Mitch McConnell and the ‘we don’t work on Mondays’ Congress

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the esteemed (well, OK, by some) Democrat from Nevada, wants his GOP counterparts to play ball.

But Republicans, led by Kentucky’s esteemed (well, OK, by some others) Mitch McConnell, mostly want to take their ball and go home. The result, perhaps, is that next week, the age-old Senate tradition of the filibuster will be radically reshaped. As in, you won’t be able use it anymore to hold up votes on presidential nominees.

And you know what? Probably most Americans don’t care. Plenty of us were fed up with this phony delaying tactic when Democrats were using it against George W. Bush, and plenty of us are fed up with it now that Republicans are using it against Barack Obama.

But buried at the end of my colleague Michael A. Memoli’s story Thursday was this tidbit, which I’m willing to bet most hardworking Americans do care about:

In the midst of Thursday’s angry rhetoric, some senators called for a rare closed-door meeting in the historic Old Senate Chamber to air grievances and seek a resolution.

Reid scheduled a private session for Monday night, but even that led to a protest from McConnell, who noted that attendance tends to be spotty on the first day of the week.

What’s that you say, Mitch? It’s Monday, so you can’t work? Call you on Tuesday, maybe?

Huh. You think Wal-Mart puts up with people missing work because it’s a Monday? Or the cellphone store? The supermarket? Or most other places out here in the real world, where your constituents live?

Is it any wonder that Americans are fed up with Congress?

Here’s a tip, Mitch, for you and all the other folks on Capitol Hill, Republican and Democrat alike: You spent a lot of money to get there. You made a lot of promises. You have a nation depending on you. You get paid pretty well; you have excellent healthcare and retirement benefits.

So how about you show up for work? And I mean every day, including Mondays and Fridays.

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