Remember those dirty deals to get ANWR on the chopping block? From this morning’s marketwatch:

House Republican leaders jettisoned a proposal to open Alaska’s Arctic wildlife refuge to oil and gas exploration in hopes that the move will ensure passage Thursday of a plan to trim spending on a range of federal benefits programs by $54 billion over five years. GOP leaders also agreed on Wednesday night to drop language lifting a moratorium on oil drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

The Grand Ol’ Pimps have been taking bitchslap after bitchslap lately. Often there is grandstanding leading up to an intense showdown, with the Rebiblicans backing off at the last minute due to a key defection or a lack of unity. This one may be a serious watershed, however, because it appears to have been a pre-emptory conciliatory move:

Democrats appear almost unanimously united against the plan, but Republican leaders hope that the decision to remove the oil provisions will ensure support by moderate members of their own party.

One year ago, could you have imagined that sentence? I’ll never cease to be amazed at the intangible tides in politics. Though they still have a strong majority in both houses, it is very clear that much of the GOP are lame ducks, and they even seem to be aware of it themselves.

The bloomberg version has an even more choice tidbit:

“Rather then reversing decades of protection for this publicly held land, focusing greater attention on renewable energy sources, alternate fuels, and more efficient systems and appliances would yield more net energy savings,” Bass said in the letter to House Republican leaders.

That’s Rep. Charlie Bass, NH (R).

Viva la revolution de Reid!

Related Posts:

• Moyers: 9/11 and the Sport of God (October, 2005)
• Election 2006 Campaign Contribution (July, 2006)
• Feingold on the D.R. Congo (October, 2007)
• Downward Spiral (October, 2008)
• consumer products (May, 2006)

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