The Hagel Fight and a new level of GOP Obstructionism: Senate Democrats are using procedural measures to force a vote on the nomination of Chuck Hagel as Defense Secretary. It means Hagel won’t get a straight up or down vote—instead, he’ll need to reach a 60-vote threshold in the Senate. As Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on the floor Wednesday, “This is the first time in the history of our country that a presidential nominee for secretary of defense has been filibustered. What a shame. But that’s the way it is.”
President Obama may have more room to maneuver on the hot-button issue of illegal immigration now that his proposals are receiving bipartisan support. And as The New York Times reports, the president’s non-confrontational tone is helping him advance the issue.
Off the Deep End: The National Rifle Association’s Wayne LaPierre wrote a bizarre op-ed in the Daily Caller that Think Progress describes as “apocalyptic.” Among LaPierre’s points: That violent Latino gangs are out to get you and that, thanks to President Obama, police departments as we know them will soon cease to exist. Folks, these are not the views of law-abiding sportsmen and gun owners—these are the views of extreme paranoia, and unfortunately views like these have a home in today’s Republican party.
Court Harson