In an event that I should have seen coming but did not, Senate Majority Leader Reid called Senator Lieberman into his office today for a meeting. While neither man is talking about what was said, I am betting the conversation went something like this:
Reid: Joe, you are a backstabbing, ungrateful dude, whom we can no longer trust. So here is the deal, considering you threw our guy under the bus, we are going to strip you of your powerful committe seat and send you to count the tiles in the foyer UNLESS you promise to always vote with the Dems. No more embarrassing us Joe.
Lieberman: [Silent but fuming] You have given me alot to think about.
So, why bother? Here is why....the Dems are close, and I mean very close to being able to write whatever piece of legislation they want to give it to their boy, O. What stands in thier was? That's right, the fillabuster. If R's can organize enough, they could bring the Senate floor to a standstill. Now, even if that can't stop the fillabuster, watch the Dems threaten the nuclear option anyway, even if the would have been livid had the R's done it 4 years ago when they could not get their judicial nominees on the floor for a vote.
So, as the count stood last, there were 57 Dems and 2 independents who vote with Dems usually. 1 Senate Seat in MN undergoing a recount, but it looks like the seat will go to an R. 1 Seat in AK, which if Stevens can hang on there with the absentee ballots, it will go to an R. And a run-off in Georgia that is anybody's guess. In order for the Dems to block a R led fillibuster, they must have 60 votes lined up to send a bill to a full vote. Even if they pick up GA, they would be dependent upon the 2 independents voting with them.
Where does this leave Joe? Arguably one of the most powerful men in the Senate. See, he could pick what goes through and is signed into legislation, and what is stymied on the floor of the Senate. The Justice Kennedy of the Senate, so to speak.
Joe's a bit of a wild card. Why would he owe alliegence to the party that sold him out and wanted his seat to go to someone else? I mean really, I would seriously think about thumbing my nose at Mr. Reid, committee chair or no. Joe also had the kaputz to support a man from the other party. Why? Because whether you agree with Joe's politics or not, the man stands by his convictions and is a true statesman. He is not afraid to tell it like he thinks it. He is not afraid to make unpopular decisions. And he is not afraid to rock the boat. He is also a fighter. I don't agree with his politics, but I have one heck of amount of respect for Senator Lieberman.
Not that you would read this Senator, but I say, tell the smuck this: You call this reaching across the aisle? You call this uniting America? Take your thug tactics and shove them. I stand by my convictions and no one is going to bully me into being anyone's patsy.
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