Not this term. The Democratic Party is not a corpus defuncti yet. Its heart functions weakly, it breathes shallowly, its pulse can still be detected if you try very hard.
But Democrats have only one more chance left to survive as a reasonable facsimile of a Democratic party if they win a majority in this coming election.
If a Democratic majority is won in the U.S. Senate and if the Democratically-controlled Senate refuses to radically reform itself to end the tyranny of the filibuster and the dictatorship of hot-liner Senator DeMint of South Carolina and others like him, the secret holds of other Republican senators, not to mention the bullying autocracy of Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and other Republicans of his ilk, they, the Democrats, do not deserve another chance to run the country.
The United States Senate no longer functions as a governing body. It has become the cemetery of American democracy.
Over 400 bills, reflecting the will of the American people, have been passed by the United States House of Representatives. Unfortunately, because these bills must also be voted upon by the Senate, they die when they are sent to that combination funeral home and cemetery called the U.S. Senate. Poor little unsuspecting bills are summarily knocked on the head as soon as they enter the sanctum of the Senate, and then, summarily, their throats are slit by Mitch McConnell, who glories in the bloodbath.
Jul 30, 2010
CWA delegates called on the United States Senate to eliminate the archaic rules that have blocked critical legislation affecting working families and left important government positions empty because of abuse by the current Senate minority.
CWA and a growing number of unions and other organizations are determined to restore real democracy and end the rules that allow a minority of the Senate to block action.
"As the use of the filibuster has become routine, it has become increasingly rare for the Senate to consider legislation, approve nominations and pass annual appropriations bills," delegates said.
CWA President Larry Cohen noted that the U.S. House of Representatives has passed over 400 bills since January 2009 that will not be considered in the Senate in this term.
http://www.cwa-union.org/...
The filibuster. Secret holds. Hot-lining. James DeMint. Mitch McConnell. So-called Democrats like Baucus and Tester of Montana, Webb of Virginia, Ben Nelson of Nebraska, the occasional Blanche Lincoln and Senator Pryor of Arkansas, Landrieu of Louisiana, turncoat Lieberman, et al.
DeMint and the deadly Senate hold:
Sept. 27, 2010, 9:13 p.m.
Sen. Jim DeMint warned his colleagues Monday night that he would place a hold on all legislation that has not been "hot-lined" by the chamber or has not been cleared by his office before the close of business Tuesday.
http://www.rollcall.com/...
Then, there is the senatorial secret hold which threatens our nation's judiciary:
27 September 2010
Fewer judicial nominees have been confirmed in the first 20 months of the Obama administration than at any time in more than 40 years. Nearly 10% of federal judgeships are currently vacant. In addition to the 103 open seats, 20 other federal judges have announced plans to retire. There are currently 23 judicial nominees who have cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee but have not been brought to a Senate vote.
According to the Administrative Office of the U. S. Courts, 48 of the vacant positions have been designated as "judicial emergencies" due to the length of the vacancies or the pressing case load in the judicial district. The current shortage of confirmed judges will severely delay trial and appellate dockets and has the effect of discouraging qualified candidates from seeking positions as federal judges. ABA President Stephen Zack, after calling the secret hold of nominations "unacceptable" ...
http://themoderatevoice.com/...
Speaking of the judiciary, Democratic cowardice in addressing the nominations of John Roberts and Sam Alito to SCOTUS may have writ fini to the careers of Democratic Senators who blindly and unquestioningly confirmed the nominations of these two who summoned up the demon of Citizens United in order to hammer another nail into the coffin of American democracy.
More secrecy. And the loud chatter of big money from unknown sources. The legacy of Democratic cowardice.