He is a leader in the tea party faction of the republican party, and since they are the minority party in Washington, they have become extremely desperate, even to the point that senate republicans are starting to talk like far right entertainers like rush etc.
Their base wanted blood, and this was one of the tempered positions the republican party has taken in the past two years. They are lost, and they are trying to find a strategy that will bring people to their party, but I don't think it will occur before they breakup.