Politics
House GOP’s New Strategy: Reopen Popular Parts of Government
[Los Angeles Times]
WASHINGTON — House Republicans emerged with a new strategy to reopen the most popular parts of government that have been shut down by the standoff in Congress, starting with votes Tuesday to fund veterans services and possibly the national parks.
The proposal from House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) and his leadership team picks up on the idea that had been floated in recent days by tea party Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who has led the GOP’s strategy in the congressional standoff that resulted in the first shutdown of the federal government since the Clinton administration.
Democratic leadership aides appeared uninterested in the latest move. But Boehner’s conservative flank emerged from the private meeting energized with this next phase of the fight — even though it drops Republicans’ demands to stop President Obama’s healthcare law, which had been the party’s goal in the budget battle until the healthcare exchanges opened Tuesday.
