(Brand-new pic by @Greyson)
Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Arizona) is eight flavors of upset with Majority Leader Harry Reid for saying he'll hold votes between Christmas and New Year's.
Get a grip, writes Steve Benen:
Kyl might want to take a peek outside his DC bubble -- the vast majority of American workers will be on the job the week after Christmas, and places of business nationwide will be open. (Does Kyl think all of these employers are "disrespecting" Christianity?) Asking senators to work when most of their constituents are working hardly seems unreasonable.
Personally, I can get why it would be hard to make the trip out to Arizona for Christmas Day and back in time for voting. It's a sacrifice, the kind of sacrifice you make when you become a highly paid public servant with great benefits. Also, if you've spent an entire session of Congress stalling and obstructing, you can't expect much sympathy when you find yourself with a lot left to do at the last minute.
P.S. If you've got a cool office Christmas tree, send a pic or drop a link in the comments. Maybe we can use them to cheer up Sen. Kyl, et al.
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Pretty you guys at Rockefeller have the most killer "office Christmas tree."
Nice segment on the xmas rush last night... how getting home for the holidays suddenly trumps republicans' obstructionism. Wow, senate productivity. Nicely done.
This is obvious, but I wonder how he'd like to be on unemployment or to have just run out of unemployment for that week, not to mention be one of the "lucky" ones to still have a job and be doing the work of two or three people (as is usually the case these days) for that time period? There's lots of us out here who would love to be able to afford the airfare, let alone complain about the inconvenience. There's churches in DC. He can very likely go be Christian in the church of his choice on Christmas day.
Well, here's a Christmas tree all good Americans can get behind: http://christiannightmares.tumblr.com/post/2310697488/the-christian-nation-christ-mas-tree-found-at
I have no sympathy for the 6-figure, big benefits, paid-for-with-my-tax-dollars while I'm working my tail off 7 days a week Senators who expect the time off they want when they haven't done squat all year.
If we behaved this way for even a few hours at our jobs, we would have been fired long ago.
I wonder how all those "hard-working" Greedy Oligarchical Plutocrats can square that one...how can they defend highly paid people not doing their jobs and keeping them? If it were their businesses, they would fire those clock-sucking employees so fast it would make our heads spin. If their staffers behaved this way it would be the same story.
It's time for the Senate rule book to be burned and a new one written from scratch every two years!
And we don't have Christmas decorations at work. We're a pizza joint and the owners won't spend money on such junk. We also only have one chair in the office for the manager. The only other places to sit are the benches where customers can wait for their carryout orders. If I weren't a delivery driver, I wouldn't get to sit down all day.
Mr. Kyl added, “ It is impossible to do all of the things that the majority leader laid out without doing — frankly, without disrespecting the institution and without disrespecting one of the two holiest of holidays for Christians and the families of all of the Senate, not just the senators themselves but all of the staff.”
Well, boo hoo, waa waa, too bad. Should have thought of that about a month ago. Lot's of people work ON Christmas Day and, this year, are damn glad just to have a minimum wage job!
Also, can anyone say "separation of church and state?" Perhaps Mr. Kyl should go get himself a "Christian" job or he could take his complaint to his buddies and tell THEM to get to work now so he can have off through the New Year.
And talk about "disrespect" - seems to me he should be worried about disrespecting the American people - all of us, not just those that voted for him - because after you are elected you work for ALL of us. Don't know about anyone else, but I'm feeling disrespected.
Not only that, Senator Kyl needs a swat upside the head with my trusty fan!
You'd think all the ilk would have learned this LAST year -- when they held the vote on the Healthcare bill on Christmas Eve. They brought it on themselves and have only themselves to blame.
You are correct. The Republicans brought this on themselves with the filibusters. Actually, I would prefer if Reid threatened to have sessions on Christmas Eve and Christmas day and the same for New Years. It would give the Republicans a lot to think about between now and the holidays.
But in their minds I'm sure the see themselves as blameless. After all, they're conservatives! Duh!
Having to listen to GOP blather makes me feel violated.
Kyl needs quit if he doesn't like his job. And shut the hell up, while he's at it.
