Reid: Are we still cool?
Obama: Sure, but you're still not getting re-elected.
Reid: Fiddlesticks.When it comes to Harry Reid's recent racial remark, critics are either ready to pardon him or hang him. The authors of Game Change included a racially insensitive remark that Harry Reid made concerning Barack Obama during the presidential election. Reid told the authors that Obama had a good chance of winning the election because he was "light-skinned" and spoke with "no negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one."

Democrats are ready to forgive and forget while Republicans want to string him up, claiming his pardon is a double standard. On NBC's "Today" show, Senator John McCain said there has been a "stunning double standard as far as the treatment of Sen. Lott, who also made unfortunate and inopportune remarks, and the treatment of Harry Reid by the liberal left."

First and foremost, Reid's remarks were stupid. I mean really stupid.

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You surprised me, Harry. I didn't think you'd get this far. Keep it up.Sixty senators voted to invoke cloture on the Democrats' healthcare bill Saturday evening. The vote allows debate on the bill to continue, thus nullifying a potential Republican led filibuster. Fifty-eight Democrats and two independents, Joe Lieberman (CT) and Bernie Sanders (VT) voted to keep the bill alive. Blanche Lincoln (D-AK) was the 60th senator to pledge her vote.

"Although I don't agree with everything in this bill, I believe it is important to begin debate," Lincoln said. "The issue is very complex. There is no easy fix."

Lincoln likely faces a tough 2010 re-election and opposes the government-run public insurance option among other provisions in the bill. Other senators made similar assessments. The whole "I'm voting for debate, not for the bill" bit is a common theme amongst moderate Democrats.

However, there's a harsh reality to consider.

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I'm not sure what crazy deals Nancy Pelosi had to make to Blue Dog Democrats to get their vote. Maybe I don't want to know.Democrats narrowly passed their healthcare reform bill Saturday in a close 220-215 vote. After the bill's passage, Nancy Pelosi struck the gavel to Democrats' cheers and applause. Now the fate of healthcare reform lies in the significantly less capable hands of Harry Reid and re-election conscious Democrats in the Senate.

Between Reid and Pelosi, it's clear which is the stronger party leader. I still can't forget the look on Pelosi's face when Joe Wilson shouted, "You lie!" at the President in her chambers. Frankly, she looked ready to wrap the offender in her coils and swallow him whole. Despite the outburst, Pelosi has been able to get business done with Republicans at their craziest.

Reid, on the other hand, may not even be re-elected. His approval rating dropped to 32% among Nevadans in October 2007. Much of that can be blamed on sketchy land purchasing deals he made in 2006. God knows how low it is now. The man has allowed Republicans to create a 60-vote passage minimum without them actually having to filibuster. Ridiculous! Maybe if he'd called their bluff during debate over lesser bills, then we wouldn't be in this mess. But now he has no leverage and no real power.

So what's next? Well, here's what I'd do if I could ghost-hack the Democratic party leadership:

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