POINT/COUNTERPOINT

BILL FRIST


Since I rarely borrow so judiciously from other's writings for a single post, please allow me this. Via Bob Geiger's blog:

How did Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) commemorate Constitution and Citizenship Day, when he returned to the Senate floor on Monday? In an odd twist of logic, he blamed the minority party for how little work has been done in the 109th Congress.
September 17, which fell on Sunday, celebrated the ratification of the United States Constitution and Frist used that occasion to announce that Senate Democrats are actually the reason that the last 20 legislative months have been proclaimed the "Do-Nothing Congress."
"Too often my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have inhibited the fulfillment of our duty," said Frist, after a stirring reading of the preamble of the Constitution. "They have relied on obstruction and thrown up roadblocks at every opportunity. They have let politics get in the way of sound policy and purpose. That is unacceptable."

Poor Fristy. I mean, he's only got 55 senators who just happen to be long to the same party as him. How can he be expected to get anything done with that darn minority party getting in the way. Instead of pointing this sort of obvious fact out, Minority Leader Harry Reid had this to say instead:

"This Republican Congress has wasted 20 months on horse slaughtering; the Schiavo case, dealing with someone's personal relationship, which should not even have been before this body; gay marriage; the nuclear option; flag burning; repealing the estate tax," said Reid. "But they could not find a day for some time to look at the President's mistakes, missteps, and misconduct, which have hurt American security and plunged Iraq into a civil war -- not a day."

Reid expounded on the lack of Congressional oversight over the last few years:

"During the Civil War, President Lincoln was faced continually with oversight hearings by his Congress. Of course, we know during World War II, there were a number of commissions. The most famous was that conducted by Senator Harry Truman of Missouri, which led to his becoming Vice President. Some say, but for that he would not have been chosen as Vice President."

What was the Truman Commission? It was to determine what was going on with World War II. Was money being wasted? Were troop levels right? Korean war hearings were also held, and the same for the Vietnam war. But for this war, none--even though this war has taken longer than it took to settle the differences in the European theater in World War II. Soon it will be the same amount of time that we were able to beat Japan."

Reid absolutely excoriated Majority Leader's bullshit. To come with such weak game like this just illustrates more and more how absolutely hilarious it is that Fristy still believes he is a viable candidate for president in '08. The guy is a clownshoe; a sockpuppet for the Bush regime. Giving him four years in the White House after eight years of the Bush nightmare/debacle/horror show would be the equivalent of putting a loaded gun in Uncle Sam's mouth and pulling the trigger. Let's not let that happen.