What a manifest disgrace. We have terrible, incompetent, infuriating leadership in Congress. I'd do anything to make those two pay for this, really pay.

Retire, Byrd, you are worthless.

Red State Dems and their incredible achilles heel of abortion rights.

Even if Byrd ends up being a big asset on NSA spying, this is a pretty bitter pill to swallow.

I think he can pretty much forget about any significant online campaign contributions from the netroots, eh?

Hip hip HORAY!
So you argument was that if Byrd voted against Alito his constituency would throw him out of office? Gee sounds like Byrd was just representing his State and not PFAW, MoveOn, or Code pink. Welcome to what I like to call DEMOCRACY, after a while you will either love or you can leave it.

I thought it was Rehnquist who was supposed to destroy the separation of powers.

after a while you will either love or you can leave it.

ooh, please spare me, überpatriot!

and Scalia and Thomas were supposed to work on destroying civil rights....

love or you can leave it. Posted by Cyber Sarge
Nixon redux.

You may as well rejoin the KKK now, Byrd.

Obviously Senator Byrd must vote according to his own conscience. That I can respect. I just hope that getting re-elected wasn't really why he decided to approve of Alito.

Hip hip HORAY!
So you argument was that if Byrd voted against Alito his constituency would throw him out of office? Gee sounds like Byrd was just representing his State and not PFAW, MoveOn, or Code pink. Welcome to what I like to call DEMOCRACY, after a while you will either love or you can leave it.
Posted by Cyber Sarge at January 26, 2006 01:05 PM

*****

Fucking retard.

If Byrd was representing his state of West Virginia, he wouldn't be voting "yes" for a man who will roll back worker's rights.

God you're a stupid fuck.

By the way folks, according to the IP address, our anonymous poster here happens to be avaroo, who for some reason doesn't want to be identified today.

I thought it was Rehnquist who was supposed to destroy the separation of powers.

See where it got him?

These fucking Democrats will do what they want for re-election but not to please their constituents. Another rationale could be so it will allow their Republican friends to be able to vote no and save their re-election asses.
Like GOW says, they're all complicit!

Kerry has just call for filibusting the nomination of Alito?

Byrd's been around long enough to know how to pick his battles. Filibuster or not, Alito will be confirmed...Byrd may just be trying to position himself to "fight another day". That begin said, it's still frustrating to see...

Gee I don’t see how my comments are “retarded” we live in a representative democracy. That means we elect people to represent our interests. Now if Senator Byrd’s constituency overwhelmingly supports the nomination of Judge Alito, then it is Byrd’s duty to represent the will of his State. A government that doesn’t have to answer to the people is by definition a tyranny. Now you may like that style of government but I would rather live where the people get to pick who is in office and not some 527 group. If you like that style of government Cuba is a mere 90 miles away from our shores and I think they have openings. Hasta la vista Baby!

To say that I am disappointed (again) by the party that misses every opportunity to stand up to the bully/abuser would be a gross understatement. They are once again living down to their already pathetic republicon administration characterization as weak. Way to go dems, how to live down to that reputation and fufill that prophecy of yourselves.
Damn...well,at least my two Senators... JFK and Kennedy are willing to support a filibuster...even though it will fail.

Lastly it's almost as if the democrats are trying to fail and each time they do, it appears that a senior member is willing to take the heat for the inability to stand on principle(Biden, Lieberman, Feinstein, now Byrd)hmmmmm....

Well, sarge, your "team" may win, and the US will lose a democracy, but whatever happens, you will always be a stupid dick. You know it, I know it, and with your juvenile outburst, the entire blogosphere knows it. Laugh while you can, monkey boy, you'll get yours soon enough.

Now you may like that style of government but I would rather live where the people get to pick who is in office and not some 527 group. If you like that style of government Cuba is a mere 90 miles away from our shores and I think they have openings. Hasta la vista Baby!
Posted by Cyber Sarge at January 26, 2006 01:53 PM

*****

You seem to have a raging boner for an authoritarian theocracy with fixed elections. Perhaps the Bush boys could get you a gig with their hand-holding friends in Saudi Arabia. You'd be right at home.

Hasta la Vista to you, bitch.

It's nice to see a few dems behaving in a sensible, non-Michael Moronish, non-Howard Scream way.

It's nice to see a few dems behaving in a sensible, non-Michael Moronish, non-Howard Scream way.
Posted by A Former Democrat at January 26, 2006 02:02 PM

*****

Fuck off, troll.

BTW, Cyber Bitch, Senators take an oath to uphold the Constitution, not to pander to their constituents, in case you were wondering about "allegiances." Of course your GOP pigfucker lackeys in Congress have compeletely abdicated their Constitutional responsibility to check the power of the executive when it engages in criminal and dishonest behavior.

You GOPians are modern day Tories. You don't deserve the freedoms you enjoy, you complicit, bedwetting, Constitution shredding little pussies.

