Harry Reid all of a sudden grows balls

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http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/11/01/senate.iraq/index.html

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Democrats triggered a closed session of the full Senate on Tuesday in an effort to pressure the chamber's Republican majority into completing an investigation of the intelligence underpinning the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Democrats complained that Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, a Kansas Republican, has failed to move forward on a promised investigation into the handling of prewar intelligence about Iraq's suspected weapons programs.

The probe would be a follow-up to the July 2004 Intelligence Committee report that blamed a "series of failures" by the CIA and other intelligence agencies for the mistaken belief among U.S. policymakers that Iraq had restarted its chemical, biological and nuclear weapons programs.

After about an hour of closed deliberations, senators agreed to reopen the chamber and appoint a bipartisan group of senators to assess the progress of the "Phase 2" probe, the office of Majority Leader Bill Frist', R-Tennessee, told CNN.

The three Republicans and three Democrats are to report back to Senate leaders by November 14.

Democratic leaders had threatened to close the chamber each day until Republicans agreed to look into how Bush administration officials handled the intelligence used to argue for war.

"I demand, on behalf of the American people, that we understand why these investigations aren't being conducted," Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, said from the floor as he invoked Senate Rule 21.

That rule bars the public from the chamber until a majority of members vote to reopen the session.

The move caught the chamber's GOP leadership by surprise, and Frist said Democrats had "hijacked" the Senate with a "pure stunt."

"In recent history, this just hasn't been done. And this lack of respect, the lack of civility is a real affront," Frist said. He said Rule 21 had been invoked only rarely and with "mutual conversation" between the leaders of both parties.

"This is an affront to me personally," he said. "This is an affront to our leadership. It is an affront to the United States of America, and it is wrong."

Democratic Whip Richard Durbin of Illinois said last week's indictment of Vice President Dick Cheney's top aide, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, on perjury and obstruction of justice charges showed how the Bush administration reacts to criticism.

Libby is accused of lying to investigators and a grand jury probing the disclosure of the identity of a CIA officer whose husband had challenged a key assertion in the administration's case for war.

"It's a question about whether or not anyone in this administration in any way misused or distorted intelligence to mislead the American people into believing an invasion of Iraq was necessary," Durbin said. He said senators owe the American people some straight answers."

Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, denied his party is trying to stall Senate action on Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito. President Bush's nomination of the federal appellate judge on Monday bumped news of Libby's indictment to the back burner for many news organizations.

He said work on Alito's nomination was still going on, and he was scheduled to meet with the nominee on Wednesday.

Sen. Christopher Bond, an Intelligence Committee member, said Democratic complaints against Roberts are "terribly unfair and unfounded."

Bond, a Missouri Republican, said the panel's 2004 report found no indication that the mistaken assumptions about Iraq's weapons programs were the result of political pressure.

"Even after they signed on to that, they contend that somehow this intelligence was misused," he said.

Roberts has said publicly that the "Phase 2" investigation is under way by committee staff. But Sen. Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat on the panel, disputed that account.

"Assurances have been made for months that progress is being made," said Levin. "We have not seen any evidence of it."

Rule 21 has been invoked 53 times since 1929, according to the Congressional Research Service.

It was invoked six times during the impeachment trial of former President Bill Clinton for senators to organize the proceedings and deliberate on his eventual acquittal.
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Whoa, didn't see that coming. Nice way to distract from Alito, though.
 
Great way to further marginalize the Democrats as a bunch of kook fringe leftists. I 'm so happy he did this. I hope he and the House Democrats keep pulling this stuff. I pray they fillibuster Alito. Nothing would honestly make me happier than for them to keep marginalizing themselves.
 
"Harry Reid all of a sudden grows balls"??

It should have been:

"After 64 years of tense waiting, Harry Reid's balls finally drop."

...geez, mon!
WDCMC1.gif

(...not that I think that that's an appropriate joke/insult to direct toward a 64 year old statesman, anyway. A rather disrespectful young fellow, aren't you? For shame.)
 
So, the senate was "hijacked" in order to get bipartisan power in the intelligence? Because under Roberts, nothing was going on at all?

Sounds to me like Frist is making a concession he doesn't intend to make.
 
[quote name='PittsburghAfterDark']Great way to further marginalize the Democrats as a bunch of kook fringe leftists. I 'm so happy he did this. I hope he and the House Democrats keep pulling this stuff. I pray they fillibuster Alito. Nothing would honestly make me happier than for them to keep marginalizing themselves.[/QUOTE]

I can only hope that they keep marginalizing themselves this way, all the way through to a blow-out victory in 2006. Damn those left-wing bastards for thinking that the goverment should maybe do some explaining about why faulty intelligence lead to an unneccessary war that's killed more than 2000 of our soldiers! Next thing you know, they'll be demanding rights for American citizens! Before you know it, you won't even be able to jam broomsticks up prisoner's asses anymore, and THEN where will we be?
 
Getting back to the original subject, though, I really don't think its entirely fair to say that Reid was 'just' grown some balls. He's shown leadership in standing up to Republican domination several times now. The problem is that, as the leader of the minority party, he really just doesn't have a whole lot of weapons at his disposal, and so he has to use them wisely.

