• 42 “yes” votes in Senate vote to start offshore oil lease sales again source

• » And 42 votes is, obviously, not enough. The Senate GOP brought this vote to the floor, and as it lost comfortably by eight votes, they probably considered it doomed to fail from the get-go. As such, this looks like a show vote, less designed to impact policy (though I’m sure the GOP wouldn’t have minded getting it through) than to court political favor. As increased offshore oil drilling would have minor if any effect on the domestic gas prices (global market and all that), this bill serves two goals: make people think Democrats are keeping gas prices high, and remind big oil that despite recent talk of stripping industry subsidies, the Republican Party still has their back.

• yes In a rare show of unity, Republicans and Democrats are pairing together at the State of the Union address.
• no Senator Mitch McConnell won’t be partaking in the festivities; “I’m going to sit where I usually sit,” he told Fox News.
• maybe If a Democratic legislator walks up to McConnell’s table and sits next to him anyway, will he change seats? source

• And so my expectation, my hope is that John Boehner and Mitch McConnell will realize that there will be plenty of time to campaign for 2012 in 2012, and that our job this year is to make sure that we build on the recovery.
• Barack Obama • Offering up a pretty solid statement of intent for 2011. Obama, whose vacation to Hawaii just ended, says that he expects some playing of politics in 2011 (McConnell has already promised it). “But I’m pretty confident,” he continued, “that they’re going to recognize that our job is to govern and make sure that we are delivering jobs for the American people and that we’re creating a competitive economy for the 21st century, not just for this generation but for the next one.” Wishful thinking? source

• 69% the failure rate of filibusters in the last Congress source

• This would harm investment, stifle innovation, and lead to job losses. As Americans become more aware of what’s happening here, I suspect many will be as alarmed as I am at the government’s intrusion.
• Senate Minority Leader Mitch “I don’t know what the hell I’m talking about” McConnell • Talking about net neutrality, which proves that he doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about. If only Ted Stevens were still alive to remind Mitch that the ‘net is a series of tubes. What happens to your own personal Internet when an obstructionist jerk like McConnell tries to favor large corporations over consumers? It won’t be like a dump truck. It’ll be like your own busted series of tubes that you’re paying out of the wazoo for. All because McConnell wants you to think that all government regulation is bad, even when it’s not bad. While this net neutrality policy is kinda weaksauce, it’s better than letting AT&T and Comcast regulate usage. source

• There’s much for [Democrats] to be angst-ridden about. If they think it’s bad now, wait ’till next year.
• Senator Mitch McConnell • Salivating at the prospect of continuing to make life unpleasant for Democrats in the next Congress. McConnell stated in November that the “single most important thing” for Senate Republicans to accomplish was defeating Barack Obama in 2012. Not to overstate the obvious, but man, this guy really gets a kick out of antagonizing Democrats. source

• left While Democrats have come to grips with most portions of the Obama tax compromise, some are staunchly against a measure that significantly lowers the estate tax (which has been on pause this year) and raises the exemption rate to a rate much higher than it was.
• right In case you’re wondering if the GOP likes the idea of any measures in the plan changing, Mitch McConnell puts it like this: “This agreement is not subject to being reopened. In other words, we have an understanding.” Our boy Mitch is still sort of a jerk. source

• Newt calls Julian Assange an “enemy combatant”: Talk about harsh words, but Newt Gingrich’s take on how bad Julian Assange is for the country is perhaps a weeee bit over the top. No matter, he just keeps on talking anyway, calling Obama’s approach to handling national security matters “amateurish.” Maybe we’re crazy here, but we have to imagine that the Obama administration didn’t singlehandedly build all of these security mechanisms that broke down. Rather, the work of MANY presidential administrations nosedived.

• Like “groundhog Day”On “Meet the Press” today, Mitch McConnell claimed that he’s been talking to the Obama administration more in the last two weeks than he has in the last two months. However, he claimed (bizarrely) that Saturday’s vote on the tax cuts was like “Groundhog Day” – the same thing over and over again. That’s a good look for you, Mr. Kettle; reminds us of Mr. Pot.
• Did he say “more immigrants”?The New York Times’ Thomas “Tommy Boy” Friedman was also on “Meet the Press” today talking (in that big-idea mode of his) about globalization and immigration. During the chat, he suggested that (in a talk about ways to boost the American worker’s value) the U.S. bring in “more immigrants” – which we’re still trying to wrap our heads around.

• 32 GOP Senators signed a legal brief challenging the constitutionality of the health care reform law
• nine GOP Senators refused to join in; Lisa Murkowski, Scott Brown and Judd Gregg are amongst the group source

Why didn’t they sign?

• We are not going to be able to talk about it. We just aren’t going to talk about that.
• Otto Heck, Judd Gregg’s spokesman • “Explaining” why Gregg didn’t sign the legal brief, prepared by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, that most of his Republican colleagues supported. Almost a third of McConnell’s caucus broke ranks here, a surprisingly high number given the general solidarity of GOP opposition to HCR.

• Make no mistake, I know the good that has come from the projects I have helped support throughout my state. I don’t apologize for them. … [but] unless people like me show the American people that we’re willing to follow through on small or even symbolic things, we risk losing them on our broader efforts to cut spending and rein in government.
• Sen. Mitch McConnell • Agreeing to support an anti-earmarks moratorium. This is a big deal because just a few days ago, he came out against it. His support shows that the GOP is willing to bend to Tea Party interests. Obama in particular supports McConnell’s decision. “I welcome Senator McConnell’s decision to join me and members of both parties who support cracking down on wasteful earmark spending, which we can’t afford during these tough economic times,” he said. In other news, Robert Byrd is rolling in his earmarked grave. source