National Review has an editorial today that’s headlined:

The Governing Trap

Yup.  The National Review is suggesting that governing Republicans should not actually try to govern the country:

The desire to prove Republicans can govern also makes them hostage to their opponents in the Democratic party and the media. It empowers Senator Harry Reid, whose dethroning was in large measure the point of the election. If Republicans proclaim that they have to govern now that they run Congress, they maximize the incentive for the Democrats to filibuster everything they can — and for President Obama to veto the remainder. Then the Democrats will explain that the Republicans are too extreme to get anything done.

Can we stop and reflect for a moment on the fact that “not governing” is exactly what Republicans have been doing (or… NOT doing) these past six years?  Rather, they have been creating gridlock and finding ways to blame it on Democrats.  NR understands how well this worked and wants to protect Republicans from actually having to do things.

Beyond that, NR is afraid that trying to govern will just upset one faction or another in the GOP’s delicately balanced coalition.  They even admit it.  Who needs a bunch of crazy tea partiers stirring up trouble again? There’s no reasoning with those folks! Better to just lie low.

That said, they are probably right.  They have little to gain and so much to lose.