Here is the headline Republicans want you to see.

“Rubio to Introduce Senate Bill to Ban Abortions After 20 Weeks”

This is why I hate them so much.

The Republicans, particularly Rubio, are in trouble with their base who are very unhappy about their support of this poor version of immigration reform. They need to get them back on board, but they don’t want to do anything for them that will cause political problems. So they go back to their playbook.

What does the playbook tell Republicans to do when they are in trouble with their wild-eyed base?

Schedule and make fanfare over a stand-alone symbolic vote about an issue they care about but that has zero chance of becoming law.

They would never hold something the Dems care about hostage over such issues so as to give them a real chance because the Dems would savage them over it. The Dems would make people believe that Republicans are just like those wild-eyed Bible thumpers they represent and they can’t have that.

So they schedule a symbolic vote about an issue they care about but that has zero chance of becoming law trusting that the base will forget by the time the mid-terms roll around. Then they will loudly tout their support of the abortion ban.

This is their playbook. Don’t fall for it and don’t forget.

Increasingly I believe that the Republican party must die if we are ever to have a truly pro-life party in this country.

*subhead*Don’t fall for it.*subhead*