Mitch McConnell’s mission: Degrade and destroy the Obama presidency

[applegrove]

Mitch McConnell’s mission: Degrade and destroy the Obama presidency

by Paul Waldman, the Plumb Line at the Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2014/11/10/mitch-mcconnells-mission-derade-and-destroy-the-obama-presidency/

"SNIP.......................

What Republicans are now arguing about is whether they should try to use the budget procedure known as reconciliation to repeal the ACA. Reconciliation, which is used for budget bills, circumvents filibusters and therefore requires only a 51-vote majority. The problem is that it’s extremely complex and can only be used on some parts of the law. But the conservatives advocating it — both inside Congress from people like Ted Cruz, and outside from groups like Heritage Action — aren’t concerned with such details.

McConnell has offered conflicting signals on whether he will ultimately go that route. And this gets at the core difference between him and conservatives: They want to storm the gates of the Obama presidency, even in a suicide mission, while McConnell would much rather try to weaken the walls little by little until the edifice crumbles.

So imagine two different repeal proposals. One occurs through the regular process. It passes in the House, just as it has fifty times before. When it moves through the Senate, Democrats filibuster it and it dies. McConnell would then say to his party, “Okay, we did that. Everybody had the chance to vote on full repeal. Now let’s go through the law, provision by provision, and see what we might be able to undo for real.”

The second scenario goes like this: the Senate somehow manages to attach a full repeal to a budget bill and pass it through reconciliation. It goes to President Obama, who vetoes it. We then arrive at the same point.






.........................SNIP"

[still_one]

1. With congress have the lowest popularity in years they have no mandate, and will self-destruct

If they try to pull these games

[applegrove]

2. I look forward to seeing Obama veto/obstruct them at every turn.

[still_one]

4. I hope so if they try to pull this garbage

[Laura PourMeADrink]

3. Excellent article ! Thanks A. If we can't actually make

things happen -- it will be interesting to see how the next two years play out. I am hoping they act batshit crazy. (however, they have been acting that way and people voted them in)

[Cha]

5. Yes.. "but, the President wanted

this "

[LostInAnomie]

6. Obama needs to come out early and tell the Repubs that fucking with any part of the ACA...

... will be an automatic veto. No matter how slight the change it gets vetoed. He's got nothing to lose.