They were UNPREPARED ???? No WAY !!

I found this on Think Progress...
Obama said he was willing to curb malpractice awards, a move long sought by the Republicans and certain to bring strong opposition from the trial lawyers who fund the Democratic Party.

What, he wanted to know, did the Republicans have to offer in return?

Nothing, it turned out. Republicans were unprepared to make any concessions, if they had any to make.

So now my question is, "What the hell are they bitching about ?? "
Because it looks more and more like they are just going breakneck , head-on, fullspeed, face first into that wall of public opinion concerning this type of behavior.
A wall that they were largely responsible for building..

HMMmmmm... Hoist By Thine Own Petard ???