Reid having a hard time recruiting candidates

Umm...what happened? I thought you might want to hear this in case you thought there would be a blow out in November and the Democrats would have super majority and be able to ram everything they want through the Congress and have it signed into law by their Democrat president:

According to leading Democrats, 2008 is supposed to be “their year.” Instead prominent Democrats in states once thought to be a chance for a Democrat pickup are abandoning their Senate hopes:

In Mississippi, Democrats received a crushing blow to their hopes of picking up retiring Senator Trent Lott’s seat when former Attorney General Mike Moore turned them down flatly.

In Nebraska, where retiring Senator Chuck Hagel’s seat is open, no serious Democrat has stepped forward to challenge popular former Governor Mike Johanns.

In Texas, self-funding attorney Mikal Watts walked away from Senate challenge against the strong conservative and well-respected Senator John Cornyn.

And, finally, State Auditor Crit Luallen — the candidate top Senate Democrats including Harry Reid were personally recruiting to run against Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell — in Kentucky has backed out of consideration.

Now, no one is claiming that there will be a Republican majority next year (if they claimed that, they would be foolish) but it looks like it's not going to be as big a trouncing as it could have been (and I admit it looked pretty bleak there for awhile).

Congress cleaning up its mess before Christmas recess

The AMT was finally patched just in time for Christmas break but there will still be a delay in getting your refund and it will be back next year because the patch is only good for this year:

'Twas the night before Christmas, or just about so,
All Congressmen and Senators straight home wished to go.

Then what to our wondering eyes did appear,
But a tax called "alternative," which the middle class fears.

[...]

So Reid and Pelosi, they finally surrendered,
And decided to patch it, lest voters be angered.

But the Grinch AMT, it just won't disappear.
Unless Congress kills it, it will resurface next year.

A potential 2008 ad?

Too funny!

(via)

Senator Reid, go right ahead

Reid whines about obstructionism again and threatens to do cartwheels to bring attention to the problem (maybe the Republicans should have done that when the Democrats refused to vote on Bush's judicial nominees):

As if there was any doubt that Congress was on the verge of devolving into a carnival atmosphere, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democratic majority leader, on Thursday proposed doing cartwheels down the center aisle of the Senate chamber to draw attention to Republican efforts to block legislation.

Here, in the Cirque du Senate, there is trash-talking, whining and finger-pointing, bickering and, occasionally, brief flashes of serious disagreement on policy.

But with the clock ticking swiftly toward the end of the year and a stack of stalled legislation piling up, little is getting done in the Senate these days. And tempers are starting to boil over.

Mr. Reid, who turned 68 on Sunday and power-walks four miles a day, ultimately did not perform any gymnastics. But his fury over the inability to move the Democrats’ legislative agenda seemed to have deepened since Tuesday, when he accused President Bush of “pulling the strings on the 49 puppets he has here in the Senate.”

That reference to the Republicans, in a speech on the Senate floor, prompted Senator Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania, to accuse Mr. Reid of violating a rule prohibiting senators from imputing “any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a senator.”

[...]

There is no deal on the federal budget, which is needed to prevent a shutdown of the government. The House and Senate remain divided over how to fix the alternative minimum tax, which will drill a hole in the wallets of 23 million Americans next year. In a bit of good news, the Senate agreed to resume work on the farm bill, which had been stalled for a month.

I really wish he had done it because it would have made a great campaign ad with this caption, "Reid would rather do cartwheels then pass much needed funds for the troops."

Reid has to learn one very important lesson, he's doesn't have enough votes to do anything except compromise. I suspect he won't be doing that anytime soon and since he won't he'll look incompetent and nothing will get done. Good! An inactive Congress is the best kind :-)

Senior al-Qaeda leader killed in Iraq

A Syrian al-Qaeda leader! What? They have real al-Qaeda in Iraq not just Iraqis pretending to be al-Qaeda? Who knew? Certainly not Reid or Pelosi (according to their rhetoric):

The regions around Samarra and Tarmiyah in Salahadin province continues to be a flashpoint for raids against senior al Qaeda operatives and propaganda cells. US forces have confirmed killing a senior Syrian al Qaeda leader near the city, and another media cell was dismantled in the city. As the US targets al Qaeda's media operations, al Furqan released two new products over the past several days, including a tape by Abu Omar al Baghdadi.

