For three days in early January, House Republicans battled over who would be the next Speaker of the House, and for three days, the mainstream press lamented that battle. It was “embarrassing,” according to our astute teleprompter class. Further, it was proof that the GOP couldn’t govern because governance is now defined as all representatives voting in lockstep the way leadership tells them to.
Then, in a sudden shift, McCarthy offered the concessions necessary to secure the speakership. Per that agreement, votes on key conservative policies will take place, even if they are likely to fail. Normal order will return in regard to appropriations. Bills with thousands of pages won’t be released in the dead of the night, with a demand to vote on them the next day.
Sure enough, right on cue, the very same press members that were just begging Republicans to elect a Speaker and to start governing have changed their tune, and the Sunday morning shows were afire with hysteria as the reality of a GOP majority started to sink in.
George Stephanopoulos, who went from the Clinton administration to an “objective” anchor at ABC News, opened things up by preaching armageddon.
All he missed there was the hellfire and brimstone raining down. It doesn’t matter that the concessions given by McCarthy largely added up to a return to normal order. Because they were made at the request of the most “extreme” members of the GOP, those concessions must be spun as incredibly concerning. It’s not just McCarthy in danger, either. It’s the “fiscal security of the United States and the basic functions of government.” Of course.
Of course, Stephanopoulos has shown none of that concern for the “fiscal security” of the country when it comes to the national debt, which is now north of $31,000,000,000,000. He’s never offered any criticism of Nancy Pelosi for shoving through massive spending packages. He lost no sleep over the deficits run up by the Biden administration that are saddling future generations. But returning to normal order, i.e. 12 separate appropriations votes? Well, that’s the end of governance or something.
In fact, according to the press, a government that isn’t run by a cabal of elites that receive total obedience from elected representatives is immature and unreasonable.
Apparently, according to Chuck Todd, maturity is having a caucus that is so beholden to leadership that they don’t actually represent their own constituents. That’s the Democratic Party, where even “the squad” falls in line the moment they are commanded to. People like Todd don’t want a democracy. They want an oligarchy that keeps the gravy train rolling for them while others suffer.
That’s what this is really about. This hysteria isn’t actually about it taking three days to pick a Speaker. It’s not even about the rules changes that took place in the House. Rather, it’s about the realization that unfettered leftwing power at the federal level is coming to an end. The hysteria is entertaining, but it’s also tiring and pathetic. The sun will indeed be rising tomorrow, even with Republicans back in charge.