Call the orthopedist! The number of broken arms from politicians in Congress trying to pat themselves so vigorously on their own backs is simply astounding. Who are all these weenies without backbone who just waved through this vast assault on the Constitution?

Is there a doctor in the House or in the Senate who can do some triage on the body politic? The bruising is severe.

Last week, the White House and three Republican senators announced a terrible deal on this legislation that gave Mr. Bush most of what he wanted, including a blanket waiver for crimes Americans may have committed in the service of his antiterrorism policies. Then Vice President Dick Cheney and his willing lawmakers rewrote the rest of the measure so that it would give Mr. Bush the power to jail pretty much anyone he wants for as long as he wants without charging them, to unilaterally reinterpret the Geneva Conventions, to authorize what normal people consider torture, and to deny justice to hundreds of men captured in error.

How low can the high and mighty go? A lack of backbone allows our current lawmakers to sneak under the lowest bar possible. Democrats are now expected to cower as a bill that allows detention of anyone on the president’s order gets jammed up our collective asses.

All the tools are out. Look for Democrats to be hammered if they don’t approve of the President hammering all our rights to bits as he seeks the tools he needs for the Great War on Terror Everything TM .

“It is outrageous that House Democrats, at the urging of their leaders, continue to oppose giving President Bush the tools he needs to protect our country,” said House Majority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio).

Somebody wake us from the nightmare. We must be dreaming, right? Our elected officials are there to protect we the people. They wouldn’t use a last minute, pre-election moment of hysteria to jam a terrible law down our collective throats, would they? Damn.

We don’t blame the Democrats for being frightened. The Republicans have made it clear that they’ll use any opportunity to brand anyone who votes against this bill as a terrorist enabler. But Americans of the future won’t remember the pragmatic arguments for caving in to the administration.

They’ll know that in 2006, Congress passed a tyrannical law that will be ranked with the low points in American democracy, our generation’s version of the Alien and Sedition Acts.

A dark vision? The nightmare seems to be coming true. The Quiet Coup continues.

The Shrill (but in a low key): “the principal theme and effect of this legislation is to systematically abdicate and destroy existing legislative and judicial checks and balances.”

From the You Want the Truth, You Can’t Handle the Truth Department: “The truth is that there is a rogue presidency and there has been, since January, 2001 (earlier, if you count the stolen election). Certainly, everyone in Washington knows it, but no one dares to admit it.”

The struggle for decency and the rule of law continues. In the heat a sense of humor almost evaporates. A sense of outrage remains. Who knew Congress could so easily surgically remove its conscience?