a tiny whisp of sanity: Boehner telling colleagues he won't allow debt default

[cali]

With a deadline for raising the debt limit fast-approaching, House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) has been telling colleagues in recent days that he will do whatever necessary to avoid defaulting on the federal debt, including relying on House Democrats to help pass an extension, according to GOP aides familiar with the conversations.

In a series of small group meetings held in his office suite off the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol, Boehner has been meeting with colleagues to hear them out and reiterate that he will not permit a vote on a “clean” continuing resolution that does nothing about ending or delaying parts of the new federal health-care law.

Relying on Democratic votes to pass a debt ceiling extension likely would infuriate some of the most conservative members of the House GOP conference, but would be a repeat of a strategy that ensured passage earlier this year of measures to avert another fiscal impasse, to renew the Violence Against Women Act and to provide federal relief to victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Boehner spokesman Michael Steel would not confirm the details of the speaker’s conversations with members in recent days, but said the Boehner has always believed that defaulting on the federal debt must be avoided.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics-live/liveblog/live-updates-the-shutdown-showdown/?id=c47733bd-4285-49a1-9d0d-7968e44ff7a8

[gopiscrap]

1. yeah but is he gonna be able to rein his party in?

[MSMITH33156]

2. He doesn't have to...

and that's why this is so stupid. A majority of the House and a majority of the Senate, as well as the President support both a clean CR and a raising of the debt ceiling. The reason the government is shutdown right now is not because the House and Senate can't agree on a bill, it's because Boehner won't let them vote on it in the House. He has single-handedly shut down the government to placate extremists in his party. He is basically telling them, "we can't do that with the debt ceiling...so I will call a vote on that even if you aren't on board and pass with Democrats and moderate Republicans."

[magical thyme]

3. "including relying on House Democrats to help pass an extension"

It's called bi-partisanship. It's what governing is supposed to be about. The sane people doing their jobs and not letting a group of nutjobs take over.