Looks like the ridicule heaped on Cruz, Lee, and Rubio last week by some big-name, powerful GOPers is having a positive effect ~ the sentence that I emphasized/bolded below puts this all into perspective ~ I have a few "saved to read/post later" commentaries that I neglected to post last week, but I'll get them posted here today ~ Sooz

Rubio, Lee hedge on government-shutdown threats
By Steve Benen - Mon Jul 29, 2013 8:45 AM EDT

An unexpected fight broke out within the Republican Party last week, with a major schism developing over a looming government-shutdown threat. In one corner, we saw Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Mike Lee (R-Utah) convince many on the far-right that they'd rather shut down the government than finance the federal health care system. In the other corner, we saw a whole lot of Republicans who consider the threats absurd.

As of yesterday, the ringleaders appear to be hedging a bit. Rubio wrote an item for a right-wing website this morning, "I didn't come to Washington to shut down the federal government; I came to help bring it back to its proper role." On "Fox News Sunday," Lee didn't sound eager to shut down the government, either.


This clip only shows part of the discussion between the Utah Republican and Chris Wallace, but the transcript is online and it's worth checking out because Mike Lee seemed alarmingly confused about his plan and the policy he claims to be so upset about. Consider this initial pitch from the interview:


As an objective matter, this is largely gibberish. The Affordable Care Act is "unaffordable"? Actually, it drastically reduces the deficit -- the only thing the nation can't afford is repealing the law. Obama isn't "ready to implement this law"? That's demonstrably ridiculous -- implementation is continuing apace, which Republicans are aware of and freaking out about. (Lee may not understand this, but delaying part of an employer mandate provision is not the same thing as failing to implement an entire law.)

And what of the shutdown threat? Lee added, "Look, Chris, we all know that the government is going to get funded. The only question is whether the government gets funded with Obamacare or without it? And what I'm saying is that the president has said he's not ready to implement the law, he said that the law isn't ready for primetime. And so, if he's not ready, if the law is not ready, we can't fund it."

What an odd thing to say out loud and on purpose.

It's genuinely bizarre that Mike Lee went on national television to talk about federal health care law without brushing up on the basics of federal health care law. As the right-wing senator sees it, the president has said he's "not ready to implement the law." Whether Lee is profoundly ignorant or repeating shamelessly dishonest talking points is unclear, but I'm afraid it's one or the other.

That said, if Lee believes "we all know that the government is going to get funded," then his shutdown threat is looking a little hollow.

One more thing: Lee added that "this really isn't about Republican versus Democrat. It's not about liberal or conservative. This is yet another instance of Washington versus everyone else."

Actually, no. This is a group of right-wing lawmakers against their own party, the other party, and the needs of tens of millions of American families.

Some of Lee's conservative colleagues consider Lee's idea "the dumbest idea I've ever heard of." Even Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), who isn't exactly moderate, thinks Lee is wildly on the wrong track.

http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/07/29/19753394-rubio-lee-hedge-on-government-shutdown-threats?lite

he's a liar. Obama said no such thing.

New rule: Lieing in and/or to Congress is a breach of the Oath of Office and is punishable by a) removal from office, and/or b) a fine and/or c) a term in jail.

The same should be considered by our Parliament.

The Cruz/Lee/Paul threat took a beating ... from the GOP ~ the "Terrible Three" showed that "defeating everything Obama" was more important to them than the deeply hurtful effect their suggested "fix" would have on both the 30M real people able to access healthcare thanks to ObamaCare and on the country as a whole ~ Sooz

Tuesday, Aug 6, 2013 06:43 AM CDT
Republicans won’t (and probably can’t) shut down the government
The idea that Mitch McConnell's most recent filibuster is a harbinger of autumn crises doesn't fit the facts.
By Brian Beutler

A few things are for sure: At some point in the near future Congress will pass legislation to fund the government; it won’t defund Obamacare or make sequestration-level spending semi-permanent; and some Republicans will vote for it.

It’s possible there will be a government shutdown between now and then — I wouldn’t bet on it, but it’s possible. And even if a shutdown happens, the impasse will break when Republicans agree to government spending legislation that neither cripples Obamacare nor bakes sequestration into the budget for the coming year and years beyond.

It’s also a good bet that the same group of Senate Republicans who voted for immigration reform and helped confirm President Obama’s top executive nominees will be instrumental in avoiding or ending a government shutdown.

