{"id":2888,"date":"2023-01-07T15:35:10","date_gmt":"2023-01-07T15:35:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=2888"},"modified":"2023-03-23T18:36:38","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T18:36:38","slug":"kevin-mccarthy-was-elected-republican-speaker-of-the-us-house-but-it-comes-at-a-price","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/politics\/kevin-mccarthy-was-elected-republican-speaker-of-the-us-house-but-it-comes-at-a-price\/2023\/01\/07\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Kevin McCarthy was elected Republican Speaker of the US House, but it comes at a price"},"content":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON<\/span> (Reuters)<\/span> Jan,7–<\/span> Republican<\/span> Kevin<\/span> McCarthy<\/span> was<\/span> elected<\/span> Speaker<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> U.S.<\/span> House<\/span> of<\/span> Representatives<\/span> early<\/span> Wednesday.<\/span> His<\/span> major<\/span> concessions<\/span> to<\/span> right-wing<\/span> hardliners<\/span> have<\/span> cast<\/span> doubt<\/span> on<\/span> his<\/span> party’s<\/span> ability<\/span> to<\/span> govern.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> 57-year-old<\/span> California<\/span> native<\/span> suffered<\/span> his<\/span> final<\/span> humiliation<\/span> when<\/span> Rep.<\/span> Matt<\/span> Gates<\/span> withheld<\/span> his<\/span> vote<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> 14th<\/span> round<\/span> around<\/span> midnight.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>He<\/span> eventually<\/span> won<\/span> by<\/span> his<\/span> 216-212<\/span> margin.<\/span> He<\/span> was<\/span> elected<\/span> by<\/span> less<\/span> than<\/span> half<\/span> the<\/span> votes<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> House<\/span> of<\/span> Representatives<\/span> because<\/span> his<\/span> six<\/span> members<\/span> of<\/span> his<\/span> own<\/span> party<\/span> withheld<\/span> the<\/span> vote,<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> support<\/span> McCarthy<\/span> for<\/span> Speaker,<\/span> and<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> vote<\/span> for<\/span> any<\/span> other<\/span> candidate.<\/span> .<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>House<\/span> brawl<\/span> over<\/span> McCarthy<\/span> raises<\/span> concerns<\/span> for<\/span> Republican<\/span> rule<\/span>
\n<\/span>When<\/span> he<\/span> first<\/span> picked<\/span> up<\/span> the<\/span> gavel,<\/span> McCarthy<\/span> symbolized<\/span> the<\/span> end<\/span> of<\/span> President<\/span> Joe<\/span> Biden’s<\/span> Democratic<\/span> influence<\/span> in<\/span> both<\/span> houses<\/span> of<\/span> Congress.<\/span> McCarthy<\/span> was<\/span> elected<\/span> only<\/span> after<\/span> agreeing<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> hardliners’<\/span> demands<\/span> that<\/span> any<\/span> member<\/span> of<\/span> Congress<\/span> could<\/span> demand<\/span> his<\/span> removal<\/span> at<\/span> any<\/span> time.<\/span> That<\/span> would<\/span> severely<\/span> limit<\/span> his<\/span> power<\/span> when<\/span> trying<\/span> to<\/span> pass<\/span> legislation<\/span> on<\/span> key<\/span> issues<\/span> such<\/span> as<\/span> funding<\/span> the<\/span> government,<\/span> dealing<\/span> with<\/span> the<\/span> looming<\/span> national<\/span> debt<\/span> ceiling,<\/span> and<\/span> dealing<\/span> with<\/span> other<\/span> crises<\/span> that<\/span> may<\/span> arise.<\/span> prize.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Republican<\/span> Party’s<\/span> performance<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> November<\/span> midterm<\/span> elections<\/span> fell<\/span> short<\/span> of<\/span> expectations,<\/span> giving<\/span> the<\/span> right-wing<\/span> opposition<\/span> to<\/span> McCarthy’s<\/span> leadership<\/span> tremendous<\/span> power.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>These<\/span> concessions,<\/span> including<\/span> drastic<\/span> spending<\/span> cuts<\/span> and<\/span> other<\/span> restrictions<\/span> on<\/span> McCarthy’s<\/span> powers,<\/span> will<\/span> create<\/span> even<\/span> more<\/span> turmoil<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> coming<\/span> months,<\/span> especially<\/span> if<\/span> Congress<\/span> has<\/span> to<\/span> approve<\/span> another<\/span> $31.4<\/span> trillion<\/span> in<\/span> additions<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> U.S.<\/span> credit<\/span> agency.<\/span> There<\/span> is<\/span> a<\/span> possibility.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Over<\/span> the<\/span> past<\/span> decade,<\/span> Republicans<\/span> have<\/span> repeatedly<\/span> shut<\/span> down<\/span> much<\/span> of<\/span> their<\/span> government,<\/span> pushed<\/span> the<\/span> world’s<\/span> largest<\/span> borrower<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> brink<\/span> of<\/span> default,<\/span> and<\/span> imposed<\/span> drastic<\/span> spending<\/span> cuts,<\/span> with<\/span> little<\/span> success.