From all indications and in under a month, it looks like the current congressional GOP, even though they've gained power in both houses and promised better days when they officially took control of the 114th Congress, still seeks to achieve success through prior means: cowardice.
So just in case you still don't get it in terms of what all this means, let me be clear: We've once again been LIED TO by congressional Republicans. This time about what's gonna be done about Obama's unconstitutional executive amnesty...obviously, nothing but theater.RedState: ...As literally anyone could have predicted (and as we predicted here numerous times), the Congressional GOP has already signaled its intent to pre-emptively fold on Obama’s executive amnesty, even though they swore up and down they were going to fight this thing tooth and nail once they had control of Congress. The GOP’s cowardly capitulation on a popular abortion bill on the eve of the March for Life has also been well documented. And that is to say nothing of Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND)‘s embarrassing own goal on climate change with respect to the Keystone Pipeline bill.
We’re about two minutes into the new Congress and already the tactics of GOP leadership are clear: keep their heads down. Avoid any controversial votes. Throw some red meat to the base without risking any votes that could actually put them on the record or stop Obama from accomplishing everything he wants to accomplish. Pull any controversial votes that look like they might pass. Let Obama take the blame for a bunch of stuff that they frankly want to happen anyway.
All this having been accomplished, they will then come back to us in 2016, shrug their shoulders, put on their best “aw, shucks” grin and say, “Well, not a lot we could have done with that crazy Obama in the White House, now give us some more money and send us some more Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-NC)es back to Congress!”
The Republicans in Congress think they can grow their majority – just for the sake of having a bigger one, not for the sake of doing anything with it, mind you – by being afraid and by trying to foster that fear among the base. What they clearly don’t do, or at least don’t do enough, is fear the voters they need to have any chance of winning. They are, by temperament, cowards. And the only way you can succeed with a coward is to make him more afraid of you than the other guy.
But somehow they still suppose that keeping up this cowardice and lying over the next few years will somehow maintain their congressional power while winning the White House back? A few words for that come to mind. None good.RedState: So back at the end of 2014, a lot of people pooh poohed the idea that the fight over executive amnesty would have to happen then or not at all. Many so-called “reasonable Republicans” insisted that this was the wrong time to hold the GOP’s feet to the fire. “Wait until next year,” they said. “Wait until the GOP actually has control of both chambers. Then, you see, they will do something.” And indeed that is exactly what McConnell and Boehner promised. By punting the funding question for the entire government down the road until September, they swore up and down that they were going to stand and fight come February when it came time to fund DHS.
In the least surprising development in all of human history, February is now around the corner, and Boehner and McConnell are folding like cheap suits...
Just in case you were keeping score, none of what is described here does anything to defund DHS. A lawsuit will likely have little or no effect and will take years to come to fruition. Any new border bill that is any way tough will be vetoed by Obama, even if we suppose that McConnell can find 5 Democrat votes to get it past Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV). Defunding DHS – their promised solution – has been completely taken off the table...
Make no mistake, however: this is exactly what Boehner and McConnell wanted all along. They wanted Obama to take the heat with the conservative base for a policy that they actually support. So they are mounting at every step of the way what has been obviously fake and token opposition to Obama’s plan. And at the end of the day they are going to throw up their hands and say “Aw, shucks, nothing we could have done here, Obama held all the cards!”
This exact scenario that we are seeing unfold was what was predicted here at RedState and in other places all along. And no Republican voter should be deceived into thinking it wasn’t the plan all along.
Related link: Republican leaders look for escape plan on immigration
