Just Do It

So the Dems are saying great things today, but if they refused to filibuster what is the point?

From NYT:

Democrats had stayed mainly on the sidelines during the fight among Republicans, but the pending votes in the House and Senate have forced them to take firm positions on the bill. Senate Democrats did allow a vote to go forward, escaping criticism that they were obstructing the measure, and thus denying Republicans a potential political hammer.

I must admit that during the last few days I have been purposely ignoring this issue- probably because it because it interfered with my, "the Democrats are finally getting a backbone" theme of late. (and I write "backbone" instead of a more colorful word respecting my mother's complaint about the vulgarity of the blog) I guess I was trying to be like a Bushie- no matter what the reality is I am going believe what I want to believe. However, my friend Annie's mom Carlin was so upset by this issue last night that it kind of snapped me back.

How can they not filibuster this? Not doing the right thing for political reasons has not worked out for the Dems very well in the last years- how about doing something for the right reason and then get up in the face of those who disagree with you and tell them what unpatriotic assholes you think they are. (That includes big flip flopper John McCain- why the Democrats continue to idealize him is beyond me.)

Froomkin was on fire today- he is brilliant (h/t atrios) :

Today's Senate vote on President Bush's detainee legislation, after House approval yesterday, marks a defining moment for this nation.

How far from our historic and Constitutional values are we willing to stray? How mercilessly are we willing to treat those we suspect to be our enemies? How much raw, unchecked power are we willing to hand over to the executive? (emphasis mine)

The legislation before the Senate today would ban torture, but let Bush define it; would allow the president to imprison indefinitely anyone he decides falls under a wide-ranging new definition of unlawful combatant; would suspend the Great Writ of habeas corpus; would immunize retroactively those who may have engaged in torture. And that's just for starters.

It's a red-letter day for the country. It's also a telling day for our political system.

The people have lost confidence in their president. Despite that small recent uptick in the polls, Bush remains deeply unpopular with the American public, mistrusted by a majority, widely considered out of touch with the nation's real priorities.

But he's still got Congress wrapped around his little finger.

Today's vote will show more clearly than ever before that, when push comes to shove, the Republicans who control Congress are in lock step behind the president, and the Democrats -- who could block him, if they chose to do so -- are too afraid to put up a real fight.

The kind of emotionless, he-said-she-said news coverage, obsessed with incremental developments and political posturing -- in short, much of modern political journalism -- just doesn't do this story justice.