The "Coburn Omnibus" (or the "Tomnibus," as the NYT has more cleverly dubbed it) is due for its first procedural test this afternoon, with a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to consideration of the bill (now designated S. 3297, the "Advancing America's Priorities Act"). Yes, that means a cloture vote on the question of whether or not to start debating the bill.

If that doesn't tell you something right there about the level of Republican obstructionism, maybe this will: the cloture vote may be preceded by a motion to instruct the Senate Sergeant at Arms to establish a quorum. Meaning that there's some significant chance that Republicans will try to prevent this from coming to a vote by hiding out in their offices (or elsewhere) in order to deny the Senate the quorum needed to vote on whether or not they should begin debate on a bill made up of 30+ other bills that one guy has blocked, even though most of them passed the House with 400+ votes in favor.

So what's in this thing, anyway? Here's the list of included measures (italicized bills have Republican lead sponsors:

1. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Registry Act (S. 1382/HR 2295)
2. Christoper and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act (S. 1183/HR 1727)
3. Stroke Prevention (S. 999 - Cochran/HR 477)
4. Postpartum Depression (S. 1375/HR 20)
5. Vision Care for Kids (HR 507/S. 1117 - Bond)
6. Downs Syndrome support (S. 1810 - Brownback/HR 3112 - Sensenbrenner)
7. Emmitt Till Unsolved Crimes (S. 535/HR 923)
8. Mentally Ill Offender Treatment (S. 2304 - Domenici/HR 3992)
9. Star-Spangled Banner and War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission (S. 1079/HR 1389)
10. Drug Endangered Kids (HR 1199/S. 1210)
11. Runaway and Homeless Youth (S. 2982/HR 5524)
12. Child Pornography Prosecution (HR 4120)
13. Enhancing Child Pornography Prosecution (S. 2869 - Vitter/HR 4136)
14. PROTECT Our Children Act (S 1738/HR 3845)
15. Paul Simon Study Abroad (HR 1469/S 991)
16. Reconstruction Civilian Management (HR 1084/S 613) - Lugar
17. OPIC Reauthorization (HR 2798/S 2349)
18. Tropical Forest Conservation (S. 2020 - Lugar/HR 2185 - Kirk)
19. Funding for victims of torture (HR 1678 - Smith (NJ)/S 840 - Coleman)
20. Museum of the History of Polish Jews (HR 3320 - Smith (NJ))
21. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority  (S. 1446/HR 401 - Tom Davis (VA))
22. Preservation of Records of Servitude, Emancipation, and Post-Civil War Reconstruction (HR 390)
23. Pre-Disaster Mitigation Act (HR 6109/S. 3175 - Lieberman)
24. Broadband Deployment (S. 1492/HR 3919)
25. Ocean Exploration, Mapping & Research (HR 1834 - Saxton/HR 2400/S. 39 - Stevens)
26. Hydrographic Services Improvement (S. 1582/HR 3352 - Young (AK))
27. Coastal and Ocean Observation System  (S. 950 - Snowe/HR 2342)
28. National Sea Grant College Program Amendments Act (S 3160/HR 5618)
29. Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring (S. 1581/HR 4174)
30. Realtime Writers Grants (S. 675/HR 1687) (passed House in Higher Ed bill)
31. Smithsonian construction bill (HR 5492)
32. Captive Primate/Animal Safety (S. 1498/HR 4933)
33. The Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network Continuing Authorization Act (S. 2707/HR 5540)
34. Beach Protection Act (S 2844/HR 2537)
35. Appalachian Regional Development Act (S. 496 - Voinovich/HR 799)

So what's Coburn's problem? Well, his story all along has been that he's such a gosh-darned good budget hawk, and these bills will... zzzzz... increase the deficit.

But the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reminds us that Coburn's making an amateur mistake:

   The Congressional Budget Office has reviewed S. 3297, a bill to advance America's priorities, as introduced on July 22, 2008. The bill includes numerous provisions that would affect health care, criminal statutes, laws to protect wildlife and the environment, international aid programs, efforts to promote commerce, ocean research, and other government programs.

