Right-wing crackpot Daniel Webster (R-FL) was the first member of the extremist Freedom Caucus to say he wants Boehner's Speaker's gavel. He'll be the far right's sacrificial lamb against current Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). Oddly enough, both men are in electorally vulnerable districts. McCarthy's district, CA-23 has been solidly Republican and still officially boasts an R+16 PVI. Romney beat Obama there 62-36%, Obama's worst performance the state. But don't be fooled; the district is changing demographically-- and rapidly. Nearly 36% of the population is now Hispanic, a numbering growing faster than any other demographic group in the district and 30.9% of the voters are Hispanic, also a number that is growing quickly. Over half the newly eligible voters in the district are Latino, Asian and immigrants. And, unlike McCarthy, 76% of the voters in CA-23 support Comprehensive Immigration Reform. The district starts in Los Angeles County's Antelope Valley and includes the northern and western parts of Lancaster, as well as Rosamond, Mojave, California City, Taft, Maricopa and most of Bakersfield. Civil rights icon Dolores Huerta is a resident and Democrats have begged her to run against McCarthy for years.Webster is even even worse shape. When Florida's court's threw out the gerrymandered districts that gave Webster a congressional career, FL-10 (with a PVI of R+6 and which saw Romney beat Obama 54-46% became a lot bluer, a Democratic-leaning district that would be very hard for an extremist like Webster to win. (In 2012, up against a terrible candidate, DCCC-hack, DINO Val Demings, Webster scraped by 164,873 (52%) to 153,646 (48%). This year, were he to stay in FL-10, he would like have to face an actual Democrat, Bob Poe, who would in all likelihood wipe the floor with him. But it appears that Webster is moving north. Fellow crackpot Ron DeSantis (FL-06: from just south of Jacksonville, through St. Augustine, Daytona Beach nd nearly to Cape Canaveral and inland to Palatka) is giving up his nice red R+9 district in a futile attempt to win Marco Rubio's open Senate seat. The district includes John Mica's original base of support and Mica, whose district is also becoming less Republican, is going to jump into FL-06, leaving FL-07 (Deltona, Altamonte Springs, Winter Park, Maitland and Oviedo) to Webster. It isn't a safe Republican district but it is considerably safer than Webster's FL-10.OK, that complicated situation, especially for Webster, leaves us to look at the last time Webster ran for Speaker, when he was the Tea Party candidate against Boehner on January 6 of this year. He came in 3rd. Boehner got 216 votes. Pelosi got 164 votes. And Webster got 12 votes-- Rod Blum (IA, likely to lose his seat to Pat Murphy next year), Scott Garrett (NJ), Pope Francis boycotter Paul Gosar (AZ), Koch puppet Tim Huelskamp (KS), Walter Jones (NC), racist Steve King (IA), Boehner-antagonist Mark Meadows (NC), Rich Nugent (FL), Bill Posey (FL), Scott Rigell (VA), Marlin Stutzman (IN) and... Webster himself. Other members of Ted Cruz's suicide caucus voted for Louie Gohmert, Ted Yoho, Jim Jordan, Jeff Duncan, Trey Gowdy and Kevin McCarthy (who got one vote, moderate Chris Gibson) and two senators, Rand Paul (compliments of yet another Florida nut-case, freshman Curt Clawson) and KKK Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions. At the time, the over-excited Webster sent around a treatise he wrote-- which he sent around again yesterday, Widgets, Principles and Republicans, noting that he was the first Republican speaker of Florida's state House.
If a widget maker produced flawed widgets, the owners could choose to make significant alterations by offering additional colors, new packaging, and special pricing. They also could employ new marketing techniques like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Although well intentioned, none of these improvements will fix the flawed product. It is the process by which the widgets are made that is flawed.If the process is flawed, the product will be flawed. The only way to improve the product is to fix the process.By his own admission, the midterm election was a referendum on the President’s policies, and those policies received a strong rebuke. The American people have made their voices heard.Does that mean that, by default, the Republicans are the answer? No; that verdict is still out.Republican leaders from Washington and across the country have said that our GOP brand is tarnished and must be fixed. Low public approval of Congress speaks clearly of a flawed process.The only way to improve the GOP brand and make good public policy is to fix the process.Republicans now own the Congress and must change the way they lead. Not just a change in packaging and marketing, but a different process-- one that is focused on principle, not on power. We only have one opportunity to prove we can lead. Our opportunity is now.A pyramid of power in a legislative body always works the same. A few people at the top of the pyramid make most of the decisions with the bulk of the members at the bottom-- unless needed. A legislative body that is founded on principle pushes down this pyramid of power and spreads out the base so every elected member becomes a player.Power and principle cannot coexist.Power focuses on self-preservation; principle focuses on making ideas successful. Power tends to protect itself merely to maintain its own status and control. Principle gives up power for the sake of the highest good and to create the best public policy.Power demands to be heard; principle earns the right to be heard. Power focuses on rights; principles focus on responsibility.One of the most significant contrasts between power and principle is how it treats policy. Power tends to view an idea based on the position, loyalty, rank, or seniority of the sponsor. Principle focuses solely on the merits of the idea itself.The Republicans have a choice. This is it. This is our moment. We only have one opportunity to make a first impression.Flawed widgets or solid principles; which will it be?
Taliban Dan, who thinks he's fit to be Speaker, home-schooled his 6 kids using the widely discredited Bill Gothard curriculum. The poor kids are grown up now and all unemployable & working in his air-conditioning repair shop. Webster on Gothard's demented teachings: "They are the basis for everything I do today." In the video below he brags about using Gothard's sick, corrupted rants in the political life of his district:Webster ally and co-founder of the Liberty Caucus, Tim Huelskamp, rattled the right-wing sabers that his caucus, which had just tasted blood, can prevent anyone from being elected Speaker. He says, the Freedom Caucus will vote as a bloc and there are probably 40 radicals who will apply a litmus test for right-wing extremism. There is little doubt that had Pelosi cleaned house at the failed, incompetent and dysfunctional DCCC after their last two stupendous catastrophic cycles, the Democrats would be figuring out how big their 2017 majority would be. But she did't and they aren't. They are practically being handed back the majority of the House but Steve Israel and his bitterly anti-progressive allies would rather see Republicans back in control than see more progressives elected to the House. These are progressives running for House seats who the DCCC is either ignoring or sabotaging; think about thwarting Steve Israel and helping these Democrats win and helping make Nancy Pelosi speaker again. (Remember how good she was and how well the House functioned back when she was?)