| Congrats to our newest Senator. It's about time (and a waste of ONE MILLION IIE dollars.) But before we rest on our supermajority, we're honestly not there yet. Despite the fact that Senator Byrd is out of the hospital, as Oreo Quick Hit earlier, he is recuperating from MRSA. He may not be back soon. Further, Senator Kennedy is not generally at work. While he has shown up for certain votes, there is a reality that he may not be able to attend all the important votes in the future. I'm not trying to be a naysayer, but there is a reality here. The physical distance of these two men brings our actual number down to 58. Further, Democrats are not monolithic. The Climate Bill will be a hard sell in the Senate, as will EFCA. And that's not to mention the dueling health care legislation packets (that no one reads.) Mary Landrieu? Blanche Lincoln? Max Baucus? I'm not counting on them for climate, card check, health care, or most anything on the progressive agenda. Arlen Specter is home this week, and he made a speech to a small audience on Monday (no cameras, no press) and he told them that while he was in favour of a public option, in his mind, nothing was off the table. Not to mention the fact that Joe Lieberman has broken a lot of hearts...even Dianne Feinstein was on the Sunday shows saying she wasn't so sure about a public option in the Senate. I bring this up not to diminish Senator Franken's win, but to remind everyone that just because 60 people comprise the Democratic caucus in the Senate, it is still incumbent upon each and every one of us to remember to call and write our Senators and tell them which issues matter to us. And where we stand. The agenda is too important to take anything for granted. |