And yet the Senate’s governing coalition is fledgling enough that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was able to overpower it last week when he organized a successful filibuster of bipartisan legislation to fund the Departments of Transportation and Housing & Urban Development for a full year — precisely because it was drafted under the premise that sequestration will probably, eventually, be lifted.

That might seem like a contradiction: If these more moderate Republicans are going to partner with Democrats to fund the government drama-free, why are they mounting filibusters of bills that don’t assume sequestration-level spending forever?

It’s a fair question. And at a glance they don’t appear all that committed to breaking ranks with the GOP over questions of basic governance. But if you were hoping for a total and immediate GOP crackup over the budget, or the debt limit, you’ll be disappointed by the answer.

The idea that McConnell’s filibuster is a harbinger of autumn crises doesn’t really fit the facts. Many, many Senate Republicans — not just the moderates — have made it clear that they won’t use a threat of a government shutdown (or a debt default!) as leverage to take an ax to the Affordable Care Act. Several have telegraphed that they’re comfortable funding the government, even if the fight over sequestration has to be settled later, and they aren’t prepared to threaten the country with a debt default.

Rather, as a demonstration of power, McConnell’s filibuster was pure artifice — a gambit meant to prove that he can still steer his party and win fights for conservatives. It came at the end of a series of defeats, including the confirmation, over his objections, of several key Obama nominees, and the news that he’s facing a well-heeled primary challenger. He needed to put an end to that streak.

And, notably, it came the day after House Republicans gave the lie to their entire budgeting raison d’être, when their own Transportation/HUD bill failed spectacularly. If McConnell’s filibuster had failed, the GOP would have had a real nightmare on its hands — the contrast between the incompetent Republican House and the responsible Democratic Senate would have spoken volumes to voters about where responsibility for the mess in Washington lies.

But just because the filibuster succeeded doesn’t make the victory any less pyrrhic. The path to avoiding a government shutdown still runs through the Senate. And just as was the case when the immigration reform passed, and when Obama got his administrative vacancies filled, it ends with McConnell voting along with the conservatives in his party against funding the government, but unwilling or unable to win their fights for them.

http://www.salon.com/2013/08/06/republican_wont_and_probably_cant_shut_down_the_government/

All show and no go.

The GOP/TPers have morphed themselves into a new version of the Keystone Kops ~ their knee-jerk hateful/dishonest antics would be almost funny ... if there weren't such dire consequences for so many ~ ~ Sooz

GOP leaders fight amongst themselves over shutdown scheme
By Steve Benen - Mon Aug 12, 2013 10:00 AM EDT

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) spent yet another weekend openly mocking congressional Republicans for failing to follow his lead -- he wants a government shutdown unless Democrats agree to defund the federal health care system, and the Texas Republican is furious he doesn't have more establishment allies.

Party elders, by one account, are "increasingly concerned -- alarmed, even -- by" the effort, which has split Republicans into two powerful but divided camps.

Ordinarily, this is the point at which GOP leaders would intervene, take sides, and take steps to resolve the intra-party fight. But in this case, leading Republicans -- House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell -- have sat on their hands and said nothing, refusing to even state an opinion.

It fell to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) to throw some cold water on the shutdown scheme in comments to National Review.


The language is a little clunky, but Cantor apparently believes there aren't enough votes for defunding or repealing the Affordable Care Act, so there's no real point to shutting down the government.

And immediately after Cantor said this, the chairman of the Republican National Committee said largely the opposite.

Greg Sargent flagged Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus making these comments on one of the Sunday shows.


So, on Friday, the House Majority Leader says Republicans don't really intend to shut down the government, and on Sunday, the head of the RNC says if Republicans shut down the government, it's the White House's fault for not meeting Republican demands.

It's a good thing the GOP has its act together, isn't it?

http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/08/12/19988817-gop-leaders-fight-amongst-themselves-over-shutdown-scheme?lite

A potential 30 million (give or take several million) lost votes. That such a silly ideology has overtaken the once-pragmatic Republicans never ceases to amaze me. That's why they need to lie and cheat so much to get any votes at all except from the equally idiotic.

