The GOP Should Be Mindful Of August And Take Back Up Holding the Line

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  August 8th at 04:46 AM  | 

A funny thing happens each August in Washington. The politicians leave and the press gets bored. It is the August silly season where stories start that sometimes snowball. Monica Lewinsky started around August. The Chandra Levy story started in August. The “does Bush vacation too much” story started around August. The Cindy Sheehan stories started around August/ When the House GOP parked itself on the | Read More »

Only the Tea Party Had a $4 Trillion Plan

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  August 5th at 10:55 PM  | 

Read this: Here was the question to S&P exec John Chambers, and his reply: Q: “There’s been a figure of $4 trillion dollars circulating as an example of the scope of  fiscal consolidation measures that could work to stabilize the U.S. debt-gdp ratios. Could you explain how that figure was arrived at since it was mentioned in S&P’s reports and where it figures in S&P | Read More »

The Necessity of the Fight

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  August 2nd at 04:46 AM  | 

Here’s something no one wants to talk about, whether Republican or Democrat. Well, I should not say no one, but pretty much every Republican and Democrat who participated in the terms of the debate over the debt ceiling has ignored this. Government spending is going above 25% of GDP. Tax revenue, up until the last two years has averaged 18.5% GDP. Let’s give the Democrats, | Read More »

Barack Obama is Keyser Soze

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  August 1st at 06:25 PM  | 

Playing off of Francis’s timely post, I think we should start considering Barack Obama the Keyser Soze of American politics. He’s got the Democrats to take the fall with the base, convinced Obama is an inept negotiator. He’s got the GOP befuddled thinking they’ve had some success. Meanwhile, Obama himself gets several loose ends sewn together that could complicate his re-election, including the debt ceiling, | Read More »

So What’s the Deal With the Deal

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  August 1st at 08:35 AM  | 

Here’s the deal — I think we should hold out till after August 3rd because I think August 2nd is an imaginary deadline. I likewise think the super committee is going to raise taxes — and raise them in a big way. Also, I’m convinced the GOP is lying to itself on this plan. All that said, we’re not going to get a better deal | Read More »

See, We Told You So

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 31st at 01:59 PM  | 

Back in 1994, Rush Limbaugh wrote See I Told You So. From page 88 of the book: [T]he cure for: a) the budget deficit = more taxes; b) unemployment = more taxes; c) recession = more taxes; d) environmental problems = more taxes; e) illiteracy = more taxes; f) L.A. riots = more taxes. It doesn’t matter what the nature of the problem is. This | Read More »

The 22 Who Held the Line

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 30th at 01:09 PM  | 

Here are the 22 heros who defied their House leaders and opposed the Boehner plan. Note that the South Carolina delegation comes out on tops. Its two senators, Jim DeMint and Lindsey Graham, also opposed it. It’s something that South Carolina has more testicular fortitude than Texas. Amash (MI) Bachmann (MN) Broun (GA) Chaffetz (UT) Cravaack (MN) DesJarlais (TN) Duncan (SC) Gowdy (SC) Graves (GA) | Read More »

You Know What Would Be Awesome?

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 30th at 12:51 AM  | 

The problem the GOP has now is that because of where John Boehner led the House, the GOP looks increasingly unwilling to act in a bipartisan way or compromise. Most people are missing the fact that raising the debt ceiling is the compromise, but that is beside the point. Here’s what the House and Senate GOP should do — box the Democrats in. Hold a | Read More »

An Interesting Observation

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 29th at 09:39 PM  | 

As I wrap up what turned out to be 7 hours of radio and 3 of television, let me leave you with an interesting observation from a very wise conservative sage: John Boehner’s flailing performance may actually have a silver lining to conservatives’ advantage. When his plan and the end game blow up in the House Republicans’ face as it surely will, a lot of | Read More »

The Final Fall Back Position

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 29th at 09:17 PM  | 

Talking to a number of folks on the hill today, I think their final fallback — last man on the barricades position — should be this: We’ll give the Democrats a clean debt ceiling increase in exchange for them sending the Lee-Cornyn-Hatch Balanced Budget Amendment to the states. Yeah, it may never happen. But a lot of people said they’d never vote for TARP until | Read More »

