On Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Republican-Kentucky, asked to have the entire Lieberman-Warner climate bill read aloud on the Senate floor. Bills are almost always accepted as read, and it's not a good sign when a senator demands a reading -- particularly of a 492-page bill.
The recitation took more than nine hours, and probably sent even the most dedicated C-Span viewer screaming into the night.
Of course, the Democrats had already thrown in the towel. The bill's floor manager, Senator Barbara Boxer, Democrat-California, conceded Tuesday that she didn't have the votes to pass the measure. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Democrat-Nevada, has filed a motion to allow the bill to move forward. That vote should come no later than tomorrow, and it is expected to fail.
Reid read from an email just before midnight on June 4, which he said was provided by a lobbyist involved in Republican strategy meetings. Reid, referring to the email as the Republican playbook, read, "The focus is much more on making political points than in amending the bill."
The Republican plan "in dealing with the greatest challenge facing this world and this nation is more about making political points than legislating," Reid said.
But the bill never really had a chance. Despite the resolve of the newly restored Democratic majority, the votes were simply not there. Democrats knew that, but by pushing the bill they were making political points of their own.
Note: Reid's motion was defeated this morning, June 6. "Wait 'til next year," Democrats said, in effect, echoing the distant battle cry of the steadfast fans of the old Brooklyn Dodgers.
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