An early holiday?

Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2010 | 2 a.m.

There were some encouraging signs of compromise and bipartisanship in Washington after the start of the lame-duck session of Congress. Most notably, President Barack Obama forged a deal with Congress to provide tax cuts and extend unemployment benefits.

That was a welcome change from the past two years of Republican attacks and obstructionism, but it didn’t last long. Republicans couldn’t apparently stand seeing the president get credit for the good work he did. Intent on seeing him fail, Republican leaders in Congress are back to their old ways. They lined up against the immigration reform DREAM Act and an omnibus spending bill. They complained about the repeal of the discriminatory “don’t ask, don’t tell” law, and they have repeatedly threatened to delay the New START arms control treaty with Russia after months of work.

On CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said the lame-duck session had been “poisoned” because Democrats have pushed for votes on several major issues and said further work on the treaty should be pushed into next year. Republicans have tried to block various other bills, including legislation that would extend benefits to workers who suffered illnesses after their response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Republicans have tried a new stalling tactic, saying it’s not right to do all this work so close to Christmas. Several Republicans complained that last year they — gasp! — worked on Christmas Eve, and Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina said doing so would be “sacrilegious.” DeMint, the Senate’s leading Tea Party acolyte, tried to later soften his comment, but the Republican position is clear. For example, Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl of Arizona said if Democrats continued to move forward they would be “disrespecting” Christmas.

Seriously?

That’s an affront to the troops serving around the world and the many hardworking Americans who are on the job this week — not to mention those who will be working on Christmas Day, as many people in Las Vegas will. Would DeMint say it’s sacrilegious for them to work to feed their families? Or is that, as Kyl might say, disrespectful?

Beyond that, why is it disrespectful to address the business of the American people? Members of Congress are sent to Washington — and paid — by the American people to do a job, yet the Republicans are whining because they don’t get an early Christmas holiday. That’s insulting to the millions of unemployed Americans who would love to be able to complain about having to do any work at all.

The fact that Republicans such as DeMint and Kyl have injected Christmas into their complaints is particularly disgusting because this has nothing to do with the holiday. This is really a disingenuous attempt to steer the focus away from the Republican Party — it’s the reason the Senate still has a slate of important matters on the agenda. Republicans have spent the past two years blocking progress, and now they’re complaining about having to work. What hypocrites.

Republicans should quit blocking progress and get to work for the good of the American people. It shouldn’t take a Christmas miracle, should it?