Against quite long odds, the House GOP has decided to stick it to the Obama administration and will fund a continuing resolution minus the required Obamacare portion. This, despite condemnation from the President and Senate, as well as a great deal of well-intentioned but ultimately academic criticism from Republican pundits and conservative analysts. The Czar calls their concerns academic because no matter what course the House takes, the GOP is going to be blamed for it, so they might as well stick it to the man.

Certainly, Obama and his lapdog carnival barker will shout and scream about Republicans wanting to shut down the government—although, technically, it is the President who will decide to shut it down—and the lately-less-obedient media will carry that message to whomever still listens. The Senate will likely condemn it, and likely with a greater percentage of Republicans than the House enjoyed. All these fingers will point at the Republicans.

But don’t think for a moment the Democrats aren’t nervous as hell. Democrats in the Senate are quite upset about this bill: the ones who love their country know Obamacare is an impending disaster that will cost them re-election; the other half are worried about the first half defunding it. Pressure is just as bad on the Senate Democrats as it is on the Republicans; they just aren’t admitting it as much.

And the President? He knows that for all his screaming and pointing, all of Jay Carney’s imp-like aping, and all the clucking and tsking from MSNBC, the people aren’t going to blame Republicans alone.

Many Americans will blame Congress as a whole—rather, they will blame Congress as a hole—rather than isolate a single party. Polls show that Americans tend to have more confidence in Republicans right now on the economy, but the numbers are so close that Democrats in Congress will certainly share the same percentage of the blame. A government shutdown is worse for Democrats in Congress seeking re-election, basically.

But know whom most Americans will blame? Hint: he’s the executive who recently declared he will not negotiate in any form on this issue; the Republicans can do whatever they want because he isn’t remotely going to entertain anything other than a veto. Another hint: he’s the guy who will be forced to appear before cameras and reporters and explain why he gave the order.

You guessed! Most Americans will blame Barack Obama—if for no reason than he is a lame duck, his name was carefully appended into the word Obamacare, and hundreds of thousands of Americans are being notified right now that Obamacare is the reason they are losing their health insurance and have to cough up thousands of dollars they no longer have.

Very likely, the President honestly thought the Republicans in the House will cave as they usually do. But Speaker Boehner’s surprise endorsement called his bluff—a lot of people have been doing that to Obama lately. And it’s been working.

See, the Democrats know that the average citizen will not pull their hair out and say “Darn those Republicans and their inability to support the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, that thereby resulted in no continuing resolution to fund the rest of the government.”

No, the average person will say “That ■■■■ing Obamacare did this.” Poll numbers show support has never been lower for the law, and media coverage has largely been focused on Americans losing their hours or benefits because of it.

Sure, a lot of people are still going to blame the Republicans. But they too will not ramble on about the recalcitrance on the PPACA. Those folks are going to say “■■■■ing Obama couldn’t rein in those Republicans.”

Either way Obama is going to take the hit on this.

And he damn well knows it.

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.