Coons and Menendez betrayed the Democratic Party, maybe now the press can get it right?

As noted in Thursday's snapshot and today's snapshot, Senator Tom Udall and Chris Murphy were betrayed by two Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

For reasons that only the lazy ass press can explain, they all turned in a 'report' on how Senator Rand Paul, a Republican, broke with Republicans to vote for Udall's amendment to HR 31 (HR 31 is the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019 -- Tom and Rand voted against HR 31, it passed on a 20 to 2 vote).

This took place Wednesday, May 22nd at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's business meeting.  HR 31 was "agreed to by a vote of 20 to 2" (friend on the Committee).  The 13 to 9 vote was against Udall's Amendment ("PROHIBITION OF UNAUTHORIZED MILITARY OPERATIONS IN OR AGAINST IRAN"  -- click here to read it).

The media rightly reported that Senator Rand Paul broke ranks with his party to vote for Udall's amendment.  What they failed to report was that Democratic Senators Robert Menendez and Chris Coons voted against it.

Here are the two betrayers:

Chris Coons

Democrat
Delaware                               

Ranking Member

Robert “Bob” Menendez

Democrat
New Jersey

ex officio, Subcommittee on Europe and Regional Security Cooperation

Let's repeat what Menendez and Coons voted against: "PROHIBITION OF UNAUTHORIZED MILITARY OPERATIONS IN OR AGAINST IRAN."

Both Democratic senators refused to say, "No, Donald Trump, you cannot have a war against Iran without getting Congressional approval as the Constitution requires."

So they not only betrayed the other Democrats on the Committee, they betrayed the oath they took the defend the Constitution, they betrayed all around.

The story was never "One Republican votes with Democrats!"  The story was always "Two Democrats broke with their party!"

If the 'reporters' who covered this at THE HILL, ROLL CALL, THINK PROGRESS and others had done their job correctly, they would have known that.  In her awful THINK PROGRESS piece, Adrienne Mahsa Varkiani maintains, "The failed vote has worrying implications, given the growing drumbeat of war from the Trump administration."  I happen to agree with that.  And that is exactly why her noting all Republicans except Rand Paul voted against it and refusing to note that two Democrats-- Menendez and Coons -- also voted against it is so offensive and appalling.

By simple numerics, 2 voting against their party was a bigger story than one  (Rand Paul) voting against their party.  Everyone who covered this -- who miscovered it -- needs to ask themselves why they got it wrong.