The American Spectator

The Spectacle Blog

The House Republican leadership team has presented a united front against Nancy Pelosi's proposed rules changes that would make it harder for the minority to have any voice in legislating and easier for committee chairmen to wield their gavels for life. "President Obama has pledged to lead a government that is open and transparent," the leaders wrote in their letter (pdf) to Speaker Pelosi. "This does not represent change; it is reverting back to the undemocratic one-party rule and backroom deals that the American people rejected more than a decade ago."

That's exactly the right tone to strike, though there is little time to generate public outrage over a power grab that may seem more like an arcane rules change and little that can stand in the way of such a large Democratic majority. One-party rule isn't likely to turn out to be "change" you can believe in.