Redstate

. . . for the part where he praised Senator Frist for "courageously fighting."  

Strike One for Frist - the $849 Billion Medicare prescription drug benefit.

Strike Two for Frist - allowing seven Senators to sell out four more appellate court judicial nominees while agreeing to unilaterally disarm.

Do we need to give him a third strike or is it time to talk replacement?

I'm sticking with Majority Leader Orrin Hatch.

ALthough I promised someone earlier today I'd give Kyl a more thorough hearing in the future.

I just realized that it would be a major slap in the face of John McCain to have his junior Senator chosen as Majority Leader.

I've changed my mind. Sign me up for the Kyl for ML campaign.

Statement of People For the American Way President Ralph G. Neas on Senate Compromise Rejecting Nuclear Option

The explicit language of the agreement reached tonight by a group of

senators rejects the nuclear option, preserves the filibuster and

ensures that both political parties will have a say in who is appointed

to our highest courts. The agreement embodies the very principle of

consultation and consensus that the filibuster encourages. This is good

news for the American people. Saving the Senate's constitutional advice

and consent role, and the checks and balances that protect judicial

independence, is especially important with multiple vacancies expected

on the Supreme Court.



The unprincipled nuclear option has been averted. This is a

major defeat for the radical right. Senators from both parties have

rejected demands by the White House, radical right groups, and Senate

Majority Leader Bill Frist that the filibuster be eliminated on

nominees. It is a rejection of White House demands for virtually

unlimited power to undermine the independence of the courts.



Nonetheless, we cannot endorse every aspect of the deal that

was announced today. We are deeply concerned that it could lead to

confirmation of appeals court judges who would undermine Americans'

rights and freedoms. We will urge Senators to vote against confirmation

of nominees who have not demonstrated a commitment to upholding

individual liberties and the legal and social justice accomplishments

of the past 70 years.



The bipartisan rejection of the nuclear option provides President Bush

with a clear path out of the divisive impasse that has been caused by

his obstinate refusal to engage in bipartisan consultation and

compromise on judicial nominations.



It is time for President Bush to recognize what the senators who

negotiated this agreement know - that the Senate is the President's

constitutional partner in appointing federal judges. It is time for the

White House to abandon its confrontational strategy on judges, and to

work with senators from both parties to find some consensus nominees,

especially in the case of expected Supreme Court vacancies.

All I want from ML is (1) true conservative, and (2) back-room nasty.  Telegenic would not hurt.

You are going to be struggling there.

Has certainly shown himself to be a good soldier for the President, but he has neither the experience, gravitas, legislative policy grounding, or staff to do this job.  Kyl does.

He does look like a Senator, and would be a good and reliably conservative member of leadership... but all of these other factors, plus his ability to insert foot in mouth, should give us pause.

...we've got nobody.  Not till Erika Harold gets a Senate seat.

You are right on Cornyn, he's green -- but I think in 6-10 years....his conservative bona fides are without question, and I think he is learning some of the back-room ropes.

Meanwhile, a question, since I don't know Kyl that much.  Is he nasty?  Will he kick some of these RINOs in the cods?  Does he play hardball, will he eat Reid for breakfast, and spit out the exoskeleton?

that definitely means it SUCKS for real humans.

and clone ourselves a TRULY conservative SML?

Keep trolling and your time here will be very short indeed.

Sincerely,

The site's resident flamethrower

P.S. Pinochet at least had the good grace to have Allende offed.

Say something intelligent on this site and you're more than likely to get an intelligent response.  But if you're just about one liners and contentless zingers, I'd head over to FR.  You'll probably be booted just as quickly, but the response would be much more fun to watch.

Good God, I'm agreeing with Thomas.  Time to get some sleep.

I'd prefer not to have TX in charge of the Presidency, House and Senate.  No offense to the TXs on the site (although your football team still can't take my Sooners) but we should spread the love.  I think Kyl would be great and McConnel would be fine.  Santorum is too threatened, we don't want our leader to distracted by an election or to be picked off.

FWIW, I not on the "dump Frist" bandwagon yet.  He is retiring in 18 months anyway.  That's long enough that dumping him isn't useless, but I haven't been convinced yet.  Medicare sucked.  This is mixed.  It'll take another folly like Medicare for me to join the bandwagon.

The posts about finding a truly nasty back-room ML tickled too much...I'm a middle of the road kind of guy. (that would be Extreme Left to many here (you know, like that Socialist Mcain)

I prefer the trajectory of American politics when it's not swinging like a freaking tetherball from Kucinich (fringe left) to Dobson (fringe right). nasty is as nasty does.

Adam, you just KNEW the guns and knives would come out after that.  While my OSU Cowboys clearly don't pay the level of salaries your Zero-U players get, we have enjoyed knocking your ladies out of the national title hunt a couple of times recently.  Which is more than the Shorthorns can say....

