Obama has apparently been nursing the fantasy — despite all evidence to the contrary over the last several years — that he can negotiate with the current Republican leadership in good faith.

He’s heading over to the Hill for a meeting with House Republicans, to solicit their input on the stimulus bill, and to cajole them into supporting it (for reasons that aren’t clear, and don’t appear to be defensible).

So here’s what the House Republican leadership decided to pull this morning, without even waiting for the meeting with Obama:

President Barack Obama is coming to the Capitol this afternoon to curry favor with congressional Republicans. But it appears GOP leaders have already made up their minds to oppose his $825 billion stimulus plan.

House Republican Leader John A. Boehner and his No. 2, Whip Eric Cantor, told their rank-and-file members Tuesday morning during a closed-door meeting to oppose the bill when it comes to the floor Wednesday, according to an aide familiar with the discussion. Boehner told members that he’s voting against the stimulus, and Cantor told the assembled Republicans that there wasn’t any reason for them to support the measure, according to another person in the room. Cantor and his whip team are going to urge GOP members to oppose it.

Of course, it may take several more knees to the groin before Obama gets the message.