Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
Claire Berlinski, Ed. ·
Sep 20, 2010 at 5:27am
Emily just pointed out Jonathan Chait's piece on Boehner, which ends with the words, "If anybody wants to start up a Republican establishment Dead Pool, I'm picking Boehner."
It's definitely Ricochet's responsibility to host that competition. Our bookies are standing by. Enter your bets.
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Comments :
Sep '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
I'll take Steele.
May '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
Can I pick the entire state of Maine? If not, just Olympia Snowe. She'll jump.
May '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
I was going to vote for "Big Bad" John Cornyn, but he's not up until 2014. I like @Mack's suggestion at #1 - why Steele is still around is a mystery.
May '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
Graham please... I know he's not up til 2012, but he's the next Arlen Spector.
Jun '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
Do they have to be current office holders, already elected or capable of being so?...if not, I'm going to go out on a limb and pick this weeks flavor, Christine--I sued ISI, baby!--O'Donnel, just for laughs.
Jul '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
For some reason I really do have trouble picturing Boehner as Speaker, I wouldn't be at all surprised if he faced a bit of an uprising after the election. Or became the Denny Hastert model of Speaker, instead of ruling like Pelosi but simply wielding the gavel and giving the party a gentlemanly air while Cantor calls more of the shots from behind the scenes. I just don't feel like he's got..."it," whatever the heck it may be.
Edited on Sep 20, 2010 at 10:22amJun '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
What's the definition of "dead?" I'd say Boehner is one of the last to be purged. You can acquire new political priorities overnight, and they all do. But you can't acquire his institutional knowledge and skills overnight. Everything in Congress, everything successful, happens in several well-timed steps.
May '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
I'm a little disappointed in this establishment purge-fest. There are a lot of folks who did some heavy lifting over the years, and I'm unwilling to just cast them aside. Identity politics is still a major player in elections, thus why we need people like Steele and Boehner. Steele's around because he's what black Obama supporters wish Obama was - a black kid from the hood who made something of himself, despite all the odds against him. Boehner, as the UK Telegraph featured, has a humble midwestern background. I'm willing to give O'Donnell a chance, too. She's done some peculiar things, but she didn't crash her car while driving drunk and leave her passenger for dead in a watery grave, did she? You may question my standards, but if you'd prefer the first 500 names in the phonebook to represent you, they'll be just as gaffe-tastic. It's impossible not to be in our 24/7 news cycle. But I want someone rough around the edges. You can't swing a dead cat in DC without hitting some polished professional from the Ivy League.
Edited on Sep 20, 2010 at 1:55pmJul '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
President Bush. With this economy? With those wars? He's got to go sooner rather than later.
Jul '10
Re: Republican Establishment Dead Pool: Enter Your Bets
In contravention of my typical Eeyorism I'll go out on a limb and say no one. If Steele goes, it's do to his tin ear, and on the heels of victory he'll get a golden parachute.
Conservatives (like everyone else) should always look for better leadership, but purges are for Bolsheviks, corporations, and other groups of adolescents.