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The Spectacle Blog
The other day, over at Powerline Steven Hayward took issue with Peter Ferrara’s excellent piece in The American Spectator on the need to replace Speaker Boehner.
Hayward makes the case for Boehner…a case that is essentially refuted yet again this morning by the Heritage Foundation in a Morning Bell missive that begins:
House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Republican leaders have done it once again. Their latest fiscal cliff proposal capitulates on core conservative principles, yielding woefully inadequate concessions from President Obama in the process. Will they ever learn?
Apparently not. What in the world is going on with Paul Ryan?
But I digress.
What Hayward ignores (and for the record, Steve Hayward is a biographer of the Reagan era) is that Reagan had the political clout to get House votes from Democrats. Today, Obama has little chance of getting House GOP votes. These are apples and oranges situations. Obama could sit there all day trying to be Reagan by studiously making phone calls to opposite party House members… and hell will freeze over before they go with Obama, at least in the vast majority of circumstances.
Hayward also forgets one other thing. In the middle of all this in March 1981 RR was shot. By the time he returned to the podium in the House to press his case he was seen as a national hero for surviving Hinckley with such courageous and humorous aplomb. By then, added to his genuine mandate from the election, enough House Democrats just threw in the towel.
But while some Democrats did indeed despair about O’Neill, O’Neill was popular with his base precisely because he never gave up in his fight with Reagan. By the fall of 1982, at the height of the recession the GOP went straight at O’Neill with one ad in particular… …this one. Notably, it didn’t work. The GOP got clobbered in 1982. Tip was a pretty popular guy with Democrats.
Boehner’s problem is that he is doing with Obama exactly what Tip O’Neill refused to do with Reagan. Which is to say — caving on fundamental principle.
This is why Peter Ferrara was so spot on in his criticism of Boehner and why there is a felt need to replace the Speaker.
In short, Peter Ferrrara gets it. Steve Hayward, alas, does not. Not to mention John Boehner.
Perhaps Hayward should go back and read his own books?
View all comments (9) | Leave a comment
More Blog Posts by Jeffrey Lord
http://spectator.org/blog/2012/12/18/steven-hayward-wrongpeter-ferr
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mike 3/505| 12.18.12 @ 2:23PM
Mr Lord,
Complete, concise & spot on. Stay with that style!
Regards,
Mike
Mike W| 12.18.12 @ 2:30PM
Mr. Lord has been the best on this site since the election. Since O got re-elected it appears as if most of the bloggers/writers here are more concerned with baseball than what happens with D.C.
sockmonkey| 12.18.12 @ 2:35PM
Jeff, what do you think is going on with Ryan?
Mike G| 12.18.12 @ 4:06PM
And the latest from Boehner is insane. What was he thinking, you ask?
Boehner speaking to himself: "Self, the President simply isn't offering enough spending cuts to make an agreement possible on this fiscal cliff. It looks as if he simply wants to raise taxes and keep spending, spending, spending. I wonder what I can do to avoid the fiscal cliff? Hmmm. Wait, I know! Here's what I'll do. I'll pass a bill that gives the President tax increases, and I won't include any spending cuts in it. That'll fix the President!"
And then Obama rejects the idea? What kind of dance are these two buffoons doing? I can only suppose Obama is trying reverse psychology in an effort to get Boehner to pass the bill in a hurry.
Boehner has to go!
RJ| 12.18.12 @ 5:19PM
It is truly depressing to listen to Boehner as the voice of the loyal opposition. He is an enabler for the collectivist state. I am against forming a third party, but based on his actions against fiscally responsible GOP Congressmen last week, it may no longer be avoidable. The GOP establishment/leadership seems committed to accommodating the defeat of limited government and personal freedom.
Martin kzovich| 12.19.12 @ 7:09AM
If by now Boehner does not get that Obama is not only not "negotiating"--(if that word actually applies-more like toying with him--) in bad faith if there is any kind of faith at all then Boehner is beyond help.
JP| 12.19.12 @ 9:25AM
Mr Lord is correct on all counts. Additonally, 2013 is looking more and more like 1937. In 1937 the affects of FDR's economic, social and political programs finally came home to roost. Union violence exploded across the nation, business leaders took their money and went to the side lines (the famous Capital Strike), and the nation fell into chaos and recession. The GOP in 1937 was just as inffectual as it is today. The GOP occupied only 77 House seats. In 1938 they would re-capture 80 seats
A month ago, Boehner should have forced a House Bill that would close loopholes and trim a half trillion off the 2013 budget. Then he should have adjounred the House for the remainder of the year and went home. This is Obama's and Reid's budget and their economy. The broke it; let them fix it.
N8tivTxn| 12.20.12 @ 9:54AM
... in the middle of all this... RR was shot. By the time he returned to the podium in the House... he was seen as a national hero for surviving Hinkley with such courageous and humorous aplomb.
Good grief, don't give those empty-headed commie freaks in the regime any "ideas"...
Kingofthenet| 12.20.12 @ 11:01AM
I never heard of this Steven Hayward, Now I do know the good Dr.Hawood Jablowme.