One of the greatest threats to American democracy over the last five years has been the fact that while a criminal administration governed the nation, the House and Senate belonged to the political party of the President, a party that values loyalty to its goals over loyalty to the nation. The fact that we controlled neither house of Congress meant that the Administration could act with impunity; girls and boys, the reason we have been in such a mess in this country is that the loyal opposition had no
subpeona power. There has been no threat hanging over Club Bush that their dirty little backroom shenanigans would ever see the light of day.
Well, my friends, there is trouble, trouble in River City. Moderate Republicans have awaken from last Tuesday's elections to realize that Americans are not a flock of vultures waiting to fall on any cadaver whose path they cross. Rep. Sherwood L. Boehlert (R-N.Y.), a leading moderate Republican, observes about the House leadership,
The clear evidence from Tuesday's election results is that Americans are moderate. They need to start listening to us.
Moderate Republicans, so reports
The Washington Post this morning, are none too happy with the Fun Crowd up at Camp Bush. And their scuttle of the Balance the Budget on the Backs of the Poor Act of 2005 is just one example among many. John McCain's No Torture Never Ever Anywhere Amendment passed the Senate a second time, and the nine pro-torture Senators refused to stand up for BushCo's Torture USA Program. Why, imagine this,
moderate Republicans in the Senate scuttled the continuation of the President's national program to bankrupt the country, that is, the cosmically disastrous Bush tax cuts. The tax cuts seem to be going the way of the dinosaurs. And all of that is a prelude to a kiss.
Comes The Hill News this morning with the excellent news that subpeona power has returned to the Side of Truth, Justice, and the American Way of Life:
House Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis (R-Va.) yesterday threatened to subpoena three members of the Bush Cabinet and White House counsel Harriet Miers if they do not comply with document requests issued by his select committee on Hurricane Katrina response.
With subpeonas, the possibility of cleaning up this mess of scum here in My Fair City is real. I am sure that this is one more request from Congress that Harriet Miers does not relish, but this would be a trip to the Hill by Ms. Miers that this Democrat easily can endorse.
It's morning in America.