What is so unexpected and somewhat amazing to me is that so many GOP/TPers DO recognize the danger of this and don't want to be part of it ~ they are pulling back for what I see as the wrong reason [they simply don't want the blame], but whatever works is okay w/me ~ there are "live links" to more/corroborating info in the original ~ Sooz

Tuesday, Aug 20, 2013 09:20 AM CDT
GOP prepares to self-destruct over nonsense
The conservative movement seems dead-set on tearing itself apart over "defunding Obamacare," an imaginary gimmick.
By Alex Seitz-Wald

Call it a kamikaze mission, a circular firing squad, or an escalating civil war, but either way, break out the popcorn and grab a seat as the conservative movement tears itself apart over the doomed scheme to shut down the government unless Obamacare is defunded.

Time is running out to stop the law, with a key provision set to go into effect on Oct. 1, so a handful of Tea Party senators led by Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Mike Lee have been engaging in last-ditch brinksmanship to defund it: Refuse to appropriate more money for government operations unless Obama and his fellow Democrats delay the health law. Of course Obama will never do that, but the troika of Republicans are so hell-bent on their plan anyway that they’re accusing their fellow Republicans of ideological treason if they don’t clamor on board the ill-fated fire ship.

And today thing are getting really ugly as outside groups move in with the artillery. The Washington Post’s Aaron Blake reports that Heritage Action, the activist wing of the conservative think tank, along with Tea Party Patriots and another conservative group are starting to run online ads targeting a dozen GOP senators and 100 mostly Republican House members who either oppose or haven’t signed onto the defund-or-shut down effort. The groups are also launching a bus tour to several of the states represented by the targeted senators. Heritage alone is putting up $550,000 for the effort– a major sum for an non-election political ad campaign.

Never mind that staunch conservatives like Sen. Ron Johnson have called the gambit “next to impossible,” or that Republican Sen. Richard Burr called it the “dumbest idea I’ve ever heard of.” The Tea Party’s message remains you’re either with us or against us. Don’t join the defunding effort? That means you support Obama’s health law, they say. It’s like healthcare McCarthyism, with “communism” replaced by “Obamacare.”

Intra-party disputes are common, but rarely do they lead to such ugly and personal attacks on fellow partisans, let alone a half-million bucks in attack ads. Even during the nasty fight over the public option, the most heated intra-Democratic dispute of the Obama era, while progressive groups ran ads targeting Democrats, they weren’t so hard-edged. They encouraged constituents to tell their representative to support the public option, and they targeted key gatekeepers, like Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus.

The Tea Party ads today, meanwhile, call the targeted senators “chickens.” In the public option fight, it was a majority (or near-majority) of liberals applying pressure to a small minority of moderate Democrats who had disproportionate leverage on the outcome. On the Obamacare defunding battle, it’s a minority of hardcore conservatives attacking the majority of conservatives and Republicans because they simply understand the political reality.

“Conservatives [are] doing what they do best: Destroying each other via self-defeating circular firing squad,” sighs conservative writer Guy Benson at TownHall. “It’s counter-productive madness for conservatives to assail each other at a moment when the other side should be profoundly vulnerable. Strategic disagreements are fine. Foolish litmus tests and ultimatums are destructive.”

Even Heritage Action’s deeply skewed and misleading poll, which was meant to show the public supported the defund-or-shutdown effort, found that more Americans would blame Republicans if the government shut down, and that more Americans say Obamacare should be kept in place rather than scrapped all together.

Meanwhile, in reality, the defunding effort is running out of gas. “From the leaders of the GOP establishment to usual tea-party allies, a growing number of Republicans are splitting with movement conservatives,” the National Journal’s Shane Goldmacher reported today. Only 13 senators have signed on (they need 41) and House leaders have splashed cold water on the plan, even hinting that it might cost the GOP its once-bulletproof majority.

Where will this leave things? The safest bet is this: With Obamacare funded, the government open, and a lot of really pissed off conservative grass-roots activists who will be told that their leaders sold them out once again. That should help get Congress working again. Maybe keep the popcorn in the cupboard after all.

http://www.salon.com/2013/08/20/gop_prepares_to_self_destruct_over_nonsense/

What arrogant, irresponsible, self-serving idiots! ~ at what point do GOP/TPer intentionally-damaging acts become prosecutable? ~ ~ Sooz

The nation's full faith and credit is not a 'leverage point'
By Steve Benen - Thu Aug 22, 2013 8:00 AM EDT

About a week ago, National Review's Robert Costa reported that congressional Republicans are considering an incredibly dangerous new plan: they're prepared to hold the nation's debt limit hostage again, creating a crisis comparable to the one we saw in the summer of 2011, unless Democrats agree to take health care benefits away from millions of Americans.