   Most of the bill's provisions would specifically or implicitly authorize increased appropriations for purposes specified in the bill. By themselves - that is, in the absence of subsequent legislation - those authorizations do not cause changes in federal spending or revenues.

That is, Coburn's objecting to the costs of authorization bills, which only designate an outer limit to how much money can later be spent... by appropriations bills. The budgetary impact of authorization bills, therefore, is zero. Only bills that actually spend money count against the budget. Coburn was hoping no one would notice, I guess.

Ten Republican Senators have bills in this package: Thad Cochran (MS), Kit Bond (MO), Olympia Snowe (ME), Ted Stevens (AK), David Vitter (LA), Sam Brownback (KS), Pete Domenici (NM), Dick Lugar (IN), George Voinovich (OH), and Norm Coleman (MN).

So here's the question going into the vote: Will Senate Republicans flip on their own legislation, just to back up the paranoid theories of a crazy doofus whose main concern in life (besides crossword puzzles) appears to be the growing menace of teenage bathroom lesbians?

If last week was any indication, yes they will. Senate Republicans are intent on putting their most vulnerable colleagues through the wringer, apparently insisting on blocking any bill that doesn't drill for oil in your Aunt Bertha's daisy patch.

They may be, it turns out, That. F-ing. Crazy.

Tune in at 4 p.m. EDT to find out.

UPDATE: Yep, they're that crazy. Cloture goes down, 52-40. Have a nice weekend, Senators. And it's only Monday.

PPP (PDF). 6/14-15. Likely voters. MoE 3.6% (3/15-17 results)

The previous set of numbers came following the Wright mess, so they might've artificially depressed Obama's numbers. But as we've seen elsewhere, Wright is but a distant memory.

Still, is an 11-point lead sensical? PPP is a relatively new kid on the polling block, but they had a pretty good primary season, ranking 12th out of 32 pollsters, and they would've ranked much better had it not been for a HUGE misfire in the Pennsylvania primary. And a month ago, SUSA had this as a 9-point Obama lead.

But polling is all over the place in this state. Rasmussen gave McCain a one-point lead at the same time as SUSA's 9-point poll, while the latest Q poll (also a month ago) had McCain up by four points. So there's some serious volatility and widely divergent numbers from some of the most respected pollsters in the biz.

The Pollster.com composite is Obama 45.9, McCain 41.9. As for the crosstabs:

Those are startling numbers, and Obama still has room to grow as he continues rallying the Democratic Party behind him. Note that in that in that March poll, Clinton was beating McCain 45-44. Party unity sure looks nice, and we've got a ways to go to lock up that Democratic vote for Obama. But let's wait and see what other polling says before we start celebrating. Heck, let's wait until we win Ohio in November before we start celebrating!

Looking ahead to the 2010 Senate race, PPP looked at a matchup between incumbent Republican Sen. George Voinovich and Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan:

This matchup will happen, and will be a blowout victory for Ryan when the votes are counted in November 2010. 33 for an incumbent senator? That is beyond woeful.

(Cross posted at Buckeye State Blog)

Nothing says "I'm exploring a run for the U.S. Senate" like attending rubber chicken dinners on the other side of the State from your district.

So on April 19th, Congressman Tim Ryan (D-Youngstown) is going to be the keynote speaker at the Clermont County Democratic Party's dinner.  Ryan was one of several being recruited to run in 2006, but instead supported Paul Hackett over Sherrod Brown.  His support for Hackett alone should give Ryan a jump in SWO.

Ryan has, of course, gotten quite a national following given some of the most fiery speeches on the floor of Congress against the war in Iraq.

(HT: Cincinnati Enquirer's Politics Extra Blog)

Ryan has a good base in NEO.  His prior support for Paul Hackett should help him make inroads in SWO and SEO as he improves his name recognition.  Ryan has the ability to unite old Democratic constituencies like labor and new groups like young, urban progressives.

I've heard Lee Fisher as a possible candidate, too.  Any other names in the running?

