In search of substance over style

By Libby Well, there's all kinds of party games happening inside the Beltway this week. The House approved a war funding bill that calls for withdrawing troops but's unlikely the Senate will follow suit and I fully expect a dismal final result. I would have liked to be encouraged by Mukasey reopening an internal investigation in the Justice Department's role in warrantless surveillance but I suspect a whitewash and besides any hope was pretty dashed by today's announcement that our new AG opposes the changes made to the FISA bill that would put stricter controls on wiretapping and would eliminate the ill-advised teleco immunity. That's the hot bill right now and Glenn Greenwald has the latest developments but I'm not willing to get all excited about the Democrats standing up and making something happen for real. I have to agree with Creature [via]. The Democrats are talking tough again on Iraq funding, time-lines, and forcing the GOP to actually follow through on their filibuster bluster. Personally, I'm staying out of this one. I will be keeping my hopes and desires for a real confrontation with the president, and his mindless GOP minions, locked deep down inside. I've seen this play before, over, and over again. The Democrats can play the role of unfaithful spouse, promising that this time will be different, but I'm just not buying it. The Mukasey capitulation was my last straw and the last time I will cheer on a Congress that fights for their own survival before they will fight for the people. My last straw came back in August when they passed the lamebrained stopgap FISA bill. I'm just sick and tired of the betrayal and lame excuses. I need to see some concrete results before I give my heart back to them. [Updated with a new post.]