The Democrats' Achilles Heel

I've done my fair share of bashing Tom Delay and Bill Frist, but I have to ask: how the hell did Harry Reid get his job and how does he keep it? How on earth does someone get to be the most powerful man in the Senate's Democratic caucus and not learn when to shut his mouth? Following on the heels of his absurd accusation that Clarence Thomas is an "embarrassment" to the Supreme Court - compounded by the fact that he clearly hadn't bothered to read any of Thomas' opinions, since when challenged to back it up he mentioned a case in which Thomas had only written a three line technical concurrence - we have his latest faux pas. While speaking to high school students in Nevada, Reid said of the current President, "The man's father is a wonderful human being. I think this guy is a loser." How does someone advance so far in politics without learning a little subtlety?

I'm hardly a fan of the President, as the many posts I write criticizing his administration makes plain. But when a Senate leader goes around speaking to high school students and speaking like he's one of them, dissing a rival on the playground, there's a problem here. If the Democrats don't cut this guy loose, they will damage themselves just like the Republicans are currently doing with Tom DeLay. It's just another example of how partisan loyalty makes people support irrational behavior.