The smell of fear in the Senate:

Although, the left leaning blogosphere and the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party are all fired up about Russ Feingold calling for the censure of W., Feingold's Democratic colleagues in the Senate are predictably scurrying for cover. I heard Joe Lieberman, a Dino if I ever saw one, say yesterday that not one person in the Senate thought Bush's spying program was illegal. Wow, that's news to me! Lieberman's solution to the president's end around of the constitution and the law is to legalize it by legislation. Yeah Joe, give 'em hell, that'll show 'em! He's putting the president on notice that whenever he decides to break the law he'd better come to Congress for a rubber stamp first.

This characteristic timidity on Lieberman's part was in stark contrast to Feingold who said that, eventhough he wasn't pushing for impeachment (why not?), "This is clearly more serious than anything President Clinton was accused of. It is reminiscent of what President Nixon was not only accused of doing but was basically removed from office for doing."

That kind talk gives Democratic strategists the heebee jeebies. The Wapo reports several of them warned that, "Surveillance issues are not Bush's most vulnerable spot...the party may appear extremist." They might appear extremist? What could be more extreme than lying to Congress and spying on Americans? When Dick Cheney said, "Some Democrats in Congress think the resident is the enemy," these lilly-livered types had to change their Depends. The only public support Cheney's got in the whole country is from one guy, who he shot, and yet one sentence from him makes the Democrats in the Senate soil their pants.

The fear from some is that a censure vote would alienate swing voters. What might swing them to our side is if the Democrats would grow a spine and frame the issue as an effort by Congress to hold a lawbreaking president accountable for his actions. I don't know, how about taking a position and sticking to it? That might get some traction.

But they won't, they're just going to shuffle the issue off to the Judiciary committee and get on with rolling over on making tax cuts permanent. You know, some Democrats in the Congress think the rich are the enemy!