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- Kevin Drum takes a look at the arduous process to extend unemployment benefits, noting that after weathering three filibusters, the legislation passed unanimously. It's a good example of modern Republican obstructionism, and a handy reminder that institutional reform is something Democrats in Congress should be taking seriously if they ever want to pass legislation that makes a difference in people's lives. Meanwhile the Senate voted down an amendment designed to combat imaginary illegal-immigrant vote fraud and stopped Lindsey Graham's proposal to bar the 9/11 suspects from being prosecuted in federal court.
- Speaking of amendments, Tom Coburn, when he's not placing holds on veterans benefits bills, has made it his crusade to strip funding for political science from the National Science Foundation. Fortunately, that amendment failed, with voting falling mostly along partisan lines, although the scatterplot of votes is worth a look.
- Jon Chait demonstrates with some choice embarrassing examples that when it comes to The Weekly Standard, there isn't any news that can't be spun as big wins for Republicans. He distinguishes this from magazines like National Review, which are more inclined to push the conservative agenda, not necessarily the interests of the GOP, although I'd argue that these days the party and the ideological movement are less distinguishable from one another than at any point in the recent past, and that the new coalition's face has been the endless stream of incoherent tea parties this year.
- Remainders: Do we need another WPA?; cheap labor conservatives forever; and the horrors of government-sponsored health care are too terrible to countenance.
--Mori Dinauer
