Another Edition

of "What Digby Said"

It makes no sense at all for the Democrats to empower this administration in any way, shape or form to do anything with respect to Iran. Nada. It certainly doesn't make political sense -- nobody in the country wants war with Iran and nobody will suffer at the polls for failing to sign off on the president and Lieberman's crazy schemes. The idea that Democrats need to be scared of seeming soft on Iran is ludicrous. And even if it did, all they had to do was scuttle the amendment anyway ---they didn't have to call for a vote. I just can't find any political benefit to this at all, and tons of serious, substantive risk.

(It's possible that their little friend Lieberman is blackmailing them, but if that's the case they should just turn the Senate over to the Republicans, return their pay to the taxpayers and go home. Let the war with Iran commence without their compliance.)

First, they should just cut Lieberman loose. He's no more a Democrat than Karl Rove is, and he's as seriously deluded as Bush is. It's not like it will make any difference in the Senate -- they're not doing anything anyway. I don't know if they've figured it out yet, but the slow stately dances of Senate ritual just don't cut it any more out here in the rest of the country.

We're faced with a situation in which the Republicans will govern based on their own momentary political needs and the Democrats can't govern at all.

What a choice.

Jane Hamsher weighs in as well:

I truly do believe the only thing keeping us out of war with Iran is the fact that the military just won’t stand for it. It’s frightening when the guys whose business is war are the only things keeping the country out of another one.

Ian Welsh has some recommendations.