Meanwhile, it looks like they al-Qaeda is targeting members of Awakening Councils:

In highlights of the speech, Baghdadi announces the formation of a new brigade, “Al Siddiq Brigades” to fight every “apostate and traitor”, and additionally announces an attack that will end on ... January 29, 2008. ... This attack involves bombings aimed at the “apostates” and members of Awakening Councils."

(via)

Right Wing News' 2nd Annual Worst Quotes From The Daily Kos

Here. Remember as you read them that this is the group that the presidential candidates spoke to instead of speaking to the DLC. And this is the group that Pelosi and Reid confer with over their Iraq policy.

Supplemental Bill Needed to Fund Anti-IED Effort, Director Says

The military can thank Reid for it's shortage. I'm the sure the enemy appreciates his efforts.

If Congress does not come through with a supplemental bill President Bush will sign, money for defeating the largest killers of American personnel in the war on terror will run out Dec. 1, a senior official said here today.

Retired Army Gen. Montgomery C. Meigs, director of the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization, told Pentagon reporters that the organization will have to stop funding new initiatives and just maintain operations.

“We’re out of (funding) new stuff now; we’re going to have trouble sustaining current contracts after the first of December,” Meigs said.

The anti-IED organization needs the funding to sustain operations and to pay for equipment fielded but not yet turned over to the services for funding, Meigs said. For example, he said, his organization funds the Guardian man-portable jammer, the contractors to service it, and the training in the system.

The organization tests new projects, ideas, ways of doing business and equipment against IEDs. If they prove effective, the organization is nimble enough to quickly can get the equipment to the hands of servicemembers. Meigs said the organization has enough money “to keep the lights on” through April. The organization is funded via supplemental spending bills.

“What I can’t fund today will not go into the field next summer or next fall,” Meigs said. “It’ll be delayed by the amount of time we wait for funding.”

(via)

How will the left spin the victory in Iraq...

That is clearly unfolding before our eyes? After trying to stop Bush from sending extra troops, trying to pull all troops except for the ones who would stay on their bases and occasionally fight al-Qaeda and denying them the funds to fight the war not only in Iraq but in Afghanistan as well, how can they claim that they had any part in this victory? You know they'll find a way, just read the comments to this post to see just how they'll try to spin it.

The US military accomplished their job despite the dereliction of duty by Congress and the besmirching of Petraeus and his plan. They'll try to spin it but we all know the truth because we have witnessed the actions of the Democrats as they have fought very hard for an entire year to end this war. Thankfully, the Republicans in the Senate were able to defeat their attempts to surrender in Iraq and that allowed Petraeus the ability to fight the war and for the military to train enough Iraqis to takeover when they eventually leave (as has been the plan since this war began).

So, spin away you lefties! It won't do you any good, nobody's buying it

The return of Baghdad's nightlife

Further proof that the surge is working. I bet Reid is kicking himself for saying that the war is lost. What the Republicans should do an run ad with Reid's infamous words of defeat intoned over shots of the improved conditions on the ground and the quotes from this article:

And then, suddenly, you've arrived and the mirage has become an oasis of generator-driven light; a colourful jumble of trendy juice bars, cosy restaurants, fruit shops, roadside eateries and fish vendors, where children play, families dine and lovers meet.

"Even two or three months ago we would have been afraid to come here at night," said 20-year-old Hussein Salah, an off-duty soldier, slurping a milkshake with his wife, Shihad, at the Mishmesha (apricot) juice bar in Baghdad's relatively safe Karrada suburb.

"Now we sometimes sit outside here till one or two in the morning. It is quite safe. The security situation is vastly improved," said Salah, the orange light from a nearby flashing palm alternatively brightening and dimming his clean-shaven face.

Declines in Iraqi civilian casualties and a sharp reduction in bomb and mortar attacks have sparked optimism that the capital is at last starting to revive.

[...]

"As you can see, things are normal here. It's after eight o'clock and the streets are still full," he added, pointing to the groups of people, families and even single women wearing headscarves strolling up and down the road.

"Six months ago we had to close up by 7 pm, now we stay open till 9 or even later," he said, as live carp flapped about in a tank inside his small stall plastered with pictures of Iraqi Shiite clerics.

[...]

Up the road butcher Halim Sayed Ahmed, an Egyptian with a round face and hint of a moustache, is counting his lucky stars he didn't follow the rest of his family to Cairo when the conflict began ripping Baghdad apart two years ago.

