Friday, July 19, 2013

Catch of the Day

I like this Dave Weigel post on how entirely ineffective Ted Cruz has been in the Senate. OK, I would have liked it better if he had linked to my Post item on how Cruz got Cordray confirmed, but I like it anyway.*

One point to add. Cruz is campaigning in Iowa and, as Robert Costa reports (via Weigel), saying that his price for getting a CR (and therefore not shutting down the government) is fully defunding the ACA. Which is, you know, charming. I mean -- never mind either the ethics or the efficacy of holding the normal functioning of the government hostage to one's preferences, but who in their right mind thinks that Ted Cruz is going to vote for any CR? And if he's definitely a no vote, then why exactly should anyone listen to anything he has to say?

That's mostly directed to the press. I assume Harry Reid and the rest of the Democrats know that Cruz should be ignored; Cruz's rhetoric, indeed, isn't targeted towards the Senate, but towards Iowa conservatives and others whose support he needs in his White House bid. Hey, reporters -- don't be fooled. Republicans will presumably make budget demands, but the ones who count are the ones who might actually vote for the result -- or at least those who the ones who might vote yes might be listening to.

At any rate: nice catch!









*This is like the third time that one of these has happened to me this week. Hey, that's how it goes; even when I'm over at WaPo or Salon or whatever, I can't expect everyone to see everything. Seriously; I'm sure I've done it to plenty of people, too. It's not like academic work; blogging and punditry do not require, nor should they require, lit reviews as part of clearing one's throat. It does leave me cranky, though, and not only that but it leaves me doubly cranky because I realize I shouldn't be. So I'll whine about it down here a bit, but you should really disregard it.

7 comments:

  1. I increasingly see Cruz as being the next host of The Price is Right, but that's just me...

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  2. I don't know that I agree that Cruz's rhetoric isn't directed at the Senate. He could be trying to move the goalposts for what counts as a "true conservative", so that grassroots Republicans will view a CR without any conditions, or a CR that doesn't repeal the ACA as a sellout. He's part of a movement that views people like David Dewhurst, Dick Lugar, Mike Enzi, and Bob Bennett as insufficiently conservative. If he can make not just ideological radicalism, but tactical radicalism the standard for what constitutes conservatism in the eyes of the base, he'll have accomplished quite a bit.

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  3. Ted Cruz doesn't let annoying facts get in the way of a good story, the RNC's favorite quality in a candidate.

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  4. Yada, yada, yada, no appropriations, no debt ceiling increase unless...

    No, really, this time the Tea Party will win!

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  5. Nice Salon piece this AM, JB: http://www.salon.com/2013/07/20/ted_cruz_could_beat_hillary/

    A lot of these newer Senators seem to be operating in a very different way than the older generation. Warren is similar to Cruz, in a way... she understands the celebrity aspect of modern politics in the same way that Cruz seems to. She's a freshman just like he is, but she is taking a visible place on the public stage but choosing her stances and her moments in a way to maximize visibility and exposure to the audiences who might later be a part of an important political coalition.

    I'm tentatively in the camp that says Cruz will be a strong competitor for the nomination in '15 (especially if he finds some "bipartisan" issue to jump onto that doesn't upset his base). His strongest rival, from what I see, is Scott Walker.

    I don't think Rubio has it. He's had some past mini-scandals (financial troubles, lying about his family history) that, I think, indicate he doesn't have the kind of personality needed for modern politics.

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  6. Gentlemen:
    The last time I checked Mr. Cruz has a fatal flaw which will preclude him running for the US presidency: he is not a natural born citizen. He was born in Canada and I don't recall that country ever being a state, territory, or protectorate of the United States?

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    1. Can't remember the explanation, but basically he should be able to get around that technicality due to some legal something-or-other. That certainly would be a nice way to get rid of him, though

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