I know the Columbus Dispatch can be out to lunch sometimes, but this takes the cake. On Sunday's editorial page, Dispatch political reporter Jonathan Riskind offered a commentary with the following hilarious (yet apparently serious) headline: Lott's departure is yet another blow to compromise in Congress.
Yep, Riskind actually lauds Lott as "one of the most artful dealmakers in the chamber" and then complains about the state of the Senate today:
The House and even the deal-making Senate is becoming more and more ideologically divided and unwilling to compromise.
Witness the standoff over the State Children's Health Insurance Program expansion. Democrats, it is true, can point to a bipartisan vote for the $35 billion expansion that fell 15 or so votes from being veto- proof in the House. But since then, Democrats have tried to steamroll Republicans in such a heavy-handed manner that they have been unable to make headway toward a veto-proof bill, even on legislation that Republicans know darn well stands to hurt them at the polls next year if it does not pass.
While Riskind does criticize Lott for wanting "to cash in, big-time, and that's just another blow to Congress' dismal reputation," it's pretty disturbing that Riskind never points out Lott's role in Congressional gridlock.
We are told that "Lott spent months rehabilitating his reputation nationally, won re-election in handy fashion last year and then was elected by his GOP colleagues to the minority-whip spot." But Riskind never connects the dots and points out that as the Senate Minority Whip, Lott's job is coordinate and enforce the Republicans' record-setting filibusters.
Read the whole thing and see what you think. And drop a line to Riskind and the Dispatch.