Earlier this week, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), a prominent member of the House Democratic leadership, said he now sees this scenario as likely. And overnight, Reuters reported that another GOP debt-ceiling crisis appears to be on the way.


In other words, as we discussed last week, GOP leaders are effectively prepared to swap one hostage for another. Over the last several weeks, the message from many Republicans has been, "Help us sabotage the federal health care system or we'll shut down the government," but under this alternate scenario, the new threat is, "Help us sabotage the federal health care system or we'll trash the full faith and credit of the United States and crash the global economy on purpose."

As an objective matter, this is nothing short of madness. As Ezra Klein recently put it, "Trading a government shutdown for a debt-ceiling breach is like trading the flu for septic shock. And Boehner knows it. Republicans will effectively be going to the White House and saying, 'Delay the health-care law or we will single-handedly cause an unprecedented and unnecessary global financial crisis that everyone will clearly and correctly blame on us, destroying our party for years to come.' ... This is not a safe way to govern the country."

What's more, the fact that Cantor's office sees this as a "leverage point" says something important about how Republicans perceive their duties to the nation.

The Majority Leader's unnamed aide would probably be loath to admit it, but by framing the debate this way, he or she is making a concession: President Obama and congressional Democrats want what's best for the country; they don't want to see the country needlessly suffer; so when faced with a hostage standoff, Dems will see Republicans holding a gun to Americans' heads and pay the ransom.

In other words, the GOP sees the nation's fiscal duties as a "leverage point" because they assume Democrats are responsible public officials who want to protect Americans from harm. And I suppose that's not a horrible assumption to make.

The question, however, is why Republicans don't see themselves the same way.

In this scenario, we see congressional Republicans, elected by Americans to do what's right for Americans, threatening to cause deliberate harm to the country they ostensibly represent. They're instigating a hostage crisis, and they're the ones holding a gun to the nation's head, threatening to cause a calamity, on purpose, unless millions of Americans lose their health care benefits.

In this morality play, GOP officials aren't just the villains, acting against the best interests of the United States, they knowingly embrace this role. They seem to be saying to themselves, "Obama isn't as reckless as we are, so maybe we'll get what we want by threatening to hurt the country."

Brian Beutler's thesis is that this is an elaborate bluff, and we can all certainly hope that's the case. But the fact that congressional Republicans are even willing to play such a dangerously stupid, radical game reinforces a simple truth: these GOP lawmakers are less a governing party and more a group of intemperate children who like to play with matches.

http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/08/22/20134901-the-nations-full-faith-and-credit-is-not-a-leverage-point?lite

Call them on it.

what they seem to NOT understand is that Obama really has little choice. i mean really: what would the alternative to facing the GOP down look like?

Same ol', same ol'.
He's backed down so far.

I hope Obama doesn't back down or cave in to some of the GOP demands. The GOP has a short term memory.. they should ask Newt how the shutdown went for him.

that was a terrific non-answer. want to try again?

Gee, I dunno how "Call them on it" can be considered a non-answer, but ok.

seemed to be enough of an answer to provoke a non-response from you. but if you are playing tit-for-tat, why not just answer the ORIGINAL question: what choice does he really have?

in other words, Mr. Really Excellent Crystal Ball, what do YOU expect Obama to do (please don't say capitulate. be specific)?

Call their bluff!
Don't give in!
IOW, "Call Them On It"!

so, we both expect him to call their bluff. what are we arguing about again?

And now the "clown retinue" is complete ~ ~ Sooz

TPMLIVEWIRE
Sarah Palin Set To Back Obamacare Defunding Effort
Tom Kludt - 9:59 AM EDT, Tuesday August 27, 2013

Former Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is expected to announce Tuesday that she is joining the likes of Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Rand Paul (R-KY) in the movement to defund Obamacare.

In a statement to be released by the Senate Conservatives Fund and obtained by the Washington Post, Palin will signal that she and her husband, Todd, are backing what Republican leaders on Capitol Hill have rightly branded a quixotic effort.

“This beast must be stopped — by not funding it. Today, Todd and I joined with many of our fellow citizens to urge those in the U.S. Senate to not fund Obamacare," Palin will say in the statement, according to the Post.

