This clip pretty much sums up why the Democrat-controlled Congress is doomed to failure. That said, it's nowhere near as disconcerting as the Bush back-rub.
No, they're doomed to failure because they aren't into the self-vindicating feedback that Republicans are. The family that jerks together, works together.
They're doomed to failure because getting two Democrat senators to agree on anything (let alone pretend to like each other) is like trying to herd cats. I mean, fuck the Republicans and pretty much all their policies, but they get a lot more of their legislation through when they control Congress.
This is the perfect metaphor: an empty and ineffective gesture meant to convey the unity of the Dems, even as the Speaker of the House tries to wrench herself away. Also, her face becomes a Halloween mask at 0:16.