Democrats going along with the Republicans

This report in today's NY Times deeply troubles me:

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 — The Bush administration’s proposal to bring leading terrorism suspects before military tribunals met stiff resistance Thursday from key Republicans and top military lawyers who said some provisions would not withstand legal scrutiny or do enough to repair the nation’s tarnished reputation internationally.

Democrats, meanwhile, said they were inclined to go along with Senate Republicans drafting an alternative to the White House plan, one that would allow defendants more rights.

"Go along with the Senate Republicans?" From what I can tell, the Democrats are still frightened to death by Bush's scare tactics and have gone into hiding once again. Perhaps this will pay off politically by letting the Republicans take the wind out of Bush's sail, but you can never trust these Republicans. They'll end up with a poison pill in this bill if they're the only ones negotiating with the White House.