This was supposed to be a big week in the Senate. But if you didn't get here early enough on Monday evening, you missed the only vote of the week.
Yes, that's right. Senators returned from an eleven day break and took one vote all week, that on a judicial nominee who was approved on a vote of 88-0.
Each day, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said we would be having votes, but they never materialized.
He blamed that mainly on Republicans, but that really wasn't the case, as members from both parties were holding things up.
Why?
It's the Senate, that's why.
"What is the deal?" asked Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) on Wednesday night, as he urged his colleagues to allow for votes on amendments.
"This is the Senate. We are expected to make tough votes," said Coburn.
Coburn is right, but that's not the way the Senate operates much of the time, as leaders of both parties have started to shield their members from difficult votes all too often.
Just go back to last year, when Republicans couldn't get a vote on one of their amendments for over three months at one point.
This week, Coburn had a series of budget cutting plans that he wanted to offer to a small business bill, but other Senators made clear they wouldn't allow votes.
The same thing happened to an amendment that would block the EPA from regulating greenhouse gases from Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK).
He's been waiting for a vote on that plan for over three weeks.
Also on the back burner, a plan from Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) that would cut out $200 billion in spending.
It's not going to win - but it's evidently not getting a vote anytime soon, either.
"Not voting on something is the chicken's way out. It is the coward's way out," said Coburn, who argues that with a gigantic deficit, now is not the time to be avoiding difficult choices on spending.
"The adult resolution is to give people their votes, vote on them and go down the road and if you don't agree with them, defend it; if you do agree with it, vote for it. But don't duck on taking a position. That is belying the oath you have being a Senator," Coburn added.
Sounds reasonable enough. But.
This is the Senate.
Things are so gridlocked right now that the Senate went home for the weekend on Thursday night.
Senators did finally agree to hold a vote on a bill that gets rid the 1099 tax reporting requirements in the Obama health law - that will be on Tuesday.
So maybe there's some light at the end of the Senate tunnel.
Then again, this is the Senate.
