Maybe Daschle will take over (win back) Johnson's Senate seat next time around, even if Johnson doesn't run again.

Anyway, as long as Johnson is still breathing, the R governor can't replace him with a Republican. He can legally stay in the Senate in a coma if it comes to that and those who have his power of attorney say so, and I'd rather see that happen than have the seat (and the Senate) go back to the Publicans. (Hey, Strom stayed in the Senate for years after being brain ded.) ;)

The two major parties may share a lot of corruption and wrong-headedness, but it wasn't the Dems who instigated throwing out most of the Bill Of Rights (except for the 2nd Amendment) and trying to stack the Federal Courts with right-wing fascist-leaning judges who would rubber stamp such efforts.   

The perfect is the enemy of the good, and right now I'd rather have some right-wing Dems like Landrieu, Salazar, and Bayh in the Senate than "moderate" Republicans like Snowe, Spector, and Chafee.   Committee chairmanships matter a lot!