For some reason the Washington Post’s reporters decided to sanitize the anecdote, but apparently House GOP leaders are trying to garner support for John Boehner’s debt ceiling plan by comparing it to a street gang prepared to beat a couple of people up:
House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the party’s vote counter, began his talk by showing a clip from the movie, “The Town”, trying to forge a sense of unity among the independent-minded caucus.
One character asks his friend: “I need your help. I can’t tell you what it is. You can never ask me about it later.”
“Whose car are we gonna take,” the character says.
After showing the clip, Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.), one of the most outspoken critics of leadership among the 87 freshmen, stood up to speak, according to GOP aides.
“I’m ready to drive the car,” West replied, surprising many Republicans by giving his full -throated support for the plan.
The actual line from the scene is “I need your help. I can’t tell you what it is. You can never ask me about it later. We’re gonna hurt some people.”
Watch for yourself:
That last bit seems relevant to me. And, indeed, Boehner’s plan would hurt some people. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has calculated that, if enacted, it “could well produce the greatest increase in poverty and hardship produced by any law in modern U.S. history.”
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