On the Hill (Markos Moulitsas, KOS, on Harry Reid)

Moulitsas is often a mired in foolishness and seldom makes any sense. I guess this can be expected of a Juris Doctor. On this one, like his rants at the KOS, he doesn't disappoint.

From The Hill.com,

The Hill.com-Sure, Senate Republicans are in the minority for at least one more cycle. And it’s true that their conference is over 10 percent smaller than it was in the last Congress. But the GOP has retained its ace in the hole: Harry Reid is still majority leader.

Reid (Nev.) took the helm in 2006 after his Democrats overcame a 10-seat deficit in the Senate, but the new majority immediately began frittering away its mandate through embarrassing displays of obsequiousness to George W. Bush and the Republican minority in Congress. From Iraq to the FISA battle to the financial-industry bailout, Democratic promises of effective governance were sacrificed to the capricious whims of an incompetent president and his congressional enablers.

His first mistake was expecting effective governance from the Democrats. The second was expecting effecting governance from a caucus whose leadership includes Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid.

The Senate’s handling of the $700 billion financial giveaway prior to the election was pathetic, with the majority handing Bush a blank check for his pals on Wall Street. Yet just a few weeks later, Senate Republicans were able to block approval of a $14 billion loan to the Big Three Detroit automakers — a bid to break the back of the United Auto Workers that recklessly threatened the health of the broader American economy.

Did Reid blast Republicans for playing chicken with the millions of jobs dependent on our domestic auto industry? Of course not. He responded by praising Tennessee Republican Sen. Bob Corker, leader of the union-busting effort.

Union busting effort? This whole deal, as pointed out here about 20 times was hinged on $3/hour less in wage until the Big 3 become financially stable. How's about a middle-class protection effort? Nary a mention of any of that in any publication I have so far read concerning this particular issue. The only talking point you hear about is how a Detroit failure will cause the loss of millions of jobs. Another government scare tactic playing upon people's uncertainties to protect organized labor.

What is glossed over is how people's taxes are going to have to be raised to pay for the Stimulus Package I, the $700 billion bailout for the robber barons, and the Stimulus Package II being proposed by the President-elect. They don't want you thinking about that now do they?

Moulitsas, like many of his fellow Progressive colleagues, are being intellectually disingenuous by leaving out this little fact. All they see is the opportunity provided by votes from big labor to further their agendas. Although, that comes with a price. After all, how can the government forget about a $1billion lobbying campaign by the likes of the AFL-CIO and the Change to Win Federation and not pay that back?

Yet Reid’s acquiescence flows in one direction only. When Democratic activists pleaded that Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) be stripped of a committee chairmanship after campaigning for John McCain and other Republicans in 2008, Reid refused in the name of “unity.” But “unity” was easily cast aside when Reid applauded Sen. Evan Bayh’s (D-Ind.) plan for a Blue Dog-style caucus in the Senate. Both moves are great news for Republicans — they keep their mole inside Democratic ranks, while Democrats fragment their majority.

What a balance in the political spectrum of the Democratic Party? Oh no the horror!! God forbid that anyone would dare step in the way of the Progressive juggernaut. Of course it would be "disingenuous" of me if I did not point out that the GOP is afflicted, at times, with the same problems. Its Far-Right has demonstrated this towards RINO's.

Harry Reid to put it mildly, is a twit. But based on this read his acquiescence is not the only one who flows in one direction.

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