Even while the alternative hasn’t yet taken the lead, one side contends that Republicans ought to change course. The opposition claims that while McCarthy may not be ideal, he has the support and is appropriate for the time of impasse the administration is experiencing.
Then there is Joe Biden, who has chosen to keep bringing up the silliest of arguments. The president finds it “embarrassing” that selecting a Speaker required more than one ballot.
The claim that it is “embarrassing” for members to truly vote their conscience serves as a clear illustration of everything that is wrong with our governance. According to Biden, the House ought to be so subservient to the ruling class that it submits to orders instantly rather than just eventually. That point of view is completely absurd in my opinion. It also strikes me as being somewhat un-American.
Where did the notion emerge that a tiny group of establishment politicians should run the country and tell other members of Congress how to vote without question? I find that to be somewhat oligarchic. Heck, if that’s the case, why even have a congress? We might as well let a few chosen people make all the decisions for us, don’t you think?
The general Democratic Party is a sluggish extension of Biden’s thinking. When Nancy Pelosi ordered her colleagues to jump, they dutifully inquired as to how high. Even the so-called “progressives,” who are supposed to be free thinkers, jumped right on board when instructed to. Under Hakeem Jeffries or with Chuck Schumer’s continued Senate leadership, this dynamic won’t change.
Tyrants adore theoretically-existent representative governments. It enables them to act badly while disguising themselves as having widespread backing. Given his proclivities, it should come as no surprise that Biden wants the Speaker race to be a staged spectacle rather than a real debate over who should lead the GOP moving ahead.
The point here is not who one supports—McCarthy or someone else. At least in my opinion, all sides can have strong reasons, therefore I’m okay with letting the process take its course. The issue is this ridiculous expectation that everything should be settled in a supposedly democratic assembly. More conflicts like this are what Washington needs, not fewer. Less conformity is required, not more. A $1.7 trillion omnibus package can be obtained through conformity without anyone even reading it.
