Speaker Boehner Won Tonight

There seems to be some consternation on the deal made between Speaker Boehner, Reid and President Obama.  Many on the right seem to be unhappy about this and are saying that Boehner caved.  Really?  I don't think so. 

While the cuts were less than the right was hoping for, there is great deal to be happy about with this deal. 

There will be an up or down vote on appealing Obamacare on the Senate floor.  23 dem senators are up for re-election next year.  Some of those come from states that are very much against Obamacare.  Clare McCaskill, Ben Nelson, and Joe Manchin just to name three.  They will have to go on the record with a vote.  During his campaign, Manchin repeatedly said he was against Obamacare on the federal level.  He will now have to put his money where is mouth is.  Missouri voted in the last election against mandates and McCaskill has since admitted that the bill needs to be improved.  We all remember what an uproar Nelson caused with his vote for Obamacare.  I am sure none of these people are happy to find out that they are going to have to make this vote.  If they vote yes, they lose their base, if they vote no they lose the independents.  It is a no win vote for them and great fundraising material for their opponents. 

The additional IRS agents that were to be hired to implement Obamacare have been defunded.  This is huge win for the right. 

No public funds for abortion in D.C. 

An up or down vote for funding of Planned Parenthood on the senate floor.  Again, no chance of becoming law, but it will get them on the record. 

The reality is that polls were moving towards the dems favor, almost 40% of the country would have blamed the GOP for the shutdown.  The left was winning the argument when it was framed that they were holding out over funding for Planned Parenthood.  While the majority of the country is now Pro-life they still feel that abortion shouldn't not be illegal.  They are personally against abortion.  People did not want to see the military not getting paid over a very small amount of money in the federal budget that goes to organization that many people do believe offer more services than abortion. 

The GOP has the wiggle room to allow many of the tea party members to vote nay and it still pass comfortably.  Which will help Boehner keep the caucus together. 

The press today coming from the left was full of vitriol with all the comments:

“This is probably one of the worst times we’ve seen because the numbers of people elected to Congress. I went through this as co-chair of the arts caucus,” Slaughter said. “In ’94 people were elected simply to come here to kill the National Endowment for the Arts. Now they’re here to kill women.”



“There is actually a war on women,” the California Democrat said Thursday in Washington, taking aim at House Republicans’ efforts to defund Planned Parenthood and restrict access to abortions, among other measures.



We are absolutely outraged. This is the functional equivalent of bombing innocent civilians,” she said.

“It’s time that the District of Columbia told the Congress to go straight to hell!”

Thank you Speaker Boehner.  You did your job and set the groundwork for the real battles; the debt ceiling and the 12 budget. 
 
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