(WARNING: SATIRE) A minor scandal erupted in the Trump White House over the recent hiring of Marcus Greene to the post of Assistant Secretary to the Department of Transportation. Greene is an unusual choice for the Trump administration.  A man of Hispanic and African-American ...read more

I went to DC this week to take meetings, and in my free time, I decided to advocate against this travesty of a mockery of a sham of a healthcare bill, Cassidy-Graham. Having seen Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer speak against it from the Senate Gallery this past Monday, I ...read more

After beating up on Jeff Sessions at the Senate testimony today, Sen. Kamala Harris took to twitter to continue roasting him for his maddening performance that consisted of him apparently not recalling or remembering anything. Harris also took exception to senators attempting to ...read more

I thought the Republicans supported personal responsibility.  Wasn't that the deal with the Republican Party?  They thought personal responsibility is a good thing.  Their reactions to the Supreme Court decisions on same sex marriage and to the Senate's immigration bill make me ...read more

The Supreme Court may or may not be ready to endorse same sex marriage but the country is.  This week, Senator Lisa Murkowski joined fellow GOP Senators Mark Kirk and Rob Portman and expressed her support for same sex marriage.  I have organized a comedy fundraiser to benefit ...read more

A kitten yes, but how about an abortion?  It has been six months since the Newtown shooting and while we are no where near passing any gun safety bills, the US House of Representatives is poised to take up the "Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act," which would ban the ...read more

In about a week, South Carolina will pick between Mark Sanford and Elizabeth Colbert Busch. As we all know, when Mark Sanford was governor of South Carolina, he vanished for a week -- after telling staff he was off hiking the Appalachian Trail, a lie they repeated to the press. ...read more

I feel like the gun control debate often comes down to something eerily similar to that old beer commercial where fans of the beverage either supported the first or second claim and argued about it.  The Second Amendment reads: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the ...read more

It's a great sign that President Obama has been reaching across the aisle to have meetings with GOP members (and Democratic Congresspeople).  One thing everyone on the Hill agreed about was the need for President Obama to spend more time on the other side of Pennsylvania Avenue, ...read more

Seeing as my post supporting Senator Rand Paul's (R-KY) filibuster on Wednesday, received some responses that made me feel like my Democratic bona fides were being questioned, I thoughtI would respond and am am showing them to you.  This photo is a tattoo I have.  It is the ...read more

Richard A. Arenberg has written a much more eloquent defense of the filibuster than mine.  He is a former Senate staffer for Senators Paul Tsongas, Carl Levin and George Mitchell (who spent time as majority leader -- all three senators were Democrats.). "The right in the Senate ...read more

The Republicans have the upper hand in dealing with the sequester. If 2012 had not happened and their ability to be as incompetent as Democrats not been so clear (or if I were a fan of conspiracy theories, which I am NOT), I might think they planned this.  They lost the first few ...read more

Call me a sap but I am going to get this point out of the way immediately.  Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is one of my all time favorite movies.  I LOVE it.  When I look at the Capitol, I make sure to appreciate it.  Along the same vein is my true appreciation of the US Senate. ...read more

The Daily Banter Headline Grab. From TPM: Comedy Central star Stephen Colbert is the most popular choice among South Carolina voters to replace retiring Sen. Jim DeMint (R), according to a new poll from Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling. DeMint is leaving the Senate to ...read more

By Kim Barker and Justin Elliott: Dark money groups flooded Albuquerque’s airwaves in August, aiming to sway a hotly contested U.S. Senate race by making more than half the political ad buys on top TV stations. That fact, gleaned through a review of TV station political ad ...read more

By Bob Cesca: Technically, the U.S. Constitution doesn't guarantee the right to vote. It seems odd, considering all of the various other rights, guarantees and structural details enumerated in the document. That said, there are amendments that provide reasons why certain ...read more

By Bob Cesca: During the Clinton administration, and immediately following the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994, the impeachment process began. Not officially, and it wasn't until midway through Clinton's second term when the Republicans finally voted to impeach. In ...read more

Welcome to this week's edition of The Daily Banter Mailbag! This week Bob, Ben and Chez discuss the use of the filibuster, respond to gibberish emails, review 'Prometheus' and talk about the smearing of public sector unions. The questions!: Bob,  I'd love to know how many ...read more

Steve Benen comments on the alarming fact that Americans understand that the Republicans are deliberately sabotaging the economy, but take it out on Obama regardless of his ability to do anything about it: The degree of national cynicism is so intense, many Americans may ...read more

A stunning chart that maps the financial wealth distribution in the US as a percentage of Congress and the Senate (via Andrew Sullivan): The notion that the US is a representative democracy is now something of a sick joke - it is a country run by millionaires for millionaires. ...read more