Maybe this is revenge for not getting the VP nod. I hate that douchebag.

We are, as you say, in multiple crises. Very, very serious crises that have reached a tipping point.

That these people are willing to further endanger the economic, environmental and health-care status of the entire country -- and world -- because they're more concerned about buying six more Senate years for themselves from their conservative states tells us everything we need to know not only about their judgment, but also about their characters.

I made this point on another website; if Obama had given him the VP we could have buried him in the EOB where he couldn't do any damage.

I'm skeptical that all these folks will vote with Bayh and against Obama's agenda. I'll wait and see before condemning them. I'll bet they mainly want the imprimatur of "moderate" that this could give them more than they want to obstruct Obama.

That said, its nonsense to call Bayh (and rigthwinger Lieberman!) "moderate". Some of these folks may be moderate but Bayh is on the far right wing of the Democratic Party. He shouldn't be allowed to take ownership over the word "moderate".

I'm very surprised that Udall, of all people, is on the list, esp. after he hammered his GOP opponent all campaign long about being in the pocket of the coal/gas/oil/mining/drilling interests. Looks like he's about to sully the good Udall name with respect to environmental issues. It's not like there's anybody else frantic to slow down climate change initiatives.

The fact that I gave him money is especially irritating.

The fact that I gave him money is especially irritating.

Yeah, well, no more shortstop dollars will be heading in Hagan's or Begich's direction.

Some of these folks may be moderate but Bayh is on the far right wing of the Democratic Party. He shouldn't be allowed to take ownership over the word "moderate".

ex-libra made this point yesterday and I think it's dead on. Call them what they are: conservative Democrats or even right-wing Democrats.

"That brings the total up to 18 -- about a third of the Senate Democratic caucus -- which is anxious, for reasons I'll never fully understand, to water down the popular agenda of a popular president."

Shockingly, I suspect that many of those senators won election by larger margins than Obama. For some of us, spending hundreds of billions of dollars to reduce luke-warm global warming, whether manmade or not, is a bad idea, particularly when we're in the worst economic situation in the past 70 years. Obama's wish list was drawn up in a different era and a different time.

I'm puzzled by McCaskill's membership in this group. I haven't thought of her as especially conservative and she's been a staunch supporter of Oabama.

As a Missourian, I'm disappointed. It's bad enough we already have Kit Bond.

"I dont belong to an organized political party. . ." yada yada

actually, i get less worried about this the more i read about it. just looking at that list, these folks have not all agreed, nor would i expect them to going forward, on several issues. while McCaskill has always struck me as disturbingly moderate, she is an Obama loyalist (and likely will end up the liaison between the group and the WH). Klobuchar knows her state is blue, and the blue folk there are quite progressive. the bulk are from purple states, red states or recently red states who likey can use the cover provided by such a group regardless of how they vote individually.

looks like theatrics and a way for Bayh to spend a couple of days every now and then in the press.

although i still think Rahm should send them all dead fish.

http://stateofthedivision.blogspot.com/2009/03/bayh-household-finance-update.html

This link will show you why we should be verrrry afraid of Evan Bayh.

....which is anxious, for reasons I'll never fully understand, to water down the popular agenda of a popular president.

President Collins and President Nelson will explain the reasons to you.

With full intent to be repetitious:

Evan Bayh was an ass, is an ass, and will always be a self-centered, corporately owned DLC/DINO/Rethug-Lite asshole.

As a strong Billary Clinton supporter, he seems to have the full PUMA act going.

I'll never be my dad.

Bayh has both as much political acumen and skill, on the one hand, and as much ego on the other, as his dad.

Evan, right above me, don't worry about it; Birch wasn't what he cracked himself up to be, anyway.

@ shortstop (welcome back!): because they're more concerned about buying six more Senate years for themselves from their conservative states tells us everything we need to know not only about their judgment, but also about their characters.

Word.

And Bayh may be from a conservative state, but it's one that voted for Obama. Now Bayh's working against him? He's moving in the wrong direction. Indiana isn't so blue that Bayh is certain to survive the general if he's challenged in the primary.

If Bayh and his merry band actually do end up carrying the Republicans' water for them, the question among their constituents should be, "What do we need them for?"

When is the next election due, again?

What strikes me is the number members on this list that owe their elections to Obama. Shaheen would not have had a chance but for the support she got from Obama's machine in NH. Same for Hagen in NC? Can't imagine their constituients are going to be too happy with them playing obstructionist to the Administration. Some of these people are anything but moderate? Klobuchar? Really?

Really disappointed that Klobuchar is part of this group (if she really is). I wonder what Wellstone would think?

I just don't get it. I really don't. I see why Bayh does what he does. Its been well canvassed on the internet, certainly--it makes him slightly more important than he would be otherwise. But is there no Senatorial enforcer that Obama can send out to the others who are signing on explaining very patiently that the President is not going to look kindly on anyone who signs on to stab him in the back politically? Rahm, who I despise, was supposed to play that role in the house but mercifully Pelosi doesn't seem to need him. Reid, however, needs someone who knows how to batter heads and scare the shit out of people and he, and Obama, don't seem to have that person. Its not going to be joe biden--he likes to be nice.

aimai

Wasn't Shelby (now of the GOP) part of the older incarnation of the Blue Dogs?

Unfortunately, Evan Bayh now has about $12 MILLION in his campaign coffers with which to buy reelection next year.

