Reluctantly, the Senate's Weekend Warriors

"We could have had a civilized, well-structured debate," McConnell lamented, "but that appears to be not possible at the moment."

It's not entirely clear why Senate Republicans were so determined to avoid a debate. If it goes anything like the three-day House debate this week, the world will little note nor long remember what they say.

House members spent much of their debate exchanging playground-style taunts. Each side tried to tar the other with supporting a "stay the course" plan -- a phrase that, not long ago, was seen as an expression of resolve.

"After months of campaigning against 'stay the course,' the Democrats are proposing just that," said Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.). Countered Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.): "Stay the course? My Lord, that is not remotely what we are talking about here."

"The bottom line of this resolution tells the president to stay the course," insisted Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.). Offered Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.): "The Republicans have come in here today and said that we need to in essence stay the course."

When they weren't bickering about the "stay the course" label, lawmakers fought about whose policy qualified as a "plan" for Iraq.

"If you have an alternative plan, introduce it," Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) challenged.

"What is the plan, Mr. President?" asked Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich.).

"I have presented this Congress with a 12-point plan," said Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio).

Fortunately, Ric Keller (R-Fla.) was on hand to restore gravity to the debate. He spoke about lawn care as a metaphor for Iraq:

"Imagine your next-door neighbor refuses to mow his lawn and the weeds are all the way up to his waist. You decide you are going to mow his lawn for him every single week. The neighbor never says thank you, he hates you, and sometimes he takes out a gun and shoots at you. Under these circumstances, do you keep mowing his lawn forever?"

Hearing such soaring rhetoric from the other chamber only made Senate Democrats more determined to have their own debate. "We demand an up-or-down vote on the resolution that the House is debating," Reid declared. He went to the Senate floor and announced that the vote will begin at 1:45 pm on Saturday. "There's really no time that meets everyone's expectations," he observed.

It appeared Democrats were serious. Then, just before 5 p.m., came official confirmation: an e-mail titled "Revised Hillary Clinton New Hampshire Schedule." The candidate's "Conversation with Granite Staters," which was to have been held at 2:30 Saturday in the Dover High School cafeteria, had been scrapped.