Memo to Dems: Make the Republicans Filibuster!!

Make the republicans filibuster if they are going to be obstructionist.  For too long now the Democratic leadership has allowed the conservatives to control the agenda through the mere threat of a filibuster:  it happened with the minimum wage and all of the other legislation from the first 100 days of the new Democratic majority.  It happened with bills to keep our troops safe, to ensure that they had enough time away from the war to recuperate.

Enough!

It's bad enough that the conservatives and republicans are blocking the will of the people, but they are trying to lay the blame for their obstructionism on Democrats, complaining that the new Congress "hasn't accomplished anything."  Of course, even with their obstructionism, the Democrats have successfully picked up the thread of meaningful Congressional oversight, so blatantly absent in the last four or five years.  But the time is now to let your representatives and senators know that you want them to grow a spine: 

I want to see a bunch of sleepy, bedraggled conservatives on television night after night, putting their time and efforts where their mouths are:  actively blocking and filibustering minimum wage legislation, legislation for soldiers' benefits and leave and so forth.  I want it to be clear just who it is that is preventing this country from progressing out of the hole that Bush and his cronies have driven us into.  Let's ensure that the nation sees these obstructionists for what they are:  a bunch of bloviating, self-interested gasbags.

Accordingly, I call on you, Senator Reid, and you, Representative Pelosi, to ensure that the republicans are forced to filibuster their most egregious obstructionism.  This doesn't mean that you have to halt all legislative action, but choose a few, nice juicy issues, force the filibusters and hold those press conferences:  it would make for great television and printed news.

It's way past time to see whether they will have the courage of their convictions.  I bet they don't.

tags: republican  conservative  democratic  liberal  congress  filibuster  cloture  gasbags  bloviators  

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