In agreeing to the deal, Speaker John Boehner, who departs his post on Friday, gives his successor, Paul Ryan, a parting gift: the right to do nothing.
In Volatile Phase, Republican Establishment Looks Weak
there have been fewer endorsements from party officials at this point than in any previous Republican primary.
That’s not because of an abundance of riches; it’s because the candidates who could plausibly be acceptable to party elites have big flaws and have done little to earn the support of the party or voters. All are faring poorly in the polls. Jeb Bush, Mr. Rubio and John Kasich have not clearly breached 10 percent nationally or in any of the early states.
They have other weaknesses, too. Mr. Rubio may be broadly acceptable, but his fund-raising tallies and overall campaign effort have been surprisingly limited. Mr. Kasich may be unacceptable to much of the party’s conservative wing, and his fund-raising isn’t impressive, either. Mr. Bush has healthier fund-raising tallies — though apparently not healthy enough to forestall big cuts in his campaign operation — but very weak favorability ratings.
.. Over all, no party establishment in the modern era has found itself in so weak a position at this stage in a contest.
.. In recent contests, the Republican elite has found a welcome ally in the well-educated, secular, blue-state Republicans — particularly those in New Hampshire — who have rolled their eyes at the preferred candidate of the Iowa caucuses.
The Hillary Hearing
The Tampa BayTimes’s PolitiFact Web site noted recently that it was largely accurate to say that all the investigations found things that could have been done better (such as intelligence sharing) but none found “overt wrongdoing.” (Meanwhile, the Obama Administration’s larger Libya policy and its real failures have hardly been discussed.
.. Gowdy was also bothered by the fact that one of Clinton’s aides, Huma Abedin, had sent her an e-mail about milk.
Paul Ryan as Speaker: A Preview of the Fights He Will Face, in Plain English
Do you promise to shut down the government in December if Democrats fail to give in to all of our demands?
Perhaps the main difference between the Freedom Caucus and other Republican members of the House is their unwillingness to compromise on a range of issues, including the Affordable Care Act, an immigration overhaul and Planned Parenthood funding. Here, they are asking the next speaker to commit to shutting down the government unless Democrats surrender on these issues. The federal government is funded through Dec. 11, which means these negotiations would take place soon after the new speaker is sworn in.
.. Will you make sure that people in our own party won’t finance campaigns against us?
One of the ways the Freedom Caucus would like to make sure they are safe from retribution is to ensure sure that not even staff members of House Republicans are allowed to work or campaign against them in any way.