This Job for Sale

“For what shall it profit a man if he gains the job of Speaker and loses its authority.”

-- the Book of Job

On Friday night, when Republicans suddenly began switching votes to have one more Speaker vote, it became clear that Kevin McCarthy was likely about the get the job he’s long pursued, with no agenda behind it other than power.  Disturbing as this was to many, taking a step back gives a different perspective.

That’s because, at some point, somebody was eventually going to be elected Speaker. It wasn’t a case of if McCarthy doesn’t get the votes, then a Democrat will.  If McCarthy became Speaker or if the job went to someone else, it would happen, and it would always be a conservative Republican.  Probably a very conservative Republican, and maybe even worse than McCarthy.  (Steve Scalise was a name being hinted at as an alternative, but Scalise is far-more conservative and also a white supremacist, someone who once described himself as being former KKK Grand Wizard “David Duke without the baggage).  And so, the options of which Republican would win the now, deeply-weakened job are similar. What's important is not who won the job of Speaker, but that it took 15 BALLOTS, something that hasn’t occurred in 190 YEARS – indeed, requiring just two ballots hasn’t happened in 100 YEARS -- and that this is a preview of GOP dysfunction, chaos and nihilism for the next two years.

It will be an awful two years ahead, and House Republicans will try to cause a great deal of damage -- and will succeed in a lot of that -- but, most importantly, there is NO damaging bill that they can pass, since it will never get passed the Senate.  Or the Biden White House.  And after all the damage they attempt and succeed, I think that -- as House Republicans impeach President Biden, impeach Vice President Kamala Harris, impeach Attorney General Merrick Garland, investigate Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, investigate Dr. Anthony Fauci, investigate the son of President of Biden, and investigate and try to defund the FBI, CIA and intelligence services, block raising the debt ceiling which undermines the U.S. economy, shutting down the government -- and closing the House Ethics Committee -- (most of which the American public historically hates with a red hot fury) the greatest damage House Republicans do will be to the Republican Party for 2024.

Furthermore, RawStory had an article over the weekend titled, “The rise of House extremists could cause the fall of these 18 GOP lawmakers from districts Biden won.”

This is the most-telling passage –

“But one group of Republicans has more to worry about than McCarthy: The 18 GOP members who were elected in 2022 in districts that were won in 2020 by President Joe Biden. If the extremist wing of the House Republican conference gains a fraction of what it seeks, these Congressmen face a two-year nightmare of horrible votes.”

So, either these 18 GOP Congressmen in Biden districts stick with McCarthy and cast right-wing extremist votes that likely guarantee their defeat in 2024, or they cross party lines to cast votes with Democrats that help them get re-elected, even at the risk of losing committee assignments or retribution from McCarthy – assuming he keeps the job very long.  Either way, the House GOP overall is in trouble.

Be careful what you wish for – you might get it. 

A huge problem when, as a party and as Speaker, you stand for nothing, enabled an attempt to overthrow the government and democracy, have no agenda other than “power” and suddenly get it, but it’s limited, and you’ve given away most of its authority.

It couldn’t happen to a more deserving party.  And a more deserving Speaker, who got the job he always dreamed out, with not thought of what to do with it.