I'll Take Whatever Side Gingrich Isn't On

If I'm thinking about intentionally shutting down the US Government, the last guy whose side I want to be on is Newt frickin' Gingrich. How'd that work out the last time, buddy?

House Republicans brought Gingrich to the Capitol on Wednesday, partly to revive media coverage of their speech-making protest in the chamber, now in its fourth day.

The rest of Congress is gone for August recess, but several Republican House members have been speaking on the floor of the closed-down chamber, calling for a special session to vote on drilling and energy.

Gingrich did attract more camera crews, and he used the opportunity to point to what may be the GOP's next strategy: If Democrats refuse to hold a separate vote on oil drilling, Republicans could try to block the votes needed to keep government running past September 30. Watch Gingrich return to the Capitol »

"Are [Democrats] really prepared to close the government in order to stop drilling?" Gingrich asked. "Because I think the country will find that to be a suicidal strategy."

Right, the Democrats would be the ones closing the government. OK.

It's kind of hilarious that this is all going on while the Republican leader in the House is out golfing. Congress doesn't need a break, but that guy's face isn't going to tan itself. Also, not even the President is on board with these tools, leading them to slash and burn "Beiing George." Really amazing watching them eat themselves on this one.

The thing is that there's a trap that Democrats are moving toward setting here. The broader compromise includes eliminating tax breaks for oil giants and funneling money to renewables. There's no way that Republicans will ever accept that. And so they'll continue shrieking "Drill now!" (their drillusion) when it'll become totally clear that they simply want to enrich oil companies. The DNC is laying the groundwork for this with their ExxonMcCain site. And the track record is already there:



I actually think Pelosi should force the Republicans' hand on this. Make them vote against drilling because they can't stomach giving Big Oil a tax increase. It'll be good for Obama, good for House Democrats, and good for America.