The Times and the Post both have stories in Wednesday’s paper on the evolving legislative battle over the President’s push for legislation legitimizing the use of torture for accused terrorist detainees. But the stories they tell are sharply divergent.
I’ve been on Justin Rood’s case to find me more information about the state of the negotiations over the president’s torture bill. But the Times piece left me inclined to cut him some slack since the Times reporters don’t seem to have any idea what’s going on either. The Times reporters couldn’t get much sense of how much the president has 
conceded in the on-going negotiations or whether the events of the last 36 hours makes a compromise more or less likely.
The Post, on the other hand, paints a decidely bleaker picture for the White House. While noting that an agreement could come at any moment, the Post portrays a legislative clock rapidly running out on the president’s plan to ram through torture and tribunal legislation to bludgeon the Democrats with in time for the November election. “Yesterday’s actions significantly dimmed prospects that Congress can complete its national security agenda before adjournment.” The paper also reports the rebellion moving to the House.
The Post piece even includes the telling and somehow touchingly feeble threat from Bill Frist that he, the Senate Majority Leader, may lead a filibuster against the Warner-McCain-Graham bill in the Senate.
I guess he’ll show them who’s boss.
