Quote of the Day

"He pushed House Republicans into traffic and wandered away."

-- Grover Norquist on Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX)

The whimsy here is that Grover Norquist pushed Ted Cruz into Republicans.

Mind you, I have no problem with Grover Norquist slamming Ted Cruz.  If that's his pleasure, go to it, me bucko.  It's just that Grover Norquist blasting anybody over their actions involved around shutting down the government is like Richard Nixon criticizing the Watergate burglars for breaking into the Democratic headquarters.  They may have got there alone, but someone had to draw the map.

Grover Norquist is the man who said, "I'm not in favor of abolishing the government. I just want to shrink it down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub."

Grover Norquist is the man who created the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, to get every elected Republican to keep taxes from being raised at a time of massive national deficit and debt.

The remarkable thing about Mr. Norquist's quote is that if you look at his words, he has no problems with House Republicans being pushed into traffic.  He just doesn't like that the fellow got out of there before any damage was done and therefore didn't have to take any responsibility for his actions.  

Considering that Mr. Norquist's entire career has pretty much been to push elected officials into traffic and -- not being an elected official himself -- never having to take any personality responsibility himself from voters, his outrage is viewed with empty heartbreak and even more skepticism.

But then given that he has no problem with House Republicans being pushed into traffic, period, as a general concept, we shouldn't be surprised at the void where his creamy nougat center would otherwise be.

Grover Norquist is upset about anything Ted Cruz did that shut down the government???!  Spare me the angst.  Shutting down the government has been Grover Norquist's wet dream for decades.