted that Kennedy that day had agreed to sign a very bad bill that included an environmentally destructive dam in Colorado which he had once strongly opposed. Kennedy did it just to get one more vote in the Senate for his ill-conceived, provocative scheme to arm our NATO ally Germans with missile-mounted nuclear weapons — putting the nukes, time wise, as good as next door to Moscow.

When they are not in power, as we have seen so clearly the last seven years, Democrats act like road kill for the Republican juggernaut. When Democrats are in power, they can’t agree among themselves on anything and so give away the company store.

A few weeks ago when Obama first started slithering to the Right, a prominent Obama supporter had an op-ed, in the Times I think, bemoaning how he seems to have switched his campaign style from being a no-holds-barred advocate of generally liberal causes to a style more closely resembling how presidents in recent times usually present themselves while governing — trying to please as many people as possible with milquetoast compromise solutions that often make the problems worse.

His point wasn’t that compromise isn’t sometimes necessary in governing the nation. It was that if Obama continues down this path as a political candidate, he will lose the election. And if he doesn’t lose, his pre-election “compromising” will in any event have crippled his ability to govern effectively.

1-20-09 is looking more and more like just more of the same.

Hate the thought, but maybe Nader was right.

John, you can’t compromise with the Republicans in Congress. There is no give and take with them, only take, and anyone who doesn’t understand that is too stupid to function in my best interests. Obama with sell out anyone and anything to make a deal and the Republicans know it. Bipartisanship = Surrender – It really is that simple.