On Wed, 25 May 2005 16:33:15 -0400 Wojtek Sokolowski <sokol at jhu.edu> writes:
The arguments from Woktek, Dwayne, Gar all add up to a convincing case as to why the Senate compromise is a major defeat for the DP and why the claims to the contrary, from people and organizations like MoveOn, that this was somehow a famous victory for the Democrats and progessives are so much horse manure. (See the MoveOn letter, appended to the bottom of this email).
I would argue that there is nothing sacrosant about the US Senate that we progressives ought to show any reverence for. The Senate, with its two members for every state (regardless of population size) and its myriad of arcane rules and procedures, including the filibuster, is one of the strongholds of reaction in the US political system. It was designed by the Framers to be an instrument that would thwart any attemts at radical reform in the United States, and over the past two centuries, it has, by and large, performed that function magnificently (for the ruling class, not for the rest of us). That we now have the DP and its various hangers-on, like MoveOn telling is how wonderful it is, that the DP has succeeded at preserving the filibuster (but only for extraordinary situations), is indicative of the political bankruptcy of that political party. The fact remains, that the Republicans will be getting their judicial nominations through the Senate, and there is no reason to expect a different outcome when the time comes for Bush to start filling seats on the Supreme Court.
> I am arguing that once they picked up that battle, they should have
> continued it, even though if they would have lost at the end. They
> knew
> what risks there were ahead of the game (the number of Senate seats
> has not
> changed!) so they should have been prepared to take these risk or
> stay out
> of the fray. I think that picking up that battle and sustaining
> defeat
> would be a better strategy than capitulating, because it would hand
> the
> Repug a Pyrrhic victory instead of a real one. If the fuckers took
> the
> "nucular option" and changed the filibuster rules, it would come
> back and
> bite them in the ass very soon, as it is them who usually use it.
> Not to
> mention the public outcry, since, as you said it yourself, the
> public was
> with the Democrats on this issue.
>
> You may argue that Democrats were good sports and did not want to
> wreck this
> "venerable" (if not obsolete) institution, but if so, they should
> have not
> picked up that battle in the first place (they knew they would not
> prevail
> if it went nucular). But once they started, they should go ahead
> and fight,
> provoke the "nucular attack" and bring down that fucking "venerable"
> institution down with them. It would better serve them in the long
> term, if
> they manage to emerge from their current nadir.
>
> And this whole "moderate" and "conservative" distinction is really
> rearranging seats on the deck of the Titanic. It may matter in a
> parliamentary system, not under the Ein Reich Ein Partei system that
> the US
> has.
>
> Wojtek
>
>
------------------------------------------------
Dear MoveOn member,
President Bush, Bill Frist and the radical right-wing of the Republican Party have failed in their attempt to seize absolute power over the courts. Together, we've stopped the "nuclear option" — for now.
Last night at 7:30pm, with only hours to go before Senator Frist rose in the Senate to try to break the rules and seize power to appoint extreme judges, 14 senators announced they had struck a deal. As powerful far-right leader James Dobson put it, "This Senate agreement represents a complete bailout and betrayal by a cabal of Republicans and a great victory for united Democrats...The rules that blocked conservative nominees remain in effect, and nothing of significance has changed."
For once, we agree with Mr. Dobson. With 7 Republicans pledging to oppose Frist's scheme as long as the Democrats stick to the standard for filibusters they've used all along — only using them in extraordinary circumstances — the "nuclear option" is dead unless Republicans break their word. And if that happens we will be in a much stronger position to stop them.
Over the past months, hundreds of thousands of us have made calls, wrote letters, supported ads, and gone to local events to help stop the nuclear option. So tonight, we'd like to invite you to a victory conference call and debriefing session at 8:00 pm ET / 5:00 PM PT with Senator Harry Reid, the Democratic Leader in the Senate, to talk about what this really means and what's coming next, and answer your questions. We hope you can join us.
To join the conference call with Senator Reid, just go to:
http://www.moveonpac.org/victorywebcast?id=5564-1376978-gJ7uvhvxEqNUd3jQq 5Zp7g&t=2
Last night's resolution was a real victory, but it came at a heavy price. Three of the nominees the Democrats agreed not to filibuster, Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen, and William Pryor, will now head to confirmation votes in the Senate where they may well be approved. Their record of corporate bias and outright hostility to the basic rights of ordinary Americans poses a serious threat that we will have to contend with for years to come.
You can see the full, original text of the agreement at: http://www.c-span.org/pdf/senatecompromise.pdf)
Had Senator Frist succeeded in executing the "nuclear option" we wouldn't just be facing three terrible judges on the US Courts of Appeals — we'd be watching one party take absolute control of all branches of government for the first time ever. And radical Republicans would have had complete power to stack the Supreme Court with unchecked extremists and to roll back decades of progress on all our most cherished rights.
Of course, the Republicans could still decide to go back on their word and break the agreement at some point in the future. But even if that happens they have already failed in their primary goal: to eliminate the filibuster now, before there's a vacancy on the Supreme Court -- before Americans are watching and it's clear how much is at stake.
So why wasn't Republican Leader Frist able to translate his 10-vote advantage in the Senate into 51 votes for his "nuclear" scheme? A large part of the answer is you.
Over the last few months MoveOn members have racked up a simply amazing string of accomplishments in our fight to save the courts. Together, we have:
Submitted 59,645 letters to the editors of 3,162 newspapers
Placed 118,016 calls to Congress (that we know of!)
Held 1,539 house meetings to form local organizing teams
Placed tens of thousands of signs in your windows, all across the country
Gathered at over 1,000 theaters to pass out "Save the Republic" flyers to Star Wars fans
Knocked on thousands of doors to spread the word, in almost 1,000 neighborhoods nationwide
Raised $1.3 million to fund the campaign, with an average contribution of $43
Supported the creation and placement of 4 television commercials, radio commercials, and 2 print ads running in target states and nationwide
Organized 192 simultaneous rallies in all 50 states
Submitted 580,371 signatures and comments opposing the nuclear option
Organized round-the-clock emergency "Citizen Filibusters" in key target states, and signed up to organize 108 more nation-wide — before breathing a sigh of relief when we won before it was time to start. Frist couldn't get 50 of his 55 Republicans to support the "nuclear option" in large part because we and our allies convinced them it would be political suicide to do so. If there had been no grassroots movement to stop the "nuclear option," it's almost certain that today George Bush and Bill Frist would hold absolute power to stack the Supreme Court and we would be powerless to protect our most basic rights. Preventing that nightmare is an accomplishment to feel proud of.
The fight to protect our courts and, as the Star Wars fans say, to "Save the Republic," goes on. There are more Republican assaults we need to block, from John Bolton to Social Security privitization, and we'll need all hands on deck to help shift the balance in Washington in the 2006 elections. Our next immediate focus will be on Tom DeLay and Republican leaders' abuse of power in the House — starting with petition deliveries to local Republican offices next Wednesday (more on this soon).
With a failed Republican leadership transparently consumed with power and out of touch with the nation, and a growing, powerful grassroots community churning out victories against overwhelming odds — the prospects for change are looking good.
Thank you — really, THANK YOU — for everything you've done. Democracy won the night, because of you.
Sincerely,
–-Ben, Eli, Carrie, Matt and the MoveOn PAC Team
Tuesday, May 24th, 2005