“Mr. Boehner mused this week that negotiating a debt deal acceptable to President Barack Obama, the Republican House majority and a Senate that is nearly evenly split between the parties is like solving a Rubik’s cube. But that is only partly true. At least every side moves on a Rubik’s cube.

“John Boehner is an old-style Republican. He’s conservative, but he doesn’t breathe fire,” said Randall Ripley, emeritus professor of political science at Ohio State University. “He was not prepared for just how far to the right these freshmen are, or for the extreme inflexibility of these people.”

Some House GOP freshmen have indicated they will not vote to increase the debt ceiling – period. Others have made their vote conditional on trillions of dollars in spending cuts over the next decade – and no tax increases.”

The Globe and Mail