To broaden our aperture, the true believers in each party always thinks that. Republicans think they lost the White House to Obama twice because they didn’t field a “true conservative.”
Democrats consistently think that one of the shortcomings of the party is that it doesn’t embrace progressives – thus all the nonsense about how Bernie Sanders has a shot at the White House if he can survive the dreaded power brokers at the DNC.
He faced the same challenge two years ago, with a smaller majority, hence needing fewer votes. He’s still Speaker, at least in name.
Part of the deal is that, as you point out, he has to throw red meat to the base. In this case, that likely extends to not trying to get anyone to sign on to a CR that includes PP funding until the government’s been shut down long enough that GOP House members’ constituents are getting upset and simply want things to go back to normal, and screw the attempt to deny funding to Planned Parenthood.
You, in post #30.
To which you replied:
Me: The last shutdown didn’t hurt the Republicans at election time.
Tacos: I was just going to say that.
Rufus: Remember why? Disaster at healthcare website caused people to forget about the shutdown.
The fact remains, the last shutdown did not hurt the GOP at the next election.* Bringing up healthcare doesn’t change that fact. Sorry.
*Unless you think Republicans would have won by even larger margins.
How does one gerrymander the Senate?
One doesn’t. That is where the low turnout comes in.
Well, it won’t be low in 2016.
True enough.
And then you said:
Again, what’s the connection here?
Healthcare.gov neutralized any effect the shutdown might’ve had on the 2014 midterms. That’s the extent of my claim.
I’m not saying that it caused the GOP to win big in 2014. You’re saying I said that, but again, I don’t see how you get that. I’m just saying that it kept the shutdown from hurting them in 2014.
Part of his problem is that the base is figuring out that the red meat he is throwing is actually Boca burger, which is in part leading to rise of Trump.
Damn, I wish I’d thought of that line. 
Shit, it’s taken them long enough to notice, hasn’t it?
It’s like Trump is the little dog pulling the curtain aside, making it really tough to ignore that the people in charge of the Republican Party don’t give a rat’s ass about them.
What happened the last time they shut down the government? Oh yeah, they made their largest Congressional gains in seventy years. Thanks for the “advice,” liberals, but they’ll be taking it from here :):
D’Anconia’s already run with this line of bullshit. Can you find something new to say?
Maybe if Tea Party conservatives went a little further and permanently eliminated government, they would win every election.
Yeah, but what would they be elected to? :dubious:
GONZALO
I’ th’ commonwealth I would by contraries
Execute all things. For no kind of traffic
Would I admit. No name of magistrate.
Letters should not be known. Riches, poverty,
And use of service—none. Contract, succession,
Bourn, bound of land, tilth, vineyard—none.
No use of metal, corn, or wine, or oil.
No occupation. All men idle, all.
And women too, but innocent and pure.
No sovereignty—
SEBASTIAN
Yet he would be king on ’t.
In their eyes, it would be a perfect world…
Yes, and I was right. IF (pretty big IF right now) the government shuts down in
2015, it won’t have much of an affect on the 2016 elections.
The only people who will care are government employees, and so what? National Parks might shut down too, the horror. Can’t get through to the IRS with a question about your return? You can’t get through now, sans shutdown, either.
Here in Illinois, we haven’t had a budget since July 1, I believe. We’re still here. A handful of lottery winners with prizes > $25,000 aren’t getting paid. Big whoop. Oh, and people complain that vendors aren’t getting paid. Guess what? They weren’t being paid in a timely fashion before the current crisis. At my company, payments from the State and its agencies were routinely 9-12 months past due. And it’s been like that for at least five years, that I am personally aware of.
Ah, conservative hand waving. It’s so predictable. “Democ-RATS can’t manage anything! Government should be run like a business! Obummer can’t lead anyone!”
Then, when the other party is in charge, it’s, “Ah, it’s government. Whaddya gonna do?”
Just out of curiosity, do you think that might a result of funding cuts? And that perhaps the lesson to be learned is that less we fund the government the less well it works?
If it doesn’t have an effect on the election, it will be because the GOP base is so angry and ignorant that they will be mobilized by a violent tantrum directed at the administration.
This helps because the GOP base isn’t *embarrassed *by acting like a shrieking moron. They’re *excited *by it.