The far-right virus of the GOP has, at last, caused the party’s long-awaited internal meltdown for the American public to behold in all its glory. Following the historic success of Matt Gaetz’s (R-FL) motion to remove Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) from the speakership, the stunning inability of the House Republican Conference to form a coalition behind a candidate to succeed McCarthy has left the chamber in disarray. With no sign of cohesion on the horizon and the failure of Rep. Jim Jordan’s (R-OH) bid, McCarthy ally Patrick McHenry (R-NC) continues to serve as the appointed speaker pro tempore.
Republican infighting has paralyzed Washington’s ability to address immediate issues, particularly the Israel-Hamas war that erupted after a Hamas terrorist attack killed at least 1,400 Israelis earlier this month. Speaking to reporters, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby expressed concern over the speakership situation’s effect on the United States’ commitment to support Israel: “Because of existing appropriations and existing authorities, we’ve been okay. But that’s not going to last forever.”
The showdown in Congress is the culmination of longstanding tensions between the relatively moderate Republican establishment and the party’s conservative extremities. Despite Republicans winning the House majority in a much-anticipated (albeit underwhelming) 2022 victory, any hopes of the GOP Caucus agreeing upon a uniting conservative agenda vanished in January amid the contentiousness of McCarthy’s initial bid for the speakership. To secure the majority he required for the position, McCarthy made a series of concessions—mostly to assuage criticism from the House Freedom Caucus, an ultraconservative alliance of Republicans that has served as the congressional standard bearer for conservative populism (i.e., Trumpism). Among these was a provision that lowered the threshold of members required to call for a motion to vacate. History cautions, however, that appeasement is rarely an effective approach in the long term.
The actions of the Freedom Caucus and its leaders merit unequivocal condemnation. Any sophistry that they are engaging in some sort of principled stand must be dispelled. Matt Gaetz’s political foolishness does not represent prudence—it is a perversion of representative democracy. The late Justice Antonin Scalia argued that congressional inefficiency was a reflection of the American balance of powers and encouraged Americans “to love the gridlock, which the Framers believed would be the main protection of minorities.” Gaetz, in contrast, has taken a mechanism that was intended to protect the sentiment Scalia described and manipulated it for personal gain. Kevin McCarthy’s speakership was an opportunity for pragmatism and bipartisanship, possibilities too repugnant for Gaetz and the far-right to digest.
Perhaps this episode will finally bring to close the GOP’s decade-long affair with populism, now that the movement has collapsed into itself. The speakership debate should alert Republican voters that it is unsustainable to continue supporting those who would actively undermine and oppose democracy for their own benefit.