Don't let me put words in your mouth, but are you advocating a big group-hug political utopia, where everybody meets in the middle and stands for nothing?  Or what?  It's pretty easy to snipe at everyone else's position.  What do you stand for?  And we don't think McPain is a socialist, just a flatulent big-gov't free-speech-restricting power-monkey.

As for nasty, well, since Dirty Harry wants to go out behind the pool hall and settle things (his words), I just don't think the GOP should send Little Lord Fauntleroy out to play with him.

when i was younger (I'm 46 now) I romanticized that notion of "The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom". But experience has taught me otherwise and that is, that the "Truth" and good social order for that matter, is most often found in the "Middle", In Compromise.

No, it's not as exciting as extremism but neither is it as deadly. Extremists invariably see the middle as the "Muddle" instead of the necessary element of Civilization that it is. Now I recognize that "Evil" must and should be resisted but the parameters of Evil have a nasty way of shifting beyond their, let's say, "universally recognized boundaries" to encompass any and all opposition from an extremists point of view. Take one of the most divisive political issues .... Abortion.

Those opposed see the opposition as aiding and abetting murder (Evil).... Many of those in favor see the problem as not wanting the government involved in personal, private reproductive choices. (mandatory childbirth, bi-monthly government-administered Ob/gyn exams, publicised medical records, incarcerated mothers etc) They tend to see Government or Religious intrusion as "Evil".

Taken to an extreme this divide could easily degenerate into an actual state of War... What would the outcome of such a war be?

We discarded the "center" and had it out -- in a war no less.

I'd rather assert that the result was more or less optimal.

that war ended?

I saw U.S. flags everywhere I went today and didn't think we'd been invaded.

? Looks like you boys picked you up some territory this round.

I've rolled around in my head the idea that perhaps (such a Yankee/Liberal word) the (cold) Civil War was an ongoing thing. (Only this time, Jeff Davis is in the White House.)

I find nothing in the middle that requires intellect, free thought, or principle, and it's typical that those there pat their own backs for their smug oversimplifications of viewpoints right and left.  Cheerio, mate.

But on the other hand, take a guess as to where you can stick it, when you super-impose the red-blue map onto the Civil War map, thereby smearing the South, and conservatives, with the old racist thing, and call George Bush Jeff Davis.  More self-congratulatory claptrap that sounds alot like the sore losers in the MSM, and a good bit more left than center.

That's a slur of the first order.

And the conflation of the Confederacy with the Republican voting bloc is also a slur. A stupid, easy slur to boot.

Roll it around in your head all you want. There's no penalty on stupid thoughts, more's the pity.

I'll just note that there are more on the OU team than native sons.  And that the two best Heisman hopefuls in the Big 12, well, you know where I'm going.  Best high school team in the country last year?  Yup, Southlake Carroll.

Texas teams have been plagued with horrible coaches since Sherrill got the boot and Brown is the absolute worst.  Best rushing QB in the country and you can count the number of options run per game on one hand.

Slam our politicians but not our football please.

Jeff Davis and the Confederacy a slur?? You have offended my honor sir and I demand satisfaction!!!

Than play games with trolls who imagine that Southern pride is identical to an affection for a group of rebellious aristocrats trying to preserve the second worst abomination this country has ever instituted.

(Oh, the Profanity!") Adios Javert.

start talking about replacing Frist.  He didn't "allow" the notorious seven to make this deal, they did it of their own accord. Being Senate majority leader is like herding cats.  It ain't easy, and a lot of powerful, competent leaders have had a hard time of it in that position (think Dole, LBJ, Byrd, etc.).  The problem is that there are too many proud, self-interested men with their own agendas.  That didn't change when the GOP took power, and it never will.

And as for the first strike, that was President Bush's idea (his worst one yet) and we effectively forgave him in November 2004.

Listen to me people of Redstate.org!  This is no time for internal GOP bloodletting! What Bush & Company need to do (and what their doubtless doing) is lick their wounds, give each other a group hug, and start sending coded messages to Graham, Snowe, Collins, McCain, and DeWine about all the nice things they could do for South Carolina, Maine, Arizona, and Ohio.  Sorry if that sounds crass, but that's the way it is kids.

that should be, "what they're doubtless doing...".

I should also add that things could be a whole lot worse.  We could have a Daschle-type for  majority leader.  Does anything Frist is going through compare to losing four seats including your own?

This is the kind of situation where it's best to ignore Dobson. I like him.  No I LOVE the man. I grew up listening to "Adventures in Odyssey." But he has a nasty tendency to lose perspective on these issues, and call for fire, brimstone, and rolling heads where no such measures are necessary.