You Can't Make This Stuff Up!

We recently wrote about some of the opportunities for compromise that have been mutually agreed upon by Democrats, Republicans and corporate CEO’s…opportunities that would grow the economy and avoid the impending economic fiscal cliff.

Given the enormity of the country’s economic issues one would assume that congress is feverishly mining these opportunities for ways to create jobs, strengthen the economy and build a better quality of life for the American people.

Not so much!

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spent his time yesterday salivating over the thickness and luster of retiring Senator Ben Nelson’s hair.  To the casual observer Senator Nelson appears to be sporting a toupee.  But Senator Reid assured his fellow legislators that Nelson’s quaff was in fact very real and that Nelson would allow you to pull on it any anytime to prove the point.  Senator Reid admitted to suffering from serious envy over the thickness and luster of Senator Nelson’s bouffant. 

On another matter, come next February congress will be asked to raise the country’s debt ceiling limit.  The debt ceiling allows the country to borrow the necessary money to pay its ever increasing bills; and up until last year was automatically increased without decent.   You may recall that last year Republicans held up the increase in order to extract spending cuts from their Democrat counterparts.  The failure of the participants to find a long term solution for the country’s spending problems caused the credit reporting companies to lower the country’s credit rating.

Senator Reid decided that the best way to avoid another cantankerous debate come February would be to cede the unbridled authority to raise the debt ceiling into the hands of the president; a move that was certain to anger Republicans.

Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell knows a purely political power play when he sees one.  McConnell did not believe that Reid had the votes within in his own caucus to pass the bill.  So McConnell decided to embarrass Reid by bringing the matter to the floor for a vote; certain that the bill would be defeated and would make Reid look weak.

It turned out that Reid DID in fact have the votes.  So McConnell was forced to filibuster his own bill In order to keep it from being passed.

Such are the inner workings of the most ineffective “do nothing” congress in American history.