Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) finally got what he's always wanted: For a brief time he's the Speaker of the House.
CNN's Zachary B. Wolf described the nightmare that is about to unfold as McCarthy moves from clutching his title to an attempt at governing. While Republicans promised to fight problems like crime and inflation, they have indicated that the main function of the GOP-led Congress will be hearings attacking President Joe Biden, possible impeachment and an investigation into his son.
Beyond that, whatever dream legislation the right has been holding out to pass is likely going to cause scores of debates and possibly lead McCarthy to be forced out of the post. The second McCarthy leaves Washington to see family, go to an event, or even campaign back home, anyone can make a motion to vacate the chair, and oust him from the spot. It puts Democrats in a unique position, in more ways than one. Other than McCarthy needing them, they can also bide their time until the first moment that the GOP has fewer members.
"This rules package effectively limits his ability to negotiate with the Democrats who run the rest of the federal government. McCarthy can marshal House Republicans to vote for steep spending cuts, but his greatest difficulty will be in finding legislation that can pass the House and not be immediately rejected by the Senate or vetoed by President Joe Biden," wrote Wolf.
One problem that Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) told Jake Tapper was that all members should be able to offer amendments to spending bills. For the past several years both parties have restricted amendments to make things move faster and keep the other side from adding an amendment that would ultimately kill a budget bill.
“Too often bills are cooked up with [a] handful of people, they’re brought through with the Rules Committee, jammed through, put on the floor and you have to vote yes or no,” Roy said on Sunday. “A little temporary conflict is necessary in this town.”
The idea is that there would be added transparency, wrote Wolf. It's going to add an unbelievable amount of time that members will have to be on the floor, which will dig into the time they need to fundraise for their campaigns.
“You say, ‘Well, are we going to have this kind of conflict going forward?’ I hope so,” Roy proudly proclaimed.
Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) told Tapper, “The more that you actually have everyone involved in it, the less likely it is that it gets blown up at the end."
He neglects to recall that everything passed by Congress doesn't simply end there. It's still going to have to go through the Senate and the White House, which means no partisan, right-wing bills are going to go anywhere.
