"It's hard to overstate how ridiculous this is."

[babylonsister]

Posted w/permission from author.

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_02/028136.php

GOP OFFICIALS PLAY THE 'WHO US?' GAME.... With the prospects of a government shutdown growing every day, it appears every Republican in Congress has been told to repeat the same line over and over again.

Here, for example, was the perpetually-confused Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.), talking yesterday to Fox News:

"There's no Republican that's going to shut the government down or wants to shut the government down. The only people talking about that right now are the Democrats."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) used nearly identical language three weeks ago, and Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) echoed the talking point last week, and Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) adopted the same line on Monday.

It's hard to overstate how ridiculous this is. To be sure, I understand the underlying point -- if Republicans shut down the government next week, they don't want to be blamed -- but only a fool could find the GOP rhetoric on this credible.

The record isn't in dispute. ThinkProgress has been keeping a running tally of Republican lawmakers who've been talking up the notion of shutting down the government, dating back to September. Indeed, the list keeps growing -- over the weekend, Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) told constituents, "If my Republican leadership asks me to vote for a budget, even a two-week budget, that doesn't have spending cuts, I will say no and I will shut down government."

"The only people talking about that right now are the Democrats"? Are you serious?

Republican leaders appear absolutely certain that the political world is dominated by easily-fooled suckers. I'm not certain they're wrong -- the lead story on Politico this morning featured this headline: "Shutdown: Does GOP have the edge this time?"

—Steve Benen

[phantom power]

1. They say these things because massive projection has been working for them very well.

The GOP strategy of engaging in bad behavior and bad policy, and then immediately blaming it all on the Dems, has been successful at least since Reagan. They're going to keep doing it until the Dems figure out how to defend themselves. To do that, they will have to *gasp* make the GOP upset, and be *partisan*.

[prairierose]

2. And the corporate media will report it as if...

the two "sides" have equal blame. Just because the repugnant party said they would shut it down if they do not get all the cuts they want and the Dems will not vote for those cuts...and a few repubs have a con conscience it will still be the Dems' fault since they will keep saying it is and the media will play that over and over and over....

[Kablooie]

3. If the GOP says it and the media repeats it it suddenly becomes true.

Unless the Democrats vehemently yell the truth louder than the GOP can yell lies.

But that doesn't happen.

The GOP invents whatever 'truth' they want and it almost always becomes the real truth in much of the public's minds.

[uponit7771]

4. KKKons are trying to get in front of this, if they fail their message machine has a flaw and should

...be exploited.

[craigmatic]

5. Sounds like they don't think they can win a gov shut down political fight.

They didn't win it in the 90's either and they were united then. This caucus is so fractured that boner is too weak willed to challenge Obama that way.