Cheering up the Base

Right-wing Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX) met with some of his Tea Party supporters who were unhappy that he eventually supporting a debt ceiling increase. Responsible governing being an anathema to the base, Burgess promised to cast no such vote again.

But he still needed to do something to placate angry conservative, something that would provide a more effective way of obstructing the President's agenda (clearly, one of the major failures of the Republican Congress has been its inability to effectively obstruct). And he thinks he's got the answer: impeachment!

When one attendee suggested that the House push for impeachment proceedings against President Barack Obama to obstruct the president from pushing his agenda, Burgess was receptive.

"It needs to happen, and I agree with you it would tie things up," Burgess said. "No question about that."

When asked about the comment later, Burgess said he wasn't sure whether the proper charges to bring up articles of impeachment against Obama were there, but he didn't rule out pursuing such a course.

"We need to tie things up," Burgess said. "The longer we allow the damage to continue unchecked, the worse things are going to be for us."

Undoubtedly, when the founders included an impeachment provision in the Constitution, they meant it to be just one more tool for a recalcitrant Congress to use for delay. Hell, Burgess doesn't even know what charges would be appropriate. That step comes later -- the important thing is to further "tie things up."