In political gamble, Reid seeks votes that are sure to fail

By David A. Fahrenthold
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, December 8, 2010

On Wednesday afternoon, the most powerful man in the U.S. Senate will do something that sounds odd: He will set himself up to lose an important vote.

Then, if all goes as planned, he will do it again, on another key issue.

And then another.

And then another.

Four times in about 90 minutes, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) will hold votes where his favored bills are expected to fail. For Reid, failure is actually the point. He wants to put Republicans on record as blocking all four - which deal with immigration rules, police and firefighters' unions, health benefits for responders to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and seniors' benefits.

These "test votes" are a sign of the sclerotic state of Congress, clogged by filibuster threats. Usually, it is the people out of power who resort to grand, futile gestures.

Now - in a political gamble - it's the guys in charge.

(More here.)