Steve, refresh my memory, Roy Batty, A Former Democrat and CyberSarge are the same troll, right?

It's nice to see a few dems behaving in a sensible, non-Michael Moronish, non-Howard Scream way.

It's sad to see someone identify themselves as a former member of something they no longer wish to be associated with rather than with where they currently are in their life.

How sad your life must be. Such identity issues.

A Former Democrat:

Why aren't you posting under "Al" or "Teaser" like you have before (according to your IP address)? Are you having an identity crisis?

Forget your filibuster wet dream, five Democrats have declared they will not support it: Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Ben Nelson (D-NE), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Senator Ken Salazar (D-CO), and Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD). I guess they are scared that they might suffer from a democratic moment (voted out of office) if they supported a filibuster. Kerry was just bloviating and parroting the NYT call for one. Although I really think it would be interesting to see the Democrats relent on their gang-o-14 promise and get nuked in the process.
P.S. GOW you need to repeat Social Studies class and pay attention this time you might learn something. Also I swear I saw a bit of spittle on your last post. Maybe you should seek counseling for BDS maybe we should called it ADS (Alito Derangement Syndrome)?

Cybersarge, Salazar and Landrieu have said they will be for cloture=closure, that doesn't mean yes or no. Feinstein WILL have to retire if she votes yes so she will vote no. Johnson, Byrd and Nelson are the only ones who have said they will vote yea!

ann, I think Roy Batty is one of the good guys, probably just disgusted as most of us are.

Surely this is a joke. Robert Byrd, the man who goes on and on and on and on like the Everready Bunny putting everyone to sleep with his three thousand word diatribes is going to vote for a mendacious judge who never met an intrusive law he didn't like, an employee right he didn't enjoy crushing, and a female he didn't despise? Byrd has truly demonstrated what an utterly useless pedantic fool he really is. Retire, Robert. Maybe you can do some good feeding pigeons in the park. They're the only ones left listening to you.

Cuba is a mere 90 miles away from our shoresPosted by Cilly Sarge

Senator Byrd voting for Alito is the biggest shock for me. I have lot of respect for him because he was one of the few senators who stood up against Bush and asked tough questions about Iraq before Bush took us in there. He voted NO for the war. I do not believe at his age he is concerned about losing his seat. Can anybody figure out how he got on Republican bandwagon?

It actually takes 41 senators to maintain a filibuster. If we assume 55 Republicans all vote for cloture, they have Nelson, Byrd, and Johnson now supporting Alito. That's 58 votes. Landrieu won't filibuster. That's 59. They'll then have to hold Pryor, Lincoln, Rockefeller, Conrad, Dorgan, and Baucus. One of them is going to defect. Lincoln Chafee and Olympia Snowe's "pro-choice" stance will probably not stand in the way of confirming an anti-choice nominee. But if the Democrats are going to fail, they can engineer a filibuster to fail by 1 vote and blame Chafee for failing to block Alito. Maybe when all the suburban women who voted to re-elect Bush start getting pissed off at his rulings, they'll remember that when a candidate says that they'll appoint judges like Scalia and Thomas, you'd better take them seriously.

the issue is not whether alito is "too far outside the mainstream".

the issue is that alito is a republican party operative masquesrading as an evenhanded judge,

just as is scalia (and quite possibly roberts but that is not so certain).

and just as alan greenspan masqueraded as an evenhanded economist/fed reserve chair but was a republican party operative.

Soto:

By the way folks, according to the IP address, our anonymous poster here happens to be avaroo, who for some reason doesn't want to be identified today.

Heh, heh.

Go stuff the ballot box on filibustering.

Damn, traitor is what Ken Salazar is for working with Dobson. Never under estimate the power of someone who had talks with Rove. I wonder what the White House has on Salazar, who in turn supplied it to Dobson to quiet him. That's what the NSA is doing, proof positive!
GOW, let me know when and where to sign up!!

Dear Steve,.....

Does this sound familiar?

"What Reid did tonight is draw a line in the sand at the highest court in the land, which is really all you can expect him to be able to do with only 44 votes. No matter what we think about principle and the dastardly Republicans here, they won the last election and racked up 55 senators, allowing them a questionable claim that their party can install any wing nut at the appellate court they want to be accountable for. In hindsight, the fact that Reid held off this assault this long and still retained the beachhead at the Supreme Court for the court of public opinion later is a significant accomplishment. The Democrats will fight to the death later and force the GOP to go back on its word and employ the nuclear option when we are talking about a Supreme Court pick, with far graver consequences for the GOP when they do.

Yep, those are your words, from May, 2005.

http://www.theleftcoaster.com/archives/004462.php

Sorry, Steve, rubbing it in a bit, I know....

But these words seem so prophetic...