The Senate Conservatives Fund, founded by former GOP Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), has recently gone after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) for resisting calls to block any continuing resolution if it provides funding for Obamacare and risk a government shutdown.

McConnell correctly pointed out earlier this month that a government shutdown will not halt the new federal health care law, while House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) stated simply that Republicans lack the votes to make the defunding dream a reality.

There's also the glaring obstacle of persuading President Barack Obama to sign a bill that would effectively gut his signature legislative achievement. But conservatives like Cruz and DeMint, now the president of the Heritage Foundation, have been undeterred by those factors.

DeMint said last week that it's unclear if Obama would sign such a bill, while Cruz assured supporters that the defunding movement "is a fight we can win."

Cruz and Paul are set to participate in a rally next month on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol to promote the defunding effort.

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/sarah-palin-set-to-back-obamacare-defunding-effort?ref=fpb

Pathetic buncha losers, IMO.

As oskar says: "Pathetic buncha losers, IMO." ~ Sooz

There's no Obamacare 'tsunami' on the way
By Steve Benen - Wed Aug 28, 2013 10:12 AM EDT

The far-right campaign to shut down the government unless Democrats agree to defund the federal health care system isn't going well, but Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is undeterred. Asked a few days ago how he intends to win this fight, the Texas Republican said there's a "grass-roots tsunami" on the way that will convince lawmakers to follow his lead.

Cruz is likely to be disappointed. The latest report from the Kaiser Family Foundation asked Americans about defunding the Affordable Care Act, and a clear majority disapprove of the idea.


While a 57% majority oppose cutting off funding, only 36% endorse the Republican scheme. This is consistent with other recent polling that found similar results.

As a rule, "grass-roots tsunamis" are rare when they enjoy the support of barely a third of the country.

Of course, Cruz isn't the only one making fanciful health-care claims. RNC Chairman Reince Priebus recently argued, "People know what Obamacare is."

Looking over the KFF results, it's clear that people really don't know what Obamacare is.

From the report:


In all, 44% of Americans don't realize that the Affordable Care Act is, right now, current law. That's discouraging, to be sure, but it may also have policy consequences -- the system relies on public participation, and if Americans believe the law has been repealed by Congress and/or overturned by the Supreme Court, they may not seek the benefits they're entitled to because they'll assume those benefits aren't actually available.

That said, a growing number of people are seeking additional information about the law and how it might help them. That's bad news for Obamacare's opponents, which tend to rely on little more than public ignorance.

http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/08/28/20231210-theres-no-obamacare-tsunami-on-the-way?lite

Excellent, bull's-eye commentary! ~ personally, I care far less about the "political reality" than I do about the GOP/TPer mindset that denies/rejects morality ~ there are "live links" to more/corroborating info in the original ~ Sooz

The Republican ‘defund Obamacare’ disorder shows their denial of political reality
By Michael Cohen, The Guardian
Sunday, August 25, 2013 13:56 EDT

The Republican party is not in a good place right now. They are historically unpopular (particularly House Republicans); they have no discernible governing agenda; they are under assault from their own supporters; they continue to say stupid things that upset key voting groups … and – guess what? – things are about to get even worse.

Case in point: the ongoing GOP obsession with Obamacare.

It’s now been three and half years since the legislation was signed into law; more than a year since it was upheld by the US supreme court, and nearly 10 months since Mitt Romney, running on a pledge to repeal it, was defeated in the 2012 presidential election. Yet, rather than accept the reality of Obamacare, the GOP’s effort to ensure that millions of Americans are prevented from receiving healthcare coverage and remain forever mired in financial and personal anxiety because of their lack of insurance continues unabated.

How to accomplish that, of course, is the hard part – particularly since Democrats control the Senate and the bill’s namesake is sitting in the Oval Office. Indeed, because of this political reality, Republicans have appeared lately to be putting aside their strategy of shutting down the federal government in October unless Obamacare is defunded.

But don’t pop those champagne corks too soon. Instead, they are now debating the idea of refusing to raise the debt limit in return for a White House agreement to “delay” implementing Obamacare. This is the political equivalent of “we’re not going to hold our breath until we turn blue and collapse now; instead, we’re going to wait a few additional weeks and then we’re going to hold our breath until we turn blue and collapse.”

Now, granted, if the GOP wants to knock themselves out (literally), who are we, as non-crazy and rational people, to stop them? Knock yourself out, GOP!

