WAY, WAY, OVER THE TOP – AT 9:43 A.M. ET:  Washington is a place of ridiculous rhetoric, and equally ridiculous journalism, and sometimes the two combine for an exquisite example of the truly phony and obnoxious.  From The Politico:

The death early Monday morning of Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) left his colleagues scrambling to deal with a reality none had ever experienced during their time on Capitol Hill – and many for the first time in their lives - a Senate without the iconic West Virginia Democrat.

Oh please.  The only thing they're scrambling for is his committee assignments and office space.

Senators spoke of Byrd’s love for the chamber, his staunch defense of its prerogatives and privileges against all comers, internal and external, as well as his fascination with the Constitution – he carried a copy in his pocket for decades - and the ongoing “American experiment.”

Of course, no dainty mentions of his early love for the Ku Klux Klan or his use of the "n" word a few years ago on national TV. 

And they spoke of Byrd’s love of his late wife, Erma, who passed away in 2006 after nearly 69 years of marriage.

“Robert Byrd’s was one of the greatest minds the world has ever seen,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). “From his graduation as valedictorian of his high school class at the age of 16 to his chairmanship of the Senate Appropriations Committee until the age of 91, he mastered everything he touched with great thoughtfulness and skill.”

One of the greatest minds the world has ever seen?  Really?  No wonder Harry Reid is in political trouble.  Greater than Aristotle?  Homer?  Einstein?  Ed Sullivan?

We'll have to put up with this for a few more days.  Washington is like Hollywood – lavish funerals and orations, followed by a period that will prove the truth of what Johnny Carson used to say:

"How quickly they forget."

June 28, 2010