Let's just bring back the Whig party

Really. I'm serious.

Because this is ridiculous.

Several prominent Democratic senators called for a filibuster of Samuel A. Alito Jr.'s Supreme Court nomination yesterday, exposing a deep divide in the party even as they delighted the party's liberal base.

Deep divide, eh? What could possibly be dividing the Democrats? A judge who will support George W. Bush's extra-constitutional forays into illegal wiretaps [and yes, that's a cached page]? A judge who will likely be the decisive vote in overturning Roe v. Wade? A judge who believes police have absolute discretion in deciding who and what a warrant covers when they enter your home?

What could possibly be divisive about that? Oh, it's not so much about law, the constitution, or even an individual's right to privacy. It's all about making Mrs. Alito cry.

Judge Alito's confirmation was looking increasingly certain Thursday. Two more Democrats, Senator Tim Johnson of South Dakota and Senator Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia, said they would break party ranks to vote for confirmation.

Mr. Byrd said his constituents had told him they were "appalled" by the harsh questioning Judge Alito received from the Senate Judiciary Committee at his confirmation hearings, calling them "an outrage and a disgrace."

Unbelievable.