Harry Reid--Atypical Boob; Barack Obama--Typical Politician

I haven't blogged for awhile...something about some holidays that were going on...

Anyway, some friends have asked me about my support of California's Prop. 8. I will post on that issue soon but this Illinois Senate seat controversy has my attention right now.

Preliminarily, I have to state that Illinois' Democratic Gov. Blagojevich sounds like a premium scumbag...not to mention a bad model for that hairy creature sitting on top of his head. If he's committed crimes, try him and send him to prison. Until that happens, or he resigns or is forced out of office, he is still the governor of Illinois. Not only does he have the power to appoint Prez-elect Obama's replacement, he has a duty to do it. That's the biggest freakin' card he has to play, and he's played it. It doesn't look like there is anything ethically wrong with the appointment or the process Blago used. I have no idea whether Roland Burris, his appointee, would make a good or bad senator. But, frankly, I don't care. Not because I live in a different state that starts with the letter "I". I don't care because Blago can pick whomever he wants. If he was dumb enough to accept payola to appoint Burris, then convict him of that too. But as long as the appointment was legal, that's the end of the issue. Burris should take his seat without delay. Or so one would think.

Enter Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV. Over the weekend, when stories leaked that Blago might appoint someone, Sen. Reid went on the Sunday talk shows steadfastly committing to refuse to accept any appointment Blago might make. Sen. Reid held his guns for a full 3 days. Then news came out today that a "resolution" to this dispute has been reached and [surprise!] Burris will be seated.

So Reid changed his mind. That doesn't make him a boob. People posture and ultimately compromise in negotiations all the time. His self-righteous comments prompted me to pull out a copy of the Constitution and check it out for myself. And I learned Reid is a boob for other reasons.

Ultimately, after looking at the issue, it comes down to this: How can the Senate Majority Leader not know his US Constitution? Apparently, Reid neglected to consider the 17th Amendment. Now, admittedly, this is not an amendment that we see discussed all the time in the news or on Law & Order. But the language is clear: when there's a Senate vacancy, the executive of that state makes the appointment. It doesn't matter if the executive is a scumbag, or if Harry Reid thinks he's a scumbag, or if the particular appointment (or the executive) might make one party or the other look bad. And it doesn't give anyone in Congress veto power over the executive's decision or the authority to block the chamber doors. Not even a Senator with healthy self-esteem and dismal judgment.

Why do we keep sending schmucks like this to Congress? Reid is up for reelection in a couple of years. It's high time for the people of Nevada to retire him.

Also of concern is that Obama gave such a ho-hum middle of the road response when asked about the controversy over Burris. If he had any balls, and truly is bringing Change to DC, he should have said something like, "Blago is still the governor and he alone has the authority to make the appointment. If he goes through a lawful process and appoints someone, that decision has to be honored. Then the people of Illinois will have the opportunity to approve that choice when the seat is up for election." Instead he gave the kind you'd hear from a typical politician, not the Agent of Change.

Let's not forget, Obama was an editor of the "Hahvahd" Law Review and is a former Constitutional Law professor! This is his speciality! Yet, apparently he doesn't know what the 17th Amendment says either.

Or maybe he's just like almost every other politician. Then again, this is the same man who thought there were 57 United States. That's certainly not typical.