Other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?

The Day Obama's Honeymoon Died | The Agonist:

"In the last 24 hours, that golden halo that was over Barack Obama, is over. The Senate is about to gut his version of the stimulus bill, creating a bill that is 'all tax cuts, all the time' and far too small to deal with the economic crisis. Obama has been out Reaganed, and America is set to go on a downward spiral because of it. The stimulus gutting of at least 100 billion and perhaps as much as 200 billion in spending to get just three votes: Snowe, Collins, and Ben Nelson, will mean that these Senators will get to control between 33 billion and 70 billion of spending each. 200 billion essentially ends the 'spending' part, and leaves us with a bill that will be about 400 billion tax cuts, and 300 billion spending. So much for unity and bi-partisanship.

The withdrawal of Daschle destroyed another precious Obama asset: namely the uber-competence image that they had cultivated. Cool, competent, collected. Then on one day two nominees withdrew for tax problems.

Then the Republicans struck preëmptively to make sure their kind of stimulus, defense spending, continues to increase. Cuts for the poor, war for the rich. Cuts for the poor, war for the rich."