At least, the moves the opponents are making appear to be. Their current strategy seems to be to ally with very liberal elements to make the bill so sweeping that a conservative Supreme Court will throw the whole package out. They assume the vast unwashed electorate will be persuaded, by the time the next election rolls around, that it wasn't their fault. If that works they can continue to buy elections in the same old way. A self-perpetuating cycle.
Money gets power gets money gets power etc.
Colin Powell is doing well. Some good ambassadorial appointments, except for the usual and inevitable fat cats in Paris and the Bahamas and so forth. He does seem to be willing to use the Foreign Service the way it is designed to be used. And he has a pretty sensible take on the major issues. But he is not calling the shots.