The House version of the Obama stimulus package passed 244 – 188 with no Republican votes. This comes against a background of some early sniping:

1) On Friday the President warned Republicans that they needed to “quit listening to Rush Limbaugh.” Limbaugh has maintained that he wants Obama to fail.

2) Limbaugh fired back with the suggestion that Obama feared him more than the GOP Congressional leadership. This was enough for Chris Cillizza to wonder if Limbaugh was the new face of the GOP?

3) There were plenty of GOP complaints about the stimulus bill — too slow, too little on taxes, too much on transfer payments, and accusations of pork.

The Result?

Most experienced observers expect the Senate version of the bill to reflect more GOP influence. There does not seem to be an impending filibuster. The Conference Committee to reconcile the two versions will address some of the GOP concerns.

Meanwhile, the new President must balance the positions taken by his own party in the House, with the desire to have Republican support in dealing with the economy.

The Limbaugh exchanges are a sideshow, but one that reflects the ideological pull of conservatives at a time when some perceive a scramble for leadership in the Republican party.

…..and by the way…..Sarah Palin has started a political action committee. SarahPac is (of course!) not an exploratory committee, but rather a way for her to finance involvement in GOP races and to pay the expenses of travel and meetings.