Don't get me wrong. I think Mike Johnson is the same MAGA nutjob he's always been. Maybe not as nutty as Marge Green, but nutty none the less. First of all, if Democrats had voted as they would have been expected to vote, that would be the end of this Congress. We would simply NOT have a new speaker before the elections. And that would have been politically great for Democrats. But not so much for the country. Stuff needs to be passed. Nothing would happen without a speaker. Second, suff MIGHT now pass. Congress MIGHT get some urgent things done. Third, the speaker now knows that he doesn't need to lick the boots of the MAGA-nut Caucus. Of course, being a MAGA-nut himself, nothing is guaranteed.... And we'll still have to deal with circus committees that.... not only are these committees unable to come up with charges... they can't even express WHAT "crime" they are supposed to be investigating. The committees are just intended to BE there all the way up to the elections. It kinda worked against Hillary. It did reduce the enthusiasm for her. Even though right after the election we saw that STREAM of absolutions that make Hillary the most absolved politician in history. But... anyway... This thread is not about Hillary. It's about Mike Johnson. Do you think STUFF will get done? And if so... WHAT stuff?
Anything that rewards the potential for bipartisanship, might eventually lead down a path to rewarding bipartisanship. Now if Trump is re-elected, I will have a polar opposite view.
Like I said in another post, I think Dems missed a political opportunity by not voting Speaker Johnson out. If shoe were on the other foot, you'd bet Republicans would do it. Otherwise, I would agree with you if this weren't an election year. We're not likely to see much more from Congress this year anyway. I do know conservatives enjoy bragging about having unapologetic and uncompromising Republicans so maybe some will return some of them to the days of compromise which majority of Americans want.
Looks to me like more has been passed under this speaker in just a few months than under ANY other Republican speaker this century. Both things I agree with, and those I disagree with. I don't know the exact number. But I'm sure that, while it would have been just average for a Democratic speaker, it has been a fairly good record for a Republican.
But what would be the purpose of that? Other than keeping alive the political talking point that Republicans can't govern. Which everybody who has followed Congress when it turns from one party to the other can already see. In reality we would be without a speaker until next Congress (assuming Democrats take over) I don't think that's good for the country. A pro tempore could oversee the passing of vital bills like budget, debt ceiling, etc. But others like help of Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan.... would be dangerously stalled. I could see that could be the perfect timing for things we don't want to happen. Maybe Putin making a final offensive against Ukraine. Or China invading Taiwan...
Perhaps there is a subtle message there. Congress should work for the people, not their political party.
How Speaker Johnson Got Duped Mike Johnson Gave Democrats Everything They Wanted And All He Got Was This Stupid ‘Churchill’ T-Shirt. 'Since he was elected speaker six months ago, Johnson’s victories are limited to voting to fully fund Joe Biden’s back-breaking agenda, heaping 60 billion more taxpayer dollars into a corrupt slush fund (sometimes called “Ukraine”) and giving up any leverage Republicans had in forcing the administration to address the nation’s most urgent problem — the bleeding Southern border. Oh, plus he re-authorized warrantless spying on Americans.' Dems romped him. 'To be fair, he can’t say he got nothing out of it. For fulfilling their complete wishlist, Democrats and the media did compare Johnson to Churchill. He also declared himself a “wartime speaker.”' He rolled over in exchange for Democrat compliments. 'Those prizes proved to be short-lived. After Biden announced this week that he would halt additional offensive military equipment if Israel advances ground troops in Rafah, Johnson ran to his other favorite publication, Politico, to say this wasn’t what he had hoped the president would do.' The duped Speaker then expressed confusion. “I went straight to the White House and I said … ‘Somebody’s going to have to explain this to me, because it’s very different than what I was told,'” said Johnson. “And they said, ‘Oh, this has nothing to do with the supplemental package that you all passed.’ … So this statement by the president tonight, I just want to — I hope, I believe he’s off-script. I don’t think that’s something that staff told him to say.” So he sold out for a pat on the head from Dems. 'In other words, he went straight to the White House to give them a piece of his mind and, to that, some Biden official stifled a laugh and said, Yeah, yeah, don’t worry McChurchill, it’ll all work out in the end.'
