How the GOP painted itself into a corner on the shutdown

If at first you don't succeed, try, try, try, try, try...

John Boehner
(Image credit: (Alex Wong/Getty Images))

At the beginning of this week, Republicans in the House were feeling pretty good about their grand plan to shut down the government unless President Obama scrapped his health-care law. Tea Partiers were reportedly beaming as they voted on a continuing resolution that would defund ObamaCare, despite the fact that the vote all but assured a shutdown and a high-stakes confrontation with the president.

Yet there was one crucial component missing from the plan: A way out if Democrats called their bluff.

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Jon Terbush

Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.