Senate Passes Obama Tax Deal by Ridiculous Margin

Well, it was a nice effort on Sen. Bernie Sanders' part last week, but you know the old saying: Washington D.C. is a horrible place filled with horrible people and everybody would probably be better off it it just descended back into the putrid swamp from whence it came…

President Obama's $858 billion tax package won a huge bipartisan majority in the Senate on Monday evening, setting it up for a contentious debate in the House. On an 83-15 vote, the Senate quashed a filibuster by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)…

"It makes no sense to me to provide huge tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires while we drive up the national debt that our children and grandchildren will have to pay," Sanders said in a statement after the vote…

Obama applauded the Senate's action to move his tax-cut compromise with Republicans and urged the House to do the same quickly. In a statement in the White House briefing room, Obama hailed the Senate's "strong bipartisan support" for the package and declared "this proves that both parties can, in fact, work together."

Yep! That's what it proves, alright! Both parties can, in fact, work together (so long as their doing something for the benefit of millionaires, billionaires and quagazillionaires). Very extremely inspiring.

Tags: Barack Obama, Bernie Sanders, Filibuster, Senate, Taxes

Harry Reid Promises Filibuster Reform Just as Soon as He's Re-Elected, So You Might as Well Just Go Ahead and Start Holding Your Breath

You might think that Harry Reid is a ball-less ineffectual Senate Majority Leader, but it's not true. Just look at this: He's promising to change filibuster rules…

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) pledged on Wednesday to take a serious look at revising the filibuster rules at the beginning of the next Congress, calling the current level of obstruction in the Senate unacceptable.

First of all, no you're not, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. This is a nice sentiment, and it's fun to make promises and all, but you and all of everybody in the world knows that "at the beginning of the next Congress," you're going to be cleaning the dead opossums out of your pool in Nevada. Sorry to drop reality on Harry your fantasy camp, but somebody has to be the dick here.

But, hey, what's the harm in pretending. I yield the post to the Senate Majority Leader (for now)…

"The filibuster has been abused. I believe that the Senate should be different than the House and will continue to be different than the House," Reid said. "But we're going to take a look at the filibuster. Next Congress, we're going to take a look at it. We are likely [Ed note: read as "unlikely"] to have to make some changes in it, because the Republicans have abused that just like the spitball was abused in baseball and the four-corner offense was abused in basketball."

Reid's embrace of filibuster reform comes after he previously threw cold water on the likelihood of getting the rules changed. His reference to the "next Congress" stands out. To change Senate rules in the middle of the session requires 67 votes, which Democrats clearly don't have. But changing the rules at the beginning of the 112th Congress will require the chair to declare the Senate is in a new session and can legally draft new rules. That ruling would be made by Vice President Joe Biden, who has spoken out against the current abuse of the filibuster. The ruling can be appealed, but that appeal can be defeated with a simple majority vote.

"A simple majority vote," you say? Hmmmm… I see…  I'm sorry, but I am completely unfamiliar with such a concept.

Tags: Filibuster, Harry Reid, Midterms, Nevada, Senate

Ed Rendell Thinks GOP Should Be Made to Filibuster

Ed Rendell is an embarrassment to Democrats. Look at him strutting around with that backbone of his, like he's vertebrate of the walk. It's simply shameful…

Tags: Ed Rendell, Filibuster, Health Care, Pennsylvania

Joe Lieberman on Health Care Reform: "Thhhbbbbppptt"

Well well, look who is the most important widdle Senator in Washington after all! You want affordable health care, America? You're gonna have to go through Joe Lieberman, and Joe Lieberman is a rock. He is an island. A coral reef of stubborn obstruction…

In a move that senior leadership aides say has left them stunned, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) has told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) that he will filibuster a tentative public option compromise unless it's stripped of its key component: a measure that would allow people aged 55-64 to buy insurance through Medicare.

The development casts substantial doubt on whether or not a health care reform bill can pass in the Senate, and even more doubt on whether a bill that does pass the Senate will be reconcilable with substantially more progressive House legislation in such a way that a final reform package can once again pass in both chambers of Congress.

Stunned! That's what senior Democrats were, when Joe Lieberman changed his mind about a thing he used to support and pledged to be as difficult as possible about it!

Who wants to take a bus to Washington and tell these folks that there's no Santa Claus, either?

Tags: Filibuster, Harry Reid, Health Care, Joe Lieberman, Medicare, Senate

From the Pork Barrel: Adieu, Sweet Oprah

* Perhaps taking a cue from her most rogueish guest, Oprah Winfrey has decided she will no longer be shackled behind her talk show.

* The Senate takes up its version of the health care bill tomorrow morning. Harry Reid needs 60 votes just to proceed with debate, because the Republicans do not want to deal with this thing at all. If they filibuster, let us hope they forgo the phonebooks and pledge allegiance to the flag for twelve hours straight. (Eat your heart out, Todd Akin!)

* Said health care bill is 2,074 pages long. Tony Perkins and his fightin' evangelicals have released something called "The Manhattan Declaration," which manages to cover "the sanctity of life, traditional marriage and religious liberty" in just 4,700 words.

* President Obama will make a decision about Afghanistan troop levels after Thanksgiving, assuming he's not in a food coma.

Tags: Abortion, Afghanistan, Barack Obama, Christianity, Filibuster, Harry Reid, Health Care, Marriage Equality, Oprah Winfrey, Pork Barrel, Religion, Senate, Tony Perkins