Who is the leader of the Democratic Party? Is it Harry Reid? Is it Nancy Pelosi? Is it Hillary Clinton? Right now, it’s not clear. Look at the vote on Mike Mukasey’s nomination as attorney general. Hillary Clinton opposes it. Barack Obama opposes it. Chris Dodd opposes it. Joe Biden opposes it. Eight out of the ten Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee opposed it this morning.
So, if opposition is the consensus of the Dems on the Judiciary Committee that had responsibility for vetting the nomination, and if opposition is the unanimous position of all Democratic senators that are running for president, then why do we get this position from Harry Reid?
“As you know, Sen. Leahy and Sen. Reid have not made this a caucus vote, and as chairman, Sen. Leahy has not twisted any arms,” a Judiciary Committee aide told The Hill…
…”[Reid has] been encouraging people to have a full-throated debate, but … he’s actually been discouraging people from filibustering or slowing down the nomination,” one knowledgeable Senate Democratic source told Roll Call.
Bush tells the Republican senators to uphold a veto of children’s health care and they obey. Where is the Democrat that will tell the Democratic senators to get in line and filibuster the nomination of Mukasey? If these people want to be president and they are being honest in their opposition, rather than pandering, they will stand up and take the leadership role that they say they are qualified to assume.
If means nothing to oppose this nomination if you will do nothing but cast a meaningless vote against it. If Clinton or Obama or Dodd or Biden want to be president they should show us the goods right now. They should stand up and say ‘follow me or I won’t forget it when I’m president.’
