Dems hit first snag in "first 100 hours"

You mean a razor-thin majority isn't an exciting new mandate for change?! CNN should change their exciting "FIRST 100 HOURS" graphic (and theme song) to "THE BUBBLE BURST".

WASHINGTON - The Senate's new Democratic leaders, the fragility of their thin majority on display for the first time, were set back Thursday when nine Democrats joined with Republicans in support of stricter House-passed rules on lawmakers' pet projects.

Majority Leader Harry Reid (news, bio, voting record), D-Nev., was forced to delay a final vote on a measure he opposes after losing 51-46 a parliamentary attempt to kill it.

The measure, an amendment to an ethics and lobbying bill, would have adopted a wider definition of "earmarks," specific projects inserted in bills, to include Corps of Engineer water projects, Pentagon weapon systems and items from other federal entities.

It seems Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) doesn't feel Reid's bill to make earmarks (pork) public and transparent is strong enough.

DeMint insisted that the Senate definition would catch only about 5 percent of earmarks, saying that in most instances lawmakers insert their pet projects not into the bill itself but into the explanatory report language that accompanies the bill and is not subject to a vote.

Sen. Tom Coburn (news, bio, voting record), R-Okla., said that of some 12,852 earmarks found in bills last year, only 534 would be subject to Senate disclosure rules.

The conservative DeMint praised new House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., for backing the more comprehensive earmark rules that the House approved last week. "I'm here to defend her language on behalf of the Democrat colleagues on the House side."

I tentatively agree with DeMint, but with the devious nature of politicians, it's very difficult to tell exactly what is going on.