Sanders clearly plans to take no prisoners.
About three hours ago, just as he took the Senate floor, Sen. Bernie Sanders' (I-VT) staff, tweeted: "You can call what i am doing today whatever you want, you it [sic] call it a filibuster, you can call it a very long speech..." And he's been speaking, almost uninterrupted, ever since.... Sanders has been decrying the Obama tax cut plan for bailing out the wealthiest people in America. "How can I get by on one house?" Sanders railed, sarcastically. "I need five houses, ten houses. I need three jet planes to take me all over the world! Sorry, American people. We've got the money, we've got the power."
Yeah, whatever you call it, he's got support from Democratic Senators Sherrod Brown (Ohio) and Mary Landrieu (Louisiana), who have stood in for him at various intervals, which is a good thing. Sanders is such a profuse sweater, he's liable to shed five pounds or more as it is by Monday, the day the compromise tax cut extension measure is due to come to a vote on the floor of the Senate. Ironically, he is probably investing all that time and energy in a wasted effort, as the House Democrats have made it plain they will not vote for the bill. Practically every member of the Democratic House caucus is against the bill as it is written, save for possibly one member for now.
I was for the bill until I found out it included tons of pork that went beyond the parameters of the bill, which is supposed to extend all Bush era tax cuts for two years as well as unemployment benefits. Because of this, the bill should be defeated. The incoming Congress can probably forge a better deal and make the tax cuts permanent, as well as retroactive, with hopefully no pork attached, and with at least some spending cuts.
Let Obama veto it, or let the Democrats filibuster it, at their peril. But for now, let Sanders do his best, or for that matter his worse. He's only paving the way for a better deal.
