It looked like a lopsided win for the Democrats last week when their civil rights bill passed in the House, 273-158. But looks can be deceiving: the yeas fell 17 votes shy of the 290 (two-thirds of the full House) needed to override President Bush's promised veto. Bush has repeatedly charged that the legislation would encourage racial hiring quotas, though the bill specifically declares job quotas illegal.
The bill was intended to counter a series of Supreme Court decisions that make it more difficult for workers to win job-discrimination lawsuits. Democrats accuse the President of playing racial politics, preferring to flog...