Blog Credo

The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.

H.L. Mencken

Monday, November 17, 2014

The Nail On The Head

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/reaping-the-whirlwind--5

This is another "Please proceed, governor" moments.

Obama will issue his executive order that reduces deportations in some way.

The GOP will freak out.  At this point, you can't rule out impeachment.

One major reason that the GOP did so well in the midterms was that not many people turned out to vote.  This was a direct result of GOP governance.  They pretty much gummed up the works of Congress until nothing, not even National Puppies Are Cute Day, could pass the House.

The perverse nature of American politics is that the President gets blamed for poor governance by Congress.  And the GOP were counting on that to depress his base.

Add to that the endless cycle of media stupid in October - ISIS!  Ebola! - and the election faded into a melange of apathy and fear.  And that fear was brokered by Fox News, who has been using scare quotes for the last 6 years.  The idea that Obama is a Socialist is absurd to anyone who really knows what Socialism is.

But now, the GOP has complete control of Congress.  And yet, they won't do anything on immigration, no matter how much time Obama gives them.  So he will act and the GOP will predictably overreact.

And that raises the stakes for 2016.

The preeminent moment for many progressives was the impeachment of Bill Clinton.  That stripped away any lingering idea that the Gingrich Republicans were anything but power-mad nihilists.  Impeaching Obama over this would merely reinforce that narrative.  The Congress of No.

Please proceed, Mr. Speaker...


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