Does Leahy seem like he knows what he's doing?

[milestogo]

Asking because of what's going on right now, if you are watching.

[yardwork]

1. I can't figure out what's going on.

[Irish_Dem]

12. GOP is furious about the powerful presentation and trying to disrupt with crap.

[Siwsan]

13. Mike Lee has his y-fronts in a twist

There's something wrong with that boy.

[DURHAM D]

29. Hi - turn on MSNBC

Claire McCaskill explained it. Mike Lee is off point and being a disruptor. The vote Leahy is trying to take is to get the Senate back on point.

Republicans are all assholes.

[brooklynite]

2. I'm not watching.

[SharonClark]

18. Then why comment?

[Celerity]

40. +10000000000000000

[brooklynite]

55. Perhaps the notion that providing context to a question makes more sense...

...than assuming everyone is watching the same thing you are?

[LanternWaste]

59. You could simply have asked. Or played games. You chose poorly.

[LanternWaste]

54. The relevance and insight you bring is, as always, both consistent and without peer.

[Siwsan]

3. He's not making the decision - the parliamentarian is. He's repeating what she's decided

Per Clair McCaskill.

[DURHAM D]

32. Yep - Claire is helpful. nt

[spooky3]

45. Thanks. If people are allowed to insist on changes in the house presentation,

I can't see how anything can get finished.

[Funtatlaguy]

4. Like Feinstein, it's time for Leahyto retire.

He mumbles. Hard to understand.
There may be some dementia.

[Cha]

56. That's not nice.. Or there May Not Be.

[Funtatlaguy]

57. It's all over my family. I see the signs.

[StarfishSaver]

62. I hate to counter your through the television diagnosis, but I know Sen. Leahy

He's just fine.

[Cha]

71. Mahalo for your post, Starfish

smh

[Cha]

69. Sorry about that.. but No Way

does that have anything to do with Senator Leahy.

[Watchfoxheadexplodes]

5. He lost control

Not his fault all talking at once.

[jalan48]

6. Good question. Leahy isn't very clear.

[StarfishSaver]

33. The Senators on the floor know what's going on

Senate procedure is confusing and not very interesting to a television audience. But Leahy's presiding just as he should.

[jalan48]

34. Schumer had to take over and clear things up.

[bigtree]

79. handling the spat on the floor was his responsibility

...not Leahy's.

You might not have noticed Leahy ignoring the republican whining on the floor and proceeded with the yeas and neas on the objection offered by a republican after Leahy read the ruling from the parliamentarian. Regular order was established by the chair, and Sen. Schumer diffused whatever was erupting below.

[samnsara]

7. it was kind of hard to watch...i turned over to local news. Alert us if a fist fight breaks out

[Celerity]

20. wish it was a flash forward to 2023 and Fetterman was in the Senate and Cruz tried to take a swing

at him.

That would not end well for Cryin' Ted

[Lars39]

8. Mike Lee...

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=15087383

[Irish_Dem]

9. He was listening to the parliamentarian who rules on the issue Lee raised.

The GOP is just wanting to disrupt the proceedings.

[TwilightZone]

24. Correct.

Of course, people couldn't be bothered to figure that out before declaring (in this thread) that he's done and has dementia.

Some times, this place just pisses me off.

[still_one]

28. Typical though

[TwilightZone]

31. It is.

[still_one]

39. and I get pissed off also by people jumping to conclusions without fully knowing what is going on,

and not having the patience to find out what is happening

[Irish_Dem]

41. Well he did look confused and uncertain. But he is not familiar with this situation and the

correct rules. So he had to check with the parliamentarian. And then the managers and Schumer were also weighing in. So he had a number of people telling him how to proceed.

Basically I think many of us are on our last nerves.
Between Trump and Covid we are quite nervy and just speak out or ask questions.

I know I do the same thing sometimes.

[TwilightZone]

46. Yes, I know.

From the interactions with the parliamentarian, I had a pretty good idea what was going on, then Claire McCaskill explained it quite succinctly on MSNBC.

Had people taken one minute to peruse the thread, they would have known that instead of declaring that they could conclude that he had dementia from a two-minute observation on TV.

