For those of us looking for the "glass is half full" part of the fillibuster deal, you need look no further.
Washington- Religious conservatives are furious that some of President Bush's judicial picks won't be confirmed under a deal that Sen. Mike DeWine helped broker, and some are calling for DeWine's ouster."I think Mr. DeWine needs to come on back home," said Phil Burress, president of Citizens for Community Values.
Burress in 2004 ran the successful campaign to ban gay marriage in Ohio, which some credit with helping Bush win a second term. Burress, based in Cincinnati, said he plans to hold a conference call today with other Ohio family-values activists to discuss recruiting a fresh conservative to challenge DeWine in a 2006 Republican primary.
While long term prospects for a conservative judiciary look swimingly good right now, the near future is bright for the other branches. Very puplic disagreements in the national GOP have been nonexistent until now. Can we expect this to continue? My guess is yes.
The split between social and fiscal conservatives is only going to get worse over the next twelve months. As we head into primary season, those Republican senators who truly represent more moderate states will be drawn into battle against moral crusaders of the right. This can only mean good things for Democrats in a state like Ohio.
And by the way, I'm sick of conservatives from Cincinanti running the show.