He buys it primarily by assuring the no dumbocrat will seriously challenge him. He buys it by making it virtually impossible for even a rethug like Mitch Daniels to raise the funds to make it worthwhile challenging him.

Evan Bayh question: Does anyone, other than a sceptic like me, suspect that a U.S. Senator, whose wife is on the board of directors of a major medical insurance company (Wellpoint), would do anything to cause real health care reform to fail?

I wonder if some of these Senators, like McCaskill, Klobuchar and Udall, aren't in this to keep tabs and add votes and influence to make sure it doesn't go too far right. As for Bayh owning the term "moderate," are there any Democratic Senators, with the possible exception of Feinstein, who aren't moderates? I've always thought of Bayh as a Democrat mostly through family ties, and because moderate Republicans are practically a stone-dead breed. Very ambitious, not very bright, but hey, he's a natural leader, in his own mind. Think of him as the real life counterpart of the lieutenant in "Monk," who comes from farm country too.

@shortstop:Yeah, well, no more shortstop dollars will be heading in Hagan's or Begich's direction.

Thanks for your support to date for Mark Begich. But, as an Alaskan I have to say that I don't know how Begich can do other than position himself in this way, given the tendencies of the electorate. It strikes me as better to have someone voting with us some of the time than some that will vote against us all of the time.

Very sad to see both of my senators (Udall, Bennett) on this list.

Bob Casey's now on the list? Great. At least that knocks down my previous surprise that his name was missing from the original group.

Mary, Mary, Mary.

Wish I could claim even a sliver of an iota of surprise that our own Mary Landrieu (she of the infamous Tax Cut Six) is a party to this.

>shudder of disgustMary, Mary, Mary.

Wish I could claim even a sliver of an iota of surprise that our own Mary Landrieu (she of the infamous Tax Cut Six) is a party to this.

>shudder of disgust

Hmmm...can't for the life of me figure out why that duplicated like that. Something to do with the Preview button, or what?

These are the guys that the Bush Administration got dirt on through the NSA wiretapping program.

They're responsible for:
1. Not impeaching Bush
2. Voting for the Credit Card bill.
3. Voting for telecom immunity
4. Allowing Lieberman to continue caucusing with Democrats.
5. etc.

If these Democrats were to side with their party, and do the will of the people who elected them, Bush's cronies would release all the dirty pictures and phone conversations to the press.

As for Bayh owning the term "moderate," are there any Democratic Senators, with the possible exception of Feinstein, who aren't moderates?

I hope you meant Feingold. Feinstein ain't no liberal. No, of course there are very few actual progressives in the Senate, which is the point: You don't let the farthest right piece of the caucus define itself as "moderate," because then you give cover to the people who are trying to portray solidly centrist or barely center-left Dems as communists.

Thanks for your support to date for Mark Begich. But, as an Alaskan I have to say that I don't know how Begich can do other than position himself in this way, given the tendencies of the electorate.

Yeah, I know. I'm just annoyed right now. Really, I'm quite pragmatic and I understand that having Dem senators from states like Alaska is something to be celebrated even when they're Blue Dogs, but must they grandstand this way less than two months into the administration and as we're getting ready to move some critically important legislation? Could they not wait until bills are being created and register their complaints against, you know, something specific then?

I hope zeitgeist and others who are saying it's only for show are right. I really do.

And thanks for the welcoming words, Gregory. Good to see you, too!

Does it do any good to email them with our complaints? http://www.ourfuture.org/node/36490 makes it easy to do so.

I'm, probably, "after the mustard" for this discussion -- the thread seems to have died a couple of hours ago -- but...

People are mentioning Udall and Hagan and Begich and Bennett... I can add my own Warner (for whom I sweltered at the county fair, trying to peddle Dems to rednecks). Do you see a pattern emerging?

All of these (and Casey and possibly some others; I don't remember but am too lazy to check) are first term Senators with all that entails: low on the career ladder and far in the pecking order. No plum committee headships. Hardly ever mentioned anywhere in the press, now that the elections are over.

Now, what happens? Lots of press and an excellent chance for strutting for the cameras: we're as important as the old-timers, see? In fact, we're more important!

Yes, Bayh's been there forever and so has Landrieux but I think at least half of them -- if not more -- are small fry trying to puff themselves up. And, unfortunately, succeeding. Unless and until we take *serious* steps to re-branding them: right wing Dems. No BS about "moderate" or "centrist", which, for many people, is equivalent to "sensible". Obama is moderate. They are not.

Amy Klobuchar has a totally safe seat in the great blue state of Minnesota--she'll probably be Senator for Life. Which is too bad because Amy is canned, cautious and cowardly to the nth degree. I mean, just look at this latest example: Klobuchar is cautious enough to join Bayh's "centrist" caucus, but too cowardly to officially join it. And if she's asked about it, she'll say some canned speech about respecting fiscal conservatism, blah, blah, blah.

Her goal is to be the Minnesota version of Sen. Diane Feinstein--I wish I was making this up.

She voted for immunity for the telecoms, condemned MoveOn. org and after all these years, still can't figure out what she thinks about the war in Iraq other than she "supports" the troops.

Actually, she sounds like a perfect member to Bayh's bunch of cowardly Dems.

And I say this as a loyal Dem from MN.

Franken will be a vast improvement. I hope he's seated soon.

keep an eye on that bayh around interns