Boehner Wins Back Some Love From Confederate Republicans By Blocking Aid To SuperStorm Sandy Victims In The Hated North

So today Speaker Boehner was reelected to his post, 220-192 over Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi -- with 14 Republicans defecting and 3 voting for the Speaker's "partner" in the leadership, Majority Leader Eric Cantor. (Which Republicans didn't vote for their leader? See Aaron Blake's WaPo report below.)

Everyone's been talking about how only 85 Republicans voted for the Obama/Boehner Grand Bargain while 151 Republicans voted against it-- and that 172 Democrats voted yes and just 16 voted no. But there's another way to look at this than just the Republican-Democratic split.

Of the 85 Republicans who voted yes, only 8 were from the old Confederate states. Of the 151 die-hard obstructions, 65 represent districts that were part of the Confederacy (not even counting border states like Tennessee and Kentucky where the Republicans consider themselves devoted to the reactionary and hateful Southern cause). In seeking to win back some credibility with the Confederate Republicans who completely dominate his congressional caucus, Boehner opted to toss them some red meat after their defeat on the Grand Bargain: he blocked a vote on aid for the victims of SuperStorm Sandy, victims located predominantly in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, states the Confederacy still detests and wishes ill.

The pathetic centrist president issued a statement after his colleague Boehner had adjourned Congress:

It has only been two months since Hurricane Sandy devastated communities across New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut as well as other eastern states. Our citizens are still trying to put their lives back together. Our states are still trying to rebuild vital infrastructure. And so, last month, working closely with the Governors of the affected states, I sent Congress an urgent request to support their efforts to rebuild and recover. The Senate passed this request with bipartisan support. But the House of Representatives has refused to act, even as there are families and communities who still need our help to rebuild in the months and years ahead, and who also still need immediate support with the bulk of winter still in front of us. 

When tragedy strikes, Americans come together to support those in need. I urge Republicans in the House of Representatives to do the same, bring this important request to a vote today, and pass it without delay for our fellow Americans.

New York Congressman Jerry Nadler's statement was more pointed and, like many from stricken area, more outraged:

“Shame on Speaker Boehner for choosing not to act on Sandy relief for the Northeast.  This is a betrayal of the millions of Americans who are struggling after Sandy and a trivialization of the loss of more than 100 American lives.  Not taking up the $60 billion Sandy funding bill will mean that many Americans could remain homeless, the rebuilding of homes and businesses across the Northeast will be delayed, and the coastal infrastructure of the region will remain damaged and vulnerable to the next storm.  The MTA, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and other agencies cannot execute major repairs to broken facilities without funding certainty.

“The simple fact is that millions of people in the Northeast are hurting badly and relying on this funding to recover, rebuild, and move forward.  I am appalled-- and mystified-- by a total collapse of leadership on the part of Speaker Boehner.”

He shouldn't be mystified. It's just Boehner currying favor with his hate-filled, degenerate caucus-- which he needs to vote for him if he's going to be Speaker again next year. He's already promised them he'll stop negotiating with Obama if he's reelected Speaker. No more private one-on-one negotiations-- which means the crazy teabaggers get to imprint their bizarre ideology into whatever the House GOP does in 2013.

My favorite statement so far on the betrayal of the Sandy victims was from Long Island Republican congressman Peter King, urging wealthy New York donors to stop financing his party's madness with millions of dollars in campaign donations. He was on Fox News yesterday whining that "these Republicans have no problem finding New York when they’re out raising millions of dollars. They’re in New York all the time filling their pockets with money from New Yorkers. I’m saying right now, anyone from New York or New Jersey who contributes one penny to congressional Republicans is out of their minds. Because what they did last night was put a knife in the back of New Yorkers and New Jerseyans. It was an absolute disgrace... As far as I’m concerned, I’m on my own. They’re going to have to go a long way to get my vote on anything.” 

What about on Boehner's reelection? Boehner insultingly refused to even discuss the matter with New Jersey Congressman Frank LoBiondo. Even Congress' only actual Mafia member, Michael "Mikey Suits" Grimm, the Republican from Staten Island, was mortified. “It is with an extremely heavy heart that I stand here almost in disbelief and somewhat ashamed. I am here tonight saying to myself for the first time that I am not proud of the decision that my team has made.” The only Northeast Republican agreeing with Boehner to kill aid for his own constituents was radical right extremist Scott Garrett (R-NJ). Garrett strutted around calling the aid "wasteful spending." His state's governor still hasn't gone public about what he thinks of him. He should, although he probably thinks attacking Garrett is beneath his dignity. "Last night," said the voluble Christie after Boehner scurried off for a vacation, "politics was placed before our oath to serve our citizens. For me, it was disappointing and disgusting to watch. Shame on Congress."

WAPO'S AARON BLAKE REPORTS: "WHO VOTED
AGAINST BOEHNER FOR SPEAKER AND WHY?"

Who voted against Boehner for speaker and why?

Posted by Aaron Blake on January 3, 2013

Twelve Republicans voted against John Boehner’s second term as speaker Thursday, making for a very tense final few minutes of the vote.

At one point, in fact, the number either voting for someone else or not voting reached into the high teens, raising the possibility that Boehner wouldn’t secure a majority on the first ballot. Eventually, a few of those who hadn’t voted — including Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) — cast their ballots for Boehner.

Boehner won with 220 votes — six more than the 214 votes he needed. (A speaker needs only a majority of the actual votes cast, not of all members of the House.)

Below is a look at the defectors, whom they voted for, and our best guess as to why it wasn’t Boehner:

Rep. Eric Cantor (3 votes)
Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-Okla.) — conservative freshman who defeated Rep. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) in a primary
Rep. Steve Pearce (R-N.M.) — very conservative
Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.) — conservative freshman who defeated Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) in a primary
Former congressman Allen West (2)
Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.) — noted conservative maverick, Club for Growth favorite
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Tex.) — outspoken conservative
Rep. Raul Labrador (1)
Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) — libertarian ally of former congressman Ron Paul (R-Tex.), recently stripped of committee assignments by House GOP leadership
Rep. Jim Jordan (1)
Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) — very conservative, recently stripped of committee assignments
Former comptroller general David Walker (1)
Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) — frequently votes against his party, recently stripped of committee assignments
Amash (1)
Rep. Tom Massie (R-Ky.) — freshman conservative, favorite of the Club for Growth
Voting present (1)
Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Tex.) — has criticized Boehner for “being too harsh with conservatives“
Not voting (3)
Rep. Raul Labrador (R-Idaho) — conservative, frequent critic of Boehner
Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.) — critic of Boehner’s “Plan B” maneuver on the “fiscal cliff”
Boehner — speaker traditionally does not vote for himself or herself

NOTE: Blake also covers Democrats who voted against Minority Leader Pelosi or just didn't vote. ("We would note that the defections are far less than the 20 who didn’t vote for Pelosi in 2011.")