And a Republican Senator is calling him on it.

In a letter to the White House last week, Republican Senator George Voinovich of Ohio pointed out that Bush’s so-called deficit reducing budget is off by "hundreds of billions, if not trillions, of dollars."

Voinovich said Bush’s 2009 budget proposal is based on keeping the Alternate Minimum Tax as is, and on cuts to Medicare physician reimbursements--neither of which is likely, and both of which Bush opposes.

I was too optimistic in taking down our "No Taxation Without Representation" sign in our front yard last week.  I'm a D.C. resident.  I know for those outside the Beltway, this may have been barely a blip on the radar of Congressional failures, but for me it was a big deal.  Yesterday, Republicans blocked the Senate from taking up the most promising effort in decades to get D.C. residents a voting representative in Congress.  This wasn't even a vote to give us a vote.  This was just a vote to simply move the bill forward.  Congress could have made history by ending D.C. disenfranchisement.  Instead, it just added another embarrassing chapter to its failures.

Today's big late-day headline is that Senator John Warner (R-VA), now wants to bring the troops home from Iraq. The misleading headline from the Associated Press - Warner: Bush should bring troops home - made me think that Warner had finally gone the way of Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE). Alas, that could hardly be further from the truth:

Warner, R-Va., said the troop withdrawals are needed because Iraqi leaders have failed to make substantial political progress, despite an influx of U.S. troops initiated by Bush this year.

The departure of even a small number of U.S. service members — perhaps 5,000 of the 160,000 troops in Iraq — would send a powerful message throughout the region that time was running out, Warner said.

That's going to be one hell of a statement we're making. Considering that the escalation of our presence in Iraq added 20,000 more troops to the existing force (which now stands at about 160,000), it's not as though that's a sign of real progress. It's just a token gesture that will get a lot of media play.

Many pixels have been spilled on just how crappy a job the establishment media has done in covering the all-night debate and Republican filibuster of the Levin/Reed amendment (and Republican obstruction of Democratic initiatives, in general), not just because, as I observed last night, the debate was not carried by any broadcast outlet, but because the ladies and gentlemen of the fourth estate just can’t seem to be bothered to take the time to explain what was going on this week.

Sometimes -- not often, but on occasion -- the Washington Post reminds me of the great paper it used to be.

Today's op-ed by Harold Meyerson represents one of those occasions.  Meyerson's angry, and he wastes no time going after the source of that anger: "Anyone searching for the highest forms of invertebrate life need look no further than the floor of the U.S. Senate," he says, proclaiming the premier "spineless specimens" to be GOP Senators Dick Lugar, John Warner, Pete Domenici, George Voinovich.

I've posted some highlights of Meyerson's piece below.  Do yourself a favor, though, and read the whole thing.  

Harold Meyerson has a gem of a column in Wednesday's WaPo, summing up perfectly the WINOs:

Anyone searching for the highest forms of invertebrate life need look no further than the floor of the U.S. Senate last week and this. These spineless specimens go by various names -- Republican moderates; respected senior Republicans; Dick Lugar, John Warner, Pete Domenici, George Voinovich. [Let me add those not so senior Republicans, Susan Collins, John Sununu, and Norm Coleman. mcjoan]

They have seen the folly of our course in Iraq. The mission, they understand, cannot be accomplished. The Iraqi government, they discern, is hopelessly sectarian.

In wisdom, they are paragons. In action, they are nullities....

The Lugars and the Warners seem to share with many of their Democratic colleagues a common assessment of our presence in Iraq: It has become an unfocused and costly occupation in a land beset by civil war. We should, in good order, pull back, leaving behind only what we need to deter jihadists who threaten us.

Problem is, the Warners and the Lugars don't actually want to act on their perception. They oppose the legislation by Democrats Carl Levin and Jack Reed that would require the administration to begin reducing our forces in Iraq within 120 days and to remove all but that anti-jihadist force by next April.

