Democrats Have a Stimulus, But You Can't Read It

TPM reports:

During the first six years of the Bush administration, when Republicans controlled both the White House and Congress, they were rightly infamous for ramming through controversial bills without giving Democrats time to read the legislation -- let alone provide any input or offer amendments.

The tales of abusive and aggressive GOP behavior are legion, from one chairman cutting off Democrats' mikes when he grew tired of a hearing on the Patriot Act to another chairman's snide crack that House-Senate conference talks were only open to members of Bush's "coalition of the willing."

John Cole, at Balloon Juice, references the latter episode to argue that GOPers should stop complaining and be grateful that Democrats allowed them into a televised conference meeting yesterday. He misses the point entirely. Here's why the most loyal Democrat should be concerned -- not angry, not ready to write off the Obama administration, but concerned -- about what happened.

The conference meeting yesterday was nothing more than a performance for the cameras, or a "showcase for speeches," as the Times called it. allowing Democrats to claim that they were holding "the first open conference in 15 years" when the particulars of the deal were being hammered out in private.

Remember,this is the very partisan Democratic website Talking Points Memo saying this.