Reply #181: That's the scary part - they aren't fighting for credibility anymore - [View All]

[54anickel]

they don't give a shit and they don't need it. It's all in place now. Patriot Act II, Bolton, no torture ban (thanks to holding off the DOD bill), protection for gun dealers (Bubba can go ahead and arm the RW militia), and the beginnings of a huge culture war.

What really was behind bumping up that NRA bill over and above the DOD bill? We'll never know the complete story, but they seem to do everything toward some hidden agenda.

http://www.progressiveu.org/node/576/trackback

Today Senate Democrats fought to continue the debate on the Defense Authorization Bill. The majority Republicans have been trying to invoke cloture, which would suspend debate and force a vote on this bill after a two day period. This would allow time for a Gun Bill proposed by the NRA to slip through right before the summer session ends later this week. Democratic Senators Reid and Durbin (pictured) along with Levin and Landrieu argued Senators Frist and Warner before a cloture vote. The vote was 50-48 in favor of not invoking cloture. This was a huge victory for Minority Leader Reid and the Democrats, stalling the bill through the August recess so it could be further discussed and amended with the intention of passage in September.

The minority Democrats' success comes as a surprise to most, but their argument was strong. Reid questioned the Republicans' integrity. "Are you telling this chamber and the people of the United States that after spending 31 days on judicial nominees and two weeks on credit card special interests we will only spend two days on a DoD Authorization Bill during a time of war?" Senator Durbin added, "Is the majority stating that a special interest gun bill put forth by the NRA is more important than the security of our military in the time of war?"

It appears that the scandal-ridden Republicans wanted to stop the bleeding when Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) embarassedly called for a Roll Call vote after the fierce questioning by the Democrats. It's likely now that they will quietly take this defeat into the August recess without trying to pass any further legislation.