Rebellion on the right and who killed TAA

While the press has focused on the damage done to lame duck Obama by the loss on TAA it may want to consider the damage to Speaker Boehner. When the House leadership can only deliver 86 votes from 246 Republicans it calls into question the effectiveness of said leadership and maybe its continued existence.



It's now is beginning to look like Boehner was not just having a bad day when TAA came up for a vote but rather he was blind sided by a Tea Party rebellion lead by fellow Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan. The Speaker may want to keep in mind that anyone who can control two thirds of the party's vote on legislation may be able to deliver those same votes in a leadership election. As chair of the House Freedom Caucus Jordan promised to deliver two dozen votes for TAA in exchange for an amendment that would set up check points which would allow the Republican conference to decide if the trade agreement proceeds. Thanks, but no thanks was the response from Boehner who was more concerned about addressing Democratic demands. At that point Jordan and his Freedom Caucus began organizing opposition to TAA and the rest is history.
“Yesterday will be the day that we look back at as the day that conservatives finally started getting organized in the House,” wrote Rep. Mick Mulvaney to the Spartanburg, SC Tea Party.
Let's hope it's the beginning of the end of John Boehner's leadership career.