No one with such a blatent attitude of entitlement should be allowed to represent others in public office. I want a litmus test. Prove you have a beating heart, a working conscience, social awareness, and a firm grasp on reality before you are allowed to seek nomination for anything.
If the Republicans had been willing to actually *discuss* their differences instead of digging in their heels for the last two years, he'd have plenty of time off right now.
I watched C-span Senate coverage today and Mitch McConnell in giving his opening remarks said that voters had sent a clear message. Yes, we certainly did, but his reading of that message is flawed IMO. People are more frustrated with the lack of action, the partisan posturing, and the perception of gridlock in Congress than anything else.
I wonder how the unemployed in Arizona feel about Sen. Kyl's priorities.
As an Arizonan, despite my usual complete opposition to any of Sen. Kyl's opinions or tactics, I can understand where he's coming from. His reluctance to work between xmas and new years' stems not from some overinflated hyper-respect for Christianity and Boxing Day etc. The reason he doesn't want to go back to DC after coming home for xmas is because IT IS FREAKING COLD IN DC and it's a lovely... 77 degrees here in Tucson right now; a wee bit warmer (80ish) up in Phoenix. Who in their right mind would want to be somewhere snowy? It would take an inordinate amount of devotion to the Senate's mission and to accomplishing what the American people need in order to convince anyone to leave 77º for the snowy grey vistas of DC; and I've never known Sen. Kyl to have that kind of devotion to getting things done.
LOL! He ought to have taken that into account!
Bah humbug to Harry Reid! The real problem is that START was approved in April, the republicants had 85 filibusters for political gain, and time on the legislative season has run out! Maybe if the Kyl/Demint express would have done the work of the people..... The second reason is that they want to control their business better when they take over the house. The party of 'no' is now the party of 'hell no, we will stall too.' Maybe Boehner can just hand out cigarette lobby checks again on the house floor for presents, and they can get the cots out and suffer with 98 percent of the american public. I will be feeding people with no homes on Christmas, what will John Kyl be doing that is as important???????
They're not holding out for Christmas, that's just a hoax. It's the Islamic Holiday "The Day of Ashura" on Decmeber 16th. They want to celebrate that. :)
Rachel Dear, You are becoming too strident. Most of your audience is intellectual enough to understand you the first time. You do not need to hit us over the head with repeated comments in a strident tone to get your point across. I like you better calm.
No, no, no, Rachel, don't change. Your demeanor is fine. It is remarkable to me that you are able
to stitch all of these 'Chicken Crap' blurbs together in as concise and meaningful way as you do.
Everyone knows your head should have exploded years ago, I know mine would have.
And, pity the fool who would filibuster against unemployment benefits, filibuster against mom
and apple pie and then pitch a conniption fit about having to stay late for being such a bad boy.
Geez Louise, Mr. Kyl, what a moron.
I hope their mommies packed there sleeping bags and underpants.
I hope their mommies tell them they were adopted. And that they want a refund.
I hope their mommies smack them up side the head for being so bad, and that they get lumps of coal in their stockings and no presents for Christmas.
Disrespecting the Institution of Christmas??? How can they call themselves Christians when their religion is greed?
Rachel, when I saw your story about the Republicans not wanting to do anything now that the tax break for the rich has been passed I couldn't help but think of a childrens song from Veggie Tales, "We are the Pirates who don't do Anything". I found it on you tube and am trying to send it along. Enjoy!
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I guess nobody saw the story about the muslim school teacher that wants to take off a month in the middle of the school year to take a trip to mecca. Yes, that's right, the government is suing the school district on her behalf.
I say all Christians should boycott working on the sabbath or any other Christian holiday.
You wondered if Mitch McConnell was concerned about the sanctity of the famous Christian holiday, the Ides of December - maybe he was actually concerned about one of these other Christian holidays:
December 15 is National Cupcake Day:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/15/national-cupcake-day-top-_n_796212.html#s158924
December 14 is National Monkey Day:
http://www.monkeyday.com/
So, what is the secret of Monkey Island™, anyway?