DAY’S END ROUNDUP

GOP opposition may thwart the proposed auto bailout when the Senate votes on it tonight, liberal bloggers predict, while conservatives question President-elect Barack Obama’s statement that he never contacted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) about his vacant Senate seat.

After Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) voiced opposition to the auto bailout today, Open Left’s Chris Bowers says it looks like Detroit will have to wait until 2009 for financial assistance from the government, pointing out that Obama’s popularity may not be enough to push the deal through. GOP opposition, led by McConnell, has effectively killed the auto bailout’s prospects, Jeralyn decides at TalkLeft, while AMERICAblog’s Joe Sudbay accuses Democratic Sens. Claire McCaskill (Mo.) and Max Baucus (Mont.) of helping the U.S. economy sink into a depression after news that the two say they’ll join Republicans in opposing the deal tonight.

Obama said he had not spoken to Blagojevich about his Senate seat at a news conference today, but The Corner’s Andy McCarthy thinks the statement will come back to bite him, claiming it will “inevitably” be revealed that Obama or someone on his behalf contacted Blagojevich to weigh in on the appointment process. The other part of Obama’s statement–that he’s confident no one representing him would have engaged in any deal-making–strikes Hot Air’s Allahpundit as a big claim, given that facts have yet to be gathered from Obama’s team.

And Sen. Jim Demint (R-S.C.) earns jeers for his assertion yesterday that there will be “riots” if the government continues to bail out various sectors of the failing U.S. economy. DeMint’s claim was an over-the-top attempt to justify his opposition to the proposed auto bailout, Political Animal’s Steve Benen pronounces, while Think Progress’s Satyam Khanna says it’s more likely that laid-off autoworkers would riot if the Big Three don’t get help from the government.

FROM THE BLOGS:
Senate GOP: Let Us Destroy UAW – DHinMI, Daily Kos
Card Check’s Powerful New Opponent – Brian Faughnan, RedState
He’s a Smooth Operator – Paul Mirengoff, Power Line
Franken’s Pathos – Ed Morrissey, Hot Air
How Will Obama Approach China? – Perry Link, The Stump
The Death of an Axiom – J.G. Thayer, contentions
Obama Appoints Super Cool Sutley – Lisa Derrick, The Campaign Silo
Hot Rod More Than Hot – Victor Davis Hanson, The Corner
Merkley Pens Fundraising E-Mail for Reid – Jonathan Singer, MyDD
On ‘Pragmatism’ – Ezra Klein

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:
Detroit Bailout Faces Senate Fight – CNN
Obama: No Contact with Blagojevich – The Hill
Daschle Will Lead Healthcare Overhaul – NY Times