"The butchery is thriving. Sales are up 80 percent compared to the beginning of the year" when violence was at its peak, he said between mounds of freshly cut chicken pieces, mincemeat and mutton.

"I have been here 30 years and I love Baghdad," he said. "Now that the security situation is improving, my family can return."

[...]

"I was shocked when I returned to see how much things had changed," he said. "It's like a different city. Things are so good that I now think it would be possible for me to get married."

Reid to the troops: Make due with what you got until February

The troops are doing their job, they're putting their lives on the line and what does Reid do in return? Refuse to fund them and their efforts to fight our enemy. If anyone thought that the Democrats supported the troops, this should end that fantasy. The Democrats just told the military to get lost: "We are going home for a nice Thanksgiving dinner but you won't get your funding because we have to please our base, not do our duty. You'll just have to make due with the money you have until February when the risk of a primary challenger is less and then we'll fund the troops. Maybe, we'll have to see if we feel like it then"

Frustrated by Republican roadblocks, Democrats now plan to sit on President Bush's $196 billion request for war spending until next year—pushing the Pentagon toward an accounting nightmare and deepening their conflict with the White House on the war.

"We're going to continue to do the right thing for the American people by having limited accountability for the president and not a blank check," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

Senate Republicans on Friday blocked a $50 billion bill by Democrats that would have paid for several months of combat but also would have ordered troop withdrawals from Iraq to begin within 30 days. The measure, narrowly passed this week by the House, also would have set a goal of ending combat in December 2008.

[...]

The Pentagon confirms the military will not run out of money until mid February, after which all Army bases would cease operations.

But Defense Secretary Robert Gates said this week that without the money now, drastic steps would have to be taken in anticipation of the shutdown, including plans to freeze contracts and to furlough about 100,000 government employees.

Notices to some union employees would start going out in mid-December, he said.

I hope these union members remember who lost them their job around Christmas time. While the elite enjoy Christmas at home, these workers and the troops will not.

As I wrote this I kept thinking of the line: "Let them eat cake." Same arrogance, same level of compassion, same understanding of the responsibility to those they govern.

Updated: Yeah, I know it should be "do" instead of "due" but someone linked to it and I hate to break the link.

Nevada, if you re-elect this man, you are doing a terrible service to your country.

Reid vows not to fund the war

Well, he might as well have vowed it because this comes close to doing it:

A budget dispute erupted into a full-scale battle Tuesday as President Bush vetoed the Democrats' top-priority domestic spending bill and the party's Senate leader threatened to withhold war funding if the president does not agree to pull out of Iraq.

The long-anticipated clash came to a head as Bush rejected a $606 billion bill to fund education, health and labor programs, complaining that it is too expensive and is larded with pork. Within hours, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) declared that Bush will not get more money to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan this year unless he accepts a plan to complete troop withdrawals by the end of next year.

(via)

Our troops are not a political football that our politicians use to get their pork. It is all kinds of wrong that he would use them in this way. I hope his phone is wringing off the hook. And our candidates better be quick to jump on this arrogant overreach and denounce it.

3,000 refugees return to Baghdad

I guess we all can agree now that the surge is working and making Iraq safer for the refugees to return. I wonder when Reid will apologize to the troops and admit he was wrong.

In a dramatic turnaround, more than 3,000 Iraqi families driven out of their Baghdad neighborhoods have returned to their homes in the past three months as sectarian violence has dropped, the government said Saturday.

Saad al-Azawi, his wife and four children are among them. They fled to Syria six months ago, leaving behind what had become one of the capital's more dangerous districts—west Baghdad's largely Sunni Khadra region.

The family had been living inside a vicious and bloody turf battle between al-Qaida in Iraq and Mahdi Army militiamen. But Azawi said things began changing, becoming more peaceful, in August when radical anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ordered his Mahdi Army fighters to stand down nationwide.

About the same time, the Khadra neighborhood Awakening Council rose up against brutal al-Qaida control—the imposition of its austere interpretation of Islam, along with the murder and torture of those who would not comply.

The uprising originated in Iraq's west and flowed into the capital. Earlier this year, the Sunni tribes and clans in the vast Anbar province began their own revolt and have successfully rid the largely desert region of al-Qaida control.

At one point the terrorist group virtually controlled Anbar, often with the complicity of the vast Sunni majority who welcomed the outsiders in their fight against American forces.

But, U.S. officials say, al-Qaida overplayed its hand with Iraq's Sunnis, who practice a moderate version of Islam. American forces were quick to capitalize on the upheaval, welcoming former Sunni enemies as colleagues in securing what was once the most dangerous region of the country.

