Molly Riley/Associated Press

Heritage Action “believes Washington should work for America’s best interest” — according to its website. A political advocacy group of the 501(c)(4) variety, this Heritage Foundation spinoff aims to “hold Congress accountable to conservative principles.”

But how? By making sure Republicans spend their time attacking the president.

Heritage Action’s Chief Executive Officer, Michael Needham, sent a letter to Speaker John Boehner and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor on Thursday celebrating this week’s Benghazi-I.R.S.-A.P. trifecta.

“For this first time, the activities of the Obama administration are receiving a sustained public vetting,” he wrote.



“Recent events have rightly focused the nation’s attention squarely on the actions of the Obama administration. It is incumbent upon the House of Representatives to conduct oversight hearings on those actions, but” — this bit’s important — “it would be imprudent to do anything that shifts the focus from the Obama administration to the ideological differences within the House Republican Conference.”

By “anything” Mr. Needham means legislation “that could expose or highlight major schisms within the conference.” That is, anything that might upset Republicans of the Tea Party persuasion, like the recent Internet sales tax bill or the FARRM Act, which Heritage Action doesn’t like because it contains “nearly $800 billion in food stamp spending” — but which also contains massive cuts to that program.

The best course of action for the G.O.P., in Mr. Needham’s assessment, is to close ranks and discredit the president.

He finished his letter, without apparent irony, by stressing that “as the public’s trust in their government continues to erode, it is incumbent upon those of us who support a smaller, less intrusive government to lead.”