The Republican controlled House of Representatives is proving its inability to operate the federal government, and holding Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy hostage.
With only a five seat edge (222 Republican and 213 Democrats), the time has come for the small band of moderate, mainstream conservative Republicans to “cross the aisle” and work with Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and take action this week to keep the government operating, and avoid the financial crisis and the mass damage that would do.
The extremist small band group of Republicans must be neutralized, and Republican members of the bipartisan “Problem Solvers Caucus” have the opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to stability and cooperation.
Officially, the Problem Solvers Caucus consists of 63 members of the 118th Congress, including 32 Democrats and 31 Republicans.
Among the Republicans seen as most engaged in promoting cooperation are :
Don Bacon of Nebraska
Anthony D’Esposito of New York
Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania
Andrew Garbarino of New York
Dusty Johnson of South Dakota
Thomas Kean Jr of New Jersey
Young Kim of California
Nick Lalota of New York
Mike Lawler of New York
Nancy Mace of South Carolina
Marc Molinaro of New York
David Valadao of California
If 6-10 of these or other Republicans work with the 213 Democrats, the government will avoid shutdown, and the mood is developing to have such cooperation, so let’s hope such a situation transpires.
Kevin McCarthy, as horrible as he is, would be likely to stay on as Speaker, but the Republican control of the House of Representatives, as fragile as it is, is likely to evaporate in 2024.
The New York members of the Republican group, including those mentioned above, are representing Biden won districts, and they are working to survive and keep their seats, which will be a tall order. The present Congress includes 18 Republicans who won districts Biden won in 2020, so a major challenge for those Republicans.