Friday, January 4, 2013
Politics Volunteer Delegation at the Center of Congressional Mischief
Posted by Steven Hale on Fri, Jan 4, 2013 at 12:25 PM
OK, now that it's just the six of us, you'll know I'm referring to the conservative mutiny (attempted coup, revolt, etc.) that played out on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday, as members voted to decide who holds the gavel in the lower chamber. John Boehner was eventually re-elected as Speaker of the House, but not before a number of his members made a show of their displeasure with him by casting their votes elsewhere or simply not voting at all.
And consider us unsurprised that the wily members of Tennessee's delegation were right in the middle of it.
Thanks to a bit of investigative reporting — or the zoom feature on a camera — Politico has uncovered a list of representatives whom rebel leaders hope would join their cause and vote to overthrow Boehner. The rogues gallery included Republican Reps. Stephen Fincher and Scott DesJarlais.
At first, it appeared Rep. Marsha Blackburn was joining the cause when she came up absent the first time her name was called. Later, it was reported that she had missed her first chance to vote due to a bloody nose (obviously a lie, meant to save her from testifying on Benghazi, obviously).
Given a second chance to vote, Blackburn voted for Boehner, as had Fincher, DesJarlais, and the rest of the Tennessee Republicans.
As he is prone to do, though, Nashville's own Rep. Jim Cooper stole the show. Along with getting two votes himself — stop ... dream ... Speaker Cooper — Cooper cast his vote for retired four-star general and former Secretary of State Colin Powell. And yes, Powell could have served.
Why would Cooper vote Colin Powell for Speaker of the House? GLAD YOU ASKED:
“Never have America’s problems looked so big, and Congress looked so small. Since the Speaker does not have to be a member of the House, retired four-star Army General, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and former Secretary of State Colin Powell would be a tremendous Speaker of the House. He has a proven ability to work across the aisle and has supported President Obama. He knows about reforming storied institutions like the military, and there is no institution in more dire need of reform than Congress. We need a hero now, more than ever.”
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