1115.org

Breaking News from the NYT (Note: The story this link points to has been totally re-written since I quoted it. There is no acknowledment anywhere of this fact. That doesn ‘t exactly conform to industry best practices. Shame on the NYT!):

Senate Democrats moved to the brink of a crucial preliminary victory on major health care legislation as Senator Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana, one of two last hold-outs, announced on Saturday afternoon that she would vote in favor of bringing the bill to the floor for weeks of full debate.

This is what we are now reduced to. With 60 Senate seats, the Democratic caucus is celebrating not even being able to bring its key legislative initiative to the Senate floor, but being on the verge of being able to bring its key legislative initiative to the Senate floor.

Long live the Democratic Party! As I said once before, whoever saddled us with that donkey sure knew what they were doing.

How many brinks away we are from a final victory remains to be seen. I very much suspect that the healthcare reform bill will set a record for the most number of filibusters ever heaped upon a single bill. (Any debatable motion can be filibustered. There will probably be several debatable motions before the legislative life of this bill comes to an end. Assuming, of course, that it doesn’t come to a premature end along the way.)

How long that record holds also remains to be seen. After all, there’s a climate change bill just around the corner.