The New Republic still loves Ted Kennedy. But Kerry?

The New Republic online has a story written by Michael Crowley on Sen. John Kerry and his Alito filibuster (subscription required). It begins:

Moments before Monday's vote on whether to filibuster the nomination of Samuel Alito, John Kerry was speaking to a near-empty Senate chamber. In his typical stentorian fashion, Kerry was arguing for a filibuster of the Supreme Court nominee, an effort the Massachusetts senator had single-handedly initiated a few days earlier to the open chagrin of fellow Democrats like Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. "What could possibly be more important than this?" asked Kerry, who stood alone amid a sea of empty desks.

But Kerry's plea for relevancy didn't cause much of a stir until his Massachusetts colleague and filibuster partner, Ted Kennedy, rose to unleash a bellowing anti-Alito stemwinder. With a reddening face and hoarse voice, Kennedy waved his arms and smacked his podium with his open hand.

The commotion caused a crew of usually blasé reporters to scurry from their workstations and into the Senate press balcony to watch. "There is nothing that's more important than the vote we cast on the Supreme Court, except sending young Americans to war!" Kennedy thundered. When the old lion's mighty lungs finally ceased ...

There's more, but it's hardly worth reading. Mostly, it's "old news."

Who doesn't know that liberals at The New Republic and elsewhere cheer whenever their "old lion" roars out "anti-(whomever, whatever) stemwinder(s)."

That liberals cheer Sen. Kennedy is a major reason why he keeps roaring his stemwinders, which most thoughtful people find reckless, abusive of Senate committee witnesses, and eerily reminiscent of the late Sen. Joe McCarthy's "stemwinders."

The other part of Crowley's story tells us that Sen. Kerry's failed filibuster attempt didn't endear him to his fellow Senate Democrat colleagues.

But Kerry's Senate Dem colleagues haven't been fond of him for a long time. In early 2003 when he looked like a sure shot for his party's presidential nomination, not a single Democrat Senator except "the old lion" was willing to endorse Kerry's candidacy.

If I'm not mistaken it was well into 2004, and after Kerry had sown up enough delegate commitments to assure him the nomination, before his Dem colleagues began endorsing him.

By 2003 Kerry had served 19 years in the Senate; and his colleagues knew him well.

Message to the New Republic: Serve up something new or interesting