How Dumb Do They Think We Are?

Subtitle: How Dumb Are We?

You've probably heard of the "nuclear option" being tossed about by REPUBLICANS. In case you haven't, this is the REPUBLICAN response to Democratic filibustering of certain judicial nominations - 10 out of 250 or so (.04%), much less than the REPUBLICANS blocked during Clinton's term, but I digress.

Anyway, the REPUBLICANS have threatened that if the Democrats don't let the nominations go through, they will rewrite the rule book that guides the Congress and eliminate filibustering in toto. This has been dubbed the "nuclear option", as per the REPUBLICANS terminology. In fact, Trent Lott, a REPUBLICAN, is the one who came up with the term.

However, that term is getting pretty bad press. It's not a polite, tea-and-crumpets term, and apparently the REPUBLICAN pollsters started seeing signs that it was turning off voters. So what have they done? An Orweillian rewrite of history - it's not the REPUBLICANS who called it that, it's the opponents! On talking shows, on interviews, on press releases, the REPUBLICANS now say they call it "constitutional option" or various other names. Kinda reminds you of the "privatization" label, doesn't it?

So, how dumb do they think we are?

Apparently, in the press, they are pretty dumb. Several papers have been printing their claims that the REPUBLICANS didn't use that term, the opponents did - without mentioning this is a bold faced lie. Screw "it depends on what the meaning of 'is' is," this is, "I never said 'is' at all." And the press - that biased liberal press - isn't doing a thing about telling the truth.

Biased? Nah. Incompetent? Yep.