So I Step Away From the Computer For a Change

...and the Senate Democrats pull some sort of stunt.

According to reports Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) asks for a closed door session in the middle of the normal senate session (Rule 21). The very first thing that made the request unusual in and of itself was that it was a total surprise to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN). The last few previous sets of senate leaders had always assured their counterparts that such unusual moves would be agreed to before being executed, but apparently Senator Reid didn't have that agreement with Senator Frist because surely the former wouldn't break his word and pull such a wild move, would he?

Frist angrily denounced the move, charging that "the United States Senate has been hijacked by the Democratic leadership." He told reporters that he has never as majority leader "been slapped in the face with such an affront to the leadership of this grand institution."

Frist called the closed session "a pure stunt" by Reid, Durbin and the Democratic leadership.

"This is an affront to me personally," he said. "It's an affront to our leadership. It's an affront to the United States of America. And it is wrong."

Frist sharply criticized Reid personally, saying he could never trust the Democratic leader again.

Oh; guess he would.

So what was so all-fired important that it had to be talked about behind closed doors today?

The U.S. Senate went into a rare closed session today after Democrats invoked a seldom used rule to back their demands for greater oversight by the Republican-controlled body, particularly on the Bush administration's use of intelligence in taking the country to war in Iraq. [SNIP]

Under the order to go into closed session, the galleries were emptied of spectators and journalists, staffers without security clearances were ordered out and senators were required to remove all electronic gear such as cell phones and digital communications devices.

The Senate's Democratic leader, Harry M. Reid of Nevada, initiated the closed session by invoking Rule 21, which was seconded by Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), the minority whip. In a floor speech, Reid declared that "a cloud hangs over this Republican-controlled Congress for its unwillingness to hold the administration accountable" on a variety of issues.

He was particularly incensed about what he said was the refusal of the Senate Intelligence Committee under Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) to follow up on an investigation of the intelligence that led to the war in Iraq. A report was issued in July last year, but a "phase two" inquiry into how the Bush administration used that intelligence has not been held. Reid accused Roberts of breaking a promise to conduct that investigation in an effort to "provide political cover for this administration," which he said had "consistently and repeatedly manipulated the facts" in making its case to invade Iraq in 2003.

(Emphasis mine.)

Important indeed.

I hope for Senator Reid's political sake that he has something specific and factual--without manipulation-- in mind as he accuses and insults his Republican colleagues. Because if he doesn't, the Senate Minority Leader has just burned his bridges for nothing. Looking good to the Democrats who repect spectacle over substance doesn't count.

(Thanks to Memeorandum)

UPDATE: Senate Reid forgot to look in his "Favorites" folder for this. "On my computer? Oh."

(Thanks to the Big Guy)

UPDATE: Reader Carey correctlly informs me that the above linked document on pre-war intelligence is the 'Phase One' report; the Democrats invoked Rule 21 in order to hasten 'Phase Two' of the investigation into the intelligence.

Comments

[Carey]

The report that you refer to is only the "phase 1" investigation of the intelligence community's failures.

The intelligence committee agreed to release "phase 2", an inquiry into how the Bush administration used or misused the intelligence that they did have, after the 2004 elections.

Harry Reid invoked Rule 21 today because he believes the intelligence committee hasn't bothered to follow up with Phase 2, most likely because it will uncover facts that will embarrass the Bush administration.

[Tully]

grandstand
Function: intransitive verb
-- to play or act so as to impress onlookers

[baldilocks]

Carey,

I stand corrected.

[Ralph]

What the American people REALLY need to know is WHAT did FDR know about Pearl Harbor, and WHEN did he know it? LBJ about the Gulf of Tonkin? Lincoln about Fort Sumter? McKinley about the Maine? Bergen about McCarthy? Sonny about Cher?

If -- despite the best efforts of the unhinged -- the U.S. succeeds in Iraq and puts down Islamo-fascist terrorism, thirty years from now none of this will make any difference. If, on the other hand, Islamo-fascism prevails, thirty years from now none of this will make any difference.

[don surber]

Could they shut the senate down for a few weeks? Months? A year would be fine

[Tully]

Carey,

Respectfully, but that's meadow muffins. It was the excuse offered, but it's sheer steer manure. Reid was notified Monday that the completed report would be in committee next week, and would have been there sooner but for Dem obstructionism on the committee. According to Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts:

He blamed Democrats for the delays and said his staff had informed Democratic counterparts on Monday that the committee hoped to complete the second phase next week.

"Now we have this ... stunt 24 hours after their staff was informed that we were moving to closure next week," a clearly angry Roberts told reporters. "If that's not politics, I'm not standing here."

Reid has an angry leftist base that wants some blood. They got lumps of coal for Fitzmas, a SCOTUS nominee they can't sustain a filibuster on, and Delay got his recusal. Time to throw the dogs a bone.

[justin]

Tully, do you really believe that Democrats are responsible for any delays there may be? Why would they delay an investigation and then shut down the Senate because of the delay. Don't get me wrong, you may be correct, but it seems like such a transparently stupid thing to do if that's the case, even for the Democratic leadership.

Party affiliation aside, I would tend to believe the Republicans are slowing up the investigation, only because they really have nothing to gain from it. This has nothing to do with ideology, the Democrats would do the exact same thing if the sides were reversed--it's kind of like the candidate with a big lead in an election avoiding debates--that candidate has nothing to gain from a debate. This is all just speculation on my part, obviously, but it makes sense to me at least.

[Tully]

Reid knew the report would be released next week when he pulled his stunt, regardless of his rhetoric. He threw a public hissy fit for the media so that he could later claim he spurred the release, even though he didn't. Straight electoral posturing and base-stoking. It's notable not for the occurence (everyone does it, both sides of the aisle) but for the extreme method.

I have no idea if the Dems delayed the report in committee, as Roberts implied--but there is good tactical reason for them to have dragged it out long enough to have it available as media fodder for the mid-term elections. If it had come out last summer, it would have been worthless by next summer when they need it.

[James M. Barber]

This is petty partison politics with Harry Reid versus Pat Roberts. The people that get killed and hurt are out troops. Dick Durbin has denigrated them big time. The fifth column in Congress is trying to do what it did in Viet Nam!
FDR let Japan attack us, after first peacetime draft in 1940! The military has taken the deaths that politicians have caused. Nobody wanted to get ready in Congress whether Democrat or Republican. The general and admiral were court marshalled over Pearl Harbor with politicians taking no blame!
James M. Barber

[justin]

I have no idea if the Dems delayed the report in committee, as Roberts implied--but there is good tactical reason for them to have dragged it out long enough to have it available as media fodder for the mid-term elections. If it had come out last summer, it would have been worthless by next summer when they need it.

I would see the rationale more if the midterm elections weren't more than a year away. The ideal time, I think, would be next summer for the Dems politically. I suppose we'll get the facts of what was happening over the next couple of days. In any event, I think that this was a good political move by the Dems. They are going to lose if they battle over Alito, so they should keep media attention on where they are strongest (this assumes that the Republicans really are dragging their feet, which I don't know is true yet).

[Tully]

If that's where they're strongest, they're in big trouble. But I agree that the stunt is a good indication that they can't stop Alito, or even mount a filibuster.