Want to know how desperate the Republicans are? With about 20 legislative days remaining in this session, the Senate is moving forward with a flag-burning amendment.
A proposed constitutional amendment to outlaw the burning of the American flag won the approval Tuesday of a Senate Judiciary Committee split largely along party lines.
Raised by some Republicans as a mark of patriotism this election year, the measure passed on a 11-7 vote and was sent to the full Senate for final congressional approval. While the Senate has repeatedly rejected such measures in the past, both sides predict a razor-close vote this time.
I won’t bother going through the countless reasons this amendment is unnecessary. If you’re reading this site, I’ll just assume you’re well aware of the merits (or lack thereof) of this ploy. (Though, if you’re feeling rusty and are looking for talking points, Winning Argument has a helpful cheat sheet.)
I did, however, have two random and unrelated thoughts to add.
First, it’d be nice if reporters asked GOP leaders to explain why they don’t have time to pass a federal budget or most of their appropriations bills, but they do have time to fool around with this nonsense.
And second, kudos to John Edwards. With just 100 or so days left before the election, and Bush itching to turn the race into a divisive culture war, there may have been a temptation to skip this vote altogether. It’d be pretty easy to defend the absence, since he was on the campaign trail yesterday.
Nevertheless, Edwards joined six of his fellow Dems on the committee in voting against the scheme, voting by proxy. Good for him.