Discussion: 5 Points On The Nightmare Paul Ryan Faces Even If The GOP Keeps The House

[daveyjones64]

I agree…and this one will be,even more than before, a huge show in incompetence of the basics of running the House. Because I’ve not even seen a story about how Ryan is maneuvering things to get a budget passed. I know he has two months to go…but still, trying to fit the entire years budget into the two weeks following the election will be a disaster.

I forsee another continuing resolution, and a press that will completely ignore how Ryan has renegged on every aspect of the framework agreed to last year. And even a CR will be an uphill fight for him.

[professorpoopypants]

Bravo! Another tour de force. And I agree with scottlumry, an essay of this quality deserves a wider audience.

[maximus]

You can’t believe the number of Hillary-haters I have to deal with on a daily basis.

I think I’ll run off a couple hundred copies of this, and mail them off (with no return address).

Eloquently stated!

[maximus]

Hey Josh, how about a prominent posting of this on TPM?

[professorpoopypants]

our local newspaper, the Natchitoches Crimes

Just curious, is that a typo, or a nickname for your local paper?

[professorpoopypants]

Hey Josh, how about a prominent posting of this on TPM?

I doubt Josh reads most of these threads, but you could try e-mailing him...talk@talkingpointsmemo.com

Not sure I’ve ever seen Josh quote a comment from a comment thread, but he does often post reader e-mails, or portions of them, in his EdBlog.

[paulw]

It’s too bad that it’s mostly the “moderate” republicans who will lose their seats in a democratic wave, because otherwise you could see a realignment that was (roughly) 200 democrats, 100 sane republicans and 135 nutbars who would have to go off and caucus by themselves.

[randyabraham]

Thank you, professorpoopypants.

[randyabraham]

Thank you, maximus.

[leftflank]

Ryan adopted the nightmare and has had it since day one.
Is the thought that he’s accomplishing things now, because he isn’t. The goofy ass freedom caucus still looms large in the house and Ryan teeters constantly at not enflaming them.

5 points may be an improvement IOW.

[jackster]

Paulie is really not up to the job. He’s depended on his looks and charm for to long. There’s this perception that he’s an intellectual policy wonk, but he’s as empty as a frat house beer keg at midnight. Anyone who actually believes that Ayn Rand was some kind of prophet is a delusional fuck.

[professorpoopypants]

We have a great big shutdown problem barreling along at us full speed, and nobody seems to be looking up from election coverage to notice it.

Wow, I didn’t realize that (or had forgot). So at the conclusion of the last round of budgetary posturing and debt-ceiling wrestling, they didn’t at least punt it past the election? Is that because the Freedom Caucus folks still think budget brinksmanship, government shutdowns, and threats to default on our national debt somehow play in their favor? Or was the timing for the next round of budgetary chaos just kind of a ticking timebomb left by Boehner on his way out the door, a big “FU” to those who had forced him out?

[emilianoelmexicano]

Thank you for the compliment, and yes, I will be happy to cooperate with your local newspaper if they choose to run my letter. If they have questions or need to contact me directly, you may feel free to contact me by private messaging via this site. Just click on my name or avatar and you will see a tab that you can click on to send me a private message.

Thanks again for the compliment.

I am in awe, my friend. And I will pass your piece along to every Spanish-speaking person I can.

[randyabraham]

Thank you, emiliano.

[professorpoopypants]

I cannot imagine the thinking that goes, “I can’'t vote for Trump, but I will give him a Republican Congress to work with.”

I’m not sure what goes into a decision like that really qualifies as “thinking.”

But on the issue of ticket-splitting, while the trend has been away from ticket-splitting, I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw a significant up-tick in it this year, even if that turns out to be just for this one year, and mostly attributable to Trump.

The actual “thinking” of some of my anti-Trump Republican relatives, who will nonetheless vote Republican in Congressional races, is that they’d actually rather see Hillary win than see Trump become president and have the GOP brand even more inextricably linked to Trump, and even more damaged by an actual (and probably disastrous) Trump presidency. And they think Trump will lose anyway. So they’re looking at 4-8 years of a Hillary presidency, and they desperately want the GOP to hold the House, and if possible the Senate, in order to be able to continue to obstruct. In that sense, their “thinking” is pretty straightforward, though obviously wrongheaded from my point of view.

[osage1948]

THE GOP ALAMO

The only recourse for establishment Republicans is to hunker down and hope for a miracle. They are fighting a battle they cannot win. Imagine the Alamo where those inside could only see a small portion of the overwhelming number of troops amassing around them.

[randyabraham]

Yes, that’s what I’ve heard from my Republican relatives: cut Trump loose, but otherwise vote straight Republican.

[magari]

Bravissimo! This deserves a much wider audience. Thank you!

[professorpoopypants]

Same here, though there are also several who seem to be so disgusted with Trump (and with Hillary, of course), and aren’t the most reliable voters to begin with, who I suspect will just not bother to vote at all.

[maximus]

Yes, indeed.