Pulling Congress into a closed session is an attention grabbing move, but realistically, its something that can only be done once. The Senate can overturn the motion at any time with a simple majority vote. If Reid has used this at any time before, it almost certainly would have gone to waste, and any future attempts would rather easily be quashed. By unleashing it today, Reid has shown absolute brilliance in political maneuvering. The recent indictment of Libby has the American public thinking dangerous questions - the Republicans COULDN'T just end the closed session immediately because doing so would make it quite public that they don't wan to investigate the specifics of what caused the Iraq war. They really had no choice but to go along. Meanwhile, the timing completely distracted attention away from the Alito nomination and brought attention back to the bigger issues - why are we in a war against a nation that posed no threat to us, and why are members of the White House perjuring themselves when forced to testify in a case related to the reasons given for that war?

Reid's timing here was perfect. Reid's actions today may have been a one-trick pony, but he saved that trick for the exact moment when it was most damaging to the Republicans, and they were completely unprepared for it. Again, though, I don't think Reid showed any more leadership today than he has before. He's simply been saving the few weapons he has at his disposal for when they'd do the most damage.
 
Frist is incompentent and shouldn't be Majority Leader.

I'd rather have Trent Lott as Majority leader than that bozo. I can count on my hand the major mistakes he's made as majority leader.
 
[quote name='Admiral Ackbar']Frist is incompentent and shouldn't be Majority Leader.

I'd rather have Trent Lott as Majority leader than that bozo. I can count on my hand the major mistakes he's made as majority leader.[/QUOTE]

Does that mean he has made
 
[quote name='PittsburghAfterDark']Great way to further marginalize the Democrats as a bunch of kook fringe leftists. I 'm so happy he did this. I hope he and the House Democrats keep pulling this stuff. I pray they fillibuster Alito. Nothing would honestly make me happier than for them to keep marginalizing themselves.[/QUOTE]

Funny, they keep marginalizing themselves, yet polls have shown that more americans want democrats to control the senate than republicans by about 10 percentage points. And it's not like the democrats are turning the tide, it's the corruption and ineptness that is associated with the current republican controlled government.

Imagine what would happen if the democrats, as a party, became a political powerhouse again........
 
[quote name='alonzomourning23']Imagine what would happen if the democrats, as a party, became a political powerhouse again........[/QUOTE]


Secret image from the hidden camera in side PAD's computer...

scanners.gif
 
[quote name='Drocket']I can only hope that they keep marginalizing themselves this way, all the way through to a blow-out victory in 2006. Damn those left-wing bastards for thinking that the goverment should maybe do some explaining about why faulty intelligence lead to an unneccessary war that's killed more than 2000 of our soldiers! Next thing you know, they'll be demanding rights for American citizens! Before you know it, you won't even be able to jam broomsticks up prisoner's asses anymore, and THEN where will we be?[/QUOTE]

Please write this statement to as many newspapers, publications and broadcast outlets as possible.

We can't have intellect like this hidden. We need this to be the message Democrats keep pounding on again, again and again.
 
I gotta say, I love this shit. I say if you're gonna be an opposition party, then start opposing things, garnflammit! And it's not like this was some loonie left-wing cause, either. This was an investigation into pre-war intelligence that had been stalled for over a year.
 
[quote name='Cheese']Secret image from the hidden camera in side PAD's computer...

scanners.gif
[/QUOTE]

:rofl:

That guy looks alot like I picture PAD - but PAD would be alot fatter.
 
PAD do you even know what "maginalize" means...it appears you don't.

By doing this the Dems are speaking for the majority of Americans who think Iraq is a mistake and want to know how the hell it happened.

Smart move.

You should get out of your little bubble and see what is going on. It's not 2002 anymore.
 
[quote name='PittsburghAfterDark']Great way to further marginalize the Democrats as a bunch of kook fringe leftists. I 'm so happy he did this. I hope he and the House Democrats keep pulling this stuff. I pray they fillibuster Alito. Nothing would honestly make me happier than for them to keep marginalizing themselves.[/QUOTE]

Yeah I suppose it would be better if they roll over like a bunch of pansies, like Joe Lieberman, be spineless wimps. PAD I have to ask you honestly. Why don't you care about the troops? Me I DO care about Veterans Rights but apparently you still buy into the view the Republican politicians love and support the Military. Face facts. Liberals on the Left and Conservatives on the Right that care about Veterans benefits and the Military need to stand united whenever because Democrats and Republican politicians don't care.
 
Anything the Democrats can do to hold this administration accountable for its actions, to keep these important issues on the front burner, and to further marginalize John Kerry, is great news to me.
 
[quote name='mykevermin']Who to the what now?[/QUOTE]
Kerry isn't helping... He needs to go away and be quiet for a little while so the party can move foreward.
 
OMG! Opposing parties are questioning one another's actions?! Why this is undemocratic! We can't be having people double-check the stories our government has given us. Everyone knows that every politician in power makes perfect decisions 100% of the time!

I think Castro is pulling the strings here.
 
[quote name='dafoomie']Kerry isn't helping... He needs to go away and be quiet for a little while so the party can move foreward.[/QUOTE]

Eh, I'd argue that he's stepped back enough that he's 40% "just another senator," and 60% "the guy that couldn't even fucking beat Bush." That is to say, he's still last year's losing candidate, but give him time; it took awhile for the Republican's to forget their better-late-than-never candidate in 1996, Bob Dole.
 
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