‘You Shall Not Pass’

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‘You Shall Not Pass’

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Gandalf attempts to stop the balrog from advancing at the bridge of Khazad-Dum. If you squint just right, and you’re in the proper frame of mind, the balrog looks a little like the Democrats’ legislative agenda and Gandalf turns into a Republican bent on paralyzing the democratic system.

It seems the GOP’s “make sure nothing happens in government” approach is still going strong, with Senate Republicans blocking an effort by Democrats to begin debate on widely popular legislation to regulate the nation’s financial system.

Bickering over who was pre-empting which negotiations, Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell claimed debate should not start on the bill until the two sides reach a true, bipartisan agreement. All this sounds wildly familiar to the health care reform debate, but would the Republicans really be that petty? —JCL

The New York Times:

Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked an effort by Democrats to start debate on legislation to tighten regulation of the nation’s financial system, and the two sides traded bitter accusations about who was standing in the way of a bipartisan agreement.

The majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, asked Republicans to agree to begin debating the measure, which would impose a sweeping regulatory framework on Wall Street and big financial institutions. But the Republican leader, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, objected, saying Democrats were pre-empting negotiations to reach a deal.

In response, Mr. Reid said he would call the first procedural vote on Monday in an effort to stop the Republican filibuster. That vote could test Republican resolve to oppose the measure in an election year, amid public dismay over big Wall Street profits and bonuses even as unemployment remains high.

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By PatrickHenry, April 24, 2010 at 7:37 am Link to this comment

Gandalf a Republican?

He was a Monarchist, you obviously never saw any of the movies.

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By ofersince72, April 23, 2010 at 7:58 pm Link to this comment

Gandalf was my Hero, please don’t do that to my hero !!

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By Aarky, April 23, 2010 at 4:28 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

Stop all the whining about the party of NO. The Democrats can sabotaqge this farcical so-called reform bill just like they did the health reform bill. They won’t need any help from the Republicans.

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By anaman51, April 23, 2010 at 12:50 pm Link to this comment

You can spread the truth about this all you want, but until the politically ignorant American voters begin to recognize the difference between truth and lies you’ll be wasting your time.

As the election nears, the Republican Lying Squad will step up their efforts until their opponents are buried beneath layers of lies and damning innuendo designed to confuse the voters. Sadly, many voters in this country are susceptible in their ignorance, and cannot grasp that they are being manipulated by criminals in pursuit of wealth and power.

The election process should not be represented by a media circus that rewards professional liars with political prizes. To announce that certain Democrats are to be “targeted” for electoral defeat in such a manner should raise the hackles of the voters, but it doesn’t. I got tired of shouting the truth about this during W.‘s first election. No one heard me then, either. Turns out I was shouting at fools.

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By amunaor, April 23, 2010 at 10:29 am Link to this comment

I believe the caption beneath the above picture is completely, ass-backwards!

Gandalf, as portrayed in the Tolkien Trilogy, is hardly representative of Republican affairs! Quite the contrary! If any Tolkien characters were to express a Republican, it would best be summed up in the conniving ego, symbolized by Gollum.

Nice try with attempting to pull off a character reversal!

Peace, Best Wishes and Hope

WikiLeaks—Collateral Murder:
http://www.collateralmurder.com/

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By amunaor, April 23, 2010 at 9:49 am Link to this comment

I believe the caption beneath the above picture is completely, ass-backwards!

Gandalf, as portrayed in the Tolkien Trilogy, is hardly representative of Republican affairs! Quite the contrary!

Nice try with character reversal!

Peace, Best Wishes and Hope

WikiLeaks—Collateral Murder:
http://www.collateralmurder.com/

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By Jimnp72, April 23, 2010 at 9:26 am Link to this comment

let’s all spread the word about the daily outrageous behavior of the republicans
by posting articles from this site, thinkprogress and the Huff.post .
the msm of course continues to be corporate shills and will never cover the
ridiculous behavior of the repugs, except to try to legitimatize it.
I post think progress’ articles on my facebook page daily,
Spreading the truth is the only way to defeat them, and the internet allows us to
do so, so lets take full advantage.
check out thinkprogress’ articles today, the one about a “W day” is ewspecially
pathetic.

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