Several years ago I sat in on a meeting with a conservative Republican who had just been elected to the US Congress. As a fellow conservative Republican I was excited to meet another conservative Republican who would be serving in the Congress. As the meeting progressed he talked of repealing Obama Care. When it came time to ask questions, I decided to ask the obvious question: “How do you propose to repeal Obama Care when the architect of that is still in the White House, and you don’t have enough votes to override a veto?” Stunned silence filled the room and the subject was quickly changed.
My question was never answered.
I reflect back on that meeting as House Republicans look for a new leader after driving Speaker Boehner out of his job.
In the intervening years nothing has changed. Republicans appear to be incapable or unwilling to do simple math.
Facts are stubborn things. And the fact is conservative Republicans do not have the numbers – outside of the House of Representatives – to move their agenda, which makes the targeting of the Speaker for their frustration even more curious.
When the dust settles on the resignation of the Speaker, House Republicans need to learn how to count and how to better work with their Republican colleagues in the Senate to get more Republicans elected to the US Senate.
Steve Moffitt is a Partner in Capstone’s Washington, D.C. office. Before joining Capstone , Steve served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Senate Affairs.
The views in this blog post represent the viewpoints of individual team members, not Capstone National Partners as a whole.
