] Occasionally his Democratic questioners engage in long,
] indignant tirades, even though Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr.
] (D-Del.) announces early on that -- despite any
] appearance of hostility -- none of them actually plans to
] vote against Gonzales and they all know he will be
] confirmed.

The decent article about what its like to work in an environment where everyone is full of shit all of the time and they're just rhetorically careful enough about it that its hard to call them on it.

On the Hill, Where It's Hot . . . or Not (washingtonpost.com)