This is a unique and sad time for us in the United States. Our government is effectively paralyzed. The Speaker of the House was removed from office for the first time in history. The Speaker not only presides over the House of Representatives, he/she also is third in line in presidential succession.
A small number of Trump conservatives initiated the recall vote. All of the House Democrats and the eight Trumpers voted to recall McCarthy. The Democrats have long distrusted him. He has reneged on bipartisan agreements. Ironically, the Trumpers wanted him out for the same reason.
All this comes at a time when the American people’s rating of Congress is at an all-time low. The Speaker position has always been partisan, with the controlling party electing one of their own. The Republicans have a razor-thin majority in the House. Eight votes are enough to kill that majority.
All this intra-party squabbling would normally be amusing to those who don’t support the conservative agenda. But it’s not funny. Our government is effectively stalled without a Speaker. No legislation can move forward until that position is filled.
The problem is that the Republicans have nobody to propose for the job. In saner times, a moderate Republican could be proposed who some Democrats could also support. That would effectively cancel out the Trumpers. The Democrats are in no mood to support any Republican. The majority party’s chaos plays well in swing districts in the upcoming elections. This sort of mess could end up with a Democratic majority next year.
Politics aside, we have a country that needs to keep running. The temporary spending bill that is keeping the lights on,expires in a little over a month. There are important matters that need to be legislated. It’s time to cut the crap.
For example, one Trump Republican refuses to support any appointment of officers in the armed forces. He is blocking the careers of dozens of important military people. He is holding them hostage for his ultra-conservative agenda.
We’ve had enough of this crap. It’s time for a bipartisan cadre of congressmen to take control, elect a Speaker, and move reasonable legislation forward. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had enough of this cult of personality and the ravings of a deranged former president. I don’t agree with all of the progressive Democrats. I certainly don’t agree with the MAGA morons. There is a lot of good stuff that moderate Repbulicans and Democrats can agree about. I think it’s tme fora coalition government here in the USA.
