Posted on 09/26/2013 4:51:12 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Alternate headline: “RINO surprised to discover he’s a RINO.” No, no, kidding. It’s a testament to how much goodwill Coburn has earned with grassroots righties that he remains a minor player in the RINO/true conservative squabble over defunding despite having been one of the first big-name Republicans to publicly criticize Cruz’s tactics. Or maybe I’m wrong and he’s simply being ignored because a more attractive target for right-wing wrath has inserted himself into this. Coburn gets a pass vis-a-vis McCain, I think, not just because of differences in their record but because Coburn takes no obvious personal pleasure in rebuking the wacko birds. When he tells you it’s too bad that Cruz is doomed to fail, you believe him. Not so Maverick. In fact, there’s an odd symmetry between Coburn as low-key opponent of trying to defund and Mike Lee as a (comparatively) low-key supporter. Both of them are being overshadowed on their respective sides by guys who are lightning rods for criticism. The left (and Peter King) will come away from this declaring Ted Cruz some kind of terrorist but Lee will sail on undamaged.
I think Coburn’s right, though, that confusion about what’s possible here risks disappointment and demotivation next year. Tactically, things have reached the point where even some grassroots conservatives who are following this closely aren’t sure what’s going on. Here’s something one of Orrin Hatch’s staffers posted yesterday:
Callers into our office very confused after that 100-0 cloture vote
— Antonia Ferrier (@ahrferrier) September 25, 2013
The confusion over cloture is understandable, but it comes on top of the earlier confusion about Cruz wanting to filibuster the House bill that actually defunds ObamaCare and on top of the broader uncertainty about which side would suffer more from a shutdown over defunding and how badly. Ironically, I think the more convoluted the tactical debate becomes, the easier it is to simply choose a side between the RINOs and true conservatives and start hammering the other as sellouts/grandstanders. Democrats insist that Cruz’s filibuster will achieve nothing; Coburn, whatever his feelings about ObamaCare, agrees with them on at least that much. If he’s not willing to risk a months-long shutdown in a quixotic bid to pressure the other party into defunding the biggest “accomplishment” of the Obama presidency, then he’s kinda sorta “with” the Democrats, isn’t he? QED.
Update: If Tom Coburn’s the new president of the RINOs, Rick Perry must be his VP.
Time to &%!# or get off the pot, sir.
Surrender is not a tactic!
Coburn has smelled like a RINO long before Cruz. Face it Coburn. You are a RINO and a dem shill.
If you are voting with Harry Reid, you are voting to fund 0bamaCare.
YOU AREN’t a Rino, you’re a democrat.
Remove the question mark from the title.
Vote him out. If he votes to allow closure, vote him out.
Cruz is not filibustering the house bill and Coburn knows it. He’s trying to make Reid’s strategy fail! Cruz wants a 60 vote threshold so they have a chance of passing the house bill with the funding for obamacare denied. If the Republicans control 46 votes, it can be done on a 60 vote threshold.
Coburn’s been exposed as a DC phony and he doesn’t like it.
Enough is enough. What don’t you get, Doctor? Take a stand!
Oh shut up, Allahpundit. You’re a useless weasel too.
Its like tater head said today
GOPe never bashed Nixon like this till right before he resigned
GOP is done
Obamacare must be fought at every turn.
Whatever needs to be done to stop it must be done.
AND
Americans need to see you doing it!
Most Americans only pay attention to politics once every couple of days, if then.
If people see you fighting they will believe in you!
They will send you money!
They will vote for you and tell their friends to vote for you as well.
If all of your strategies involve waiting for things to fail instead of stopping them from happening in the first place - you are a RINO.
If all you do is talk and then choke or bail when push comes to shove - you are a RINO.
You are a fair-weather conservative - which is not really a conservative at all.
The fact that you do not consider yourself to be a RINO does not mean you are any less of a RINO.
If the Repubs can’t even agree to defund and repeal, and if they sign on to some kind of immigration deal, then they have no further reason to exist.
They are closer to seeing their party implode than they realize. They still think this is about politics.
When you went into the enemy camp on MSNBC, to attack a fellow Republican, you are a Rino.
And that goes the same to Little Peter Ming.
What have you done for the peeps lately?
Exactly. Remember when he tried to do back-room deals with Schumer on gun control. He is not who he claims to be. He has three years left and is not running for reelection. He is going to b on CSPAN Washington Journal in the morning...I am sure to trash Cruz. Just think if he only spoke ill of Democrats tomorrow?
The Republican Party will never survive. Too busy destroying unity.
King. So pissed I can’t type.
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