Opinion | With the House GOP in full meltdown, Democrats could offer a way out
www.washingtonpost.com
A power-sharing arrangement in the House is unlikely, but here’s what it might look like.

The crackup in the House GOP has gotten so bad that some Republicans are now asking Democrats for help in electing a speaker. So far, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the current favorite among the right, hasn’t gotten anywhere close to the 217 votes he needs to secure the job.

With Republicans fractured and in need of saving, what should happen is that a few vulnerable members (such as those representing districts Joe Biden won in 2020) join Democrats in supporting Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), for the position. But that’s unlikely, because any Republicans who dare to do this would see their careers implode.

The next best thing, then, is a deal that both sides can accept. Republicans will have to offer meaningful concessions to Democrats to have any hope of getting their support for a consensus, relatively moderate GOP speaker.

At an absolute minimum, a compromise would tackle the core problem: That a few extreme members can propel the House into total meltdown, rendering it ungovernable. Several high-profile, non-MAGA Republicans, such as Reps. Mike D. Rogers (Ala.) and María Elvira Salazar (Fla.), have publicly called on Democrats to specify what they would need to throw the GOP a lifeline — and Democrats have several ideas in mind.

  • Cavemanfreak@lemm.ee
    16·
    1 year ago

    Giving Republicans lifelines every single time is how they have learned that they can behave this way. If they keep doing it it will only get even worse. Why is it that the onus is always on Democrats to compromise/fix things, and not the Republicans?

      • LilB0kChoy@lemm.ee
        12·
        1 year ago

        Is it? Doesn’t the Republican Party hold 221 seats in the House? Isn’t it 217 needed to vote in a new speaker for this Congress?

        The republicans shouldn’t need any help from democrats to elect a speaker and democrats should be voting against a speaker candidate who they feel would impede meaningful legislation or work against the interests of their constituents.

        My take on it is the Republican Party can’t field a realistic candidate because they are trying to please an extreme subset of the party rather than working with democrats to find a middle ground candidate.

        Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure there are reps from the Dem side that will refuse to vote for any nominee who is republican. I just think it’s disingenuous to accuse the minority party as a whole of practicing party over country when the majority party voted out their previous pick for speaker for working with the other party.

        Edit:spelling, because I don’t proof read until after I post.

        • atzanteol@sh.itjust.works
          1·
          1 year ago

          Is it? Doesn’t the Republican Party hold 221 seats in the House? Isn’t it 217 needed to vote in a new speaker for this Congress?

          It is - because the GOP can’t get their shit together and Democrats don’t want to work with them because it’s advantageous to them to watch the GOP crash and burn. But the rest of us are stuck with a worsening credit rating because nobody trusts our government to do shit anymore.

          I’d like to see them cut a deal that gets some concessions with moderate Republicans. Maybe a group of moderates from both side who can hash out a budget? That sort of thing. it maybe what they’re trying to do - they wouldn’t advertise it unless it was likely to work. But we should want the parties working together. That’s how things are supposed to work.

      • Dem Bosain@midwest.socialEnglish
        5·
        1 year ago

        Perhaps, just like every other election in the US, the person with the most votes should win. Then I’ll bet Republicans could find their asses.