Newt sees what Ryan is doing with his budget deal: Taking the budget and government shutdown out of the discussion for the mid-term elections, increasing the likelihood of a GOP takeover of the Senate. A savvy move.
Then Ryan becomes the object of Tea Party attack. Perhaps that was part of the strategy too. If not, it still works: It allows GOP representatives and Senators firm up their Tea Party credentials, again in preparation for mid-term elections. Ryan plays the stooge and scapegoat, but he can afford to since he’ll win no matter what.
Meanwhile, Ryan looks statesmanlike, a pol who can work with everyone and get things done, which is not a bad way for Ryan to prepare for 2016 or 2020. The most his own allies attack him, the more statemanlike he can look.
Turns out that Ryan is a politician, and a clever one.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
The Dreadful Christ of Pär Lagerkvist
It’s dangerous to meet a god,” says the disgraced Pythia in Pär Lagerkvist’s The Sibyl. Her observation…
The Possibility of Possibility
"Might could” is a Southern expression meaning “maybe I could” or “I might be able to,” conveying…
The False Promise of No Contact
Around the time nineteen-year-old Alice began cutting ties with her family, she announced on social media that…
