My take on the Republican French Victory...

First and perhaps foremost, it would seem that you can take McCain and Frist’s name out of the 2008 nomination pot. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but I could also be streaching to find the silver lining. Let's face it, McCain’s a nut and a RINO, and Frist simply isn’t electable. Obviously, neither have the backbone to lead the party. Then, I got to experience McCain and Byrd grandstand, which made me sick to my stomach.

Second, the deal is nothing more than a delay of the inevitable. The Deanocrats can still filibuster whensoever they please and the Senate can exercise the Constitutional option should the libs filibuster when it’s not an “extraordinary circumstance”. Two of the seven French, err GOP, Senators who lost their nerve can claim, based on the three that will be voted on, that an originalist philosophy could not be considered an extraordinary circumstance and move for cloture. The media will say they are breaking the deal, the GOP loses that fight regardless.

Bottom line, the deal sucks, but it’s not as big of a deal as it seems. It does point out a huge vacuum of principled, determined leadership in the Republicans. This will come back to haunt them later. I personally would love to see McCain look Saad and Myers in the eye, but Mephistopheles, aka "sheets" Byrd, could do it easily. In this case, having no conscience is an asset.

Personally, I’d rather use the option today and lose the media fight now, while most are not paying attention, rather than when the world is watching when Rehnquist steps down. If I was Bush, I’d get Estrada to the floor now, to test everyone’s will, before we have a battle over the Supreme Court.