Are They Allowed To Write That

Robert Waldmann

wonders why ROBERT PEAR and DAVID M.HERSZENHORN of the New York Times broke the main rule of fair and ballanced journalism — one must never question the honesty of a Republican. Out of some residual respect for journalistic standards, they put their gasp reporting after their jump.

On the Senate side of the Capitol, where efforts to produce a bipartisan health care measure continued in the Finance Committee, top Republicans seemed eager to avoid early compromises that would let Democrats head to their home states for the August recess boasting of any progress.

[snip]

Mr. Grassley and Mr. Enzi clearly face a tough balancing act, as their party’s leadership maneuvers to torpedo any emerging compromise and force Democrats to start over.

[snip]

Mr. Grassley angrily dismissed suggestions that he and Mr. Enzi were being pressured by party leaders.

“What you are observing is a continuation of where we have been for a doggone long time,” he said. “The trouble is you all are looking for news and there ain’t no news.”

Some Republicans have begun to warn that Mr. Grassley should tread carefully on the health care bill if he wants to become the senior Republican on the Judiciary Committee, a post that he is in line to take in the next Congress, when his term on the Finance Committee will be up.

And there have even been suggestions that Mr. Grassley, who is up for re-election next year, could face a primary challenge …

Then they close with a sentence whose clear meaning is, I think, not changed in the slightest by my edit in [brackets]

“Earlier in the day, Mr. Enzi said the legislation was simply not finished. ‘The bill is not ready for prime time, so I don’t know any way that it could be completed today or next week and then we are at the August break,’ he [lied].

Before the jump, their article notes that Waxman, top blue dogs and progressives have reached so, Sen Grassley, you aint got an excuse left with support from the top blue doggone.