In Search of a Congress - NYTimes

~snip~

If you were one of the Americans waiting for Congress, under Democratic control, to show leadership on the war in Iraq, the message from the Senate is clear: “Nevermind.” The same goes for those waiting for lawmakers to fix the damage done to civil liberties by six years of President Bush and a rubber-stamp Republican Congress.

The Democrats don’t have, or can’t summon, the political strength to make sure Congress does what it is supposed to do: debate profound issues like these and take a stand. The Republicans are simply not interested in a serious discussion and certainly not a vote on anything beyond Mr. Bush’s increasingly narrow agenda.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/21/opinion/21fri1.html?_r=1&hp=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1190379721-qmYMD/kY1klX6+vb5B0GCA

We support the filibuster as the only way to ensure a minority in the Senate can be heard. When the cloture votes failed this week, the Democrats should have let the Republicans filibuster. Democratic leaders think that’s too risky, since Congress could look like it’s not doing anything. But it’s not doing a lot now.

The country needs a lot more debate about what must be done to contain Iraq’s chaos and restore civil liberties sacrificed to Mr. Bush’s declared war on terrorism. Voters are capable of deciding whether Republicans are holding up the Senate out of principle or political tactics.

along with a note about how frustrated I was with the inaction on the war, restoration of civil liberties, and restoration of checks and balances in government.

Not that it will make any impact, I'm afraid. If there's a choice between listening to the NY Times and their own constituents, or obeying their corporate masters, they generally pick the latter.

:bounce::kick::bounce: