Cogito Ergo Non Serviam
Congress to OK 3-Month Spending Bill
The American government is unique among developed democracies in that it can shut down due to lack of appropriations to keep it running. In more coherent and sensible systems, if a government cannot pass a budget, there has to be a new election. In the US, the inability of the legislature to pass funding bills is only an inconvenience to the country, not the elected officials whose jobs are secure for two years. Today, it seems the powers that be in Congress have decided to pass a 3-month spending bill that will keep the government open into March. Then, the whole thing starts again, and it will get harder because the GOP majority will shrink to just 1 seat when that continuing resolution's [CR] money runs out.
Politico wrote, "With less than three weeks to go before a House speakership vote -- when Johnson will need near-unanimity in his conference to get reelected -- the Louisiana Republican spent Tuesday morning laying out a three-month stopgap bill in a private conference meeting. His past antagonists were prepared to reluctantly live with that plan last week, until Johnson started talking about adds to the package in the last few days, including economic aid for farmers and money for recent disasters."
That has annoyed members of the troglodyte Freedom Caucus. Politico added, "Freedom Caucus member Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), asked if he still believed Johnson would avoid a speakership fight, said: 'I don't know. They're angry about the product . . . . I like Mike. I'm frustrated with the outcome.' Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) called the tentative spending deal a 'total dumpster fire' and 'garbage'."
So the nation is at the mercy of a Republican Party divided against itself, a phenomenon that has been apparent since the founding of the Tea Party movement after the election of Barack Obama in 2008, if not earlier. There are two factions in the GOP that act almost like independent political parties. This means that Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has a two-party chamber with three parties in it. While he can make deals with the Democrats to pass legislation, his support in the Republican Party will drop when he does. He could face ouster if anyone else is foolish enough to want the Speaker's job.
Unlike the last Congress, this time around Elon Musk will be putting his finger in the pie, and that makes the Speaker's job even harder. Anthony Adranga, writing in Politico, observed:
Elon Musk, who plans to take a leading role in cutting spending for the incoming Trump administration, indicated early Wednesday that he opposes a spending bill backed by Speaker Mike Johnson.
The incoming leader of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency wrote in a post on X at 4:15 a.m. that "this bill should not pass." If Congress doesn't clear a spending bill by Friday night, a government shutdown will kick in.
So the next few days are a dry run for what lies ahead. Right now, the Republicans have a 3-seat majority. If they cannot pass this, it signals that Speaker Johnson is in a great deal of trouble even if he get re-elected to his office when the next Congress is sworn in. If it does pass, it signals that Mr. Musk is something of a paper tiger.
One should watch the vote count to see exactly what the state of play is. If there are a lot of Republicans voting against it, and if the Democrats help pass the bill, the election of the new Speaker could be a mess. If only a few GOP members vote against it, it will suggest Mr. Johnson is secure in his post, and that he could have a decent start to his new year.
© Copyright 2024 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Ubuntu Linux.
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