Instead, they have drafted legislation that would require the administration to draw up plans for a pullback -- but not to implement them. Indeed, they act continually as if George Bush and Dick Cheney are amenable to argument and open to facts. "I'm hopeful they'll change their minds," Domenici said last week after a meeting with national security adviser Stephen Hadley. "I think we should continue to ratchet up the pressure, in addition to our words," said Voinovich, "to let the White House know we are very sincere."

Very sincere -- now there's a threat that concentrates the mind. These Republicans who proclaim their independence without acting on it have failed to come to terms with the single most important reality confronting them: that Bush and Cheney will keep the war going until Congress forces them to stop.

If tonight's debate is showing us anything, it's showing us the emptiness of the WINO's rhetoric and their unwillingness to truly break with their president and end this debacle. Think about what those senior senators Meyerson lists and what they would be able to achieve, the former chairs of Armed Services and Foreign Affairs, in leading the Republicans out of Iraq. Protecting the president is obviously their paramount concern.

It's a pity. It's a pity for their legacies, but it's a tragedy for the men and women of the armed services held hostage in Iraq to Bush's whims.

For those of you who don’t already know – I’m Kelley Wenzlaff’s Media Manager and Personal Advisor.  Kelley is running for the Ohio State House in Delaware County (2nd District).  Tonight from 9:00 PM to 10:00 PM, Kelley will be joining fellow Ohioans in their 'Up All Night To Do What's Right' candle light vigil over at Senator Voinovich's Columbus office.  The idea is to 'encourage' his support of the Lenin-Reed amendment.  Here’s Voinovich's address:

Voinovich's Central, OH Office:
37 West Broad Street
Columbus, OH 43215

As a resident of the state of Ohio, I sent the following message to Senator Voinovich.

"More than 160 young Americans have died in Iraq since the Senate caved in to the Bush/Cheney administration and allowed the occupation of Iraq to continue.  Billions of dollars that our grandchildren will owe to the US Treasury continue to be thrown into this sink hole. I genuinely hope that you find it almost impossible to sleep at night knowing that more gallant young Americans will be killed or permanently disabled for this mistake."

"You have been quoted recently as saying that George Bush has f**ked up this war.  Well, I say that now is the time to sh*t or get off the pot. No filibuster on such an important issue.  The American people deserve an up or down vote on this issue now.  We need to know where you stand. To many of us, Republican senators are appearing to be two faced.  You wanted the "nuclear option" to keep Democrats from filibustering, but now find it to meet your needs. Stand up and be counted. Get out of Iraq now."

Just last week Congressman John Boehner resorted to calling Senator Voinovich a "wimp" for speaking out against President Bush on the Iraq War, but speaking out isn’t enough, it’s time for Voinovich to put his vote card where his mouth is. American troops have been on the front lines for more than 4 years while Senator Voinovich has consistently voted against a new direction in Iraq.

Tonight, the U.S. Senate will conduct a full night of debate on the Republican filibuster to the Levin-Reed amendment that would reduce U.S. forces in Iraq by ending the policing of the civil war and switching the focus to fighting Al Qaeda and terror related missions.

Starting at 9:00 PM tonight, the Ohio Democratic Party will start its 'Up All Night To Do What's Right' campaign by hosting a candle light vigil at Senator Voinovich's Columbus office.

Here is a list of the Senatorswho voted against cutting off debate on the amendment offered by Jim Webb, (D-VA), that would have set time limits on redeployment of troops back into Iraq. Webb's amendment would have required that the miltary allow regular troops as much time at home as they spend in Iraq and allow National Guard and Reserve units twice as much time at home as they spent in Iraq. As Webb pointed out in an interview with CNN, historically the United States Army and Marines gave soldiers twice as much time at home as compared to the time spent overseas.

COLUMBUS, OHIO (EPM OHIO NEWS BUREAU:) BREAKING NEWS: The Quinnipiac Poll on Ohio released Wednesday shows respondents said the Buckeye State's sagging economy, which they attributed to government policies and the effects of globalization on jobs, could force someone in their family to leave the state for greener pastures in the next year.

