Doug R, I would expect Republicans to react the same way. In fact I believe Democrats need to take a lesson from Republicans on the issue of cloture, or more broadly, how one acts within their caucus. If a Dem feels they have to vote against an issue, on the basis of belief or interaction with their constituents, that is fair enough. I am not talking about forcing elected officials to vote for an issue they don't believe in. What I am talking about is a procedural issue. I can guarantee you that when Cheney was in power, any Repub that voted against invoking cloture to allow an up or down vote on an issue, would have found their office in a bathroom so far in the basement of the Senate Office Building that they would need a mule train to get out. That is part of being a part of a caucus. The Dems need to use the same leverage. I expect Repubs to be against what our President is trying to accomplish. They have stated that is their intent. But Dems who vote against their caucus are literally playing politics on the Republican side. They are entitled to vote up or down on the issue as they see fit. But to subvert the will of the majority on the use of a procedure is to side with the opposition. The Majority Leader should "encourage" them appropriately. May not be nice, but that is how it works.

As to doing it when the Dems are the minority, hell I watched the Cheney gang do it. That is why it is so laughable to see the Repubs acting outraged that reconcilliation was used. We learned it watching your boys do it.