The cracks in the Republicans vs Democrats script of US politics are getting a bit wider. The prevailing view is that what forced Obama to reluctantly ditch Larry Summers as his preferred nominee for Chairman of the Federal Reserve was the threatened rebellion within his own party. Several Democratic members of the senate banking committee went on record saying that they would vote against Summers. The objections to Summers focused mainly on his positions on financial regulation and feminist issues. The are concerns particular to the Democratic left.
However, we have seen some other high profile issues where the progressive caucus has formed alliances with the libertarian Tea Party caucus in the house to cause headaches for the leadership of both parties. The Amash-Conyers amendment to restrict data collection by NSA has been the most dramatic instance to date. There was a pretty definite left-right coalition to oppose Obama's request for an AUMF against Syria underway before Obama backed down on that one.
Today's New York Times has an article that is focused primarily on Amash.
Newcomers Challenge Leadership in the House
Mr. Amash, elected in the Tea Party wave in 2010, is part of a cadre of young, libertarian-leaning House members who have repeatedly hijacked their party’s agenda, frustrating Republicans and Democrats alike. Their approach has prompted backlash, like when House Republicans stripped Mr. Amash, 33, and others of plum committee assignments after they repeatedly challenged the leadership.
But now, armed with social media and a rigid set of beliefs, the self-styled revolutionaries in an already unmanageable Republican majority are making their presence felt — weighing in on issues like health care, government surveillance and Syria.
I found a quote from one of Amash's colleagues particularly interesting.
At a lunch this summer sponsored by the Heritage Foundation, Representative Raúl R. Labrador, an Idaho Republican and fellow Tea Party conservative, said that he and Mr. Amash were part of a group he jokingly called “the Wing Nut Coalition — where you have the right wing and the left wing working together and trying to get things done.” Mr. Amash, he added, was “chief Wing Nut.”
The organized group of congressional reps on the left of the Democratic Party is the
Progressive Caucus. It's co-chairs are Raúl Grijalva and Keith Ellison. Grijalva has a reputation for being as out spoken and Amash. Both he and Barbara Lee were very active in organizing opposition to Obama's Syria plans.
The two groups share some common views on issues of civil liberties and foreign policy. They would appear to be on significantly different pages when it comes to social policy issues relating to economic programs. On culture war issues such as abortion and gay marriage the picture is less clear. Traditional libertarian philosophy tends to view such issues as matters of individual freedom. However, the political realities of wining elections in the Republican Party has meant that Tea Party candidates have had to modify their positions to woo the votes of social conservatives.
The alliances between the far left and the far right seem likely to remain issue specific. The chances of a more enduring alliance that could turn into a new party movement seems like a very long stretch. Never the less these are interesting political developments to follow.