It Amazes and Baffles Me

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 29th at 08:34 PM  | 

A week ago, the United States House of Representatives sent a bipartisan measure to the United States Senate where it fell five votes short of a majority. Today, John Boehner sent over legislation that couldn’t even get all the Republicans to support it, didn’t get any Democrats to support it, and will get less support in the Senate than last week’s plan. And now the | Read More »

Suckers

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 29th at 12:24 PM  | 

As I called it. John Boehner now has the votes to pass his plan. Harry Reid just declared that the only compromise that will pass will be his plan. “The only compromise there is — is mine,” he said. Harry Reid will take John Boehner’s plan, insert all the Democrats’ demands, and send it back to the House daring the GOP to kill “the Boehner | Read More »

Barack Obama’s Secret Plan to Save America, Solve the Debt Crisis, and Fight the Freemasons

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 29th at 11:00 AM  | 

Apparently, according to White House Chief of Staff William Daley, Barack Obama has a secret plan to raise the debt ceiling. We’re not allowed to see it. From the transcript with Wolf Blitzer: BLITZER: So what you’re saying is the president did present a plan to the speaker, John Boehner. DALEY: Yes. BLITZER: But – but he didn’t… DALEY: Right. BLITZER: – make it public. | Read More »

The Reality Check

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 29th at 07:47 AM  | 

At some point, whether during the TARP fight or . . . you name it . . . you come to the realization that there really aren’t a lot of friends left around you on the front lines fighting back at what is, for all intents and purposes, what is arguably the side you’re supposed to be on. At that moment, you must perform a | Read More »

The Worst Negotiators

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 29th at 04:46 AM  | 

I cannot decide who the worst negotiators are, Republican leaders or House conservatives. John Boehner’s plan couldn’t get the votes last night so Boehner had to agree to add language conditioning a vote on a balanced budget amendment — an amendment House Republicans said could not pass so there was no reason to pursue Cut, Cap, and Balance. The vote will now be today. The | Read More »

The Three Scenarios (And A Fourth)

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 28th at 12:49 PM  | 

There are three scenarios I see playing out here on the debt ceiling. The least likely scenario is John Boehner’s plan barely makes it through the House and then the Senate Democrats say, “Okay, we’re out of time, let’s do it.” That’s what the GOP is telling themselves will happen. Senator Reid today quashed that idea by saying the Senate will vote tonight to kill | Read More »

More Proof It Is A Trap

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 28th at 10:45 AM  | 

From Mike Allen’s Playbook in the Politico today comes this quote from a “top Democrat”: “The press will obsess about [today's House] vote [on the Boehner Two-Step], but at best it is an exercise in political machismo, at worst it is the beginning of the most irresponsible act in Congressional history. The House bill is dead on arrival in the Senate — at least 58 | Read More »

Our Admiral Ackbar Moment — It Is A Trap

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 28th at 04:46 AM  | 

As you wake up, here is what you need to know. John Boehner thinks he has the votes to pass his third plan out of the House. Work to make sure he does not by going to http://www.redstate.com/action and calling your member of Congress. Tell them to oppose Boehner’s plan. Even if you are sympathetic to Boehner’s plan, here is why it must be killed | Read More »

All You Need To Know About The House Republicans

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 27th at 05:13 PM  | 

One week ago the entire conservative movement was unified behind Cut, Cap, and Balance as was both House and Senate GOP caucus — no small feat to be sure. Then, because Harry Reid denied CCB a vote through a procedural motion, John Boehner produces a crackpot plan that rips the conservative movement apart at the seams and after taking two stabs at it, still can’t | Read More »

The Great Divide

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 27th at 02:36 PM  | 

If you want to stop the GOP from taking a bad deal out of fear, go to http://www.redstate.com/action right now and call your member of Congress to oppose John Boehner’s plan. This morning took an interesting turn of events. First the Wall Street Journal called us hobbits. Then Bill Kristol proclaimed us “pro-Obama.” Then John Boehner told his members to get their “asses in line.” | Read More »