Political Tactics

BOEHNER SUES THE PRESIDENT – Speaker Boehner announced that he intends to sue President Obama over his use of executive authority. The Speaker believes that the president overstepped his constitutional authority in delaying certain provisions of the Affordable Care Act, halting the deportation of illegal immigrants who were brought to this country as minors by their parents, raising the minimum wage for federal contractors and expanding gay rights. Boehner argues that the president’s actions constitute an abuse of power for the express purpose of circumventing congress and as such violate the checks and balances intended by the founders in writing the constitution.

It is true that the president has used his authority to amend certain provisions of the aforementioned laws. The White House argues that such amendments are within the scope of his authority to faithfully execute the laws enacted by congress.

The constitutional balance between the executive and legislative branches of the government has been a source of debate and discord since the founders put pen to paper. Lawsuits are often filed by one branch versus the other over contentious matters. There is currently pending a lawsuit against the administration over its implementation of the Affordable Care act.

Given the current toxic partisan atmosphere in Washington, Boehner’s grandstanding ploy comes as no surprise. And that is what this is…political grandstanding to appease the base during an election year.

President Obama has used his executive authority on far fewer occasions than any of his predecessors save one…Bush 41. The suit is baseless. And even if it does manage to go to trail it won’t see the light of a courtroom until well after President Obama has left office.

This is nothing more than a face saving ploy on the part of a do nothing congress during an election year…a multi-million dollar political scam that will be paid for by the taxpayers.

SORE LOSERS – The right wing media has its hair on fire over incumbent Senator Thad Cochran’s runoff victory over Tea Party challenger Chris McDaniel in their run for the Mississippi GOP nomination. Neither candidate garnered 50% of the vote in the primary which forced a runoff.

Cochran shifted gears in the runoff and targeted black voters who typically vote Democrat, touting his 42 years of bringing millions of federal dollars into the state. The Mississippi GOP runs an open primary meaning that you do not have to be a registered Republican to vote. Cochran’s strategy paid off. The African American vote in the runoff was 40% higher than the primary with most of those votes going to Cochran. Cochran won the nomination. McDaniel has yet to concede, questioning the legitimacy of the votes.

Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh and all the folks at FOXNEWS are incensed over Cochran’s tactics. Palin wants to start a third political party. They can’t rap their heads around the fact that a Republican nominee was swept to victory by Democrat votes.

Here’s the deal. Mississippi is an open primary state. Cochran played by the rules. Cochran was smart enough to understand that appealing to ALL races, colors and creeds was the path to victory. He was smart enough to understand that the face of this country is no longer that of an old white man.

Cochran embraced diversity. McDaniel turned his back to it. The sooner the GOP comes to grips with the changing demographics of today’s voters the sooner they will return to relevance on the national stage.