The problem, however, is that while shutting down the government would be bad for the country and disastrous for the GOP, it’s not the desired political Armageddon. Refusing to raise the debt limit – well, that’s something else altogether. So, instead of holding its breath, collapsing and perhaps suffering a nasty cut, the GOP would prefer to hold its breath, collapse and fall on a plunger – a la Alec Guinness in Bridge on the River Kwai – and blow up the whole goddamn bridge. (In this analogy, the bridge is a stand-in for the US economy.)

In fact, it’s hard to imagine a greater self-inflicted wound that Congress could impose on the nation than not raising debt limit. It would put at risk the full faith and credit of the United States and do grievous harm to the US economy.

The GOP’s new “defund Obamacare” strategy actually increases this terrifying possibility. By avoiding a government shutdown in October, Republicans will dodge the immediate political minefield of their own making. But at the same time, if Republicans agree to pass a budget and keep the government up-and-running (while getting nothing in return from the White House), it will further increase the pressure on the Republican leadership of Speaker John Boehner and Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell to get something, anything, out of the White House when the debt limit ceiling needs to be raised.

The problem, of course, is that the President Obama has made clear he has no intention of negotiating over the debt limit – a mistake he made in the summer of 2011 that he dares not repeat again. That immovable obstacle makes the GOP’s efforts to defund Obamacare a largely fruitless exercise.

Democrats aren’t going to deal and they know (or, at least, strongly assume) that Republicans will give in eventually – and they are probably right. The GOP has negotiated itself into a completely untenable position: namely, one in which the last hostage they can take (the debt limit) they have no real intention of killing and no real interest in doing so.

Of course, that doesn’t mean they won’t shoot the hostage by accident or out of rank, careless stupidity. That’s what makes this game so dangerous. But for Republicans, the danger is even greater – because while debt default can perhaps be avoided long-term, catastrophic damage to the GOP likely cannot. If Republicans let the nation default on its debt, they will pay a very heavy political price for doing so. It is almost certain that the American public will hold the GOP responsible.

But if Republicans give in on the debt limit/defund Obamacare strategy, they will not only have failed to stop Obamacare this fall, but they will also have failed to stop Obamacare, period. The law’s healthcare exchanges go into effect 1 October, and the law becomes fully enacted on 1 January 2014. Once that occurs, the train will have left the station and there will be no turning back.

For those Americans who can’t get health insurance or have an ounce of social empathy for their fellow citizens, this is an altogether good thing. For Republicans, it will be yet another sign of their impotence and their failure as a political party. And it will be made worse if Boehner and McConnell are forced to rely on Democratic votes to pass a clean debt limit extension.

The incandescent rage from Tea Partiers at yet another bout of failed brinkmanship will not be directed at Obama; it will be directed at their own leaders.

It’s already happening. This week, Tennessee Senator Lamar Alexander joined Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell in finding himself under assault from a Tea Party primary challenge. Alexander is hardly a moderate (he even penned an op-ed this week defending his conservative bonafides), but in the increasingly radicalized GOP, he’s considered something of a Rino (Republican In Name Only). His crime: an apparent willingness to seek “compromise” with Democrats.

At the same time, conservative groups are now funding ad campaigns against Republicans in both the House and Senate for refusing to embrace the Tea Party’s suicidal defund Obamacare strategy. For Republicans who are in safe seats or in red states the biggest threat they face today is not from Democrats, but from their own supporters – and even more directly, from potential primary challenges. Considering how many “establishment Republicans” have lost Senate and House primaries to outside-the-mainstream Tea Party candidates in the past two election cycles, this is no idle threat.

So, while this intra-party challenge reduces the desire of Republicans compromise, it also makes them that much more vulnerable politically when they are forced to do so. It’s not difficult to imagine that when the smoke clears from this fall’s budget showdown and debt limit hostage-taking that Republicans will find themselves mired in full-scale civil war with Tea Party radicals who are even further emboldened to push their no-compromise agenda on the party.

Keep in mind, that’s the best possible outcome for Republicans. The worst one is that they blow up the US economy.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/08/25/the-republican-defund-obamacare-disorder-shows-their-denial-of-political-reality/

The GOP slept with the dogs. Now they're unhappy that they have fleas.

someone pointed out a couple of years ago that when you identify the policies of the opposition as EVIL, there is no room for governing any more. that is what is going on, here.