Originally posted by Time-Immemorial
Are they traitors to their voters?2 years ago they had a huge victories in both house and senate, since then have given Obama victory after victory.
He can't even stop this climate change deal, which he could, like his predecessor, just not allow the bill to hit the floor.
And then we have Boehner (Boner), he's a weaksauce pushover. And people are tired of it.
They aren't traitors, and here's why:
Because the US congress is designed to require compromise unless you have well over a simple majority, and they've never had a supermajority, but they've been making promises that require it while also refusing to make deals- and their constituents have demanded they not make deals.
When they were slightly behind, this resulted in the Democrats barely getting anything done, so to completely no shock to me or most people who track the numbers, the situation is the exact same when they similarly have only a slim lead.
What they and many republicans are guilty of is overpromising, but really it's rock-and-a-hard-place for them.
You can't both get stuff done and never work with the other side, and those are the two demands giving to them. As the stuff they want done is often just 'stop the other side,' they've erred on the side of 'not letting the other side do anything either,' and gladly taken up the banner of the 'party of no,' and that's why we end up here: No one getting anything done in congress because they aren't willing to make deals.
The United States government is simply not set up in a way to let groups without more election wins than they've got to do what they want without dealing with the other party.
Doesn't matter if it's Boehner and McConnell, Ted Cruz, or whoever. In some cases they can cause damage in a hissy fit for not getting their way, but they do not have the votes to get their way and the reason for that is and has always been simple number-of-seats math.