The GOP House majority gets with the program
Did you miss this? It’s another victory:
The House of Representatives passed a new rules package Monday that overhauls the way it functions by putting up more barriers to congressional spending and creating a more deliberate process for passing legislation, which were key demands of the more conservative members of the Republican Party.
The rules passed with an 220-213 vote that saw just one Republican, Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas, vote against it. Passage of the blueprint for how the GOP will run the House is the first sign of success for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy after the fight of his life last week for the speaker’s gavel.
I had read predictions of a big fight on this. But if any more fighting occurred after McCarthy’s election as Speaker, it seems to have been settled by the time the vote on the rules was taken.
Some of the new rules: no more proxy voting, and a return to a “Cut-As-You-Go.” You can find a good in-depth discussion of some of the rules here.
It’s been many many years since we’ve had even the apparent dedication of the Republican leadership to reforms of which most people on the right would actually approve. Whatever the reason this is happening now – and I think some of it was forced by the rebels and some of it would have happened anyway because of reaction to the heavy handedness of Pelosi in stifling the GOP representatives – it is certainly refreshing. And despite the House’s relative lack of power without also holding the Senate and the presidency, it’s still a satisfying thing to see what they’re doing right now. “Refreshing” and “satisfying” describe emotional reactions rather than actual policy achievements, but they’re pleasant alternatives to rage and frustration.
NOTE: Gonzalez’s objection was that the rules changes are “anti-immigration.” My assumption is that he was allowed to defect because the rules package could be passed even without him.
It’s encouraging, and if they stick with it, it may have positive results.
Over the weekend read more comments against Kevin McCarthy than for. I also have to say I have not much faith he would come through. But I also brought up some people can rise to the occasion that presents itself to them.
Kevin had a new job never done before by him so said Monday he had a clean slate to work.
So far he looks like he is on it.
How could any rational person argue against the wisdom of passing, at the last minute, large “omnibus bills”, written by lawyers and K Street lobbyists and read, in their entirety, by no-one voting on them and without any real debate? Did not, once upon a time, the former speaker (as well as stock-trader extraordinaire) comment that “we have to pass the bill so that we can find out what is in it?”
Possible secondary effect of the GOP majority in the House: The end of the COVID vax mandate for the military. “US forces are no longer required to receive the coronavirus vaccine after Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin formally rescinded his August 2021 mandate late Tuesday. The requirement was sacrificed to help secure Republican support for the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, which sets Pentagon spending and policy priorities for each fiscal year. . . . Austin made clear Tuesday that he was only rescinding his order because he was forced by Congress.”
https://nypost.com/2023/01/11/pentagon-ends-covid-19-vaccine-mandate-for-us-troops/
Like the rest of the Cabinet, Austin is a toad. A black Army general, he took the SecDef job proclaiming systemic racism was our military’s greatest problem. Forgot a look in your mirror, General?
“despite the House’s relative lack of power without also holding the Senate and the presidency..” neo
The House has the power of the purse, which is potentially the greatest of federal powers. The amount of power it exercises is directly related to its willingness to let the chips fall where they may.
“Full Speed Ahead and Damn the Torpedoes!”
I second Kate’s thoughts.
The commentariat is almost 100% evil or stupid (or both) Democrats. Saying that it was a struggle for McCarthy to become Speaker is simply an effort to undercut Republicans and his Speakership.
Gonzalez voted for legal immigration, since his TX district is on the Rio and is full of Mexicans.
Geoffrey Britain:
That’s why I used the word “relative.” I didn’t say the House lacked all power.
But the power of the purse is not quite what it’s cracked up to be, in my opinion. The Senate has some say also, and if they don’t agree you can get the dread shutdown, which is always spun to be the GOP’s fault.
you can get the dread shutdown, which is always spun to be the GOP’s fault.
What isn’t spun to be the GOP’s fault? And what kind of anti-GOP freakout is going to be worse then the one we just had on Roe?
But the Dems also want to avoid shutdowns for the same reason the GOPe does. It’s not bad press. It’s that their cronies are not getting paid.
If bad press for the GOP is an excuse for them not to do something, then we’re never going to not have a Uniparty, and the Dems are always going to get their way, they just have to put it in the budget and threaten shutdown if they don’t get it.
Note to Frederick, press and bad press influences persuadable voters. See the concept of propaganda. See the concept of information warfare (politics). “The Uniparty” is great for a cynic but not much use.
If Gonzales is that much of a fanatic in favor of ILLEGAL immigration, how is he even a Republican?
