FYI the senate is in session C-SPAN2

[Reciprocity]

For those of us who are C-SPAN junkies

[Reciprocity]

1. Reid speaking now. n/t

[mandyky]

2. What are they discussing?

I am letting my son watch cartoons for an hour.

[ncrainbowgrrl]

3. attachments to the conference bills.

Harry Reid is PISSED.

[Reciprocity]

4. Reid is talking about ANWAR

getting put into the defense bill over at the house. How they changed the rules to do so.

[Immad2]

5. Thanks for the heads up. n/t

[Reciprocity]

6. The heading said general speeches no vote today.

I am assuming on the defense bill. This has the penitential for some very explosive speeches. You were right ncrainbowgrrl, Harry was very pissed.

[joanski0]

7. The House is still not in session,

which means the Senate can't do any work until the bills come over from the House -- the Defense Authorization Act. When Frist opened the session, he said the Defense bill would come over in a couple of hours.

Frist added that if the Defense Bill does not come over before Midnight, then they would adjourn and come back in tomorrow morning.

Ain't this a fine kettle of fish??????????? House doing it's dirty work after midnight!!!!!!!!!

[Reciprocity]

8. Your right I bet that's what they are going to do.

Looks like midnight in the garden of good and evil.

[joanski0]

9. What is happening here is the most important

thing that is going on in the US today. Forget bush's speech, forget the War on Christmas, forget Iraq for the time being -- if the House and Senate Repuke leaders get their way, they will be able to pass any attachment to any bill they want, break all the rules, and just plain do whatever they want. Dictatorship, anyone? bush* is getting to be quite the lame duck, so the Repukes have to hurry and do their dirty work NOW!

[ROakes1019]

11. worst moment

I agree this is the most important moment in the history of our democracy. You have summed up well what the Repukes are attempting to do. I don't know whether they are simply trying to get unpopular amendments, like ANWR and 527, passed on a must-do bill or whether they're really trying to sabotage the defense bill. It could be so McCain's anti-torture amendment won't get into law if the defense bill isn't passed or whether it's to say the Dems don't support the troops by not voting for the defense bill, should the Dems decide that's what they have to do. As some Dem Senator said yesterday, attaching amendments to a conference report after it has left conference with signatures is like signing a contract and then having some lawyer adding something offensive above your signature. Anybody could augment any contract, or Congressional Bill, without agreement from the parties. Gene Taylor from Mississippi just said it is the same as someone changing a check he wrote for $3 to $3,000 and claiming it's valid.

[joanski0]

10. C-Span2 is now replaying the Dems press

conference. Please watch it, people. It's like a last gasp.

House still not back in session.

[Catchawave]

12. Also, if Dems vote against

the Defense Bill because of the ANWR attachment, they will look like non-supporters for the troops in 2006 campaigning?