He's seen a thing or two, so he knows a thing or two
WE ARE FARMERS! DUM-DA-DUM DA-DUM-DUM-DUM!
But seriously.
President Joe Biden, as the saying goes, drank House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's milkshake in the debt ceiling negotiations. How? Well, let's let Kev lay it out for us:
Asked about Biden, McCarthy said: "I thought his team was very professional, very smart, very tough, at the same time, so ..." The fact that McCarthy said "team" threw reporters off. They asked again, specifically about Biden. "What I was referring to was the president. I was talking about President Biden, yes."
(Emphasis mine.)
Sleepy Joe ate his lunch. He kicked Kevin to the curb. He stomped on Kevin's neck. You get the picture.
Pres. Biden did two things. First, he learned from his time in the Obama Administration on debt ceiling hostage taking. Now, Pres. Obama also got a good deal from that situation in 2011. But Pres. Biden learned from that experience. Add this to the "he's seen a thing or two" ledger. Secondly, he maneuvered Speaker McCarthy so adroitly that he now basically relies on Democrats to keep his job.
The Freedom Caucus at first said that it wouldn't call for Speaker McCarthy's head over the deal. But as we see from Mr. Fredericks, that position may be untenable on the far right which provides the energy and voters for the GOP coalition. They've been snookered. They've been hoodwinked. They've been flimflammed. And they want blood. Someone will make a motion to vacate the chair. No one in that caucus has any discipline or sense of the greater good. The Speaker is about to reap the consequences for giving over so much power to his right wing in order to win the Speakership. And it will be Democrats who will hold the power for the rest of the 118th Congress. No, not much of benefit will get done; but now, neither will much of any harm.
And ignore the braying on the left side of the ledger. They have no power. They never had and never will. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries will deliver any votes required to pass the legislation. And with Minority Leader Mitch McConnel onboard, the deal is assured of passage in the Senate with no annoying filibuster.
I have said that Speaker McCarthy was on a short leash. But not from his caucus. No. At some point he would have to make a decision: destroy the country, or do a deal with a man that the extreme right considers illegitimate. And he made his choice. What route he took to get there is unimportant. By choosing saving the national and world economy, he has earned the ire of the likes of John Fredericks, who represents a significant portion of the activated GOP base. This base will now wage war against anyone who votes in favor of this pact. Even more unhinged candidates will spring up to primary so-called RINOs. And Pres. Biden gave up nothing which can't be rectified by winning in 2024, now made more likely by the GOP civil war which will erupt due to the negotiation.
Calling Joe Biden "sleepy", "senile", "doddering" is a coping mechanism. A coping mechanism so that those who are confounded by him over and over, on both ends of the horseshoe, don't have to do any self-examining. And if he achieves something like this deal, then it's due to those around him feeding him what to say. It is inconceivable to them that Pres. Biden is smarter than them, just as it was inconceivable the Pres. Obama was simply better than they were. The "mint the coin" people were so sure that Pres. Biden couldn't close the deal that they, again, fell back on fantasy solutions. Instead, he brought home the bacon while not testing a legal theory which could have blown up in his face. Imagine the world's economy dependent on a ruling from Justice Clarence Thomas. That would have been Pres. Biden's last resort. Instead, he gave trinkets and secured a treasure in return.
I am in no way tired of winning.
Author's Note
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced that the military is ready for the great counter-offensive. So, this post may be preempted. The attack could begin at any moment. Slava Ukraini!
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