Today in the GOP

Senator John Ensign of Nevada, encouraged by the victory in Louisiana of Diaper Dave Vitter, has announced his intentions to run again in 2012. Ensign is currently under investigation by the FBI for his payments to his former Chief of Staff and his wife and Ensign's lover as well as Ensign arranging for his Chief of Staff to become a lobbyist.

Haley Barbours' Republican Governors' Association produced the most interesting Republicans this year but it also failed to pick up as many seats as experts predicted. He only gained 5.

Mitch McConnell today said that the health reform bill put the United States on the road to tyranny. He claims he is relying on the courts to overturn it. I'm sure he chatted up Sam Alito at a recent fund-raiser.

Eric Cantor blasted a deficit reduction plan produced by Alice Rivlin and Pete Domenici as being "too European". He said that the United States wanted to avoid becoming like most of the social welfare states in the world. Does this also include Irsael since Cantor swore to Bibi Netanyahu he would side with him over the President of the United States?

It's curious that both Republicans spoke today when they had previously announced that they had scheduling problems so they could not have the scheduled meeting with President Obama to talk about the tax cut issue.

With unemployment benefits running out for several million Americans, the GOP took their first bold action today by introducing a bill to defund National Public Radio because it fired millionaire Juan Williams. Eric Cantor claimed this would save the taxpayer hundreds of millions of dollars.

Never fear the new Republican House will get down to business in January. One of the first bills to be introduced is to deny citizenship to children of illegal immigrations who are born in the United States. This is seen as an indication of how the new majority intends to flex its muscles on illegal immigration.

I find this very sad. One of the uncontested contributions the Republican Party has made to the United States is the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, which guarantees citizenship to anyone born or naturalized in the United States.

This new law is sponsored by alleged Christian Rep. Steve King of Iowa, who believes illegal aliens are giving birth to children in the United States so "they can have uninhibited access to taxpayer-funded benefits and to citizenship for as many family members as possible." This affects about 340,000 children a year. What's fascinating is that from a dollars and sense point of view illegals contribute more money to the economy than they take out.

In the WayBack machine, Lisa Murkowski became only the second Senator to have been elected through a write-in campaign. Previously, Strom Thurmond had won by write-in as a Dixiecrat.

Another blast from the past, Governor Charlie Crist wants to pardon Alexandria's own Jim Morrison, son of Admiral Morrison, who was better known as the lead singer of the Doors. Apparently, in Florida, Morrison whipped it out to show to the audience. The remaining Doors members have told the AP that Jim really didn't pull it out and that this never happened before or since. Morrison was found guilty in 1970 of indecent exposure and public profanity and was fined $500 and sentenced to six months in jail. He was appealing his conviction when he was found dead in a Paris bathtub in 1971. He was only 27.

I like the Doors' posthumous loyalty. But Jim Morrison did this every year in Asbury Park during his concerts at the Convention Hall. Each time the police would rush the stage and arrest him. This was a regular bit the Doors did everytime they came to town. That was part of the appeal. Betting when Morrison would whip it out. That ensured a sell-out each night.

And another Oldie but Goldie showed up. C. Everett Koop, the surgeon general under Reagan, appeared once again to warn that AIDS had become "the forgotten epidemic" and he felt that the "irrational fear" of AIDS had given way to "a sense of complacency that is as dangerous." The fundamentalist Christian doctor, who looked like he was Amish with his beard, drew praise when he first addressed the AIDS epidemic with a commonsense speech. Now at 95 and living in New Hampshire, Dr. Koop is in Washington at an AIDS summit to speak about the early days of the epidemic.

The few remaining Republicans, who know anything about foreign policy, are making a full court press on behalf of the NEW START TREATY. James Baker, Henry Kissinger and George Schultz are in town to lobby on behalf of this treaty. Senator Dick Lugar has gotten angry--which is a very rare moment--with Senate Republicans, who want to avoid voting on the treaty either to punish President Obama or to bow to the extreme right who are threatening to primary anyone who votes for the bill. Lugar has asked Reid to call the vote on the Treaty to get his colleagues on record. The Treaty has the unanimous support of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the support of every living former Secretary of State and was originally thought urgent by Senate Republicans.

Rachel Maddow in her show last night covered the similarities of this treaty with that signed by Ronald Reagan. But she missed one vital point. The opponents of that treaty were the extreme right elements of the neoconservatives. The opponents of today's treaty are the cvery same people, who were then much younger. Unfortunately for all of us, they continue to have influence among Republicans, who forget that they were vocal in opposition to Ronald Reagan.

Country Last McCain is hanging tough on the repeal of DADT, saying that there needs more study and not just the Pentagon survey of the armed forces actually serving today. President Obama and Harry Reid have leaned on Senator Levin to include once again DADT in the Defense Appropriations Bill, which was filibustered before the election for the first time in American history. The Pentagon will have released its Survey by early December. Levin promises hearings immediately and a vote before recess. Several Republican Senators have already voiced support for the repeal of DADT. However, in a new Senate it would be tough going.