Here are the winners and losers:
WINNER: JOE BIDEN. He avoids a disaster, validates his theory of the case on bipartisan compromises, and saves his legislative legacy.
LOSERS: PROGRESSIVES. They didn’t want to give up anything. Once you accept the need to negotiate, that wasn’t going to happen.
???: KEVIN MCCARTHY. History will look kindly on his willingness to make a deal that is reasonable and reflects the balance of power in Congress. My SEP and 401(k) are also grateful. But now, the crazoids will never trust him again. He will be dependent on Democrats to keep his job. It is an outcome that I did not predict.
LOSERS: DONALD TRUMP AND RON DESANTIS. It sounds good to say that, doesn’t it? Trump wanted either capitulation or chaos; he got neither. He will be screaming about the deal in all caps from this day forward.
LOSERS: HOUSE CRAZOIDS. We’re not burning it down, folks.
What will McCarthy do now? Will he effectively become the leader of a coalition government, or will he do everything he can to mollify the crazoids, including lots of useless investigations and impeachments? I’m guessing the latter, but it doesn’t matter. This was the big one, and in a few days it should be over, because the House GOP is in no position to reject the deal; they would clearly be blamed by the public for its failure, and it would cost them in 2024.