Weigel

That was the vote in the House of Representatives, with 39 Democrats joining the GOP to vote against it -- all of them wanting an up-or-down vote on fully extending the Bush tax cuts.

In a way, it's the ultimate -- in all senses -- example of Nancy Pelosi's ability to shed just enough conservative Democrats to get what she wants while shoring up their re-elections. In a more important way, wow, what a disaster this is. There are far more than 39 vulnerable Democrats, and they head into the general election on a fumble.