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Be careful what you wish for, Republicans!

A slim majority in the Senate may turn out to be just the punishment the left would love Republicans to suffer. Paul Waldman writes:

There will be tremendous built-up pressure from conservatives that Sen. Mitch McConnell (assuming he wins his own race and becomes majority leader) will have to satisfy. That means votes on things such as repealing the Affordable Care Act, building border fences, slashing environmental regulations and cutting corporate taxes, most or all of which will be unpopular and inevitably filibustered by Senate Democrats.

At that point, McConnell would have a way to create confrontations not with Harry Reid but with President Obama. In November 2013, Reid and Democrats changed Senate rules to eliminate filibusters on most presidential appointments. Though it was called “the nuclear option,” the true nuclear option would apply to legislation, which under current rules the minority is still free to filibuster (as the Republicans do). Would McConnell go fully nuclear and get rid of that, too, so the GOP Congress could send bills to the president’s desk?

There wouldn’t be much point, since Obama would just veto the bills. …Waldman,WaPo

Aw geez! Republicans forced to discover the full meaning of the word “obstruction”?

McConnell, John Boehner and the more sober Republicans know that there’s nothing worse for them politically than forcing government shutdowns and debt defaults. That means they will have to agree to continuing resolutions keeping the government open and making increases in the debt ceiling in order to avoid national and political disaster. And when they do, the tea party base of the GOP will be enraged. “What did we elect a Republican Congress for?” it will shout. …Waldman,WaPo

Wait! The Republicans have a remedy! Jeb Bush!

(Laughter)

Cross-posted from Prairie Weather

graphic via Wikimedia Commons