As September 30th draws nearer, the GOP push to defund Planned Parenthood continues in Congress, with Sen. Ted Cruz at the very head of it. However, in the face of a government shutdown certain Republican members of both the House and Senate are showing that they are less willing than others to actually let the government shut down this October. Though almost a unanimity agree on defunding Planned Parenthood, the party seems split on how they should do so. For example, Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., resigned from the House Freedom Caucus this past Wednesday. In his official resignation letter he states that though he opposes public funding on abortion, allowing the government to shut down is a tactic that "promises only to shield Senate Democrats from their responsibility for a government shutdown and to alienate the public from the pro-life cause." Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., wrote to Sen. Ted Cruz yesterday saying, "Given the challenges and threats we face at home and abroad, I oppose risking a government shutdown, particularly when it appears there is no chance of achieving a successful result."
Sen. Ayotte's letter to the Republican Senator from Texas appeared to be in response to his remarks about defunding Planned Parenthood in Wednesday's GOP debate. "I'm proud to stand for life," were the words he used before going on to discuss the recent Planned Parenthood videos, describing them and their "horrific" nature. He then attempted to to appeal to the values of American people by proposing them to ask, "are these my values?" Towards the end of his remarks he criticizes Republicans for repeatedly giving in to Obama's "liberal principles" by continuing to approve Planned Parenthood funding. Sen. Cruz has arguable been the biggest congressional leader in the struggle to defund Planned Parenthood, and has also been one of the loudest voices saying that he will gladly let the government shut down to prevent such government spending.
But why? If we experience a government shutdown it is sure to hurt the Republican Party as a whole, as it takes the blame for yet another government shutdown. This blame will most likely be reflected in the 2016 elections, as Democratic challengers to Republican incumbents can exploit such a shutdown as leverage in their campaigns, lowering (and potentially erasing) the Republican margin of control. In addition, as Rep. McClintock pointed out it could sway public opinion against the pro-life cause, and as Sen. Ayotte commented, that it's not even likely to be effective to defunding Planned Parenthood.
So, if Sen. Cruz is seemingly making a terrible political mistake for himself and his party, why does he continue to support it with such passion? Is he making such desperate attempt for the sake of publicity, in hopes that it will help boost his presidential campaign? Or is he attempting to gain popular support for the pro-life cause in light of the recently released videos? Could he be trying to paint the Democrats, and others who support such "liberal principles," as villains to blame them for the shutdown, and secure a Republican victory in both the Congressional and Presidential elections? Whatever his strategy is, it doesn't seem to be working for him or other Republicans, and they're letting him know.
http://blogs.rollcall.com/218/republicans-split-planned-parenthood-strategy-shutdown/?dcz=
http://blogs.rollcall.com/wgdb/kelly-ayotte-fights-ted-cruz-on-planned-parenthood-strategy/?dcz=
http://blogs.rollcall.com/218/house-freedom-caucus-loses-member-over-planned-parenthood/?utm_source=outbrain&utm_medium=widget&utm_campaign=obclick&obref=obinsite
4 comments:
Senator Cruz seems to be one of the exceptions in the US Senate, less concerned with the electoral fortunes of his party, perhaps even less concerned with his own electoral fortunes. Cruz has been behaving this way before announcing his presidential bid, which makes me think that this is less about presidential politics and more about his own Tea-party politics. I'd be interested to see public opinion numbers on how Cruz is faring among his home state constituents! Maybe this would help us better complete this picture.
I definitely agree with Dr. Mathews-Schultz's analysis above, in that Cruz's adamant position on defunding planned parenthood may not even be a tactic for his presidential run but rather a way to push the agenda of his Tea Party base. The other GOP presidential candidates, while many are far from moderate, would likely not push for defunding planned parenthood to the extent of causing a government shutdown—just like most other Republicans in Congress are in favor of defunding the organization but not if the cost of doing it immediately is a shutdown. Cruz's view is certainly extreme, and it will likely alienate him from the rest of his party in the upcoming weeks of budget negotiations. As I mentioned in my post about defunding PP a few weeks ago, GOP leaders in both houses have been trying to placate members who are pushing to defund even it causes the government to shut down. However, that also gives Cruz a bit of importance—he's ruffling the feathers of the GOP and they need to worry about the far-right Tea Party members if they want to pass a successful budget in time to keep the government running.
In terms of politics, it should all come down to what a politician believes is best for his people and his country, and it does not appear that Senator Ted Cruz is doing so. While I recognize that he has strong beliefs he is not weighing the consequences of his actions against each other. As you stated, even if there is a government shutdown and more arguing is done regarding the funding of Planned Parenthood, it does not guarantee that Cruz will get his way- and America will be without a government. This inability to think of what is the better of two options that one does not want in order to better the lives of the people is a reason why there is such distrust in Congress. If people believe that their best interests are not in mind, then there is no reason for them to think that Congress is a legislative body worth backing.
I wonder if Senator Cruz is going for a Donald Trump-style sensationalist media takeover. Despite his lack of political awareness and his utter ridiculousness, Trump is topping the Republican polls, and maybe Senator Cruz feels that his extremist actions will help boost his media coverage and, in turn, his numbers? That's the only logic I can put to his actions.
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