Is there any case to be made for bipartisanship when Republicans openly say their goal is to destroy and not construct? The latest example: More Republican Destruction Politics from Rep. Patrick McHenry.
GOP Rep. Patrick McHenry, a key player in helping craft the Republican message, has offered an unusually blunt description of the Republican strategy right now.
McHenry’s description is buried in this new article from National Journal (sub. only):
"We will lose on legislation. But we will win the message war every day, and every week, until November 2010," said Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., an outspoken conservative who has participated on the GOP message teams. "Our goal is to bring down approval numbers for [Speaker Nancy] Pelosi and for House Democrats. That will take repetition. This is a marathon, not a sprint."
McHenry’s spokesperson, Brock McCleary, tells me his boss is standing by the quote.
McHenry’s description of his party’s goal — to “bring down approval numbers” for Nancy Pelosi and House Dems — is being much talked about today among Congressional Dems. It’s likely that Dems will grab on to the quote today to bolster their charge that Congressional Republicans aren’t interested in playing a constructive role in governing and see their hope for political revival in the eventual failure of the Democratic majority’s policies.
Warren Buffett has been sucked into the bipartisanship nonsense, even though he backs Obama and tells the country to get behind him, but the CNBC crowd is all excited that he's against unions.
Despite how “blunt” McHenry’s pronouncement may be, it is a widely held view among House Republicans. In fact, McHenry is echoing the sentiments of the House Republican leadership. Steve Benen explains the implications of such positions, writing, “If we take McHenry at his word, Republicans can’t be constructive, they necessarily have to be destructive.”
Messaging is such an important dynamic in political discourse, unfortunately, and it's really the only thing Republicans are good at. They certainly can't govern.
You can see how easy it is for conservatives to get Republican talking points into the mouths of Villagers.
