For Moderates, A Chance for Subtle Protest (washingtonpost.com)

For Moderates, A Chance for Subtle Protest (washingtonpost.com):

"Pity the Republican moderates who sat in the chamber last night for President Bush's State of the Union address.

On issue after issue -- Social Security, same-sex marriage, energy, taxes and lawsuit restrictions -- Bush's rhetoric split the House chamber between the throaty roars of Republican conservatives and the stony silence and occasionally outright heckling of the Democrats. That left the small number of GOP moderates sprinkled among the Republicans with a difficult choice: Would they swallow their concerns and cheer for ideas they considered objectionable? Or would they sit on their hands when their president proposed policies they oppose?

In a clear warning to Bush, several of the moderates took the latter course last night, with subtle but unmistakable protests as the president spoke.

When Bush told the crowd that personal Social Security accounts are the best way to improve the retirement system, most Republican lawmakers leapt to their feet. But a small band of moderates -- including Sens. Olympia J. Snowe (Maine), Susan Collins (Maine), George V. Voinovich (Ohio) and Mike DeWine (Ohio) -- were slow to join the applause. As others felt the pressure to come to their feet, Snowe, who has said she would 'certainly not' support Bush's proposal, remained seated without applauding. She smiled uncomfortably and re-crossed her legs."