John Boehner’s secret [View all]

[DonViejo]

He knows a debt default will ravage the economy, but can he stave one off without losing his job?

BY STEVE KORNACKI

According to Politico’s reporting, John Boehner “will never allow a (debt) default, even if it puts his leadership position at risk.” The speaker, supposedly, understands the catastrophic economic fallout that a default would unleash and is busily trying to convince his fellow House Republicans to look elsewhere for leverage in their ongoing fiscal fight with President Obama and Democrats.

There’s good reason to believe this reporting, since virtually no one outside the far-right echo chamber has any illusions about the consequences of failing to extend the debt ceiling. But could it really come to such a stark choice for Boehner: Stave off a default and lose his job as speaker or allow one and get to hang around?

There are a few ways of looking at Boehner’s dilemma right now. As the fiscal cliff fight seemed to make clear, the majority of the House Republican Conference is actually (and quietly) a lot like Boehner – members who are ideologically conservative but who recognize how destructive Tea Party orthodoxy has become, both from a governing standpoint and in terms of the party’s overall image. But, like Boehner, they’re still scared of defying it, of being branded traitors to the cause, and of losing their jobs to Tea Party-backed primary challenges. This led to the January 1 spectacle, when the vast majority of House Republicans voted against the fiscal cliff deal – even as Boehner was assuring the public that most of them wanted it to pass.

It raises a question as the debt ceiling battle takes shape: Even if most House Republicans understand the necessity of raising the borrowing limit, how many of them will actually be willing to go on the record doing so if it means encouraging a primary challenge?

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http://www.salon.com/2013/01/14/john_boehners_secret/