Last updated on February 8th, 2013 at 02:18 am
Terror has gripped House Republicans as they have finally realized that President Obama is already working to defeat them in 2014.
Real Clear Politics reported, “When an irate House Speaker John Boehner declared last week that President Obama was out to “annihilate” the Republican Party, he was exaggerating, or at least engaging in a bit of hyperbole. Obama is not out to destroy the Republican Party, just severely cripple it, and thereafter to cement his legacy in the final two years of his presidency.What upset Boehner and many of his Republican colleagues is that they have finally recognized what Obama’s second inaugural address really was: the first speech of the 2014 congressional campaign. That has them in a panic. It is now obvious to Republicans that Obama has no intention of becoming a lame duck president at the end of his second term. He’s seems willing to bide his time and push for a more-friendly Congress.”
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It looks like House Republicans are finally getting it. The reason why Obama hasn’t disassembled his campaign operation is that there is another important election to win in 2014. This might have already been obvious to anyone who doesn’t reside in the Republican bubble, but congressional Republicans had adopted the mantra that the worst was over now. (For example, Mitch McConnell’s crackpot declaration that there will be no more discussions about revenue.) Republicans were kidding themselves if they thought that President Obama was going to sit back and let them run out the clock until 2016.
Right wing Fox News based paranoia runs wild in a large segment of the House Republican caucus, but this time they should be paranoid. Barack Obama really is after them.
The math is simple. Obama can’t carry out his agenda while Republicans control the House. In order to move this country forward, Obama needs a Democratic House majority.
If the president puts his ample campaign resources to work, and motivates Obama voters to show up on Election Day 2014, the Republican House majority could be in trouble. More importantly, House Republicans have demonstrated by their behavior so far this year that they have learned nothing. As Obama’s approval rating reaches new highs, Congress continues to sit near historic lows.
A perfect storm could be brewing against House Republicans in 2014. If a popular president decides to mobilize his machine and campaign against the unpopular Republicans in the House, the GOP could find itself back in the House minority. There has been a lot of talk about gerrymandering, but 2014 could be the year that Democrats take advantage of lower midterm election turn out to take back the House.
The message that Democrats must vote in 2014 in order to give Obama the congress that he needs is already echoing across the Internet. Should President Obama choose to adopt this message as a partywide rallying cry, panic could turn into disaster for John Boehner, Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan, and their fellow House Republicans.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
