Marching Off The Cliff

There are times in life when - no matter how much you'd rather be focusing on something else - you have to push ahead. That may even require holding your hand up to your face and looking between your fingers, as you cringe and look forward.

It's especially hard when the view you're seeing includes people you care about marching right off the cliff of political extremism.

We're not just talking about the Romney campaign, though.

Republicans in Congress - many of whom are headed home this Friday for a week of campaigning - will have few successes and many failures to answer for these past two years. You can include in that list the GOP Senate filibuster Wednesday that killed a jobs bill for veterans.

Worse than that, Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell - the same man who said the Republican Party's top priority was to make Barack Obama a one term President -  admitted Wednesday that he wished Congressional Republicans could have obstructed the President and Democrats more these past four years.

No one can say we haven't been ringing the bell and banging the drum about the fractures in the GOP. We've been talking with each other about an  internal Republican Party "civil war" for much of the last ten years, even before we began this publication. Mitt Romney, with his pompous fundraising speech about the 47%, may have done what all our warnings never could - namely force the Republican Party to deal with its incompatible divisions.

As usual, Mitt's methods have created more destruction in their wake than he'll ever take responsibility for. According to Gallup, voter reactions to Mr. Romney's "47%" comments have been overwhelmingly negative.

In newspapers across the country, in stereotypical "red" regions, as well as "blue", Mitt Romney writing off half the nation has been devastating to Republicans. Romney's hubris this election season has forced many so-called "down ballot" candidates to run not just against their opponent, but also away from Mr. Romney, and even the Republican brand. Even Fox News is desperately trying to bail Mr. Romney out of his mess.

Voters and candidates aren't the only ones running away from the effects of Mitt Romney's extreme arrogance. On Wednesday, Senate Republicans delivered their prepared remarks, and then bolted for the doors, like they were jumping off their own cliff. It was obvious the Republican Senators were trying to avoid questions about Romney's 47% comments, as well as their own vote against jobs for veterans.

The scattering of Congressional Republicans at their own press conference doesn't surprise us, either. According to a slew of polls, at both the state and national levels, things are not looking good for the GOP.

Even Republican Senator Tom Coburn - a longtime veteran of political battles on Capitol Hill - admitted he's so tired of the gridlock and short-term focus on elections, he can't stand the lack of progress in any direction by Congress.

Meanwhile, the extremists in the Republican Party keep banging their drums, forcing Mitt Romney and many Congressional Republicans to march right off the edge of the political cliff.

You can't say we didn't warn you.

It's time to face the music, Republicans.

Forty-seven days and counting...