Capitol Smackdown

"A messy partisan struggle erupted in the Senate today, with Republican leader Bill Frist accusing his Democratic counterpart Harry Reid of breaching Senate courtesy in a fight that threatens to disrupt the chamber's agenda until next year's congressional elections," says the Los Angeles Times .

"The breakdown in comity demonstrates how rough it is likely to be in the months ahead as the Senate takes up a Supreme Court nomination that could determine the high court's direction for decades."

Boston Globe : "In a power play that stunned and angered Republicans, Senate Democrats yesterday forced the chamber into a rare closed session to demand further investigation into the intelligence that led the nation into the increasingly unpopular war in Iraq . . .

"The private session could not force the Republicans to take any action, but the Democrats outmaneuvered and frustrated the majority party, which has largely had its way since the GOP took control of the chamber in 2002."

Philadelphia Inquirer : "The surprise maneuver, exploiting last week's indictment of Vice President Cheney's chief of staff in the CIA leak case, caught Republicans flatfooted and shifted attention back to the increasingly unpopular war and away from President Bush's day-old Supreme Court nomination."

How's it playing? The New Republic's Michael Crowley gives Reid two thumbs up:

"I'm frankly surprised at all the attention the Reid gambit is getting-- namely, live coverage on all the cable networks and an explosion of online news and blog coverage. Bill Frist is, after all, correct to call this a 'stunt.' Democrats aren't saying anything today that they haven't been saying for months previously. But politics is partly theater -- and too often Democrats are like a Broadway show that closes on opening night. So this is a pleasantly surprising tactical victory."

Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum : "This seems like it was a pretty canny move on Reid's part. I don't think relations between the parties can get much worse, so there's probably no harm done on that score. On the other hand, it does force the media's attention back on the intelligence scandal, and does it in a way that probably seems pretty reasonable to neutral observers: by asking only that Pat Roberts and the Senate Intelligence Committee conduct the investigation into manipulation of prewar intelligence that they promised to conduct all along."

Kate O'Beirne offers the GOP some talking points at National Review's The Corner:

"A little friendly advice for the outraged Senate GOP leadership: You all take yourselves and the manners and mores of the Senate far more seriously than the universe of people who have never served there. Drop the 'unsenatorial' line-- Reid's behavior on that score offends you more than it does the rest of us. Acuse them of having political motives - wanted a politicized investigation and didn't get it - a bipartisan Senate report found that pre-war intelligence wasn't politicized - mad over the nomination of Sam Alito because he's such a strong candidate - i.e. they are Joe Wilson-Democrats, a bunch of frustrated losers."

Billmon enjoys the spectacle over at his Whiskey Bar:

"In some ways, the reaction of the GOP grandees was an even bigger treat than watching the Democratic jellyfish rear up on its hind tentacles and sting someone. Outside of a nursery school, I don't know if I've ever heard such a chorus of crying and whining from a bunch of babies before. The Republicans have been in power so long now they've started to take on the pompous self-righteousness of those who believe power is their due . . .