Furthermore, over three-quarters of responders said they expect the slumping economy to either stay the same or become worse.
_________________________________________________________________________

The stripper scandal, which arose recently when the Lucas County Democratic Party hired female strippers to serve beverages to golfers attending a June 29th political fundraiser, has matured from what some thought would be a minor, forgettable incident to something more.

The misguided event now has legs and implications for the county party and for the The Ohio Democratic Party's crafting of strategy to take Ohio deep blue in 2008, when a new president and control of the Ohio General Assembly are up for grabs.

COLUMBUS, OHIO: Like a political slot machine that keeps on spitting out rare coins each time the lever is pulled, The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation(BWC) scandal, which started in 2005 and paved the way for big Democratic election wins last year, claimed its 17th conviction Thursday, when Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Paul M. Herbert, a Republican, ordered George L. Forbes to pay the maximum penalty of $6,000 in fines, an identical amount in repayments to the BWC and perform 60 hours of community service.

The (Toledo) Blade, Ohio's most daring newspaper that broke the story and that has reported on it with meticulous, unerring accuracy ever since, outlined the contents of ethics violations submitted by Franklin County and City of Columbus prosecutors and yesterday’s convictions.  

Domenici has added himself to the list of Republicans who say they want a change in Iraq. Sez Domenici:

"I have carefully studied the Iraq situation, and believe we cannot continue asking our troops to sacrifice indefinitely while the Iraqi government is not making measurable progress to move its country forward," Domenici said. "I do not support an immediate withdrawal from Iraq or a reduction in funding for our troops. But I do support a new strategy that will move our troops out of combat operations and on the path to coming home."

As always, the devil is in the details. The Salazar bill he's signing onto, the Iraq Study Group Implementation Act is little more than a feel-good facade for senators who want to say they've done something to stand up to Bush on Iraq without actually really doing anything to change our Iraq policy. The bill would "create the conditions" for withdrawal, but doesn't mandate withdrawal and would not acheive what the country demands--bringing out troops home.

Is Domenici's "break" any more real than that of those brave "defectors" Lugar and Voinovich:

Ohio Senator George Voinovich says the US should begin pulling troops out of Iraq and make greater use of diplomacy. . . . His remarks come on the heels of similar comments yesterday from Indiana Senator Richard Lugar. The two say they're still not ready to insist on a timetable for withdrawal. But both are making it clear their patience is gone.

Doubtful. Empty threats and empty legislation aren't going to end this war. But these three, and all of the Senate, will have their chance to actually make a break starting next week. From an e-mail from Reid's office:

Washington, DC — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made the following statement today in response to Senator Pete Domenici's call for new U.S. military strategy in Iraq:

"Senator Domenici is correct to assess that the Administration's war strategy is misguided. But we will not see a much-needed change of course in Iraq until Republicans like Senators Domenici, Lugar and Voinovich are willing to stand up to President Bush and his stubborn clinging to a failed policy – and more importantly, back up their words with action.  Beginning with the Defense Authorization bill next week, Republicans will have the opportunity to not just say the right things on Iraq, but vote the right way too so that we can bring the responsible end to this war that the American people demand and deserve...."

I'm not going to be holding my breath that these, or any Republicans, are going to ever demand a real change of policy. Not surprisingly, Stephen Colbert sums up the GOP "defections" best in his Profile in Timing of Lugar.

Among the many news stories making headlines in the Buckeye State this 26th week of the year, these stories stood out, even though several didn’t make the cut with Ohio’s main-stream media.

U.S.  Sen. George Voinovich’s well-sculpted image as a Boy Scout has been eroding for years (especially after we learned that the foundation for Coingate was laid on his watch).

Now, his image as a level-headed intellect is dissipating by the hours.

Poor George melted down during an interview with talk-show host Sean Hannity, who happens to be one of the right’s top-ranked talk hosts in the nation. The right has always been suspicious of Voinovich and now he’s given them more cause for concern.

It started when Voinovich showed that he misunderstood the ramifications of an amendment to the immigration bill. It ended when he hung up on Hannity.

For Ohio’s George Watchers, this was nothing new.