My Pal, Speaker Boehner

I am reading many stories about conservative criticism of Speaker Boehner.

As an original Tea Party patriot, I am sometimes distressed by the actions of other Tea Partiers, who confuse ‘standing on principle’ with winning elections and the need for occasional compromise in a constitutional republic such as ours.

We have the biggest issue in our favor in my memory, Obamacare, heading into the 2014 and 2016 elections, and we have the repeated experience of being blamed for government shutdowns also in our memory.  Why on earth would we endanger that advantage by resisting another debt increase, having a government shutdown, and then give in again?

Kudos to John Boehner for finessing this issue.  Now we have to prevent local Tea Parties from backing terrible candidates like Christine O’Donnell and Sharon Angle, who did us in and snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

The GOP’s flash of brilliance

By Kathleen Parker, February 19, 2014 Washington Post (excerpt)

“Republicans have excelled at concealing their brilliance in recent years, and Democrats have exulted in their good fortune.

Whether discussing women’s reproductive systems or offering up candidates who are not electable — “I am not a witch” might have been a tipoff — Republicans couldn’t stop handing gifts to their opponents. As for tactics, a GOP Trojan horse is . . . a horse. And an Orca project is a whale-fishing expedition.Meanwhile, Democrats successfully labeled the GOP as the “party of no,” assisted by Republicans’ consistent opposition to everything and always flogging their own in an endless war between the party’s wacko birds (Sen. John McCain’s term) and establishment players who were referred to as RINOs (Republicans in Name Only) or Republicrats.

The Democrats weren’t wrong.

But then, President Obama apparently lost his magic ring. The sun broke through the pall of Republican despair, the fires of Mordor ceased and the spell of buffoonery and pettifoggery that had plagued the elephant herd was miraculously lifted.

Congress raised the debt limit without drama; Republican leaders shelved divisive issues such as comprehensive immigration and tax reform and shifted the focus to unifying messages about which RINOs and tea partyers can agree and lock pinkies: Obamacare is a failure and Barack Obama is an imperial president.

In essence, Republicans destroyed the Democrats’ sharpest weapon and absconded with their slogan. No more the party of no, the GOP suddenly is the party of “Yes, we can!”

Quite a transformation, that. And all along the message of House Speaker John Boehner, even though his tea party colleagues, gladiators armed with certitude, couldn’t hear him. Rather than listen to reason, they heard only the whispers of their beloved Wormtongue, whose identity I leave to you, dear reader, in hopes you have read J.R.R. Tolkien.” Washington Post