A big topic on the liberal blogs has been that Republicans who took a hatchet to the stimulus bill didn't even vote for it.

I explained yesterday how the people who crafted the crappy Senate compromise bill were, to a significant degree, Republicans. Republicans who won't even vote for the bill. But I forgot to credit the guy who really put the stupid in this bill: Johnny Isakson.

On ABC's THIS WEEK, Chuck Schumer and Maxine Waters make a great point that many in the press have missed or refuse to talk about, but which bloggers have not.

SCHUMER: So let me just say this.

(CROSSTALK)

SCHUMER: We had a lot of people who said, "Take this out, take

that out."

WATERS: That's right.

SCHUMER: Most of those things were taken out, and they still

voted against the bill.

(CROSSTALK)

KING: ... so much is missing, and that's the reality.

WATERS: We took the amendments from those three Republicans who

were willing to step up to the bat.

KING: In the House, no one was allowed to take -- no Republican

was allowed to take part in the process.

(CROSSTALK)

KING: Not one Republican was allowed to take part in the process

in the House.

WATERS: That's -- that is not -- that is not the truth.

KING: It is the truth.

WATERS: As a matter of fact, we should focus on, when you had

the opportunity to participate, why not do what those three moderate

Republicans did? Step up to the plate; offer your amendments. You

know, we took all of their amendments.

Do you know we reduced the neighborhood stabilization program by

a couple of billion dollars? We reduced Head Start, Early Start,

school construction. We took the amendments. And so all those who...

KING: The fact is...

SCHUMER: And one other thing...

KING: ... not one Republican was allowed at the table in the

House of Representatives when the bill was...

(CROSSTALK)

KING: I'm talking about the House.

(CROSSTALK)

SCHUMER: Let's just look at the Senate. The two biggest

amendment that we accepted were Republican amendments, $70 billion --

you disagreed with it -- Senator Grassley, AMT, $38 billion, housing

relief, Senator Isakson. They still voted against the bill.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Let me bring Senator Graham back into this now.

SCHUMER: We don't know what more to do in terms of

bipartisanship.

(CROSSTALK)

SCHUMER: Well, how about the Senate?

GRAHAM: If I may say, if this is going to be bipartisanship, the

country's screwed. I know bipartisanship when I see it. I've

participated in it. I've gone back home and gotten primary opponents

because I wanted to be bipartisanship.

If Republican Senators have an amendment added to a bill and then vote against the bill, that amendment should be pulled. Why should a conservative effort to water down legislation get passed and then not get the backing of the author? Goober Graham as usual performs his hyperventilating act while Democratic politicians still do a pretty poor job of explaining their positions. And not a single economist showed up on THIS WEEK...