Boehner's True Connection to the Government Shutdown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwzEpSJNaLs
     The blog post will comment about the above video interview of John Boehner on "This Week." In particular, the focus will be on Boehner's comments of how he will not negotiate with the Democrats unless they delay Obamacare a year no matter what. Several points are salient in this way of thinking: Boehner's framing of negotiation when his party is the one that has consistently never compromised, the continued assault on Obamacare, and Boehner's feigned powerlessness despite him actually having the power to pass a resolution to end the government shut down.
     Perhaps most insidious is Boehner's continued insistence that he will not negotiate, framing the debate as if his party is the one that is the sensible one. In fact last year Boehner delayed the implementation of Obamacare by suggesting to President Obama that large businesses should not have had to pay for a year. Since big business holds a lot of sway in both the Democratic and Republican parties in present times, the president agreed. Of course, Boehner used the exclusive one-year delay to say that Obama was discriminating against the poorer people, thus winning political capital and stabbing the president in the back again, figuratively speaking. Now the time for the implementation of Obamacare has once again come around, and the Republicans once again insist on a one-year extension. It does not take much imagination to see that the Republicans will never let Obamacare to pass this way, continually asking for the bill to be postponed until the next year. Clearly, the Democrats are the ones with the ludicrous amount of generosity to the point where they go against their ideals, while the Republicans are steadfast in their convictions; it is not hard to see who is the real unreasonable party.
     In tandem with the crazy Republican ideology of to insist on getting everything or start crying foul, the Republicans also fail to see the laws of math. In present day, it is estimated that the Republican GOP has tried, and failed, to repeal Obamacare a record-breaking 44 times, perhaps more, wasting valuable Congressional time and billions of taxpayer dollars in the process. If the first few times did not succeed, it stands to reason that the next 40 will not fare better unless there are sweeping changes to both the Senate and the House, which was clearly not the case. By rallying the base, mostly Tea Party, the Republicans make it seem that the country is on their side when really only a small reactionary wing has a disproportionate amount of influence in the Republican party, the very same party that evidently seems to get its demands met a vast majority of the time. The bill itself will not cost all that much more. It will only add about $230 dollars on average to an American. Although this may seem like a lot, consider the fact that it is often required to have car insurance, which is surely not as essential as health insurance and can meet or exceed this cost, especially when taking into account the tendency to own multiple new cars. Surely if no one has a problem with car insurance, than something like required healthcare for most, a similar application in that the industry it is insuring is in favor of, will be accepted, since it will inevitably save tens of thousands per year.
     Finally, the most striking facet of the argument Boehner makes is his crocodile tears at his situation. In the video, it was obvious that he was very fervent in agreement with the most extreme reaches of his faction, namely the Tea Party. He stated multiple times that he will not negotiate without the discontinuance of Obamacare several times in a very dominant manner. But Boehner's tactics are disingenuous in nature: He can very well end the government shutdown right now; the required votes are already there. Instead, he insists that the majority of the Republican party agree with the terms of any proposed bill, in other words relying on the minority of his own minority party. As House majority leader, he has the power to call a vote in passing a bill, but he is so engrossed in ensuring the radical Tea Party members largely agree that any bill in the past few years has been hugely draconian and one-sided in favor of the ultra-conservative.
     Therefore, it can be concluded that the government shutdown is the fault of John Boehner and his Republican party. No, perhaps that accusation is somewhat unfair. Many of the more moderate establishment Republicans, if moderate is an apt word to describe them, are actually in favor of ending the government shutdown and passing Obamacare. They have the foresight to see that winning the war is impossible. The corporations, despite their opposition to Obamacare, do not want a shutdown at any rate. But Boehner will not enact a vote as he knows that Obamacare will no doubt pass. Just as how the attempt to repeal Obamacare failed 44 times, it will conversely pass the first time if Boehner allows a vote on the issue. Of course, Boehner will not allow this to happen as he has demonstrably strong connections to the insane but influential Tea Party. It is clear that, despite Boehner's continued insistence to the contrary, Obama is not the one with the sole power or responsibility to end the shutdown. In fact, the entirety of the Democratic party is in favor of implementation, a fact reflected in the virtually guaranteed passing of the bill through the Democratically controlled senate and president, who has the bill as his greatest, and perhaps only significantly progressive, achievement and namesake. Boehner is the one who is the one truly responsible for the hold-up. His continued protestation of reality and the power of the Tea Party continues to hurt America every day their ultra-conservative ideas continue to stubbornly allow the shutdown of the government when he can and should heed the call of the people for once.