At times, the Republican party appears to be like a car stuck in the mud spinning its wheels and everyone inside the car is arguing about what to do. It never ceases to amaze me how the Democrats, the party of not only bad but bizarre and even evil ideas, can stick together like glue. Yet the Republicans, the party of principle and common sense, can’t seem to get out of their own way. It’s almost as if they stand on those principles against each other.
Kevin McCarthy, the Speaker of the House, reminded me of the kid who brings his baseball to a pickup game, doesn’t get to play, and takes his ball home whining. After passing what is being called a stopgap spending bill, which in truth is just another excuse for this government to spend money in order to bridge the gap so it can spend more money, McCarthy didn’t like that some of his teammates slowed the process down against his wishes.
Apparently, McCarthy has forgotten that he works for the people, and since the government produces no money but spends ours like they have an endless supply, his rant against other Republicans comes off like a spoiled child.
The bill passed by a vote of 335-91. Two hundred and nine Democrats voted for it, with only one abstaining. On the Republican side of the aisle, 126 voted for it, with 90 voting against it. Those not willing to sell their entire souls prompted McCarthy’s ire.
In the opening scene of McCarthy’s role as a martyr, he took a shot at the Republicans who voted against it, by praising those who did.
“You can always count on Americans to do what’s right after they’ve exhausted every other option,” he said, quoting Winston Churchill.
McCarthy went on to lament that he did try to listen to all of the opposing opinions from his conference in the time leading up to Saturday’s vote.
“I tried every possible way listening to every single person in the caucus,” he said. “It was tough, but we got it through.”
Whew! Who knew doing your job was going to stress you out to this point where throwing your fellow Republicans under the bus would seem appropriate?
Related: The Morning Briefing: ‘Mommy, the Republicans Are Fighting Again!’
After whining that the bill that was killed Friday night would have (please try not to laugh), “Secure the border and cut wasteful spending, but I had some members in our own conference that wouldn’t vote for that,” McCarthy said
“So if you have members in your conference that won’t let you vote for appropriation bills, doesn’t want an omnibus, and won’t vote for a stopgap measure … so the only answer is to shut down and not pay our troops, I don’t want to be a part of that team,” he added.
Oh please, spare us the guilt trip about the troops. You know that this wasn’t about paying the troops at all, and in spite of the Democrats’ staged victory lap, they were the ones truly trying to sabotage the vote and force a shutdown. Rep. Jamaal Brown (D-N.Y.) went as far as to pull a fire alarm, which he should have been arrested for, in the Cannon House Offices.
“I want to be a part of a conservative group that wants to get things done,” McCarthy said.
Really? It seems as though “that team” that you are so anxious to disparage was the only one trying to get something done. So if you don’t want to be a part of that team, you can take your gavel and go home.
The bill that finally passed eliminated more aid for Ukraine, which has already passed the threshold of ridiculous, and some spending cuts that conservatives were pushing for.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) was outspoken about the fact that McCarthy, in his opinion, was ignoring conservatives and trying to appease Democrats. Gaetz even threatened to initiate a process to have McCarthy removed if conservative viewpoints were not considered.
The implied threat resulted in McCarthy climbing up on a soap box to refute the attack:
“If somebody wants to make a motion against me, bring it,” he said. “There has to be an adult in the room. There’s no bill that can pass with one party or the other.”
“When are you guys gonna get over that it’s alright that you put America first. That it’s alright if Republicans and Democrats joined together to do what is right,” he added.
Well, he’s right about the fact that there should be an adult in the room; in fact, there should be 435 of them. He’s also correct that America and Americans should be the number one priority.
Hopefully, he’ll try it sometime.
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