New Speaker of the House gets opportunity to speak up for us
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New Speaker of the House gets opportunity to speak up for us
In a prolonged test of political wills, House Republicans went 15 rounds last week in a prize-fight for the ages, finally electing California Congressman Kevin McCarthy as the next Speaker of the House.
A boxing analogy seems quite apropos in describing the bruising battle, which lasted several days and spilled enough political blood to warrant the need for a major transfusion.
In one corner was McCarthy, once seen as a moderate Republican voice who some contend lost his moral compass in recent years while pledging fealty to the leader of the MAGA movement in the U.S.
In the other corner was a 20-member bloc of Republican rebels, so-called lawmakers who were bent on creating chaos and confusion in a desperate attempt to win a series of concessions from the GOP establishment.
And sadly, win they did, casting the art of political compromise to the wind in favor of holding Congress – and the country – hostage to their intransigent ways, which inevitably will be seen again when debate begins on continuing military aid to Ukraine, the future of such programs as Social Security and Medicare, and proposed immigration reforms. Of added concern, they also have made veiled threats to block increases in the debt ceiling that could bring the U.S. government to a standstill and roil financial markets around the globe.
For those who had the stomach to watch the intra-party squabbling, it served as nothing more than a sad commentary on the state of political affairs in our country, where members of the ultra-right will weaponize stalemate as one of their tools to quash policy debates and effective governance.
As such, this is just one of the many challenges facing McCarthy as he attempts to calm the political waters in his beloved Republican Party that was rooted in the leadership of Abraham Lincoln, long viewed as one of our nation’s greatest presidents.
Lincoln, who helped bring an end to slavery after the ravages of the Civil War, was mentioned repeatedly by McCarthy during his acceptance speech as Speaker in the wee hours of January 7, perhaps hoping that a late-night history lesson might soften some of the political dissent that is fracturing the Republican Party.
In his maiden speech as House Speaker, McCarthy tried to set a moderating tone to those whose egos and ideology caused the congressional commotion in recent weeks.
“As Speaker of the House, my ultimate responsibility is not to my party, my conference, or even our Congress,” McCarthy said. “My responsibility – our responsibility – is to our country.”
He also promised to address such long-term challenges as the debt ceiling and the rise of the Chinese Communist Party.
“The Congress must speak in one voice on these issues,” McCarthy said, pledging to create a bipartisan committee to “investigate how to bring back the hundreds of thousands of jobs that went to China” over the course of recent decades.
In closing his 22-minute speech, McCarthy called for restoring trust within the country and with each other.
“In that spirit, I will work with anyone, everyone who shares our passion to deliver a better future for the nation,” he said. “I hope you’ll join me as a Congress can only operate if we cooperate.”
That last message is one we – at the new Primerus™ Foundation – wholeheartedly endorse, always keeping in mind that the government’s job is to do what a community of people cannot do for themselves.
Such as providing for a powerful military to keep us safe from terrorist attacks and to preserve the peace; and to fund police and fire departments, along with critical transportation, water, health, finance, and environmental needs.
Ensuring the uninterrupted flow of those basic necessities is “Job One” for Speaker McCarthy, whose principal task in the months ahead is to build a coalition of congressional problem-solvers with the country’s best interests at heart.
Best regards,
Jack Buchanan, President