Lifeline Thrown to Boehner ... and the Rest Of Us?

The last posting promised to discuss how the Tea Partyers in the House don't understand the funding of the Affordable Care Act, how they mistakenly thought that refusing to enact the federal budget would shut down the Act. But what's to discuss, other than point out what they didn't know, i.e. that the Act is self-funded. Yes, they are so uniformed they didn't realize this basic fact about a law they have been obsessed with. Even in the absence of a budget provision, Obamacare goes right along on its own funds.

An interesting question  to mull in the night is whether Speaker John Boehner bothered to try to tell them.  Or didn't he know?

So how does one do business with such ignorant and incompetent people who are pretending to be members of Congress?

No matter.  Forget Obamacare.  The GOP has.  As of today Boehner and the GOP have abandoned fighting Obamacare at least for now.  Boehner has changed the price of ending the shutdown and avoiding default on October 17.  He says that all he wants now is a "conversation" with the President about .... Well, that's not clear.  In a press conference today, as on a Sunday talk show, he never mentioned a word about Obamacare.  He just groaned on vaguely about debt and deficit stuff, maybe wanting another shot at some sort of grand bargain.

Meantime, an hour earlier, President Obama had thrown him a lifeline. Obama said be very glad to talk about anything with Boehner, provided the government is reopened and the debt ceiling raised.

 But get this! He would do such talking even if the two measures were just for a short period.  That's new!

Wow!  There's your victory, Boehner!  Grab it and dance in the end zone!  Go back to your TPs and hand out cigars and yell, "We won!  Obama has caved! He's willing to talk in exchange for just a short opening of the government and a short postponement of armageddon."

But no.  Boehner ignored this chance to save his country and the world's economic system.  Instead he went on TV and said that Obama wants "only our surrender."

Oh, boy. Those are really not the words to be using at this time. They'll just inflame to further stubbornness in all those testosterone Tea Party guys.

The first rule is:  NEVER overtly make it about winning and losing.  And NEVER mention "surrender".  The second rule is: give the other guy a hook to hang his hat on.

Obama gave Boehner a way out of this confrontation, just as he let Kerry's supposed "stumble" give Putin a way to take over the Syrian chemicals.  You gotta help the other guy find his way to where you want him.

But Boehner batted away his chance to save his face and our you-know-what.  He just spat on the life line Obama threw him and thereby denied rescue to the rest of us who will drown in his stupidity.  All over the world there will be great economic suffering if Boehner doesn't get off this steroid-driven, win-lose thing.

Nine days to go.  You better have a plan of your own, John Boehner, because Obama may not try again.

And next time you and the TPartyers pull a stunt about the Affordable Health Care Act or any other law that annoys you, please first read the law you're attacking to see if you have a hen's chance in hell of winning through your tactics.  Because all that you've done these weeks was wasted and stupidly destructive.