not much of a functional victory if they can filibuster everything Obama wants to do...

[jebediah]

then he gets blamed for a "do nothing" administration.

I don't trust that the right hasn't been underhanded in the Senate races. Does anyone have updates or links on any of these matters? I have Greg Palast already-- http://www.gregpalast.com/the-steal-you-wont-see/ .

The celebration is well deserved but we may not be out of the woods yet.

Thanks!

[Midlodemocrat]

1. Oh, FFS. Thanks for your concern.

:eyes:

[blondeatlast]

5. I'll see you and raise you an eye-roll. nt

[Midlodemocrat]

6. Seriously. The man was just elected and the concern trolls

are out in force. :eyes:

[Starry Messenger]

2. Thanks for the head's up.

Your concern is noted.

[GreenInNC]

3. couldn't wait 24 hours?

Before you started this crap?

[jebediah]

9. well, the "problems" happened yesterday. Some races are still being counted.

Why 24 hours? Are they waiting too? Didn't realize we had a gentleman's agreement about looking the other way so the pressure would be off.

How many knocks to the head does it take till we put our hands up?

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

4. Silly. The pugs will not have rigid unity in the Senate

[jebediah]

7. they don't need rigid unity. They need one senator.

What in recent political history makes you think they won't play like that? Really?

[SoonerPride]

22. We only need three or four of them to break any filibuster,

They are weak and we can govern just fine

[Doityourself]

32. Oh boy..didn't take the trolls long...lmao! eat it up...and like it..Obama is Prez

[BattyDem]

8. I've got a feeling Obama's prepared for it.

He's not going to let the GOP get away with their usual bullsh*t. Throughout the campaign, he used their tactics against them and I truly believe he'll find a way to turn the tables on them again.

[jebediah]

13. You know, I tend to agree. It's a hopeful feeling. He's been tough.

But, I haven't heard anything yet. The campaign had an army of lawyers... I hope they're being put to use.

[GreenPartyVoter]

17. There's always signing statements

:hide:

[oviedodem]

10. Well, some of those blue state repubs need to be mindful

[AlCzervik]

11. Oh stop will you, and people please be patient, things aren't going to get fixed

overnight.

[panzerfaust]

12. USA vs Grenada

... you cannot always wait for such a disparity in power before doing something - although our current democratic leadership has been wringing their hands about not being able to do anything real because of our 'razor-thin' majority.

Basically you are saying that "Oh, we can't change anything, because we do not have absolute dominance in the Senate"

Your real name would not perhaps be Nancy Pelosi nee D’Alesandro would it??

[jebediah]

19. I want big changes... I want visionary efforts.

Finding a compromise with the Bush mentality doesn't feel like it can result in that sort of *fundamental* change that I believe we need.

So, of course you can't wait for such a disparity, but do all you like-- if they're going nuclear all the time it doesn't matter what you do.

Anyway, I don't see anyone with actual info, just opinions, and that self-handicapping "concern troll" crap. So, I'll take it as "no, haven't heard anything yet."

[JVS]

14. nuclear option, baby!

[Mrs. Overall]

15. Nice try......

[ghurley]

16. And risk looking like grumpy old men?? They don't want to be seen preventing progress.

I doubt they will block everything. The exits show that they need to be careful.

[JFN1]

18. Obama is a bridge builder, not a destroyer

he will do just fine. Repukes who fight him will find themselves outclassed by his poise, oratory skills, and personal relationship with the electorate.

[Liberal Gramma]

20. Won't happen

We'll be able to bring a few moderate Republicans into any meaningful legislation proposal.

[youthere]

21. Less than 24 hours..you win the "Turd in the Punchbowl" award! W00T!

[Vinca]

23. If they filibuster again, continually, we'll start the 2010 election. nt

[MochaMan121]

24. Think back a ways people

Barack Obama has, on every ocassion, exceeded our expectations in his decision making. I submit to all here that we are in a unique position to see his genius revealed again and again. I suggest we all do our part when we can and enjoy the "Obama Moments".This will be like the "Tiger Woods" and "Michial Jordan" moments many of us have expeerienced.

To all: Stay positive and stay focused.

Peace

[Romulox]

25. The Fillibuster is a product of mere procedural rule--it could be eliminate with a simple majority

vote.

Unless the Congressional Democrats are still "intimidated" by the Republicans, that is... :eyes:

[MilesColtrane]

26. Bush and Cheney pushed the Unitary Executive on us. Now they can suck on it.

Obama can do quite a bit with Executive Orders and, Bush's favorite, signing statements.

His real strength though could be in his ability to actually influence members of the opposition party to work with him, something we haven't seen in eight long years.

[Overseas]

44. Love the sentiment and the reality

Yes you know, it is fun to realize that hey, a former professor of constitutional law may know just how best to utilize those executive powers for a while, to get things moved forward past any potential Republican mischief, while constitutional repair is being studied.

But that could be the alternative energy projects, rather than the prosecution of the prior administration for its war crimes and profiteering.

He's done so well so far, I agree that it will be fascinating to see things unfold. I am loving the prospect of having a president who addresses us as intelligent citizens.

I think he will be post-partisan. Take problems. Take various solutions. Remove labels and discuss their viability. Agree and proceed. No drama. More facts.

