What a week for those who follow politics. A lot happened. A visit from the Holy See. The White House hosted a China state dinner admidst cyber hacking allegations. Governor Scott Walker suspended his presidential campaign. President Putin of Russia met with President Obama despite fierce animosity over Ukraine and Syria. A looming government shutdown was barely avoided. And the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, announced his retirement and relinquishment of the gavel.
My brain nearly overloaded just writing that. Each event was serious and consequential in its own right. But, by way of tradition, I will be analyzing the one story that highlights the problems of the Republican party. Like a broken record, I know. The truth is: it's just too easy to mock the GOP.
Speaker Boehner was, and is, a conservative. Looking at his record one can see that he followed the Republican platform to a tee. A number of special interest groups ranked him in high regard, i.e. NRA, Pro-Life Groups, Conservative Tax Organizations, you name it. Unfortunately, it isn't enough these days. The party has moved so far to the right, so extreme in its ideology, that no "conservative" can ever vote with, talk to, compromise between, or negotiate with a liberal or Democrat.
Governance is not a goal for the Freedom Caucus, a group of legislators who ascribe to pure conservative principles. Any legislation that relies on a compromise with the opposing party is viewed with suspicion, contempt. It is much more important to make one's conservative views known, even if it involves symbolic, but pointless, parliamentary exercises.
Such is the reality in today's Congress. A splinter in the Republican party has resulted in the resignation of Speaker Boehner. Mr. Boehner knew that he was going to face a fight for his speakership. All because he refused to engage in a tactic that was doomed to fail. The "purest of pure conservatives" wanted to shutdown the government over Planned Parenthood funding. Mr. Boehner did not.
Believe it or not there are still some Republicans who believe that laws must be passed -- like necessary spending bills. They understand the dynamics of having three branches of government, of two chambers in Congress, of the mathematical requirement to override a Presidential veto. Some Republicans think that conservative values can be advanced through compromise and regular order.
I fear that this is only the beginning. On the right side of the political spectrum there is a deep desire for hyperbolic statements or gestures. The rise of Donald Trump, Ben Carson, and Carly Fiorina reflect this. The truth is no longer relevant. Fiorina has double-downed on falsehoods directly to Fox News after being challenged by the friendly-to-Republican network. It is more important to control the narrative rather than surrender to actuality.
The fall of the Speaker of the House was just a symptom of a much larger problem. We have one of the two major political parties unable to function. The GOP now resembles an anarchic insurgent collective. Its mission is to destroy government, not operate within it. John Boehner was not a friend to Democrats, but he will certainly be missed.
