Today’s New York Times has a sympathetic portrait of PhRMA, the larger drug company association, bemoaning the uncertainty they face because the health care bills leave the deals they cut in limbo.

Vote now for the 2010 FDL Fire Dogs

New York Congressman Eric Massa shot up from #6 to overtake Arizona’s Raul Grijalva for the #3 spot in the week-long contest where the FDL community votes to determine who will be the 2010 FDL Fire Dogs.

Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts also leaped from #27 to #16 after posting the contest on his Facebook page. Alan Grayson still maintains a commanding lead.

In case you hadn’t heard, Richard Shelby (R-AL) has shut down the government because he wants fat, greasy pork projects for Alabama — including his own personal $45 million earmark. Odd. I thought earmarks and pork were the root of all our problems.

While all the hoopla over Richard Shelby’s hostage situation is a little overhyped – if not him, some other Republican would have held each and every one of these nominees – it does amount to what you would call a “teachable moment” about the dysfunctional Senate. Anyone who thinks that the fillibuster is merely a protection of minority rights need only look at the Shelby blanket hold. It is the manifestation of a Parliamentary era of ideological rigidity combined with a supermajority process of veto points, along with a political system that rewards the minority for frustrating a majority. It’s a formula for American decline, to put it as simply as possible. We are all Colorado Springs now.

I’d like to understand how people like Susan Collins square their views about treating those in custody with any belief in the rule of law.

Student loan reform, which would cut out middle-men pariahs like Sallie Mae and save $87 billion over the next 10 years which could go directly to students instead, is now in danger — thanks to the efforts of Jamie Gorelick.

Essentially, Shelby’s threat is primarily about gaming the defense bidding process to make sure Airbus–and not Boeing–wins a contract.

The failure of the Obama Administration to support the Dawn Johnsen nomination, a far less than good faith effort that finally resulted in Johnsen’s nomination being killed by operation of Senate Rule, was not due to a lack of 60 votes for cloture on the nomination, but instead was to permit the abuse of the OLC, just as the Bush Administration before them, in order to cover up governmental illegality.

It’s still pretty much OKIYAR. Greg Sargent reported this afternoon that Palin’s spokeswoman had tough words for Limbaugh (though less tough, of course, than she had for Emanuel). Asked for a comment about Limbaugh’s rant, Palin spokeswoman Meghan Stapleton emailed Sargent, “Governor Palin believes crude and demeaning name calling at the expense of others is [...]

Richard Shelby finds a novel, more destructive way, of stomping his feet and throwing a fit.