Bernie Sanders Filibusters the Tax Cuts [Update]

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont is walking the walk on the tax cut deal. He's now in his fourth [update: make that sixth] [update: Sanders finally left the floor during his eighth hour] hour of filibuster against the bill, with Mary Landrieu briefly joining in. This comes after several days of backlash from liberals over the White House's agreement to extend all of the Bush tax cuts--even the ones for those making over $250,000 a year. Here are the quick reactions as the show continues [scroll to the bottom as we update]:

• 'Just One Thought,' writes Business Insider's Joe Weisenthal. "This is a disaster for Obama." Why? "It's the first time we can recall that something happening on the liberal side is getting people excited--#filibernie is a hot topic on Twitter right now--and Obama isn't part of it. In fact, he's against it."

• 'In Case You've Never Seen Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'  National Review's Daniel Foster encourages readers to switch to C-SPAN 2. He hearkens back to debate over getting rid of the Senate filibuster. "Regardless of the merits of Mr. Sanders' position on the bill," he remarks, "this is my favored brand of filibuster-reform: make Senators actually do it."

• Sanders Rails Against the Deal  ABC News's Matthew Jaffe at The Note pulls the quote. Sanders offers his version of the message the rich are sending to the American people:

How can I get by on one house? ... I need five houses, ten houses! I need three jet planes to take me all over the world! Sorry, American people. We've got the money, we've got the power, we've got the lobbyists here and on Wall Street. Tough luck. That's the world, get used to it. Rich get richer. Middle class shrinks.

From Atlantic business blogger Derek Thompson on Landrieu's contribution:


Media Matters's Seth Michaels is similarly perplexed.


That said:


National Review's Daniel Foster confirms that Landrieu skepticism is a bipartisan matter:



Liberals, naturally, who staunchly opposed the deal, are delighted. From a self-described "active Young Democrat":


But David Dayen, also a liberal (of blog Firedoglake), tamps down the enthusiasm:

• 4 p.m.: I Think He's Fading  "When you're talking about Lady Huffington, you know you're short of material," comments conservative Kevin Williamson at National Review. He recalls some less-than-flattering Democratic* history:
  

If he's feeling nostalgic for an old-fashioned Democratic filibuster, maybe Bernie Sanders should read the transcript of Democrat/Klansman/Exalted Senatorial Cyclops Robert K. Byrd's famous filibuster of the 1964 Civil Rights Act: 14 hours of Democratic rhetoric that deserve to live in infamy.

• Happy Friday!  "BTW, in case you didn't know," writes The Awl's Choire Sicha, "everyone stopped returning your emails and calls because they're all watching Bernie Sanders filibuster on C-Span 2."