If you were to believe some newspaper reports from the state Republican convention over the weekend, you’d think Wisconsin congressmen Paul Ryan and Jim Sensenbrenner were on opposite sides of a dramatic split within

 Earlier this year, the unthinkable happened. For the first time in almost two decades, the landmark Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) was allowed to expire.

Observing the Congressional Republicans repeatedly stumble in and out of their caucus clown car, blowing loud kazoos and muttering angry threats, should be painful, embarrassing and highly instructive to any American voter