Frist About to Go Nuclear: In More Ways Than One

Posted on April 14, 2005

According to The Washington Post, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is ready to go nuclear: in more ways than one. If he's not careful, he's going to drop an atom bomb on his political career.

The strategy carries significant risks for the Tennessee Republican, who is weighing a 2008 presidential bid. It could embroil the Senate in a bitter stalemate that would complicate passage of President Bush's agenda and raise questions about Frist's leadership capabilities. Should he fail to make the move or to get the necessary votes, however, Frist risks the ire of key conservative groups that will play big roles in the 2008 GOP primaries.

Clearly, Frist has his eye on those 2008 presidential primaries and is terrified of incurring the wrath of the religious right. Otherwise, why in the world would he be participating in this so-called "Justice Sunday". What is Justice Sunday, you ask? Why it's an upcoming telecast by "prominent Christian conservatives" which will portray Democrats as being "against people of faith" because they have blocked 10 of President Bush's judicial nominees from coming to a floor vote (they allowed 229 to go through).

Fliers for the telecast, organized by the Family Research Council and scheduled to originate at a Kentucky megachurch the evening of April 24, call the day "Justice Sunday" and depict a young man holding a Bible in one hand and a gavel in the other. The flier does not name participants, but under the heading "the filibuster against people of faith," it reads: "The filibuster was once abused to protect racial bias, and it is now being used against people of faith."

Former Republican Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole and Democratic Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell both oppose ending the filibuster and have warned that such a move could come back to hurt Republicans in the future. After all, things change and when Republicans are in the minority they may need that filibuster rule one day.

Senator Frist tries to portray himself as a voice of reason. But appearing on this telecast could alienate libertarian and fiscal conservative Republicans, many of whom are moderate on social issues and are mighty uncomfortable with Frist's questionable conduct during the Schiavo debacle. So, what will happen during this telecast anyway? Will Frist witness to the congregation that he's had a vision that the next president will have an M.D.? Will he speak in tongues? Will there be snakes? Please, let there be snakes.