Reid Warns Bush on Iran

This is encouraging:

Democratic leaders in Congress lobbed a warning shot Friday at the White House not to launch an attack against Iran without first seeking approval from lawmakers.

"The president does not have the authority to launch military action in Iran without first seeking congressional authorization," Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., told the National Press Club.

Maybe I'm being overly optimistic, but I think any administration proposal to attack Iran would be pretty much dead on arrival in this Congress. That won't stop them from doing it without Congress, but this should put them on notice that there will be political consequences. Warning Bush before the fact--putting the issue on the table, instead of letting them present it as a fait accompli without debate--was the smart right thing to do.

This pre-emptive strike illustrates a more broadly encouraging aspect of this Congress: they're setting the agenda, instead of reacting to Bush's. That's largely a function of being a majority again, of course...but given the opportunity, they have moved to make the most of it. Congress is, happily, a branch of government again.

[That's all, folks]