<\/span> Senate<\/span> Majority<\/span> Leader<\/span> Chuck<\/span> Schumer,<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> those<\/span> Democrats,<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> concessions<\/span> McCarthy<\/span> made<\/span> to<\/span> “extremists”<\/span> in<\/span> his<\/span> party<\/span> could<\/span> backfire<\/span> on<\/span> him,<\/span> and<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> Republican-controlled<\/span> House<\/span> It<\/span> warned<\/span> that<\/span> it<\/span> could<\/span> face<\/span> a<\/span> shutdown<\/span> or<\/span> be<\/span> more<\/span> likely<\/span> to<\/span> cause<\/span> the<\/span> government<\/span> to<\/span> default<\/span> on<\/span> its<\/span> debts.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>In<\/span> contrast<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> feud<\/span> between<\/span> House<\/span> Republicans,<\/span> Biden<\/span> and<\/span> McConnell<\/span> appeared<\/span> together<\/span> in<\/span> Kentucky<\/span> on<\/span> Wednesday<\/span> to<\/span> emphasize<\/span> infrastructure<\/span> investment.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>McCarthy’s<\/span> belated<\/span> victory<\/span> comes<\/span> a<\/span> day<\/span> after<\/span> his<\/span> second<\/span> anniversary<\/span> from<\/span> the<\/span> attack<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> U.S.<\/span> Capitol<\/span> on<\/span> January<\/span> 6,<\/span> 2021,<\/span> as<\/span> a<\/span> violent<\/span> mob<\/span> overturns<\/span> then-President<\/span> Donald<\/span> Trump’s<\/span> election<\/span> defeat.<\/span> It<\/span> was<\/span> when<\/span> he<\/span> stormed<\/span> parliament<\/span> in<\/span> .<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>His<\/span> 14<\/span> denials<\/span> this<\/span> week<\/span> marked<\/span> the<\/span> most<\/span> votes<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> Presidency<\/span> since<\/span> his<\/span> 1859<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> turbulent<\/span> times<\/span> leading<\/span> up<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> Civil<\/span> War.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>But<\/span> the<\/span> concessions<\/span> he<\/span> agreed<\/span> to<\/span> mean<\/span> McCarthy<\/span> will<\/span> have<\/span> far<\/span> less<\/span> power<\/span> than<\/span> his<\/span> predecessor,<\/span> Democrat<\/span> Nancy<\/span> Pelosi.<\/span> That<\/span> would<\/span> make<\/span> it<\/span> harder<\/span> to<\/span> come<\/span> to<\/span> terms<\/span> with<\/span> Democrats<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> divided<\/span> Washington.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Allowing<\/span> one<\/span> member<\/span> to<\/span> seek<\/span> a<\/span> vote<\/span> to<\/span> remove<\/span> its<\/span> chair<\/span> gives<\/span> hardliners<\/span> extra<\/span> leverage.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> deal<\/span> will<\/span> keep<\/span> next<\/span> year’s<\/span> spending<\/span> at<\/span> last<\/span> year’s<\/span> level,<\/span> a<\/span> significant<\/span> cut<\/span> given<\/span> inflation<\/span> and<\/span> population<\/span> growth.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>As<\/span> the<\/span> US<\/span> spends<\/span> billions<\/span> of<\/span> dollars<\/span> to<\/span> help<\/span> Ukraine<\/span> fend<\/span> off<\/span> a<\/span> Russian<\/span> attack,<\/span> it<\/span> could<\/span> face<\/span> opposition<\/span> from<\/span> centrist<\/span> Republicans<\/span> and<\/span> those<\/span> seeking<\/span> more<\/span> military<\/span> funding.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Republican<\/span> moderate<\/span> Brian<\/span> Fitzpatrick<\/span> said<\/span> he<\/span> wasn’t<\/span> concerned<\/span> about<\/span> the<\/span> possibility<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> House<\/span> could<\/span> actually<\/span> be<\/span> led<\/span> by<\/span> hardliners.<\/span> “It’s<\/span> ambitious,”<\/span> he<\/span> told<\/span> reporters.<\/span> “We<\/span> still<\/span> have<\/span> our<\/span> voting<\/span> cards.”<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/form>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) Jan,7– Republican Kevin McCarthy was elected Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives early Wednesday. His major concessions to right-wing hardliners have cast doubt on his party’s ability to govern. The 57-year-old California native suffered his final humiliation when Rep. Matt Gates withheld his vote on the 14th round around midnight. He eventually […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2828,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[280,2480,2482],"tags":[77,122,128,158,159,161],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MCRTHYW-1.jpg","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2888"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2888"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2888\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2889,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2888\/revisions\/2889"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}