Wondering on Wednesday (v164)

The weeks, they go by so fast, don't they?

Just last Wednesday, we were reviewing the president's SOTU (something I never really finished doing, I realize - so I'll get to that soon, I promise), and worrying about the potential for another shutdown, and a bunch of women in white and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's random standing around.

And here we are a week later worrying about the potential for another shutdown, we've got more Dem women running for president, and well, the Speaker is  - well, the Speaker is the current Queen of the Meme for her clapback of the president.

On the possibility we'll have another #Trumpshutdown, which his team has said remains on the table, we know that a bipartisan agreement was reached the other day, and we hear that the president is "not happy" with the compromise that was reached, but is expected to sign it if it gets to his desk. He's suggesting that there'll be some $23B for border security when all is said and done, some part of it to be found by juggling money from department budgets that may keep him from having to declare a national emergency to get at funds.

He's also proclaimed that no president has ever worked harder and I have to wonder, where's the data for that? Bueller? Anyone?

We saw another outburst of bipartisanship with the overwhelming approval in the Senate of a conservation bill that's been years in the making. Among other things, it

...adds 1.3 million acres to wilderness in the West - a designation that creates a firewall against private enterprises like mining and logging, and prohibits roads and motors, both of which are often a source for land and water degradation. The newly protected wilderness includes public lands and hundred of miles of rivers in California, New Mexico, Oregon and Utah. The bill also permanently protects more than 370,000 acres of land from mining around Yellowstone and North Cascades National Park in Washington.

So, how did we get to something that 92 out of 100 senators could support? A few key things:

• constituents - large and small, from across the country were invited to participate and their input was listened to; 
• compromises were reached, making it possible for just about everyone to get a 'win' from the bill for their state; and
• Dems and Reps were willing to work together to accomplish something, even if it was not necessarily what the current administration might want  

You all know what the wondering is on this one, right?  What will encourage them to act in this manner again on something else that's really important? You know, Social Security solvency... repairing what's still broken in the Affordable Care Act... correcting inequities in the Tax Cut and Jobs Act... solving our runaway spending problem... doing something about climate change...  There are just oh, so many opportunities for people - actual living, breathing people - to be listened to!

One more thing, going back to those women in white. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar entered the race for president this week, making her announcement on a very snowy day No hat, no umbrella, snow in her hair, and a huge smile on her face (which of course drew a global warming comment from the president who, as we know, doesn't like to go out in the rain).

I wonder if I'm the only one who preferred this 'woman in white' to the ones who made their PR ploy during the #SOTU?