John Boehner is a good man. But his anger, while justified, engenders no sympathy from me. He hollered the following, thumping the podium:
Boehner said the bill was necessary “after I stuck my neck out a mile trying to get an agreement with the president of the United States.”
“But a lot of people in this town can never say yes. This house has acted and it is time for this administration to put something on the table, tell us where you are.”
There he is, angry that he has no idea what constitutes the negotiating position of the Democrats. Angry and alone, unable to see his opponent, he now feels that outrage will bring them to heel. It will not.
The problem is that he has been played for a fool, in exactly the way that conservatives told him he would be. And that is why we are in turn so angry. This whole shameful fiasco of surrender and defeat was predicted and avoidable. This White House negotiates not in the manner of Bill Clinton or even Harry Reid, but of Yasser Arafat. They have been offered everything except the complete destruction of the nation, and they walk away. John Boehner has just had his Camp David moment.
Speaker Boehner, this is why the Tea Party still says to the GOP: Join or be destroyed. It’s not a threat, you ninnies, it’s a rescue.
