A grand old cult  —  Someone ought to study the Republican Party.  I am not referring to yet another political scientist but to a mental health professional, preferably a specialist in the power of fixations, obsessions and the like.  The GOP needs an intervention.  It has become a cult.

Paul Ryan Responds To David Brooks: We Won't Cut Tax Loopholes To Reduce Deficit, Only To Finance More Tax Cuts  —  As the August debt ceiling deadline looms and Republicans continue refusing to consider revenue increases, conservative New York Times columnist David Brooks excoriated the GOP for its intransigence.

Why Can't the GOP Get to Yes?  —  David Brooks does the David Brooks equivalent of losing his temper … Why can't they take the deal?  —  There's one semi-fair reason, which is that the Democrats and the GOP leadership got entirely too cute with the last round of negotiations …

Bloggers bop New York Times's David Brooks  —  David Brooks, the New York Times scribe known as liberals' favorite conservative, got no love from bloggers on the right Tuesday after penning a column trashing the tea party movement and calling on congressional Republicans to accept a small tax increase.

Administration Offers Health Care Cuts as Part of Budget Negotiations  —  WASHINGTON — Obama administration officials are offering to cut tens of billions of dollars from Medicare and Medicaid in negotiations to reduce the federal budget deficit, but the depth of the cuts depends …