[Irish_Dem]

50. I know, it was almost comical, making a dementia dx based upon a few words and questions

from a man with a mask on.

The people who actually make dementia dxs for a living need a bit more data to make a dx.

But I get people wondered what the heck was going on.

[Cha]

60. No SHIT!

[choie]

10. No unfortunately he doesn't.

[Maru Kitteh]

17. And you are basing that on what?

[servermsh]

11. He's listening to the parliamentarian as he should

What I don't like is Senators aren't supposed to be able to talk. They are only supposed to ask questions in writing.

[DonaldsRump]

14. It is a TOTALLY irrelevant issue

If Senator Mike Lee wants to dispute something, let him tell Trump's lawyers. Don't waste the Senate (and our time).

[StarfishSaver]

37. LOL. Raskin just said, "Ok, we'll withdraw it for now. Not a big deal"

And now Lee has made a big deal over and drawn attention to something that most people probably weren't even paying attention to.

That information is in the public record and he can't unring the bell. But now he made it even more obvious.

Not to bright

[DonaldsRump]

43. Weird. Mike Lee is probably terrified of Trump.

That's the problem. And Mike Lee is part of the problem.

[StarfishSaver]

48. He freaked out over a reference to a news story that's already been reported and is still out there

[Celerity]

15. they are explaining now on MSNBC, so I think he does know, even through he looked confused

at first

[Buckeye_Democrat]

16. He doesn't seem healthy at all.

Ugh.

No idea what Mike Lee is objecting, and it was such a long presentation that I doubt most people would recall it.

It would be helpful if Lee actually stated what was supposedly incorrect instead of being so general, which he might've done intentionally.

[halobeam]

19. Can't they just tell Lee, if he wants to be a witness, then lets take a vote on calling witnesses?

[bottomofthehill]

21. Hardly his fault, no one really understood what was going on.

[Celerity]

35. Claire McCaskill instantly knew, she is brilliant. Damn shame she is from RW peckerwood MO, as she

is far more liberal in her politics that she voted in a failed attempt to hold her seat, and she is whip-smart. I did not likesome of her votes, but she, post Senate, has won me over big time.

[spooky3]

49. She's fabulous as a commentator, though, so there is a silver lining for us. nt

[Wounded Bear]

22. repubs threw him a curve that was against the rules, I believe...

just more bullshit from the right.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

23. According to Claire McCaskill, Leahy doesn't have the power to decide whether

the disputed remark can be stricken, it's up to the parliamentarian, to be voted on by the senate. Just now Lee withdrew the objection, maybe to be revisited tomorrow.

[StarfishSaver]

42. I love that Raskin said, "Ok. We'll withdraw it." Lee made a fool of himself over nothing.

It's not like they are creating a trial record for appeal. Everyone heard the reference to him - it's was reported in the media weeks ago, so it's already out there whether it's in the Senate record or not. But now he's drawn attention to it and let everyone know that it's a problem for him.

What an idiot.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

61. You're right, it was Raskin who withdrew, didn't catch the whole thing quite clearly.

In any event, sometimes it's better to leave minor quibbles alone rather than draw attention to them if they make you look dumb.

[StarfishSaver]

63. Exactly

Stupid move on Lee's part.

[StarfishSaver]

25. Yes, he does

He is doing exactly what he's supposed to do - relying on the Senate Parliamentarian to say what the rules require and allow.

[BlueIdaho]

26. I wonder if Lee retracted his objection

Because he realized he could be called as a witness to clear things up... under oath.

[halobeam]

30. oh so true there!

[StarfishSaver]

44. He didn't retract it. Raskin withdrew the reference he was objecting to

Said it wasn't that big of a deal.

LOL. Lee allowed himself to get baited.

[BlueIdaho]

72. So Raskin threw shade on Lee?

Perfect. Hey Lee, you just ain’t all that so... never mind.

[StarfishSaver]

73. Yup

Lee looked ridiculous.

[BlueIdaho]

75. He looked like a man desperate to stay off Trump's shit list. nt.

[BlueLucy]

27. Vermont has a Repuke governor.

I don't know why some Senators want to stay in power beyond their capabilities. It's not good for the nation. Diane Feinstein is another.

