Senator Stevens has finally acknowledged what many of us already suspected...
that Senator Stevens is responsible for placing the secret hold on the Obama-Coburn earmark bill.
Now it's time for the same Republicans who excoriated Democrats who filibustered a small percentage of President Bush's judicial nominees to express the same disdain for Senator Stevens' actions.
The secret hold is an asinine tactic. Say what you will about the filibuster, but a Senator cannot filibuster while hiding underneath his or her desk, which is exactly what Stevens is doing in this case. He clearly doesn't have the courage of his convictions. In the alternative, he's embarrassed (and rightfully so) by what he's doing.
While he said he didn't "believe" he ever used this tactic, there is little doubt that John Ashcroft placed a secret hold on James Hormel's nomination to be Ambassador to Luxembourg because he was gay. Like Stevens, Ashcroft either lacked the courage of his convictions or was embarrassed by what we was doing.
Even in an institution that rightly respects minority rights, the secret hold is antithetical to democratic principles. Sen. Wyden has tried to put a stop to this practice in recent years. This episode should underscore the importance of ridding the Senate of this device.