Dr. Frist's Operation

National Review ^ | June 20th, 2005 | Byron York

[Ibleedred]

Dr. Frist's Operation How the Senate majority leader played a game of filibuster chicken

BYRON YORK

NATIONAL REVIEW/JUNE 20, 2005

ON the morning after a group of 14 senators made a deal to end the standoff over Democratic filibusters of Bush judicial nominees, Senate majority leader Bill Frist found himself taking flak from all sides. Depending on who was speaking, Frist had wimped out, was unable to control his troops, or could not muster the support to trigger the “nuclear option” to put an end to the filibuster problem entirely.

And that was just from conservatives. Other commentators said Frist had lost the leadership of the Senate to John McCain. Still others argued that he could not do his job while entertaining hopes of becoming the GOP presidential nominee in 2008. The Los Angeles Times suggested he resign.

[Ibleedred]

I'm on Frist's email list. He sent me this self-serving exerpt from an upcoming National Review article. What do you guys think? Do you all see the world through these "rose-colored" glasses too?

[steve1848]

The answer is in the results that are achieved.

Well before the 2006 run ups we will know.

[buccaneer81]

He'll never be President. And he'll never be able to control the party. I mean c'mon. Voinovich and Dewine? Two wimps. But they got through Frist's screen.

[Noachian]

What do you guys think? Do you all see the world through these "rose-colored" glasses too?

I think that Frist is no Lyndon Johnson. If McCain had of tried something like that with LBJ as majority leader McCain, and the other six malcontents, would be politically drawn and quartered.

[Torie]

How do you draw and quarter recalcitrant senators these days? In the media age, with self financed senators not relying on the party (about a third of them multi millionaires), I would suggest that is impossible.

[votelife]

LBJ I think had over 60 Senators, plus more Repubs were liberal back then. Frist does not have 50 Conservative Repubs maybe 40-45. All the bashing of Frist on this site, not saying this to you, is way overblown.

[Blake#1]

Frist is on top of the list for Republican nominee for President of the Unite States 2008.

[bombthrower]

The good doctor is a wonderful human being. Howard Dean are you listening? Do you, Howard Dean, have any Dems as committed to people's lives as Dr. Frist? Before you answer, I'll answer for you. NOT A CHANCE! That being said, Dr. Frist is a terrible Majority Leader.

[TASMANIANRED]

You can strip them off all committees.

[AshfieldK]

I'm on Frist's email list. He sent me this self-serving exerpt

Come on everybody! Join in on the canabilistic feast!

[Blake#1]

When all of "our" judges are confirmed and two new "orginalists" sit on the Supreme Court you can take your "bomb" an put it where the sun.......... It will be Frist's leadership that will accomplish the foregoing.

[nathanbedford]

You are absolutely right.

It would not be amiss to look closely at the President's effectiveness in promoting his own nominees and balance the inherent powers of his office against the collegial powers of the majority leader. I think the comparison would work to Frist's advantage.

It seems to me that Frist can only be faulted if he had the power to invoke the nuclear option and unaccountably shrank from pulling the trigger. I think it quite clear that he never had the 51 votes when one subtracts these 7 mavericks from his 55 count majority.

Conceivably, one might argue that Frist failed because he did not wield power like Lyndon Johnson did as Majority Leader a half a century ago. But this misconceives the power structure of the modern Senate. Frist simply does not have much leverage over these 7. Indeed, they fear The New York Times much more than they fear any majority leader, and with good reason.

I see this as a leadership failure at the top, where real power lies, in the president who is the head of the party, has a measure of control over money, can use the bully pulpit (Bush did not apart from the election campaigns) and can log roll. I believe Bush dropped the ball and left Frist with no dry powder.

[dk/coro]

I agree. Bush could have rendered alot more support to Frist than he did.

Rove dropped the ball on this one -- big time.

Time for the GOP to take off the gloves and fight these miscreants on the other side with bare knuckles.

After all, Reid and Company will fold like a stacked house of cards when the screws are really in place and tightened.

[paddles]

Frist is in a tough spot for a guy who wants to be prez: A very high ACU rating, yet the party's base sees him as a wimp.

[JLS]

Exactly, add Bolton to the 5 judges already through, more judges and maybe a Justice or two and it will have been a good deal. At worst it postponed the deal and made GOP Senators understand which way they had better vote.

[Lancey Howard]

Yes, like most people who have now analyzed "the deal" from the perspective of a week or so, I believe that Frist had to have had a large hand in this unbelievable smackdown of the Democrats. But the trap was so clever and well-executed that I think Frist must have had help from Karl Rove and maybe the ghost of Lee Atwater.

I don't know what's more amazing - - the ingenuity of the trap or the fact that the rats blinked and then blundered right into it. I can hardly stop laughing! Did you see where the New York Times is now trying to help out their Democrat Party by lying and spinning that the "filibuster only under extraordinary circumstances" language is something that "Frist declared" when in fact that language was an actual part of "the deal" as approved by the Democrat half of the "gang of 14"??? The Times realizes that that phrase is the rat trap's spring.

The desperation is so thick in the air at the New York Times and other hotbeds of Democrat Party activism that you can cut it with a chainsaw, LOL!!!

Regards,
LH

[Dolphy]

I see this as a leadership failure at the top, where real power lies, in the president who is the head of the party, has a measure of control over money, can use the bully pulpit (Bush did not apart from the election campaigns) and can log roll. I believe Bush dropped the ball and left Frist with no dry powder.

I don't think that's accurate. Bush led his party to historical Congressional gains in 2002 and 2004. If not for his leadership would the Senate be configured as it is today? If not for Daschle's miscalculation of the judicial issue and the national map Bush put it on, would he still be the Democrat's leader?

In my mind there is too much measuring and score keeping during what's sure to be a long war. What matters is where we stand at the end, not the outcome of every battle. While I think it's true that the Republicans lose the media spin contest on almost a daily basis. But the Dems are addicted to the loud sound of their own bark, however toothless...and the Republicans keep making them pay.