Gaetz Flips the Script - McCarthy Ousted as Speaker
McCarthy and Gaetz speaking earlier in the session.
October 5, 2023 | Washington, D.C. | Bonnie Lyons, MCRP Legislative Chair
By now, we all know the story. A contentious, young bulldog of a conservative congressman led the charge to remove U.S. Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, after he failed to live up to the promises he made to earn the seat.
I will admit to being ambivalent about the whole brouhaha. I love the fighting spirit of Rep. Matt Gaetz. We have seen so little of it from his Republican colleagues, while the opposition party seems to think anything goes when protecting their power. But it can not be denied that we find ourselves in a precarious position just now.
The speaker is gone. We have a razor thin majority in the House, with little history of sticking together. The job is a lousy one, according to the voices of D.C. and one must be bullied, bribed and shamed into taking it on.
The acting speaker just sent congressmen home for a week, at a critical time for negotiating a replacement. And nothing can be done in the House of Representatives while there is no speaker. Ok, maybe that last one is not so bad.
The outcry against Gaetz and his band of eight has been swift and brutal from Republican moderates and by some conservatives, as well, with threats of reprisals for their actions. Only time will tell whether this big gambit produces the results intended by delivering a truly conservative Speaker, unseen in Congress in many years.
Tactics in Texas House
But any Texas elected official who takes umbrage at the tactics of the Gaetz 8, who joined with House Democrats to pass a motion to vacate need to look no further then Austin to find a prime example of that tactic in the state House of Representatives.
The same ploy that made it possible for eight Republicans to flip the vote on the Speaker, was also the one used in Texas to give a coalition of Democrats and RINO’s control of the state House. If there is one single reason that the wishes of the majority of voters in Texas are largely ignored, it is because a group of 10 House legislators joined with Democrats to elect a Speaker of the House friendly to their liberal ideologies.
So far, Texas has not gone blue in terms of voters, but it certainly seems to have in terms of the people who represent them.
The Takeaway
So, what should we take from this drama? One is that Democrats stick together, while protecting their power. Republicans tend to make deals with Democrats rather than fighting for their electorate.
Two, is we do not have a clear view of the elected officials who represent us or we would not be here now. We expect politicians to tell us what we want to hear and they expect us not to bother to check. Until we learn to be more informed and discriminating, we will continue to be frustrated and angry.
Third, it is up to us to put an end to it and it will take some work and commitment. Who is in?
U.S. Representative Dan Crenshaw (District 2)
(281) 640-7720 (The Woodlands office)
(713) 860-1330 (Kingwood office)
(202) 225-6565 (D.C. office)
Send an email
U.S. Representative Morgan Luttrell (District 8)
(281) 305-7890 (Magnolia office)
(202) 225-4901 (D.C. office)
Send an email