HOW 'BOUT THAT....

HOW 'BOUT THAT. A Democratic majority successfully asserts its will:

A vote to criticize President Bush for his decision to send more troops to Iraq is expected to pass the House in a rare admonishment of a wartime commander-in-chief.

Democrats who wrote the nonbinding measure and back it with near unanimity were clear that it would set the stage for more decisive steps to constrain Bush's warmaking powers. They proposed ideas to put legislative strings on future funding in Iraq and prevent any pre-emptive invasion of Iran....

The anxiously awaited vote was expected by Friday afternoon.

This is a sign of how things will happen from here on out. The leadership of the Democratic Party is going to come from Nancy Pelosi's office in the House, and from her tight circle of legislative allies. The Senate Democrats will try to follow, but without the buffer zone of a solid majority and with a less disciplined caucus, they will remain weak and secondary, and frequently be blocked by defections to the Republican side.

This is why that stupid plane story became such a big deal -- how better to start the process of tarnishing the only Democratic leader in a real position to oppose the president and oversee changes in American laws?

--Garance Franke-Ruta