John Boehner Punishes ObamaTrade Vote but Ignores Abortion Mutiny

It is a cliché to say that actions speak louder than words – but that phrase is more accurately applied to politics than anything else. If you want to gauge what John Boehner and the House Republican leadership really value, just look at the behavior they decide to punish and the deeds they let slide. Take the case of ObamaTrade vs. abortion. A handful of Republicans voted against the House leadership on the issue of fast-track, or Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) – a measure that would give President Obama the ability to draw up the terms of trade deals with no oversight from Congress. The president would set the deal, and Congress could not amend it – members would simply have to vote the whole deal up-or-down.