For the third straight day, the Republicans have refused to allow the Senate to debate the Wall Street reforms bill. In fact, things are getting worse. On Monday and Tuesday, we got 57 votes for cloture (58, really, because Reid changed his vote for procedural reasons). Today we got only 56 votes (because Byrd didn’t vote). There will be another cloture vote tomorrow. I have no idea where we go from there. Despite CNN’s report that Sen. Voinovich of Ohio will eventually vote to take up the reforms, he chose not to do so today. And despite TPM’s reporting that Minority Leader McConnell was resigned to defeat, his caucus stayed with him again.
One reason we’re seeing this rancid display is that Republicans continue to be more threatened by challenges from their right than they are in the general election. John McCain, for example, has seen his public approval numbers plummet 27 points since last September, but he still leads his likely Democratic opponent 49%-33%. As I mentioned yesterday, Sen. Bob Bennett of Utah is probably going to lose his job on May 8th when the state GOP has their convention and votes on who to put on the primary ballot. We’ve seen Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida get absolutely routed by a right-wing challenger in his bid to become a U.S. Senator. Under these circumstances there just isn’t much appetite among even modestly moderate Republicans to cooperate with Democrats on anything. It’s comforting to at least see members like John McCain lose support from Independents and Democrats as he lurches to the right, but the overall picture is beyond depressing.
Maybe the Results Party will prevail in November over the Party of Hell No, but I’m not seeing any signs of it, yet.
I guess I can console myself that whatever happens we won’t have Sam Brownback to kick around anymore.
My only problem with this show is that the Dems will give in at some point. I hope instead they incorporate some of the amendments that break up the biggest banks now, end the ability to be a commercial bank and and investment bank, establish the consumer protection agency as an independent entity, and outlaw the kind of derivatives that brought down the economy — essentially the Simon Johnson prescription.
And then just keep on bringing up the bill day after day, as long as necessary. While pointing out that the Rep obstructionism is not only preventing financial reform, but everything else down the pike, including immigration, climate change, energy independence, and all other good things.
Maybe they will give in. But they have the upper hand.
I meant to say my problem is whether they give in, not to predict that they will. I’m still hoping the signs of new spirit are real this time.
Are they on the TV 24/7 with their people screaming about how Republicans are suckling at the Wall Street Trough? There seems to be a component missing from this situation.
WTF is wrong with them? It’s so frustrating to see them screw around like this.
Where is the targeted offense?! Democrats seemed to have bought into the GOP and media meme that Scott Brown was elected by a populist wave. NO, Scott Brown was elected by a lazy ass, myopic, petulent Democratic base that decided not to vote coupled with maybe the worse Senate canidate in a generation. From the day he was elected, Democrats in MA and nationally should have been committed to making Scott Brown un-re-electable. And why is Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe getting a free ride? They are two Republicans in a Democratic state respected and re-elected for their perceived independence. Are Democrats so incompetent and impotent now that they can’t launch a campaign against the them that they are no longer Independents but now owned wholly by the Republican Party?
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Q17 If you are Hispanic, press 1. If white, press 2. If
other, press 3.
Hispanic…………………………………………………. 17%
White …………………………………………………….. 73%
Other……………………………………………………… 11%
In 2008 according to the official census, Hispanics were 30% (it’s probably 10 percent higher) of the AZ population and whites were 58%, but according to this poll, Hispanics will only be 17% of the electorate and whites 73%. Yeah right.
those numbers seem about right to me. A thirteen percent drop-off in comparative turnout in a midterm election is probably the historical norm. However, Latinos are going to be hornet-mad in Arizona this November, so the historical norm probably doesn’t apply.
You still have to be a citizen to vote. For a while, anyway.
AZ’s Latino AMERICAN population is 1/3 of AZ.
Olympia Snowe was re-elected in 2006 with 73% of the vote. Susan Collins was re-elected in 2008 despite facing a tough and talented Democratic opponent. Maine is one of those small states that historically re-elects incumbents except under rare circumstances. (e.g., Margaret Chase Smith lost after 32 years in the Senate because her health was failing and she was out of touch with her constituents—she no longer had an office in the state.)
What’s odd (historically speaking) is that Collins, Snowe, Brown, Voinovich, etc. aren’t cutting deals with the Dems to get their priorities in the legislation and benefit their states.
Not odd really. The GOP is a parliamentary party. I wish the Dems were the same.
Just look at candidate recruitment. The DSCC backs a tepid candidate in Fisher. Backs a Blue Dog loser in Cunningham(over someone who has won statewide before) in NC. I don’t know anything about Glassman in AZ. But we would have won AZ if Cranky McSame wasn’t the nominee in ’08. Basically, Menendez has done a really crappy job as head of the DSCC. And the DCCC hasn’t done any better. They need to stop recruiting the most conservative candidates possible. it’s a recipe for disaster.
Howard Dean, at the DNC, led the party to victory. Tim Kaine is following the McAuliffe path to defeat. Then you have Rahm Emanuel’s interference…
“John McCain, for example, has seen his public approval numbers plummet 27 points since last September, but he still leads his likely Democratic opponent 49%-33%.” What poll are you citing? This would mean that McCain is still winning a sizeable percentage of the Latino vote. I find that incredibly hard to believe. I’m all about the internals. During the course of the primaries and general election, I would ignore the top line number and examine the internals. I remember polls in VA and FL that had Obama winning less than 75% of the Black vote and less than half of the Latino vote, and I knew that was pure bull shit. If a poll that has internals that defy good common sense, they should be questioned.
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According to the PPP poll, McCain leads his likely Dem opponent 49-33. But the Dem is apparently still unknown outside of Tucson, so with McCain’s stunningly bad approval numbers, this seems like a race with room to tighten up a lot.
If McCain’s numbers among Republicans at only 48-39 and 28-58 among indies, his current lead in the primary seems very shaky. Should he win the primary, I would think those numbers will make it very tempting for a general election indie challenge from his right. Question is, is the Dem, Rodney Glassman, capable of taking advantage of a very favorable environment?
Fucking Florida. Jesus.
That’s the kind of crap I was talking about re Emanuel’s interference.
Sorry for the doom and gloom, but as long as unemployment is around 10%, voters—especially in an off-year election—are likely to decide “Hell no, I don’t like these Results!”.
If that happens, best case scenario (for the country) is that the Dems retain control of both Houses by diminished margins. They probably won’t be able to pass major new initiatives, but the will be able to pass budgets (and use reconciliation rules to include some initiatives in the budget). They’ll also be in a position to force Republicans to take difficult votes (e.g., immigration reform in late 2011/early 2012 as Booman advocates).
If Dems lose the House, the most optimistic scenario I can envision is that Boehner and company shut down the federal government, and it works as well for them as it did for Gingrich in the 1990s.
A Results party needs results. There’s a good chance we’ll have them by 2012—not so much by this November.
P.S. I’d be interested to hear a more optimistic scenario. Any takers?
when all else fails, maybe a little sleep deprivation will move things along.
time to get out the cots and make the gNOp really filibuster.
Apparently, the Republicans took one look at the cots being lined up in the hallway for the promised all-nighter, and thought the mattresses looked lumpy… or something.
Sounds like they’re going to give up… (and claim victory, of course) and let the real debate begin…
The orange beanie with the pompoms makes you look illegal, so you’ll have to schedule your trip to Arizona for a visit after we’re done removing the current idiots from power.
That’s a scary photo, BooMan.