John Carney still hoping for a bi-partisan Kum-ba-yah sing along

John Carney still hoping for a bi-partisan Kum-ba-yah sing along

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Just as Republicans live in a Fox News bubble of dis-reality, John carney has his own DC bi-partisan bubble which the simple fact that Republicans are fucking shit up cannot penetrate. As you read this bullshit, keep in mind the fact that John Carney's "Republican friends" all voted for John Boehner to be speaker and continue to support Boehner in his quest to fuck shit up.
When you’ve lost Tom Friedman…..

When you’ve lost Tom Friedman…..

2 Comments
.... you really should just give up everything. On the other hand, I am given some pause when Tom Friedman sounds like me....
What is at stake in this government shutdown forced by a radical Tea Party minority is nothing less than the principle upon which our democracy is based: majority rule. President Obama must not give in to this hostage taking — not just because Obamacare is at stake, but because the future of how we govern ourselves is at stake.
We Don’t Care How Difficult a Bind You are In.

We Don’t Care How Difficult a Bind You are In.

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I keep hearing from Republicans that they really need to be rescued from a crisis from their own making from the Democrats and President Obama. I keep hearing about how much of a bind they are in, and damn it, those meanie Democrats will not help them out. I agree with the Washington Post editorial board:
[By] minimal standards, this Congress is failing. More specifically, the Republican leaders of the House of Representatives are failing. They should fulfill their basic duties to the American people or make way for legislators who will. We don't come to that view as rabid partisans. On many of the issues stalemating Washington, we find plenty of blame to go around. We've criticized President Obama's reluctance to pursue entitlement reform. The last time the country reached the debt ceiling, we urged both sides to compromise on revenue and spending in the interest of long-term fiscal soundness. This time, fiscal responsibility isn't even a topic. Instead, Republicans have shut much of the government in what they had to know was a doomed effort to derail the Affordable Care Act.... Speaker John Boehner, Majority Leader Eric Cantor, Budget Committee chairman and former vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan and their colleagues may be in a difficult political position. Honestly, we don't much care. They need to reopen the government and let it pay its bills.
GOP Shutdown Open Thread, Day 2

GOP Shutdown Open Thread, Day 2

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Jason pointed us to this interview of Robert Costa of the National Review by Ezra Klein. I have been following Costa for the very latest reporting inside the Republican House caucus, and his reports have been some of the best:
EK: How much of this is a Boehner problem and how much of this is a House Republicans problem? Which is to say, if Boehner decided to retire tomorrow, is there another House Republican who has enough trust and allegiance in the conference that he or she could manage the institution more effectively? RC: What we're seeing is the collapse of institutional Republican power. It’s not so much about Boehner. It’s things like the end of earmarks. They move away from Tom DeLay and they think they're improving the House, but now they have nothing to offer their members. The outside groups don't always move votes directly but they create an atmosphere of fear among the members. And so many of these members now live in the conservative world of talk radio and tea party conventions and Fox News invitations. And so the conservative strategy of the moment, no matter how unrealistic it might be, catches fire. The members begin to believe they can achieve things in divided government that most objective observers would believe is impossible. Leaders are dealing with these expectations that wouldn't exist in a normal environment.