After the last six years of weasel words, I think we can tell when Republicans are playing Lucy with the football. Kevin McCarthy's nonsense about how Congress and President Obama should agree to a "fresh start" is just another version of that.

Despite David Axelrod's timidity in suggesting the President should simply "shelve" his plans for an executive order, the White House is ready to proceed. If they hadn't listened to the scaredy-cats, this would already be done.

Washington Post, quoting Josh Earnest:

White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Friday that Obama “is very focused on” immigration and that Republicans can do only one thing to stop him. “They can allow that common-sense, bipartisan bill from the Senate to come to the floor of the House of Representatives,” he said. “And if the House passes that Senate bill, the president won’t take executive action. Maybe the republic will be saved. Maybe the ego of the House Republicans will not be bruised. Certainly, the United States of America would benefit significantly from them taking that step.”

Expect that executive order in the coming days after President Obama's trip overseas.

Let's be honest. Boehner is never going to bring that bill up for a vote. Dave Neiwert called it over a year ago, when he said there would be no way to get the nativist Tea Party faction to give even an inch. All the talk about starting over is just that: Talk.

Now the only question is whether the White House will go big, which I hope they do. That will leave the ball in Congress' court to actually get something done that works. Good luck with that, given the new Republican majority.