He can't retire now, we would lose the Senate.

[Celerity]

38. Scott has said he would appoint a Dem or a independent who would caucus as a Dem.

Now, do I trust him? meh

[BumRushDaShow]

36. Note that there have only been 4 impeachment trials

during the history of the country and 2 of them over the past year. So all the technicalities of the "Rules" are not easy to navigate as smoothly as what happens during their regular order (including "Morning Business" in the Senate). The Parliamentarian advises them, and she was trying to give him statements to read with respect to Lee's objection.

At issue was that a newspaper reported that 45 was trying to call Tuberville and accidentally called Mike Lee instead, and the conversation that is attributed to Lee in response to the "accidental call" was in dispute by Lee, and he wanted it stricken.

ETA - Raskin got up at the end and agreed to remove the characterization of the alleged "accidental" phone call by 45 to Lee and Lee's supposed comments about it.

[StarfishSaver]

47. Lee played himself

He only brought attention to something that's already been reported anyway. I love how Raskin just shrugged and said, "Whatever. We'll take it out." After everyone heard it, was reminded of it, won't forget it and now knows that this is something that got under Lee's skin.

Nicely played, Congressman Raskin.

[spooky3]

51. I just hope it doesn't open the door for another GOP strategy - to raise zillions of

objections like Lee's.

[StarfishSaver]

65. I don't think it will. They shot him down pretty swiftly

[BumRushDaShow]

52. The fact that Lee reacted the way he did

and even began to reach the point of doing his best Alex Jones rant, is telling. Something hit a nerve and he might have a fear of some future culpability.

[StarfishSaver]

66. He sure showed a soft underbelly, didn't he?

[BumRushDaShow]

74. Looking at the rough transcript

I bet one reason was there may have been more to that phone call and his involvement in the interaction, and it went out on TV around the world (aside from it having already been in the paper), but will now only be removed from the Congressional record...

Link to tweet

TEXT

Manu Raju
@mkraju
·
Feb 10, 2021
Mike Lee is trying to get words that Castro said about him stricken from the record. Leahy rejects what he’s saying. Lee tries to overrule the ruling of the chair. “Please let him explain,”Manchin says. But there is a LOT of confusion. “What is the question?” Schumer says
Manu Raju
@mkraju
This is what Lee seems to have been objecting to. It was from Cicilline - not Castro. He wanted that stricken from the record.
Image
8:00 PM · Feb 10, 2021

[DeminPennswoods]

53. The parlimentarian is calling all the shots

and telling Leahy what to say as she does for most things when it comes to rules and procedures.

[StarfishSaver]

64. I wouldn't say she's calling the shots. Leahy as the presiding officer is

But like any good presiding officer, he's relying on the expertise of the Parliamentarian to guide his rulings.

[DeminPennswoods]

67. That's a polite way to put it.

[bigtree]

80. you know well that the parliamentarian makes the decision and the chair basically just reads it

...from the paper placed in front of them.

No need to pretend the chair makes those decisions.

[Greybnk48]

68. That's exactly what Claire McCaskill said. Leahy doesn't

decide what is done at all. It's the Parliamentarian. She was telling him word for word what needed to be done, which is EXACTLY her job, not Leahy's.

Leahy is brilliant and sharp as a tack. He's always talked sloppily, even when he was younger, so no need for ageism. He's not senile in the least.

[leftofthestorm]

58. I was watching and wondered if it was time

for him to retire for a minute there

[marlakay]

70. I really wish certain leaders would retire

He is one. Yes some people like Joe are really with it when older but we have so many great younger folks lets give them a chance!

[MustLoveBeagles]

76. Yes

[bigtree]

78. there's not much to do in that chair

...almost everything is organized in the seats in front of him, and his job is to read what's on the paper placed in front of him from the parliamentarian and others.

If you watched, Leahy simply read off the papers, recognized the objection, called for the yeas and neas as the republican tried to disrupt the chamber.

Despite the confusion, the House wasn't deterred from regular order, and leader Schumer handled the spat on the floor, as is his job.

Leahy is perfectly fine in that seat, as he's not tasked with actually making decisions independent of the parliamentarian and the Senate leader.