The New McCarthy Era

Kevin McCarthy was elected Speaker of the House overnight on the fifteenth ballot.  Whenever something happens over and over, my mother uses an expression, always saying it's happened fifteen times whether it' only five or as much as twenty.  As for how many times it took the House to vote before choosing a Speaker, my mother can now use that expression literally.

I may have said that Kevin McCarthy, by giving away so much power to the stupidly named House Freedom Caucus (and selling his soul to the devil - also known as Matt Gaetz) will only cut ribbons a Speaker, but he's already cut something else - his throat.  By giving so much power to the reactionaries to run roughshod over everyone else - especially Democrats - McCarthy has made it impossible to negotiate with anyone in good faith because he has no good faith left.  The default of the federal government later this year must now be seen as inevitable.

In the meantime, the House of Representatives will firs t consider a bill designed to keep President Biden from taking the initiative to hire additional IRS agents over a ten-year period.

"I know the night is late," McCarthy said before adjourning the House for the weekend, "but when we come back our very first bill will repeal the funding for 87,000 new IRS agents.  You see, we believe government should be to help you, not go after you."  In fact, the Internal Revenue Service has the ability  to hire 86,852 full-time employees over the next decade, only a few of which would be enforcement agents.

Also, when was the last time Republican governance helped anyone?

So, I assume that impeaching President Biden and his entire Cabinet (Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg's high crime must be urging people to give up their Chevrolet Tahoes for public transit and electric vehicles) will be second item on the GOP's agenda.

We survived the first McCarthy era in the 1950s.  I'm not so sure we'll survive the second.