I'm still in a pleasant shock... I love diplomacy as the primary instrument of national security.

[MilesColtrane]

Yes, the decision making process has moved north with this President...

...from the gonads and the gut, to the heart and the brain.

[auburngrad82]

27. There are actually a few Republicans with brains in the Senate

Olympia Snowe
Susan Collins

We can count on a few to do the right thing. The rest can fuck off.

[Sebastian Doyle]

34. The honest to God ugly truth

Is that we probably have to worry more about Mary Landrieu and the Nelson twins than we do the New England Republicans. :(

[blondeatlast]

41. Yup. Either they find a spine or they crash and burn.

I predict a spine for at least Landrieu (I'm ever an optimist, though).

[JackBeck]

28. Olympia Snowe, George Voinovich, and Susan Collins. n/t

[JackBeck]

37. D'oh, and Bernie Sanders. n/t

[happychatter]

29. you are invited to peruse President Obama's speeches over the course of this campaign

just to get a feel of how this constitutional scholar intends to govern

I suspect that "tyranny by the majority," ANY majority, would be philosophically anathema

Palast is a hero of mine, btw; and I'm about as "centrist" and conciliatory as Saul Alinsky

[Proud Liberal Dem]

30. I hope Obama's "mandate" will stop all of the GOP "obstructionism" nonsense

If the GOP (i.e. McConnell) believes that the key to their electoral salvation lies in engineering ongoing gridlock then they have another thing coming.

There are bound to be some legitimate differences of opinion and disagreements about government and policies, which is fair. A rational honest debate about policies/issues is welcomed and has never harmed anybody. However, Obama's election IMHO was about the possibility of bringing EVERYBODY, Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and others together to solve our country's most pressing problems and to serve the public interest.

With that in mind, I suspect that the Republican's campaign of "obstructionism" won't go over quite as well in the current climate now but if some of the "unreconstructed" members decide that they want to purposely hold up the machinery for whatever political "gain" they think they'll wring out of it (fat lot of good it did them yesterday) then we need to make sure that we stand up to them, get our Representatives and Senators to stand up to them, and make sure EVERYBODY (including the "corporate media") knows and understands who's REALLY responsible for nothing meaningful getting accomplished. I suspect too that Obama/Biden will make sure NOT to let them get away with it like they did in the last Congress.

[treestar]

31. Winning the Presidency and both houses of Congress is not

enough for a successful administration?

[alcibiades_mystery]

33. Pfffffffffttttttttttttttttttt

FAIL

:rofl:

[deadparrot]

35. Is this an example of what happens to concern trolls after the election? nt

[tekisui]

39. It will be non-stop.

[jayfish]

36. How Quickly We Forget That It Was Republicans...

who gave us the nukuler option. Their whining and gnashing of teeth will fall on deaf ears. Actually it's going to be fun throwing all of the new Republican new precedences right back in their ugly faces.

Jay

[WeDidIt]

38. LIAF

[Motown_Johnny]

40. if they appear to be obstructionists they will lose even more seats in 2 years.. they must play ball

[Thrill]

42. Voinovich will support the Agenda if he wants any chance of beating Tim Ryan

to keep his seat

[JackBeck]

43. Moderate Republicans in blue states will finally get to vote more centrist under an Obama admin.

Plus, we also have Bernie Sanders. We're a lot closer to 60, if not surpassing 60, even though a "D" does not follow their name.

[Tiggeroshii]

45. They will only have 42 votes. If Franken and Merkley win(I think they will)

And that's if they can keep their caucus together. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins always have a way of voting with democrats, two votes that likely be considered as swing votes in the senate to keep the fillibuster from happening.

[11 Bravo]

46. Can we at least get the cornflakes into the bowl before you piss on them?

[RichardRay]

47. It's called 'politics'.

With a filibuster proof majority a party can ramrod through anything they want, for awhile. That causes a great deal of bitterness and anger on the other side of the aisle and tends to mobiize the oppposition in a pretty powerful way. Notice what happened when the R's tried to do it that way.

With or without a super majority, a good leader will work across the aisle on lots of issues and build up favors that can be called in when necessary. One of the reasons I so like Obama as president is that he has absolutely stunning skills in that arena. He was at Harvard in the same building and department with the folks from the Project On Negotiation and you can see and hear that in many, many of words and actions.

I think he'll do just fine with the votes he's got. Not that it wouldn't have been nice to have the full 62 or even a few more!

[Bonn1997]

48. Did George Bush have 60 Republicans? Was he still able to get things done?

[ncteechur]

49. I trust Obama's ability to sell his vision way more than I trust McConnell's ability to sell

the GOP's opposition to it. Word.

[backscatter712]

50. With the more solid majority the Dems in the Senate will have, getting things done will be easier.

Now, it's only what, four or five Repubs that have to cross over in order to defeat a filibuster?

Before, it was 10+ Repugs that had to do that.

It will be much easier now - we can entice some of them with tasty earmarks, and after last night's asswhooping, they're going to be more willing to be accommodating - it's clear that Bushie-style politics have already made many of them radioactive, so they're going to have to give some if they don't want to lose more seats in two years.

There will still be filibusters, but with Obama browbeating them the same way that Bush browbeated us on the bully pulpit, they're not going to be able to sustain too much stonewalling.