On Nov 7, we learned that the Republicans were wrong, on pretty much everything.  On that day, they were fired.

Why should the Democrats listen to a bunch of incompetents who were fired?

Does the recent extension of the Voting Rights Act count?  I guess this is a weak example, since it is not new legislation, but an extension of an old expiring Act.

Well, if we are going to count the Republican use of the phrase 'bi-partisan' where a couple of Democrats giving political cover to Republican ideas counts then our list will get pretty big pretty quick.

I for one can't believe Ted Kennedy signed onto the disaster that NCLB has become.

I'm  from the 13th Congressional District...

Say hi to Patrick Murphy...and Joe Sestak if you see them..I'm from Montgomery County DFA....

What does Patrick think of the surge? I heard Joe on NPR and he doesn't think its a good idea...

And please ask my Congress Critter if you see her ( A Schwartz) the same.

OT-Your website is slowing down. There must be a lot of people checking in. Hope your bandwidth is up to it.

If Republicans and Connecticut for Liebermans vote for something is it bi-partisan?  Shouldn't Joe's new request be for Tri-Partisanship?

Speaking of Connecticut for Lieberman, did anybody see this:

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/ news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id= 1003527233

Bankruptcy bill has to be near the top of the list.

Oil and Energy.

There's a number of key Republicans who are for real actions to cut US oil consumption.

There's even some really right wing characters who are onboard with it (Gary Bauer) for example.

That would be one area it would work.

Same with deficit/debt.

Same with campaign finance.

We did have McCain-Fiengold on campaign finance, Kerry-McCain on energy and Kerry-McCain on deficit debt.

If Democrats focus on real solutions to real problems on the big issues, they can find Republicans who are onboard with it.

Problem is Democrats like Dingell (on energy) that have to be overcome. It's kind of like getting Civil Rights Act passed. That was a good model for bipartisanship.

Many of the people who call for bi-partisanship are older who remember the pre-Gingrich era when not everything was about partisan positioning.  While I was young at the very end of that era, it would be nice if we could have more true national debate around issues.  However, I don't advocate fake bi-partisanship to get that and certainly don't advocate "bi-partisanship" while someone like Bush is in office.

I can actually think of two bi-partisan moments under Bush I where there was, for the most part, serious policy debate.

The first Iraq War resolution where there was open and spirited debate w/o the bullying and demogoguing which occurred during the 2002 debate.

The 1990 Budget Agreement which, along with the 1993 Clinton budget, restored fiscal sanity to the country without gutting important programs.  The bill wasn't popular and most likely cost Bush I re-election but it was the right thing to do.

I can't think of any similar moment since Bill Clinton was elected in 1992.

I can't think of a single good thing Congress has done since 2000--bi-partisan or otherwise.

If you're searching for any "good" or "popular" bi-partisan legislation from the past 15 years, you'll have to focus on the period from roughly 1990 until the 2000 election.  And I'm not sure there's much there, either.

I guess some of the budget balancing stuff Clinton and the GOP Congress did in the late 1990s was both good and popular.

Also, I believe Bush Sr. signed a decent bi-partisan strengthening of the Clean Air Act in 1990.

While I don't think this is "good," I suspect the welfare reform Clinton and the GOP Congress enacted in the 1990s is generally considered "popular."

I guess kos will be referring to you now when he talks about all those DC media types, you know, the gasbags that inhabit the swamp, the clueless inside-the-beltway types.

That's what happens when you paint with a broad brush.

Clinton's welfare reform, especially shifting benefits to the EITC was both bipartisan and successful.

"Bi-partisanship" sounds good until you check the Webster's definition:

Bi-partisanship: N. A relationship between two or more parties where all of them sell out with equal enthusiasm to corporate interests.

I swear, it was right there in the dictionary!

Let's see...

DOMA was bipartisan.

Clean Air Act was probably bipartisan.

Afghanistan... PATRIOT Act... NCLB... Iraq War...

That McCain torture thing.  McCain was relying on the fact that he had 45 Dems and 15 Reps in his back pocket the whole time.

I'm not really succeeding here.