It's a Miracle!

You may have read a couple of weeks ago about the miraculous ability of Republican senators to multitask. As the Montana Street Fighter reported recently, Senate Republicans this year have managed to generously pad their majorities on several key committees, and the way they did it was to appoint four of their number to each serve on two committees that meet every day at the same time. I’m not sure how that’s working out for those four – they must be awfully busy flying back and forth between committee meetings, trying to be in two places at the same time – but I imagine they can take some comfort in the fact that they are not the only GOP senators working miracles.

Take, for example, John Brenden.

Brenden, who comes from Scobey, had a bill in the Senate this week requiring the publication of a state government telephone directory, on paper, every two years.  You might wonder why, with both a state phone book and state employee directory instantly available on line, Brenden thinks such a throwback is needed. Well, if you listen to his presentation of the bill on the floor (click here), it will all become clear, sort of.

Suppose, Brenden says, that a constituent calls when you are driving down the road, and you need to give her contact information for someone in state government. And suppose you are in an area where there is no cell service, so you can’t access the on-line directories on your smart phone. Well gee, if you have that phone book with you, you’re all set.

Here’s where that miraculous Republican multitasking comes in. Brenden is apparently able to drive, read a phone directory, and talk on the phone without access to cell service, all at the same time! How he does that plumb evades me.