That's certainly true - but what is the point? If the bill is going to pass, everyone would want it to pass ASAP. If it's not, it needs to fail ASAP. The longer this takes to get to its ultimate resolution, the more collateral damage. Unless he thinks a filibuster could change the outcome of the vote, there's no benefit. He'll get as much pressure to not do that as any Senator has ever gotten from anybody. I find it hard to believe he'd try it - it would be purely a political stunt in the middle of a financial meltdown.
Another reason Coburn won't filibuster - he supports the bailout: http://coburn.senate.gov/public/ (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK) released the following statement today regarding a financial stabilization plan Congress is expected to consider this week: “Taxpayers deserve to know that there is no guarantee this plan will work, but there is a guarantee that we will face a financial catastrophe if we do nothing. If banks continue to fail and stop lending the average American could lose their job, be unable to secure a loan for a car, home or college education, and find their life savings and retirement in jeopardy. Our economy depends on having liquid assets available for credit and lending just as an automobile engine needs oil. If those liquid assets stop flowing, our economy will be seriously damaged and will require far more costly and lengthy repairs.” “This bill does not represent a new and sudden departure from free market principles as much as it represents an emergency response to congressional actions that have ignored free market principles, and our Constitution, for decades. If anyone in Washington should offer their resignation it should be the members of Congress who peddled the fantasy of free home ownership without risk. No institution in our country is more responsible for the myth or borrowing without consequences than the United States Congress.” “As much as members of Congress want to find scapegoats, the root of this problem is political greed in Congress. Members of Congress from both parties wanted short-term political credit for promoting home ownership even though they were putting our entire economy at risk by encouraging people to buy homes they couldn’t afford. Then, instead of conducting thorough oversight and correcting obvious problems with unstable entities like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, members of Congress chose to ignore the problem and distract themselves with unprecedented amounts of pork-barrel spending.” “Taxpayers who want to ensure that this doesn’t happen again should send a very clear message to Washington that it’s time for Congress to live within its means and restore the principles of limited government and free markets that made this country great. I will do everything in my power to ensure that this bill does not lead us down a slippery slope of European style socialism and slow economic growth. I will also promise taxpayers that I will do everything in my power to block what I expect will be hundreds of attempts by politicians in Washington to continue business-as-usual borrowing and spending in the next Congress. In a time of crisis, American families have to make hard choices between budget priorities. So should Congress. If politicians want to create new programs they should eliminate duplicative programs or reduce funding for less important programs. The only way we can put this crisis behind us is for Congress to rejoin the real world of budget choices and consequences which, as we have seen in recent days, can be ignored for only so long.”
Two possibilities: 1. Because they really believe that free-market principles are the only thing that work long-term. 2. Because they have no faith that the bailout will work, and they don't want to throw 700 Billion taxpayer dollars on what they believe is a bad bet. Even if we've lost Coburn (and Sununu and other conservatives), DeMint is really angry about the whole thing and will fillibuster. Ex-Democrat Shelby will join him. I'm almost positive that 30+ Senators will vote against it, thought not all of them will vote against cloture.
That's fine - those are reasons to vote against the bill. Those aren't reasons to delay a vote for two days. Regardless of if people want it to pass or fail, they should want it to happen ASAP so people have some clarity of what's next. There's no benefit to a two day delay.
There might be. If the market continues to rally and credit continues to loosen (as it did today), more of those who were scared into a vote by Paulson's crying wolf might start having doubts. If the new version with way more bribes fails in the House in the interim, the Senate will know not to waste their vote. Besides, if a Senator really believes a bill is dangerous, he should do everything in his power to stop it. If it's simply a political stance against a bill that they know will pass, they should just vote against it.
Even Rush Limbaugh of all people was mocking GOP leadership yesterday about this -- basically called them a bunch of whiny children and told them to grow up. You know you've failed when you're the Republican leadership at a critical moment in election season and you're being mocked by Rush Limbaugh. This entire US government structure, from the white house to Capitol hill -- has been such an abysmal failure.
"Policing our own" is a quality alien to the Democrats. It happens in here with GOP types quite often, yet hardly a single Dem type will call out a fellow partisan. Telling... and sad.
You realize, of course, that folks as firmly entrenched in their 'side' as you are in yours would say the opposite, correct?
Yeah I was really impressed about how Republicans were all over Bush about the war and how he's handled the presidency these last eight years. You guys were right on top of all that!
Dick Armey tried to stand up to him. Scare tactics that were based on dubious facts (to say the least) got him in line. Sound familiar?
Continuing down this sidetrack: When I was at the RNC, I got a text from a friend (who's friends with Barry Goldwater, Jr., and Barry Goldwater III) that said, "In Fox News studio with Rove and Goldwater. Goldwater about to be on." I text her back, "Ask Rove if he's proud of lowering the political discourse in this country." She laughed and snorted, and it the FNC mikes caught it.
Somethings I learned from this crisis 1) The Government helped create this mess by creating the subprime lending market with legislation created to appease these commnuity development associations. 2) Wall Street bought into this greed of making profit from risky mortgages well aware of the consequences. 3) Our country is now run by a Conglomerate of politicians and businessmen both dressed in crispy suits scratching each others back through campaign contributions and vice versa with government bailouts. A Win-Win model for both sides of the same coin. 4) The American taxpayer is @#$%^ both ways no matter how you look at it.
