The Children's Hour

Ezra Klein cuts to the chase in today's Washington Post. The White House wanted $400 billion in revenues, and John Boehner knew he couldn't get the deal through the House:

But you can’t get a deal unless you can get the votes. And what’s been clear for some time is Speaker John Boehner cannot get the votes. If you need more evidence, look at the letter Boehner sent his caucus, which is more about pretending that he supports Cut, Cap and Balance -- an absurd and unpassable policy that includes a constitutional amendment making tax increases nearly impossible and capping spending at levels not seen since 1957 -- than it is about informing them as to what’s happened in the negotiations. It’s as if the president walked away from the table and sent out a letter saying that Boehner wouldn’t agree to single-payer health care, and so the negotiations are over.

The simple truth is that the Tea Party now controls the agenda of the Republican Party.This is the party whose presidential candidate confused the birthplaces of John Wayne and John Wayne Gacey. This is the party whose candidate in Delaware claimed to have dabbled in witchcraft.. And, of course, there is Sarah Palin, who advises her followers to "lock and reload."

Perhaps Mitch McConnell's plan to give President Obama the authority to raise the debt ceiling will pass. It is the only option his party -- a party which desperately wants to regain power -- could possibly pass. And that realization simply underscores the fact that the modern Republican Party is run by adults who never grew up.

The world is watching The Childrens Hour.