Wasn't that something? Mitch McConnell denouncing unemployment insurance? Roger Wicker attacking food stamps? Richard Shelby ranting against senior meals programs? George Voinovich railing against infrastructure spending that would creat 384,000 jobs? Pat Roberts frothing at mouth against weatherizing homes?
Oh, wait...
That didn't happen. None of it did. Not even close. Harry Reid didn't force the Republican obstructionists to actually fillibuster to kill the $56.2 billion stimulus plan in the Senate this week. In fact, he hardly did anything to make it more than the briefest of blips on the sharpest of political radar screens. And therein lies virtually everything you need to know about the political economy of America today, and the sorry, sorry state of our democracy, and the Democratic Party.
When the Democrats gained leadership control of the House and Senate, they were handed enormous power to shape the political debate in our country, and thus far they have utterly squandered that power. This week was no exception, as they actually had a relatively small, but significant de facto Main Street bailout package not just in the works, but on the floor to be voted on, and they simply let the GOP Senators kill it with a silent fillibuster, and no political costs whatsoever.
Had they chosen to make a fight of it, they could have radically expanded and reframed the narrow Wall Street bailout debate to consitute a real debate about economic philosophies and priorities--one that is long, long overdue, and that would heavily favor the Democracts.
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