> PA Cat > “Austin made clear Tuesday that he was only rescinding his order because he was forced by Congress.”
https://babylonbee.com/news/military-to-end-vax-mandate-now-that-all-the-conservatives-have-been-weeded-out
LEGAL immigration.
(What exactly is the problem…? Though I understand these days that “legality” is racist/sexist/alphabetist/everything-bad-ist terminology…that is, for all too many…)
Um, Cicero, People of Color Cannot Be Racist(TM)…by definition.
(Many of them understand that it’s pure BalderdaSh…but some are really trying hard to make the most of it…while it lasts!)
One hopes that McCarthy and his COLLEAGUES in the House will try—and be able—to correct this sorry situation. No doubt the Democrats will fight him, and them, EVERY STEP OF THE WAY…since the party of racism MUST TRANSFORM racism—the RIGHT KIND of racism, that is—into VIRTUE!
@biteme:in favor of ILLEGAL immigration, how is he even a Republican?
LOL. The national Republican party has never done anything serious about illegal immigration when they had the power. Any time they look like the might, a critical mass of Republican defectors emerges to gut it (e. g. John McCain, Marco Rubio, Jeff Flake, Lindsay Graham…). Sometimes they get behind fake solutions like E-Verify, which explicitly allows you to continue to employ someone whose documents cannot be confirmed, and can only be used AFTER you’ve hired someone anyway.
It’s useful to play “if they were serious”. Think about credit cards. How often does it happen that anyone is able to use a fake credit card? Even if you use a real one that doesn’t belong to you, the person whose card it is is going to see the transaction and report it (assuming the card issuer doesn’t call first). The technology that assures that credit cards used are real and belong to the person using them is mature and ubiquitous and inexpensive (small percentage of each retail transaction). Why is there not an analogous system for who checking that work authorization documents are genuine and belong to the person presenting them? Because they are not serious.
The immigration laws are unenforceable by design. If it was as hard to work illegally here as Canada or other First World countries make it, there’d be far less illegal immigration. But in Canada, they are serious about enforcing their immigration laws, and in the US, we are not. And it’s not all Democrats’ fault.
Very simple test to know that the immigration laws are not serious: you have to hire someone before you can check their status. (This is why calls to punish employers for hiring illegals go nowhere: employers cannot avoid it because they are not allowed to check before hiring. A few employers deliberately and knowingly hire illegals, but this is rare and can only be proved in flagrant cases where they document that they knew and did it on purpose.) If they were serious, you would have the right to check before the hire. But that opens you us to liability for national origin discrimination under Title VII. If they were serious, that would not be true. It’s like if the TSA screening happened on your way out of the airport.
Rules of the House do not require Senate affirmation and are not subject to Presidential veto. These rules changes are here to stay (until the next election.)
If the more conservative part of the House follows through this could be huge.
Also, don’t forget, the Republican House now holds veto power over the Senate and President. That is huge! With a simple majority in the House they can stop whatever Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden dream up.
@Jerry:they can stop whatever Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden dream up.
“Can”. But the question is not “can” they, it’s “will” they. GOP apologists will talk about all kinds of reason why it’s unreasonable to expect the House to use its veto. “Must pass” legislation, can’t risk a shutdown, etc etc.
Frederick,
That is indeed the question.
They might.
But before the New Year they couldn’t. That excuse is now expired. We will see what they do.
“some of it would have happened anyway because of reaction to the heavy handedness of Pelosi in stifling the GOP representatives”
Yeah…no. The traditional GOP are suckers for the “heavy handedness”. It’s been a convenient excuse for those losers for decades. The 20 ( and I suspect that number is slightly inflated) are the only ones pushing this otherwise it would not have taken so many ballots to get a speaker. Were the 20 or so votes not needed to get McCarthy elected I seriously doubt any of this would be happening. There would be theater, sure. And I’m still not convinced much of the TBD stuff will play out.
Why is it that those who are the first to bawl “the GOPe” are the last to have the backs of Republicans under attack by the Establishment Media for being GOP instead of Democrats, hmmm??
Frederick, I’m looking at you.
@Micha Elyi:the last to have the backs of Republicans under attack by the Establishment Media… Frederick, I’m looking at you.
LOL. I defended, for example, Roy Moore, and still do, when a lot of conservatives abandoned him. I defend Trump a lot, and did while he was President, though I didn’t really start that until between his nomination and his election–wasn’t sure about what he would do or why. I defended the Freedom Caucus against the attacks of people here.
I believe in principles, not parties.
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