With all of the other news breaking today, especially the news about the Manhattan DA empaneling a special grand jury to hear evidence about the Trump organization, this kind of slid under the radar. And it shouldn’t. Because it may be signaling a sea change with tremendous consequences for the first Biden term.
Later this week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is going to force the GOP’s hand and bring the House bill for the formation of a bipartisan commission to study the Capitol riot. On order for the bill to pass, 10 GOP Senators will have to cross the aisle and vote for cloture.
The last GOP whip count I saw this morning showed one firm yes vote, senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, with Utah Senator Mitt Romney and Maine Senator Susan Collins leaning yes if a couple of issues can be resolved. My understanding is that the issues concern commission staffing, and ensuring that the commission report is completed before years end. The bill already calls for the commission to conclude and issue a report before years end, and the staffing problems appear workable. The pot is still 7 GOP Senators light.
Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin is not a happy camper. Manchin has taken an extreme ration of shit, from pretty much everybody on the planet except Mitch McConnell, including me, for refusing to reform the filibuster because he honestly believed that bipartisanship was still possible in the Senate. McConnell has laid down the law that the GOP caucus be as sweet as possible to Manchin and Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema.
But what could be more bipartisan than this bill? Sweet Jesus, a Democrat and a Republican in the House crafted it, and 35 House GOP cretins crossed the aisle to vote for it! Considering past Senate history in these matters, this bill should pass by a unanimous voice vote. And instead it might not pass at all.
Today Joe Manchin, with Kyrsten Sinema signing underneath him, wrote a long, passionate, serious letter to McConnell, as well as the GOP Senate caucus. He bemoaned the lack of cooperation and prayed that there were at least 7 more patriots willing to cross the aisle. He closed by saying that he hated to think that he had been mistaken all of this time about the possibility of bipartisanship among men and women of good will.
See, this is why I’m jot the Senate Majority Leader. If it had been me dealing with Manchin, I would have handled it by recreating the wood chipper scene from Fargo. Schumer and Biden have played Manchin perfectly. They’ve paid attention to him, they’ve fawned over him, they’ve reasoned with him, and they gave in to his demands and seriously tried to deal with McConnell and the GOP. They could do this because they knew the deck was stacked. They could offer McConnell the moon and green cheese, and he wouldn’t take any Democratic offer. McConnell played his part like a trained monkey. And along comes the truly bipartisan January 6th commission, what would have to be a shining red line for Manchin.
Make no mistake about it, Joe Manchin is calling in a chip here. He has played ball with McConnell and the GOP on bipartisanship, and it has hurt his status in his caucus. If McConnell doesn’t whip up enough GOP votes to get this commission over the finish line, and infuriate Trump, he is going to find it almost impossible to not bow to caucus pressure and reform the filibuster, opening the door to Biden’s agenda.
Mitch McConnell is between the ultimate rock and a hard place. He played his hand, and it’s starting to look like he got played. McConnell can fold on this, and give Manchin his votes for the commission, keeping him soft on the filibuster. But McConnell is no fool. He has seen how Manchin has played Schumer, and McConnell knows that once you make that payment to a terrorist, it’s only a matter of time before another ransom note comes in the mail. Or McConnell can tell Manchin to shove it, filibuster the commission, and watch Manchin obliterate the filibuster, taking away his last remaining weapon. There is no good choice here.
Who knows? Maybe country boy Joe played a brilliant game of 3 dimensional chess, and now he’s got both Schumer and McConnell under his thumb. Maybe Manchin was sincere in his belief about bipartisanship, and the natural flow of events have brought us to the breaking point. But one thing is for certain. The future of the filibuster as we know it likely hangs in the balance of the Senate cloture vote on the 1/06 commission. Don’t touch that dial.
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I read that the changes Collins is so concerned about are *already* in the bill. Expect her to vote as McTurtle wants.
Also, Manchin has said that he wouldn’t end the filibuster because it’s needed for “bipartisanship”. The guy is impervious to reality.
Our Lady of Perpetual Concern will wring her hands, wrinkle her face, & fall to her knees, in her usual position, to service her idol. An artificial orange down in the orange groves. I wouldn’t let Joe drive me to the store. He makes mr.magoo look like a jeopardy champion.
I have bn wondering why God would hand over a devastating blow to the Demos & JB’s bold agendas by having Joe Munchin among them.
did mcconnel provide cover for the 35 house reps to vote for it knowing that it would go no where. enquiring minds want to know.
God has His plan…We are not to question why?
Trust in the Lord and your will see His wonders…God has given us ” free will” He will never interfere with that…Trust in the Lord…????
Trust in ur shallow understanding? U probably believe the line about giving ceasar what belongs to him as meaning follow the laws of the emperor etc. Really? What did any Roman emperor earn other than by conquest, murder, rape & pillage? & why did Jesus break Roman law by driving out the legal money changers? Simpleton