There are conflicting opinions about who won what in the “fiscal cliff” deal. But there is no doubt that the Republican Civil War is on full display. Witness a testy John Boehner who told Harry Reid to “Go f*#k yourself” twice last Friday.
Eric Cantor said as much to Boehner by voting against the bill – the latest reminder that he stands ready to lead mutinous tea partiers when they’ve sniffed enough of the Speaker’s blood. The President says there will be no compromise on the debt limit, but Cantor wants concessions. Can Boehner last another round in between?
Then, after adjournment, Boehner sustained one of the most vicious intraparty one-two punches in memory. New York Congressman Peter King and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie were upset (with good reason) that the Sandy supplemental aid bill was not even put before the House.
King said it was “a betrayal of trust” and that the party had “turned its back on the people.” He vowed that New York would no longer be a piggy bank for GOP candidates.
Christie named names: “There’s only one group to blame … the House majority, and their Speaker, John Boehner.”
The Speaker quickly scheduled a vote for Friday, which then enraged a plethora of right-wing groups such as Americans for Prosperity who want the cash drawer locked.
King went beyond advocating help for his district and addressed the underlying GOP conundrum. This is another reason, he said, why the party cannot compete in the Northeast.
He’s correct. And nothing is going to change.
To hardcore righties who already blame “moderates” McCain and Romney for eight years of Obama, King and Christie can go f*#k themselves. Their brand of Ideology bears no fruit of practical politics.
In the Midwest, Republicans have placed their competitive chips on union busting. But that has backfired. It will turn the region even bluer. Reagan Democrats, many of them union members, are far less likely to be bought off these days by “gays” and “abortion.”
In the West, New Mexico, Colorado and Nevada have already joined “the left coast,” and the Hispanic vote will soon add more territory to the Democratic column.
Which is to say there is no way out for Republicans, except to leave the old, white, evangelical South behind. But without a toehold in any other region, that would be suicide.
Lyndon Johnson made the calculation that he could lose the South and keep enough of the New Deal coalition intact to keep Democrats competitive. Listen to his phone calls with party leaders concerning the Mississippi delegate controversy at the 1964 convention, and you’ll hear his political genius.
LBJ has no realpolitik peer in today’s Republican Party. Theirs is a roster of petulant lightweights.
It’s enough to make a Speaker cuss. Or cry.
So glad you are up and running. Very nice to have the issues synthesized into such consise and insightful points.
Where is the pic from?
Carl:
I understand that I am likely to get hammered over my Republican party membership, but that’s okay, since it’s just a label that the system placed upon me in 1969 (when I registered and there was no Socialist Republican category). It has, at times, been an advantage or a curse. In any regard, I have witnessed much since I cast my first vote – Shirley Chisholm.
I am in agreement with John about your essay – clear and compelling. The risks that LBJ took, however, need to be placed in contrast to the sheer idiocy of the Democratic Party – until recently – where it comes to remembering its true base, the worker, and, certainly inferred from that, the unions. While the Republicans have shifted their identity, from business and management to corporate and accounting (the latter, admittedly, only when opportune), the Democratic Party either forgot, ignored, or took for granted the strengths of the fundamentals of the Master Contract – when times are good, all share in its benefits; when times are bad, everyone tightens their belts and gets through together. Thankfully, the Dems have since found their way back on the path.
In either instance, what must be emphasized is that it boils down to an integrity of principled relationships. The Republicans are remiss in one strong regard: they assume that, if the label “business” is placed on anything – issue, identity, or action – then this will suffice, without question, and get past the heart of what small businesses seek, real economic solutions that speak to revival of our industry, infrastructure, jobs, and security. In this regard, they are duplicating the same mistakes that the Democratic Party made with their labor base.
The fiscal cliff is but one symptom.
Good essay, Carl. That’s the clearest explanation of the GOP dilemma I’ve seen.
Why is Boehner crying? Instead, the US citizens should be the ones crying because of him and his right- wing friends in the House.