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Human
Events...
This is What Happens
When Republicans Get Milquetoast
by Erick Erickson
03/15/2011
There is new polling out today making its way around the bathrooms of
House and Senate Republican leaders. After weeks and weeks of bending
over backwards to try to show they were willing to compromise on
everything, guess what?
The public thinks the GOP hasn’t been compromising enough.
Perceived non-cooperation on the budget deficit is one problem for the
Republicans in Congress. Seventy-one percent say the GOP is not willing
enough to compromise with Obama on the deficit; that even includes 42
percent of Republicans. Fifty-two percent overall also say Obama isn’t
willing enough to compromise — still a majority, but a substantially
smaller one. (Indeed, 30 percent call Obama “too willing” to make
peace; half as many say that about the GOP.)
It follows that on another measure, the public by a 14-point margin
says it’s more apt to hold the Republicans than Obama responsible if
the budget impasse forces a partial government shutdown. (Then again,
three in 10 also say a partial shutdown would be a good thing.)
House Republican Leaders who are more concerned with image than
principle are going to fall all over themselves with this polling in a
rush to compromise more. Here’s the problem I see.
House Republicans have been muddying the water so much since November
and painting their policy positions in pale pastels. The public voted
in November with bright colors — mostly in red. The public wants
Washington to stop its profligate spending. The public wants bright
colors, not pastels.
But House Republicans are too scared of their own shadow to both lead
and fight. They had to be bullied by their base to actually cut
significantly and then, instead of fighting the Senate on the cuts,
decided to do more short term continuing resolutions to avoid a fight.
For months, Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan, John Boehner, etc. have been in
full Henny Penny mode making sure everyone knows the sky is falling,
but that they will not, under any circumstance, shut down the
government or do anything significant to avert the crisis.
And yet . . . and yet, by 14 points, the public is going to blame the
GOP for a shut down. Clearly, the House GOP strategy is failing. Saying
the sky is falling, but then not doing anything about it really is not
what any reasonable person could call a winning strategy.
The public hates losers. Right now, House Republicans are looking like
losers. House Republicans will look at this polling and decide they
need to be even more accommodating of Democrats. They should look at
this polling and realize it is time to lead. Their accommodationist,
non-confrontational strategy is losing them the public that wanted them
to cut spending.
I look at these numbers and see House Republicans needing to finally
draw a line in the sand, say enough is enough, and lead. As long as the
Republicans are being milquetoast on spending and the budget, the
Democrats will seen the polling benefits.
John Boehner, it is time to lead. It is time for a real budget plan. It
is time to stop squandering opportunities for reform by passing short
term continuing resolutions.
Read it at Human Events
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