The Drama

For those following the Pelosi, Murtha, Hoyer fandango, here's a good article by Joe Conason, written before the final pas a deux (by which I mean written before Hoyer won the vote). He notes both Murtha and Hoyers ethical lapses and suggests, accurately, that running on rejecting a culture of corruption and then empowering one of two men who embraced that culture is, at best, a risky strategy.

As Ms. Pelosi takes up her constitutional responsibilities, she will hear many people say that she is no different from her tainted predecessors, that all politicians are crooked, and that Democrats are just as compromised as Republicans. Her most important responsibility is to prove those clichés untrue, but her attempts to enforce her personal agenda have only made that crucial task more difficult.

It was a gamble, and of course Pelosi failed in this particular gamble. We'll have to see what comes next, but hopefully the factions can make nice once the opening bell for our session actually rings.