Republicans are very serious about the duck hunting constituency these days.
Hoo boy. Even today's House Republicans are not far enough to the right for the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity. The House had to hold a voice vote on a bill
raising the cost of duck hunting permits from $15 to $25 after Americans for Prosperity said it would include the measure on its congressional scorecard, since any kind of new government revenue is unacceptable to the Kochs:
“[T]he scrooges in Congress want to ask American families for even more of their paycheck to help fund a bloated, oversized government that cannot properly do the few things it is supposed to be doing, never mind all of the things it is not supposed to be doing,” reads a blog post by the group.
The bipartisan bill, introduced by Republican Rep. John Fleming of Louisiana, has the backing of duck hunters. That’s because the money will go toward bird conservation— meaning more game to shoot over the long run.
Thanks to the voice vote, AFP now can't attribute the unacceptable yes vote to anyone in particular, but the measure passed. This is a great example of how extreme the outside funders the Republican Party depends on are when it comes to even the smallest amount of added government revenue. And while House leadership should be congratulated on finding a way around AFP's threat, it's not exactly a profile in courage to be unable to say "Screw your congressional scorecard, we're voting yes on this one. By name."