Congress Goes Belly Up

Perino: "No, Sheryl, let me answer the question."

Q: "-- the logical choices would be Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid."

Perino: "Let me answer your question. But we get four different -- you get a different Democrat, different answer almost every hour."

Opinion Watch

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Kevin Drum blogs for the Washington Monthly: "Say what you will about the Republican Party's indifference to anything other than obstructing Democratic legislation ( and I have), it seems to be working like a charm."

Salon blogger Glenn Greenwald surveys the morning's headlines and concludes that "all of this behavior by the Democrats is absolutely necessary. They have no choice. Otherwise, Rush Limbaugh and Fox News will attack them for being weak (as though there is some circumstance under which they wouldn't) and that would be terrible. Nothing exudes strength, courage, toughness and resolve like having your behavior continuously described -- accurately -- as 'bowing,' 'capitulating,' 'backing down,' 'caving' and 'surrendering.' Those are the verbs Americans love most when looking for the party to lead them."

Veto No. 7

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Christopher Lee writes in The Washington Post: "For the second time in three months, President Bush yesterday vetoed legislation that would have expanded the State Children's Health Insurance program by $35 billion over five years and would have boosted its enrollment to about 10 million children. Bush cited the same reasons that led him to veto a version of the bill on Oct. 3 -- that it raised cigarette taxes and provided coverage for children of middle-class families instead of focusing on the working poor.

"Democrats and some Republicans had argued that the second version addressed Bush's major concern by capping eligibility at 300 percent of the federal poverty line -- slightly more than $60,000 for a family of four. But most expected the president to veto the measure anyway. Backers of the legislation could not override Bush's first veto and it is unclear if they will try to override the second one."

Veto Threat No. ?

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John M. Broder writes in the New York Times: "The White House has raised last-minute concerns over regulation of automobile emissions and fuel economy that aides said Tuesday could lead to a presidential veto of the energy bill now before Congress.

"The bill, which passed the House and is pending in the Senate, requires automakers to meet a fleet average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020, but does not specify which government agency should enforce the new rule. . . .

"The White House, echoing a position taken by auto manufacturers and a coalition of industry groups, is asking that the energy legislation be changed to specify the [National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an arm of the Transportation Department] as the primary enforcer of fuel efficiency standards, with the [Environmental Protection Agency] in only an advisory role. Democratic leaders in Congress have rejected that position as a 'nonstarter' and indicated their intent to move the bill with the current language intact.

The New York Times editorial board writes: "The Senate should ignore an incredibly mischievous last-minute veto threat from the White House and vote resoundingly in favor of an energy bill that could come before it as early as today. . . .

"[F]or the White House to advance industry's cause at the 11th hour of the debate over a breakthrough energy bill is inexcusable."