Congress Out of Control

As you may be aware by now, House Republicans tried to force Democrats to put their money (or lack of it, considering Howard Dean's lackluster fundraising for his party) where their mouths are and brought to the chamber a resolution urging an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Not a systematic withdrawal over six months' time, as John Murtha proposed, but an immediate one. The Democrats smartly (now there are two words you don't see together in the same sentence often!) refused to take the bait and voted against it, pointing out that that Murtha's words had been twisted by the majority. But the bitter debating, name-calling, and outright hostility in the House chamber that resulted brought to mind the disorder commonly associated with the Taiwanese parliament. Okay, House members didn't resort to blows like their counterparts in Taipei, but they came close.

So who are the bigger losers - the the Republicans or the Democrats? Neither. The big losers are the American people, who deserve better. :-(