Bipartisan!
From Ted Cruz's
statement on House passage of his defund Obamacare scheme:
Today, the House of Representatives did what Washington pundits only a few weeks ago said was impossible: a strong bipartisan majority voted to defund Obamacare. This is a victory for House conservatives, and it is a victory for Speaker Boehner and Republican leadership.
Amen! And it's also a victory for whatever math/civics professor taught Ted Cruz that when 2 Democrats join 228 Republicans to cast a vote opposed by 47% of the House and 94% of Democrats that you've attained not just a bipartisan majority, but a strong bipartisan majority. (Worth noting: One Republican voted against the Cruz plan, so that means there was significant bipartisan opposition to it, by his logic.)
Now, says Cruz, the question is whether Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will deploy "gimmicks" to pass legislation preventing a government shutdown without defunding Obamacare. Gimmicks like simple majority rule:
But the House was just step one. Step two is the Senate, where all accounts suggest Harry Reid plans to use procedural gimmicks to try to add funding back in for Obamacare.
If Reid pursues this plan — if he insists on using a 50-vote threshold to fund Obamacare with a partisan vote of only Democrats — then I hope that every Senate Republican will stand together and oppose cloture on the bill in order to keep the House bill intact and not let Harry Reid add Obamacare funding back in.
To recap: Ted Cruz is thrilled about the strong bipartisan vote in favor of his idea, is unconcerned about the bipartisan opposition to his idea, and is terribly concerned that Senate Democrats might deploy a "gimmick" known as the "50-vote threshold" to prevent a gang of psychotic hostage-takers from forcing their will upon the nation at gunpoint.
Seriously, who knew that Bachmann with a brain could be so entertaining?