And thus it begins. The Senate has successfully brought debate on the immigration reform bill that's been taking up all of the non-scandal news cycle these days.

We have some thoughtful legislative questions in this week's Mailbag, as well as yet another "behind the scenes" look about the inner workings of the Blue.

The American people disagree with the war. The Baker Commission disagrees with the war. Retired generals disagree with the war. The British are no longer even willing to acknowledge that this is a war in the first place. Yet George W. continues to insist on putting more effort into a failed cause and sending more troops into harm's way. Is there anyone he'll listen to?

How about the Iraqi parliament?

In case you haven't hit the news circuits in a week or so, the buzz at the pink dome is all about a possible motion in the House to vacate the chair.

We open this week's Mailbag with a rare, behind the scenes look at the inner workings of the Texas Blue.

Poor Paul Wolfowitz can't seem to get a break. He's practically pushed Alberto Gonzales off the news radar today — and as we can all imagine, that's saying quite a bit.

Welcome back to our newest feature, the Texas Blue Mailbag! For those of you that missed the first-ever Mailbag last week, this is where we take the opportunity to answer the emails you, our readers, send us, your humble editors. Send your questions or comments to info@thetexasblue.com, and we'll put it in the next edition of the Mailbag along with some witty, yet insightful, commentary. (Or perhaps I'll reply instead — who knows?)

So apparently yet another investigation has started on whether the Justice Department acted for partisan gain in replacing eight U.S. attorneys without warning. The new investigation is being led by the Justice Department.

Huh?

The trust problems that those at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue have created for themselves with their unique blend of incompetence and hubris do not seem to be going away. Worrying about whether the U.S. Attorney firings were linked to investigations of Republicans is no longer de rigueur — Gonzo's "no, I didn't" versus the Justice Department emails' "yes, he did" is old news. Now, all the hip journalists are talking about whether the prosecutors who were retained were asked to go after Democrats.

OK, I think I'm ready to start liveblogging what may be one of the best televised debates in the last 25 years. In true In The Pink Texas fashion, I've set myself up with a big screen TV and a good beer or three. Won't be doing any beer reviews here, though — got to go to ITPT for that; they do that much better than I.