Silence on the Left...

So, that enigmatic Dem, Senator Russ Feingold, has proposed a censure of President Bush regarding Spygate. Since the initial announcement, support was anemic, the Republican response was vitriolic, and the Dems have withdrawn the motion. Why exactly this was done, I don't yet understand. Reid implied that the withdrawal was in response to the Republican threat for a quick vote without debate - "To try to limit debate on this most important matter that Senator Feingold is going to put before the Senate is not appropriate." Hooey I say. No amount of debate would lead to this motion passing.

Did I expect the motion to pass? Hell no - the Republicans have a solid control of the legislature. And while the ports fiasco has eroded Republican support for Bush some, this doesn't transfer to Spygate, the subject of the censure. Would there be value in putting forward the censure motion and having it fail? Some symbolic value, yes. Especially if the Dems voted solidly for the motion. This may indeed have as much value as a wholesale passing of the motion, as even a passed censure motion is nothing more than a public admonition, with no actual weight or accountability behind it. I think a Democratic Party united behind this motion would send a message stronger than any we've seen in recent years. And it might be rather well received by the general public, especially considering that Bush's approval ratings are hovering in the mid to low 30s. With the retreat, I think the Dems come across as weak, divided, and unprincipled (which they are - at least the ones on Capitol Hill...) and Feingold has been painted a fringe extremist - no good for anybody involved.

But what's really bugging me about this whole thing is the silence of the Lefts 900-lb blogorillas such as Kos and Jerome. At the time of this writing, neither had commented on the withdrawal. I am very anxious to see what they say (or don't say). In the meantime, we shall wait...