In a rebuttal to the President tonight the Speaker of the House, John Boehner at one point said a “serious bipartisan committee of Congress would begin the hard work necessary of dealing with the tough challenges our country faces.” He went on to say “The individuals doing this work will not be outsiders, but elected representatives of the people.” Boehner also continued to tell us he spoke for the American People.

Saying or thinking you speak for Americans doesn’t mean its true, Mr. Speaker.

You might want to check that pulse again Mr. Speaker. According to the latest Quinnipiac poll 67 percent of Americans believe raising the debt ceiling should include tax hikes. 48 to 34 percent will blame the Republicans instead of the President if the debt ceiling was not raised. It is repeated in most every poll. A Pew Research poll goes even further. It not only tells us 64 percent of Americans think deficit reduction should include a combination of both taxes and spending cuts but, 59 percent of “Main Street Republicans” agree. The real less talked about shocker in this poll is the fact 34 percent of “Staunch Conservatives” feel there should be a combination of taxes and spending cuts. This is the group who should be most impressed by Boehner’s stance. Even the Rasmussen Reports, a poll known for favorable conservative results, tells us Americans prefer a generic candidate who would promise a balanced approach over one that would promise not to raise taxes (56 to 34%).

So why are Americans not buying what the Speaker is selling?

Around my water cooler my fellow workers, including some real wingnuts who should support him, take one look at Boehner and wonder what exactly he is negotiating. See, the Americans Boehner speaks for negotiate a little differently. The way they negotiate is by giving the other side something they want. They laugh when the Republicans say we will negotiate but, you can’t have anything you want.

The other thing that does not pass the smell test around our water cooler is how the Republicans call this Obama’s recession. Apparently other water coolers are the same because in the previously cited Quinnipiac poll 54 percent still blamed President Bush for the recession. We are not the smartest people in the world but we can understand a timeline. We know the bailout began before Obama.

While according to a CNN poll only 25 percent of Americans think the Obama’s stimulus helped the middle class. Contrary to what Republicans are trying to sell, around my water cooler, we liked the programs the stimulus funded. So, relentless Republican messaging has worked to a certain extent but, when questioned further 8 out of 10 Americans liked stimulus programs. Around the water cooler most outsiders can point to at least one worthwhile project.

The outsiders around my water cooler have seen the hard work done on the debt ceiling for weeks. What the Speaker and his caucus do not understand is that many Americans have already decided who to blame. Republicans may want to make sure there is no reason to blame them by insuring the debt ceiling is raised.