On the second anniversary of the January 6th attack on the Capitol, we are watching the Capitol destroying itself. As I write this, we are less than an hour away from the House of Representatives reconvening to continue the humiliation of Kevin McCarthy. His desperately trying to get at least sixteen of the twenty radical conservative Republicans to vote for him and get him to the 218 votes he needs to be elected Speaker. He’s failed eleven times so far. If he somehow succeeds, he will be the weakest Speaker in history and may have done permanent damage to one of the most powerful positions in the United States. McCarthy’s Republican supporters have said dealing with the twenty Freedom Caucus radicals is like negotiating with terrorists which our own government’s policy says we will never do. They been called Taliban 20. Until a Speaker is elected, the House of Representatives, “The People’s House” is powerless. Nothing gets done. Our government is in crisis.
Who are these people and what do they want? They are Trump supporters and many are 2020 election deniers. Among them is Matt Gaetz of Florida. He is being investigated by the Justice Department over allegations he had sex with a teenage girl and paid for her to travel with him across state lines to be sold into prostitution. Gaetz has not been charged and denies everything. Despite that, in testimony before the January 6th Committee, a White House aide said Gaetz asked Trump for a pardon before Trump left office. Both Gaetz and Trump deny Gaetz asked for a pardon. To understand how crazy the Speaker fight has gotten, Gaetz has nominated Trump to be Speaker. Anyone can be elected Speaker. You don’t have to be a member of congress.
McCarthy is so desperate to be Speaker, he is willing to give away much of the power the office holds. The radicals want to change the rules so just one member of the House could call for a vote to replace the Speaker. McCarthy offered to agree to five members. The radicals want guarantees of seats on the powerful Rules Committee which determine how bills get to the floor. They want huge spending cuts. Many of them have said they have come to Washington to tear it down. They’ve been characterized as people more interested in power and celebrity than governing which requires compromise. They can’t even find compromise in their own party. Many of them just don’t like McCarthy and are disgusted with his years long effort to become Speaker. McCarthy will do anything to keep Trump’s support. When the Capitol was being attacked two years ago, McCarthy pleaded with Trump on the phone to do something. Trump refused. Days later, McCarthy traveled to Mar a Logo to kiss up to Trump.
The election of Speaker is usually a routine event. The party in the majority has the most votes and they vote one of their members in. The last time the vote for Speaker went past one vote was 1923 it took nine ballots. If your really want to be scared, in 1859 it took 44 ballots and two months. In 1855, it was 133 ballots and four months. These were years leading up the Civil War. It was a time when the very existence of the country was in doubt. The war that saved us also scared us. We are in dangerous times again. Our house is on fire and the flames are getting higher.
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