Contract for America

The Republican "Pledge to America" is of course a muddle of contradictions: You can't reduce the deficit by extending the Bush tax cuts (and it doesn't bother to explain otherwise) and you can't ensure access to health insurance for patients with pre-existing conditions without mandates (and it doesn't bother to explain otherwise.

But one little remarked on pledge stands out to me: The promise to provide a constitutional justification for every bill passed. I realize that -- especially for major legislation -- this is generally vetted in advance. Nonetheless, isn't there the potential to politicize the judiciary by inserting it into the legislative process? After all, the only federal judges can truly give a constitutional thumbs up or down to a bill. Or perhaps the intent is the opposite: To render the judiciary irrelevant by determining constitutionality in advance.

Of course, there's always the possibility that this is an insincere nod to teabagger ignorance of the meaning of the separation of powers, and it won't actually go anywhere...

I must say that I resent the title of the pledge: I'm an American and I certainly am not signed up for this nonsense. I suppose, though, that since I don't see it precisely their way, the 'baggers question that I am an American...

More fun from Stan and Ollie:

Dazed and Confused

We returned Monday evening after a solid 24 hours of airports and airplanes. Despite departing from what must be the most benign airport in Europe (Shannon) and laying over in the relatively friendly confines of Newark's C terminal, it occurred to me -- and not for the first time -- what a dehumanizing experience air travel has become. A morning flight out of Seattle for the east coast involves getting up a 4a, fighting through traffic, standing in the ticket line, and standing in the security line, all for the privilege of being jammed into a coach seat for 5-6 hours to be served by overworked flight attendants. It's a wonder there haven't been more incidents like the one involving the Jet Blue attendant...

Desperate to avoid airport hotel dining in Ireland -- not exactly a consummation to be devoutly wished -- we stopped in the town of Adare for what turned out to be a delightful experience at The Arches restaurant. Not only was the down-home cooking hearty and reasonably priced (by European standards), an Irish gentleman at the next table engaged us in one of those conversations that make the country so worth visiting. They also begin with,

"Are ye from the States?"

and take off from there with stories about his visit to the states and people he knows there. In this case, it involved some "lads" from Limerick who went to New York and never returned to Ireland. He eventually visited them, and loved New York. He asked where we had been, dismissed Dublin as not the real Ireland, and told us about a new route to the airport that shaved a half hour off the rest of the trip...

Then I return home to the senate's dismissal of the repeal of Don't Ask/Don't Tell, in which Susan Collins (R-ME) distinguished herself by setting aside her convictions in order to support the Republican agenda of larding the legislation with poison pill amendments. If it weren't for the human rights involved, I'd say that this has gotten downright silly -- a group of old men obstructing a clear societal trend...

Meanwhile, Washington state Republican senate nominee Dino Rossi states unequivocally that he

opposes allowing any of the estimated 11 million people already in the United States illegally to apply for legal residency. However, he hasn't called for deporting them. He has offered no options, saying he hasn't "heard a good solution for the people that are already here that makes sense."

Rossi, a real estate baron who is in the hip pocket of the Building Industry Association of Washington, of course reflects exactly the desire of his chief benefactor: Keep them here, keep them illegal, keep them scared...

Not to be outdone, Delaware witch, teabagger, and Republican senate nominee Christine O'Donnell tells national media personality Sean Hannity that she will no longer talk to the national media because "that's not going to help get me votes," whereas presumably running and hiding from them will...

It's all enough to make a guy go back to Ireland, or at least to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia: