It's Boehner
John Boehner has been elected minority leader of the House of Representatives. He was, as everyone knows by know, Dennis Hastert's second-in-command.
There's no denying that I'm disappointed. I'd hoped for a Mike Pence victory -- given that he's a fresh face and a more unadulterated conservative than John Boehner; what's more, he lacks some of the K-Street ties of Boehner.
Congressional Republicans seem to want to give us more of the same old, same old. To me, their re-election of their old leaders shows a certain tone deafness to the message the country was trying to send them, and a tendency to ignore the fairly clearly expressed wishes of their base for new faces and a fresh message.
As far as the Senate goes, there were at least some good reasons to elect Trent Lott as the #2 (even though I have reservations about that decision as well).
That's because, given the Senate procedures and the way they differ from those in the House, it makes sense to have a clever tactician like Lott on the team. In the House, there's little that a minority can do to affect procedure or legislation -- and so it would make sense to have someone who is a communicator; there's simply less need for a legislative strategist or a procedural tactician.
But it's worth noting that NRO's David Frum feels OK about the election of Boehner.
There's no denying that I'm disappointed. I'd hoped for a Mike Pence victory -- given that he's a fresh face and a more unadulterated conservative than John Boehner; what's more, he lacks some of the K-Street ties of Boehner.
Congressional Republicans seem to want to give us more of the same old, same old. To me, their re-election of their old leaders shows a certain tone deafness to the message the country was trying to send them, and a tendency to ignore the fairly clearly expressed wishes of their base for new faces and a fresh message.
As far as the Senate goes, there were at least some good reasons to elect Trent Lott as the #2 (even though I have reservations about that decision as well).
That's because, given the Senate procedures and the way they differ from those in the House, it makes sense to have a clever tactician like Lott on the team. In the House, there's little that a minority can do to affect procedure or legislation -- and so it would make sense to have someone who is a communicator; there's simply less need for a legislative strategist or a procedural tactician.
But it's worth noting that NRO's David Frum feels OK about the election of Boehner.
posted by LadybugUSA at 7:27 AM
3 Comments:
Carol,
I really enjoyed your stint as Hugh's guest host yesterday. I thought you were charismatic and quick-witted. I'm just not sure about the topics being chosen on talk radio and the blogs, though. I posted about it today and threw you a link to boot.
Was it Sen Lott's "tactical sense" that led him to refuse to listen to Henry Hyde during the Clinton impeachment? Unless there is something hidden that I don't perceive, the current GOP "leadership" - other than Sen. McConnell - is just as bad as what it has replaced. If I am correct that it is as bad, the GOP is in for another election drubbing in 2008.
Was it Sen Lott's "tactical sense" that led him to refuse to listen to Henry Hyde during the Clinton impeachment?
Lott's "procedural" or "tactical" sense is conventional wisdom. I'd like to know how the "conventionally wise" came to that conclusion.
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