"Again, it wasn?t a satisfying victory tonight for many on the left, but such a victory in a 55-44-1 Senate would have resulted in a victory on principle and nothing else. We live to fight another day, in a better position now in the court of public opinion than before, while protecting the Supreme Court beachhead. And Bill Frist lost face with the American Taliban and lost the car keys to the Senate at the same time.

Trust me, we're doing fine.

Good job, Senator Reid.
.....
Steve Sato May, 2005

As Michaeal Kelso says so very well.....

BBBBBBBBB UUU UUU RRRRRRRR NNN NN
BBB BB UUU UUU RR RR N N N
BBB BB UU UU RR R N N N
BBBBBBBB UU UU RRRRRRR N N N
BBB B U U RR R N N N
BBB BB U U RR R N N NN
BBBBBBBBB UU RR R NN NNN

Dag nab it, that was supposed to be written out in large print. oh well. ....no worse for the wear.

It's not a teevee show, you fucking idiot.

All that proves is that Soto should be a Senator.

Some night, when you're looking down the barrel of your gun, wondering where it all went so wrong, you won't hear a voice in your head going "burnnnnn..." but you should, you'll just hear your own pitiful mewling.

They're going to fuck you too, just like everybody else but the special select few, and you, boy, aren't one of those.

Carpe, you are correct. I misjudged Harry Reid, and the stomach of the Senate Democratic caucus. I am guilty of that. You are not rubbing it in, and even if you were, those are my words, so be it.

I didn't think they would botch the Judiciary Committee hearings like they did, but they did. I find myself continually overestimating the caliber of the Democrats in both houses. I keep waiting for these guys and gals to clearly enunciate a set of principles so that voters can see what they stand for, even if they lose, but they don't.

The GOP is entitled to chortle tonight, that's the simple truth. To you and the others, go ahead and have your fun. To the victors go the spoils.

All I can say is that I have a long memory...

Yes, and if you call perpetual failed war globally, Robber baron-theocracy style dictator government, record deficits and debt,and a depleted and stretched military.... well you are one sick dude...but we knew that already.

Time to get the coffeeee......let's try that again.

Yes, and if you call perpetual failed war globally, Robber baron-theocracy style dictator government, record deficits and debt,and a depleted and stretched military the spoils of victory... well you are one sick dude...but we knew that already.

Bloglord,

See, you should be the Pol, not Reid or Landrieu, judging by yours vs my f.u. response to that chortling twit carpe.

Dear Steve,
Thanks for the admission, however, it would have been more fun if you acted like Gow. Then there would have been screaming and yelling...heck, my house might have been burnt down, and not just me and my family but my dogs too.

But thanks for the admission. Its hard to slap you around when you admit to it.

But this does serve my other posts well to, and that is that we tend to predict/hope for things that we really want to happen, even when there is little if any really support for it.

Re: the filibuster situation. I was mad as hell about the group of 14, I thought the Reps, backed down from a good fight. I read commentary after commentary and I was sure you guys would tag us at some later date. James Taranto was one the few that said it was a much better deal than anyone was reporting.

So, I got it wrong too, because I really thought you guys had fooled us last year with the deal.
Unlike Bork or Souter, This Bush has a majority Republican Senate.

Now Kerry is just going to grandstand. For you guys to salivate all over....I hope you understand he has no principle, and no power, otherwise, he would have been leading the fight weeks ago. And now he is just moving for a filibuster just to look far left enough for the bloggers support.

Go've got big balls Steve. You get angry, but you remain pretty civil, and thats speaks alot about you....and alot about the others that behave in a less civil.....arrrrrggggghhhhhh.

crappy since you want civil discourse go on over to lgf or some other right wing bullshit site..see how civil they are..your crap is so old asshole....

carpe...talk about your "politiking" you're so full of it I smell it through the internet.
Steve has far more character and civility than you'll ever have. You actively support a lying, mass murderer and his culture of corruption henchman, and just because you don't swear certainly doesn't mean you are civil. Your false belief that only talking respectfully means one is civil. No it means one is acting civil but it doesn't mean you are civil. You see your actions and undying support of a lying mass murderer is far more revealing about your "civility". Yes that action alone actually demonstrates to me that you are not civil at all.

Yawn, . . . I yearn for a debate of substance, not of these childish jibes.

Oh and as to LGF's. From what I read, they are pretty silly too, plus their debate is not nearly as lively as ours.

But ours can be pretty bad too, when threats are actually mad. If you consider civility to be distasteful but threats to be proper, well, again, yawn!

Thats why you are growing as a party, no one who understands you will join you.

Civility is tasteful...it's just that you might want to be less worried about appearing civil and talking about it instead of supporting lying uncivil mass murderers and corrupt politicians and criminals. It' more about walking the civil talk, than just talking the civil talk.

lol...thanks bbtb...

How'd I get compared to CyberSarge?

lol...