The favorite to succeed Nancy Pelosi, Californian Republican Kevin McCarthy, is hanging on to the goodwill of about twenty elected Trumps, who accuse him of being too moderate.
The votes followed each other, but they seemed the same: the members of the House of Representatives could not even yesterday Wednesday elect a “speaker”, the president of the body, as the stalemate, unprecedented in a century, continues due to the division of the Republican electors .
Dissension in the ranks of the opposition party has completely paralyzed the process at this stage. After a total of six inconclusive votes over two days, work adjourned until 20:00 (local time; today 03:00 Greek time), offering an opportunity for — tough — negotiations behind closed doors.
The favorite to succeed Nancy Pelosi, Californian Republican Kevin McCarthy, is hanging on to the goodwill of about twenty elected Trumps, who accuse him of being too moderate.
“Embarrassing”
Members of the more conservative wing of the Grand Old Party, these MPs benefit from the narrow majority (222-212) secured by the faction in the November 2022 mid-term elections to set their terms — since, without them, Kevin McCarthy simply cannot be elected.
America needs “a new face, a new vision, new leadership,” argued the flamboyant Chip Roy, a congressman representing Texas.
Mr. McCarthy, a member of the Republican staff for more than ten years, has already caved in and met many of the demands of this trend, but this has not allowed the impasse to be lifted. Worse, opposition to his candidacy seems to be crystallizing.
A majority of 218 votes is required to elect the speaker of the lower house, the third most important official in the American political system after the president and vice president. After six votes, Mr McCarthy only secured 203 at best.
However, the Californian politician does not have a serious competitor. Only Trump faction leader Steve Scalise’s name has been floated as a possible alternative, but his chances don’t look great.
Democratic President Joe Biden described the situation in the House of Representatives as “shameful”, pointing out that “the rest of the world” is closely following developments in Congress.
In the ranks of the Republican majority, which supports Kevin McCarthy, the discomfort has begun to be felt, and led to counterclaims in the semi-circle. “Another day without end,” quipped Rep. Kat Camack, who represents Florida, calling on the rebels to toe the line.
Yesterday morning, Donald Trump intervened: he called on the social network site that his party has created to do everything to “avoid an embarrassing defeat”.
But the former president, whose reputation as a balance maker has been increasingly questioned in recent months, has been unable to convince the naysayers.
The impasse has tangible complications: without a president, members of the body can’t be sworn in, so they can’t pass any bills. The Republicans also cannot name committee members and thus start the investigations against Joe Biden that they promised.
Unexpected gift for the president?
A situation that the Democrats are somewhat amused by, with sneers and cheers. Joe Biden’s party nominated Hakeem Jeffries for the presidency, but of course the Democrat can’t get enough votes to be elected.
Deputies will continue to vote until a president of the body is elected. The process would normally only take a few hours. But it cannot be ruled out that it took weeks: in 1856, two months had passed and no less than 133 votes had been needed.
The prospect of facing a hostile but disorganized Congress may prove to be a hopeless political gift for President Biden, especially if he confirms that he will run for office again in 2024 — he has said he will announce his decision early next year.
The Democratic head of state went to Kentucky on Wednesday to tout a new bridge project funded by the landmark infrastructure investment law that was passed, thanks to the votes of some Republicans, in Congress.
He took the opportunity to don his favorite suit, that of the centrist compromise politician, a legacy of his long career in the Senate.
Perhaps coincidentally, he was accompanied by the Republican baron in the other house of Congress: Mitch McConnell.
And a bonus scenario
“Either we’re going to have a real conversation with some people, or we’re going to go back to the caucus room and start laughing until one of them passes out,” Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a supporter of Mr. McCarthy, said yesterday. .
The person concerned wanted to appear optimistic, assuring that the president of the body will be elected after we “solve” our “problems”, which “we will do together”.
His supporter Tom Cole exaggerated: “at some point we will name a ‘speaker’, and he will be a Republican”, he assured.
Another scenario seemed to be considered a little more seriously yesterday: the election of a new speaker of the house with votes and (some, at least) Democrats.
Democratic Rep. Marci Kaptur said on Twitter that she wished there would be “unity of some kind.” Her colleague Ro Hanna was even more outspoken, saying she would vote for a Republican if he pledged to avoid conflicts over federal funding and share the ability to issue subpoenas with Democrats. He even proposed three candidates (Brian Fitzpatrick, Mike Gallagher, Dave Joyce), who, however, do not seem to have serious chances even if such an agreement were reached.
RES-EMP
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With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