And as 30,000 additional U.S. forces arrived for the crackdown in Baghdad and central Iraq, the American commander, Gen. David Petraeus, began stationing many of them in neighborhood outposts. The mission was not only to take back control but to foster neighborhood groups like the one in Khadra to shake off al-Qaida's grip.

The 40-year-old al-Azawi, who has gone back to work managing a car service, said relatives and friends persuaded him to bring his family home.

(via)

Does Harry Reid even understand what it means to be a Christian?

Harry Reid accused the Christian right of being anti-Christian but does he even understand what it means to be a Christian? When you look at what the men who are leading the Christian right have done you can't help but see that they are men who love God and want to serve him.

Falwell lead a huge congregation and a founded a university. And no one could fault D. James Kennedy for his love of the Lord and his call to evangelism. He lead a pretty big congregation for many years and was a wonderful servant of God. And Dobson has been very helpful to parents by getting information out about what's going on in public schools.

When you read their writings and see what they have accomplished you can't help but be struck by the fact that they have given their lives in service to God. To call men like these anti-Christian is to demonstrate a lack of understanding of what it looks like to follow Christ.

Reid also told reporters the Republican Party has been driven by evangelical Christians for 20 years. "They are the most anti-Christian people I can imagine, the people from the Christian far right."

Many LDS Church members turned to the Republican Party because the pro-life, traditional marriage platforms backed by evangelicals are similar to LDS Church positions. But, Reid said, his 25 years in Congress are proof that Mormons can be pro-life Democrats. He noted that American abortion law, in large part, has been settled by courts, not political parties, Congress or state legislatures.

Yes, voting for a pro-life Democrat makes a lot of sense. If it's settled law, then why even bother voting for a pro-life Democrat? What does it get you? And why vote for one who says things like this:

"I think people in the church have to understand there are issues more important than abortion and gay marriage."

Yea, that's a great pro-life position. Let's just take abortion off the table and move on to the more important things like global warming and health care. Let's just forget about those 40 million babies that have been killed. Let's just forget about those babies who were created by God and who bear his image.

Psalm 139:13 For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.

Bryan of Hot Air makes an excellent point about Reid's comments:

“…anti-Christian…” As in “against Christianity itself.” It doesn’t get much plainer than that. In Harry Reid’s world, “the people from the Christian far right” are more anti-Christian than the Communist government in China that persecutes Christians, the atheists who regularly smear Christians and the Muslim governments and jihadists who routinely murder Christians from Sudan to Pakistan.

I can's see why more Christians aren't drawn to the party of Harry Reid :-)

Phony Vets for Truth

It was inevitable:

In a statement completely independent of the Democrat National Committee, Phony Vets for Truth, a non-partisan think tank, also said: “When private citizens start to believe that they can say whatever they want without being subject to the normal democratic process of selective sound-bite editing, and selective outrage, then it’s time for Congress to take action.”

Harry Reid is a jerk!

Talk about partisanship! Bush should make Olsen a recess appointment. That's what I would do if I were him.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid vowed on Wednesday to block former Solicitor General Theodore Olson from becoming attorney general if President George W. Bush nominates him to replace Alberto Gonzales.

Congressional and administration officials have described Olson as a leading contender for the job as the nation's chief U.S. law enforcement officer, but Reid declared: "Ted Olson will not be confirmed" by the Senate.

And if I were you, commenters I wouldn't come here and blather on about partisanship because I will laugh in your, um...avatar or whatever. I'm a little ticked off about this as you can tell.

Wow! 94-3 vote in the Senate not to close Gitmo

Here's Hugh Hewitt's take:

After a couple of Republican amendments failed, Mitch McConnell took to the floor and offered his own amendment, which was a Sense of the Senate that Guantanamo detainees not be allowed released or moved to U.S. soil. To conservatives, this obviously makes sense. To liberals, especially California’s Dianne Feinstein, one of the chief proponents of the effort to close the detention center at Gitmo and relocate these detainees into the American justice system, especially when tagged onto a student loan and grant bill, you’d think this measure would go down in flames. Except a funny thing happened. The bill was titled in a way that you had to vote yes to vote no, and no to vote yes. The final vote was 94-3, officially putting the Senate on record as saying terrorist detainees shouldn’t be moved to the U.S. Before the Democrats, who clearly hadn’t read the amendment, realized they screwed up, the vote was recorded.

