Thanks for the Fist Full of Nothing, The Alito-Enabling Sixteen
Here are the Senators who cast meaningless votes against Judge Alito. That is, they voted against his confirmation, but yesterday voted to end the filibuster that would have actually prevented his confirmation*. (In other words, they voted for his confirmation before they voted against it.)
- Akaka, HI
- Baucus, MT
- Bingaman, NM
- Cantwell, WA
- Carper, DE
- Dorgan, ND
- Inouye, HI
- Kohl, WI
- Landrieu, LA
- Lieberman, CT
- Lincoln, AR
- Nelson, FL
- Pryor, AR
- Rockefeller, WV
- Salazar, CO
- Chafee, RI (R)
That’s sixteen names!
There were twenty-five “no” votes yesterday against invoking cloture (i.e. in support of the filibuster.) If these sixteen had had the courage of their convictions and done likewise, there would have been forty-one votes needed to keep debate open (and without the need to count the two Senators that didn’t vote on the filibuster at all!)
You sixteen are now responsible for every 5-4 vote in the Supreme Court where Alito is in the majority.
Seattle Post Intelligencer: Senate Vote: Alito nomination
*Edit: Maybe not. It would have forced the Republicans to consider resorting to the “nuclear option” to break the impasse. Or at the very least, it would have created a delay in which… aww, fuck it. It doesn’t matter now anyhow.
PS: Your Montag knows this ain’t funny. For now, let me brood. I’ll hatch a joke later.
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Stump Lane 
I am so disappointed with Cantwell and Kohl. The other douchebags are from purple states, but Washington and Wisconsin definitely trend toward the blue (in the cities, anyway). I can do something about Cantwell, at least.
If this confirmation becomes the election issue I fear it will, at least it will be easy to show where Maine’s “moderate” Senators stood. They voted to confirm all the way.