Outfoxed again | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's Note: Jim Bispo's weekly column appears in the Beaufort Observer.

    In the Tampa Tribune of 7/19, there was a truly interesting article about the Senate's agreement to start voting on the Anointed One's nominations to fill vacancies on his "leadership team". (Including "the Anointed One" and "leadership" in the same sentence is almost enough to make one choke - but that's another subject for another day.)

    The following is quoted from the article:

    "Republicans agreed to allow votes on seven nominations, and Democrats in return shelved efforts to change Senate rules to weaken the minority GOP's powers"

    That sounds a whole lot like, "We won't do what we threatened to do if you accede to our demands." Is it any wonder why the Reps. may never ever get to be in charge of the Government at the national level. And then, to make matters worse, apparently the agreement is not for the rest of the session. It's for now. Apparently if it subsequently becomes inconvenient for the Dems to honor the agreement, they can still go ahead with the nuclear option.

    What would have happened if Harry Reid and his band of brigands had gone ahead with the so called Nuclear Option to begin with?? Answer: They would have had their way with the Anointed One's nominees. What happens under the terms of the agreement?? Harry Reid and his band of brigands get their way with the Anointed One's nominees. Does that sound like a distinction without a difference - or is it the other way around??

    If Reid had proceeded with the nuclear option, there is always the possibility (but surely not a very high probability considering their behavior lately) that someday the Reps. would take over the Senate (like in 2014) and it would be "payback time". Reid's threat is one thing but, on the assumption that there are some "thinking" Dems, they may not have been willing to take the chance of what might (and surely would) happen if the Reps. get control of the Senate - which is bound to happen sooner or later (he said, hopefully). And how do you suppose the electorate (at least the thinking folks among the electorate) would feel about the childish trick Reid threatened just to get his way.

    If Reid carried through with his threat, he should be aware that one of the first orders of business when the Reps take over might be to get Yucca Mountain back into the game. No questions asked. Just get on with storing all that "spent" nuclear fuel - unless, of course, there can be found a disposal site closer to Searchlight Nevada. (If the environmentalists grumble about a site closer to Searchlight, they can be overruled with a simple Executive order in the manner of the Anointed One.) Hmmm...

    Enough about Reid. (Actually, too much about Reid.)

    So let me ask you this. Have you ever been in the supermarket and heard someone's child howling at the top of their lungs that they wanted some candy or a particular toy or a particular brand of cereal (or almost anything else) and wondered what kind of parents would have raised such a child?? How could anyone with an ounce of sense allow that kind of behavior. We have all seen it and heard it and wondered it. The child very frequently gets his (or her) way.

    Substitute Harry Reid for the child with a tantrum and Mitch McConnell for the harried, weak kneed parent and we have just seen the very thing that we frequently see in the supermarket. Reid kicks up a fuss, and Mitch McConnell has no idea what to do about it so he gives in.

    Do you suppose the Reps will ever learn??

    This whole thing brings to mind the difference between the U.S. Senate and the Boy Scouts. The Boy Scouts have adult supervision.

    D'ya think??