Jim DeMint of South Carolina was the author of the next amendment in line, had just gotten the consent of Bernie Sanders, the presiding officer, to order the yeas and nays. Up stepped Massachusetts senior Senator Ted Kennedy, now obviously aware that he and his colleagues just got bamboozled, and went on a full-throated rant, with reckless disregard to obvious hypocrisy, and blasted DeMint and the Republicans for slowing down the works in the Senate. The rant is worth hearing, so here it is.

Once the rant was over, Kennedy threw the Senate into a quorum call so that the Democrats could regroup. The session progressed well into the night, and McConnell could easily have rested on his laurels, but he wasn’t finished. Colorado Democrat Ken Salazar offered his own irrelevant amendment, asking for a sense of the Senate that President Bush not pardon Scooter Libby. McConnell, with that wry smile he offers when he’s up to something, countered with a secondary amendment to Salazar’s, saying that if it’s fair to bring up the Senate’s view of potential future inappropriate pardons, maybe we should also have a sense of the Senate of past inappropriate pardons, and proceeded to maneuver the Senate clerk into reading off the laundry list of Clinton administration pardons, including those of Marc Rich and others, which again set the Democrats off in a tailspin. After throwing the Senate back into a quorum call for half an hour, the beleaguered Harry Reid came out and pulled the Salazar amendment off the floor. He’d been Mitchslapped twice in one night.

Here's the NY Times' take on the vote:

The peas, carrots and kernels of corn weren’t flying in the Senate chamber, but that’s only because dinner is served elsewhere — otherwise democracy descended into a near-food fight as a Republican effort to block a vote on a higher education bill turned into a fusillade of politically charged amendments to the bill with no other purpose than to insult and infuriate the other side of the aisle.

Among the interesting legislative work of the evening was a proposal by Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, “to provide limited immunity for reports of suspicious behavior and response.”

The amendment read in part: “Any person who, in good faith and based on objectively reasonable suspicion makes, or cause to be made, a voluntary report of covered activity to an authorized official shall be immune from civil liability under Federal, State and local law for such report.”

Then there was the amendment by Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, to express the sense of the Senate on the detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It said in part:

“During the War on Terror, senior members of al Qaeda have been captured by the United States military and intelligence personnel and their allies. Many such senior members of al Qaeda have since been transferred to the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay” The amendment then goes on to name many senior members of Al Qaeda. “It is the sense of the Senate that detainees housed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, should not be released into American society, nor should they be transferred stateside into facilities in American communities and neighborhoods.” The amendment passed.

But it was an amendment by Senator Ken Salazar, Democrat of Colorado, chastising President Bush for commuting the sentence of I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, that got the senators in an uproar.

[...]

Meanwhile, the senators milled about like guests at a cocktail party with no drinks. Instead of going up to the bar, many of them stepped forward to register their votes. Mr. Salazar’s amendment failed, 47 to 49. Among those voting no was Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, who seemed exasperated by the deadlock over the higher education bill of which he is the primary sponsor.

But the political food fight was not over yet. Mr. McConnell then introduced an amendment criticizing former President Clinton for pardoning terrorists, sex offenders and other criminals. Mrs. Clinton had left the chamber, though it was unclear if she knew what Mr. McConnnell was about to do.

Go read the rest, it's very funny (also, you Democrats who have been bleating about Bush's commutation of Libby's sentence should appreciate the listing of all of Clinton's pardons -- it might help you understand why we laugh at your bleating).

BTW, this is a pretty brilliant move on the part of McConnell for future moves by the Senate to close Gitmo. If they attempt to do so, he can remind them that the voted not to move the prisoners to American communities. It would also make very nice flip-flop commercials (they voted to protect you from these prisoners before they voted against it).

Political, it's all political

Reid has already admitted that they are using the war to gain seats in 2008, so this is not surprising:

Democratic Senate leaders knew going into Wednesday's procedural roll call on their proposal to withdraw most U.S. forces from Iraq that they didn't have the votes to win, but victory wasn't their goal.

Instead, the Democrats forced the Senate into a marathon 19-hour debate as a way of putting pressure on Republicans for their continued support of President Bush's Iraq policy, which polls show is opposed by large majorities of the American public.

And the Democrats used the publicity they knew their talkathon would generate to spotlight a small group of Republican senators up for re-election in 2008 who haven't yet split with Bush over the war and whose seats are prime Democratic targets.

