Maybe it's just a coincidence, that the new version of the START treaty - one of the few bills that has had wide bipartisan support in the Congress - has been stalled so far in the 2010 lame duck session of Congress.
Unfortunately, the only starting we've seen on Capitol Hill so far is the race to make sure every House member has some special kind of committee to chair.
Instead of short debates about extending unemployment insurance - so that holiday gatherings at American households don't turn into permanent, long-term living arrangements - we're seeing stories about who gets what Congressional title, or who won't have a meeting because of some perceived slight nearly a year ago.
Instead of putting on their battle armor, and suiting up for one more try at accomplishing worthwhile legislation - like funding our military or securing nuclear weapons - our legislators seem to have headed back to Washington in rhetorical party dresses.
Don't the fools on Capitol Hill get it? If they're going to go the 'mean girls' route, like some pampered teenaged prima donnas, they're going to have to dig one hell of a lot deeper into the resentment bag than, "That guy came to my party last year, when we embarrassed ourselves on camera - so we're blaming him for it."
The thing that tends to irritate us most isn't that nothing much is getting done during this Congressional overtime period. It's that while Congress can't find the time to get legislation passed, they all seem to find the time to poke their tiny heads in front of microphones and cameras. They remind us of too many so-called professional athletes we've all seen - in print ads, on TV, in movies - but rarely in the end zone or at the awards ceremony.
We've pointed this out a dizzying number of times already in the 15 days since the election, but what Americans voted for wasn't a wholesale change. No matter where you fall along the political spectrum, an honest accounting of the results will tell you that Americans were voting for Congress to hurry up and help get Americans back to work. Instead, we get musical chairs, empty promises, and lots of wind-testing and coin tossing to attempt to see which way will be easiest for politicians to try and score points on their rivals.
As far as many voters on both sides of the aisle are concerned, if Congress keeps this up for two more years, we may just bench every one of them in 2012.
