Bridge Burning and Bridge Building

By: Erick Erickson
House Republicans have signaled they are giving up.
They’ll merge their ideas with Mitch McConnell’s ideas. The result will be a funded government, raised debt ceiling, and nothing done with Obamacare.
Throughout this fight, Harry Reid has outsmarted Mitch McConnell. Repeatedly, Reid used the Senate’s rules to toss aside numerous proposals from the House while McConnell looked on not knowing how to fight back.
Reid knows how to beat McConnell. If Reid fights hard, McConnell backs down and tries to blame others. McConnell’s lieutenants attack Ted Cruz so “the Leader” can deflect from his own legislative impotence. And he continually is one step behind Reid in his knowledge of how to use the Senate’s complicated rules to win a fight.
You will see no defunding of Obamacare because Republicans are giving up.
You will see no delaying of the individual mandate, even though the Obama Administration cannot fix the website. Republicans have given up this.

You will not even see Republicans hold the line on ensuring Obamacare go into effect as designed by forcing the end to all exceptions, exemptions, and delays granted by the President without congressional consent.
No, the GOP intends to fully fund Obamacare and let Barack Obama have all the power to exempt his friends and delay portions for patrons of his campaign.
So I intend to fully fund Heritage Action for America and the Senate Conservatives Fund. The latest Pew poll shows that more Americans want their own member of Congress thrown out of office than at any time in recent memory.
We only need a few good small businessmen and women to stand up and challenge these Republicans who are caving. If they refuse to fight for us, we must fight them. It is the only way we will finally be able to fight against Obamacare.
I am tired of funding Republicans who campaign against Obamacare then refuse to fight. It’s time to find a new batch of Republicans to actually practice what the current crop preaches.

The irony in all of this is that Obamacare’s individual mandate is going to be delayed. Just wait. Liberals are already whispering that it has to happen. They can’t get the computers up and running. People aren’t signing up. They whole process is broken.
But they also do not want to cave in to the GOP. So they will wait.
Barack Obama will wait for the GOP to surrender, then he will issue the delay himself, just like he did with the employer mandate.
Any bridges remaining between Barack Obama and the GOP will start burning. Any remaining good will goes away.
And conservatives will use this all as a millstone around the necks of those who caved. The GOP will vote to fund Obamacare. The GOP will not fight to delay Obamacare.
But then the President will do it. So what good is the GOP? It is time to fight this out in primaries in 2014. Given just how poorly Crossroads performed in 2012, I like our odds with Heritage Action, Senate Conservatives Fund, Madison Project, Club for Growth, FreedomWorks, For America, and others.