It is hard not to think of this black and white bubbe meise while reviewing the most recent chapters in the battle over the future of the partially excavated, purportedly moribund Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in southwestern Nevada.

House Democrats lit into John Boehner and the Republicans in a conference call with progressive media just now. “Boehner has about 80 members who think that compromise is a dirty word. They keep wanting to move the goalposts and stick in radical social changes that they can’t get any other way,” said Jim McDermott (D-WA), referring to the unrelated policy riders around abortion and women’s health funding that Republicans are demanding. “This isn’t about debt reduction, it’s about the social agenda they’re trying to jam through. It’s really a cultural war that’s going on here. They’ve been offered the money, the President gave them the money.”

Totally aside from any merits of the ethics charges against Massa, recall that Norm Dicks, Jack Murtha, Jim Moran and Roland Burris all had their ethics charges dismissed in December. And then quelle suprise! Roland Burris, who had been threatening to withhold his cloture vote over the Senate bill without a public option, instantly became a convert. The rest were all safely in the “yes” column in the House. You could pretty much eat live babies on TV and get your ethics complaint dismissed if you were ready to play ball and vote for PhRMAcare.