Feinstein, Rockefeller, Reid, Schumer.  Lieberman.  What a pathetic bunch of losers we have in our caucus, and in leadership positions, at that!  We've been bitching about it long enough, and some of our bitching has real influence.  Not as much as we'd like, of course.  But enough to be perceptible.

But the most effective influence in politics is money.  And while we don't have Scaife's millions to throw at our favorite causes, we do have numbers behind us.  So here's an idea, below the fold.

Kagro X  had a front page diary today about the filibuster that whimpered.  It's superbly written, with great passion, verve and clarity.

Inspired by this diary, I fired off e-mails to Boxer and Feinstein, my two senators.  I peppered comments on Kagro X's diary.  I fretted.  I fumed.

Then I realized that I'm also puzzled.

Kos and others gave advance publicity to the Editor & Publisher piece which anticipated Joke Line's latest on the Shrubbery.  Some people actually thought Joke Line would write something relevant, insightful, and respectful of readers' intelligence.

This would, of course, be a radical departure from his usual habits.  The man can't help himself--some time back in the nineties, he sold his soul to the rethug machine, in exchange for his cushy gig as a senior, "bipartisan" pundit.

Guess he's an honest crook--he stays bought.  His anticipated new piece is no good, despite the cheerleading comments on the blog.

David Sirota had a recommended diary up yesterday complaining about Congressional inaction over Iraq.  Or Herseth's scepticism about the precise meaning of polls.  Or something.

Now I love Sirota's writing.  I really do!  He's passionate, he's committed to values I share, he's not afraid to say clearly what he thinks.  I admire him for it.

But I'm really getting tired of the martyr complex I see amongst us of the left.  If our team isn't pushing the envelope to the point where at least a few of us are risking their political careers, we think we're not doing enough.

Recent AP article quotes Rumsfeld's spokesman saying that due to his recent resignation, Rumsfeld has decided to skip NATO.

Is that right?  Apparently the Pentagon spokesman was speaking so quickly that the AP stenographers had no time to think!  Otherwise they might have remembered (or Googled and found) articles such as this one.  If any of them read DK, they would've been well-informed.

More details below the fold...

We all know what "troll" means in blog-speak: someone who visits a blog and posts primarily to disrupt normal conversation.  Once identified, blogs such as DK work quickly to hound them out of here--a bit like an immune system response.  The FAQ has more.

Once identified, trolls did what any virulent organism would do--they evolved!  dKospedia defines several mutants, including the concern troll, conspiracy troll, and others.

But now I think I see another mutant...(more below the fold)

Suzanne Nossel, guest blogging at the Washington Monthly, pontificates thus:

"This morning Iran opened up a plant that produces heavy water, in blunt defiance of UN insistence that it stop its nuclear weapons production activities."

Anyone else share with me this senes of disbelief that anyone can be so tone-deaf as to think they can talk like this without making otherwise moderate folks develop an instant determination to develop their own complete arsenal of nuclear-tipped ICBMs?

Well, Lamont won.  And decisively, no matter what spinmeisters may say--Bush won by much smaller margins, and we all know how subdued he was in claiming a mandate!  Lieberman, ever true to his narcissistic self, is going to run as an independent.  Now Democrats need to take a long hard look at what's coming down the pike in November, and map out a strategy.