The American Spectator

Washington Prowler

(Page 2 of 2)

But Lott intends to challenge Sen. Mitch McConnell for Senate leader after Frist's retirement in January 2007. "This coalition is more than just about judges," says the Rules Committee staffer. "It's a Republican group that the Senator believes will give him his leadership slot back. These independents won't support McConnell. At least that's what we think now."

Lott, apparently, isn't stopping at the judge deal. According to a Senate Democratic leadership aide, the man from Mississippi has been speaking with Sen. Joe Biden about brokering a Bolton vote, again pulling an end run around Frist and his leadership team.

"He isn't trying to help the President," says the leadership aide. "He's working the caucus in a way that would damage Bolton's chances for confirmation. Every conservative should be worried about this."

Frist's lousy week has little to do with his leadership abilities, which should not be in doubt given his track record of forcing the issues with Democrats. It has more to do, Senate insiders say, with the unstable and often precarious situation that takes hold in the cloakrooms before Senators reach the floor for votes. It is there where the real arm-twisting takes place, not among staffers and their bosses, but the bosses themselves.

p>"I don't think a lot of these guys know which they will vote before they hit the floor on some issues," says a Senate staffer. "I don't know what my boss is going to do half the time. It might depend on which Republican he talks to before he walks out on the floor. Sometimes it's that fluid. Frist and his people can only do so much before it is out of his hands. The judges votes is a great example of that." br> /p>

topics:
John McCain, Joe Biden, NATO