(via)

Here's something Reid might want to keep in mind the next time he calls for an all-nighter for political motives and sends out cares packages to make a political statement:

I read that Harry Reid sent care packages to the Republican Senators including toiletries with a yellow ribbon and a note that said, "bring our troops home." To say that irritated me is an understatement. Sen. Reid was making a mockery of our real support for our troops. I have 1200 marines that could have used those care packages.

Hey, Harry! Why don't you support our troops and send some of that our way? Suggestion to Republican Senators that received Harry's generous gift, go to Soldiers' Angels Donate and send them to the Marines!

Vets for Freedom will lobby the Senate to support the war in Iraq

They had been set to go in September but decided to go today to shore up support for the war under the new assault from the Democrats and the chief defeatist, Reid. They plan to meet with members of the Senate and urge them to continue supporting the war:

Veterans of the Iraq War from across the United States will be on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, July 17, to urge Senators to support the mission in Iraq and to wait until General Petraeus reports to Congress in September on the progress of the "surge" before taking a defeatist position.

"I know senators on Capitol Hill are feeling the heat to retreat from Iraq," says Pete Hegseth, an Iraq war veteran and Executive Director of Vets for Freedom. "But if they think it's hot in Washington, DC, try fighting Al Qaeda and company in Iraq. Our soldiers-and their new strategy-need support from Congress, not political pandering. The fact is the surge is showing early signs of success and our troops in the field need the support of our nation's lawmakers as they fight our nations enemies in Iraq."

Vets for Freedom is a nonpartisan organization established by combat veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Those of you who believe that the troops think the war is a lost cause might want to note that the Vets for Freedom has about 10,000 members (that's a link to the first hour of the Hugh Hewitt show, he interviewed Pete Hegseth of Vets for Freedom yesterday).

Tags: Vets for Freedom

Senate to pull an all-nighter

Props to Reid for doing what we wanted the Republicans to do over the judges: keep the Senate in session until the opposition crumbles.

The Senate this week will pull its first all-night debate on the Iraq war in advance of a vote on whether to bring home combat troops by next spring, Democrats said Monday.

The rare, round-the-clock session Tuesday night through Wednesday morning is intended to bait Republicans into an exhaustive debate on the politically unpopular war, as well as punish GOP members for routinely blocking anti-war legislation.

"How many sleepless nights have our soldiers and their families had?" said Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill.

Republicans shrugged off the planned marathon debate as political theater. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Republicans "welcome further debate" but that there was no reason why the Senate couldn't vote sooner.

There's been a lot of political theater since the Democrats took over the Senate, when do you think they will actually start legislating?

And then there's this:

The political sparring came as several Republican congressional staffers met privately with Bush aides in the West Wing of the White House to hash out an effective communications strategy on the war.

According to one member who attended, Bush made a brief surprise visit and thanked the staffers—spokespeople for Republican leadership on Capitol Hill—for sticking behind him. Bush told the staffers he would not rethink his Iraq policies until a critical military assessment comes in September.

Bush also said he had no confidence in the ability of international institutions—a reference to the United Nations—to salvage Iraq if the U.S. were to withdraw.

[...]

The meeting was arranged by Ed Gillespie, a former high-dollar Washington lobbyist and longtime Republican strategist. Gillespie recently replaced Dan Bartlett as White House counselor.

It's looking like it was a good thing that Bartlett left if the President is actually going to work with the Congress more closely to stop any more defections. I hope that by "communication strategy" they mean that they are finally coming up with a strategy communicate the importance of this war to the American public.

Update: Though David Freddoso of The Corner makes a good case why it's a dumb move. Maybe that's why the Republicans never bothered. Maybe they just aren't into political kabuki theater the way the Democrats seem to be.

Reid's sounding a little whiny

It's amazing to me that Reid has the gall to complain about Republican obstructionism when Democrats have yet to vote on Bush's judicial appointees.

While some Republicans are "saying the right things on Iraq," they need to back up their words with votes, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Saturday.

"Voting against a bill on a matter of principle is one thing," the Nevada senator said during the weekly Democratic radio address. "To go forward, we will need far more Republicans to put partisan politics aside and work with us for the American people."

While seeking their votes on defense legislation next week, Reid accused GOP lawmakers of blocking ethics reform and enactment of the 9/11 Commission recommendations.

"Republican obstruction has gotten so bad that now they're blocking bills that they actually support," Reid said.