The norms in contemporary American politics are that “the majority of the majority” dictates the agenda of the house, but 8 people just toppled a speakership. We’re already venturing into the unknown.
Oh, I don’t deny it’s a major change. And I wouldn’t expect them to make such a change lightly.
But at some point, trying to patch all the cracks in a failing structure becomes more effort than it’s worth. At some point, it’s better to just knock the thing down, and build it anew, from the ground up. If the US just keeps doing things the same old way, all they’ll get is the same old stuff.
Because each Speaker is that much more likely to do whatever the FC wants whenever they want, and thus united, they can go about their business of tearing down Democrats and the government in general?
TIL that Tuesday was National Kevin Day. Did anything interesting happen? 
Got it, thanks. I agree that all Americans — the whole world, really — is worse off when the Republican Party is so patently dysfunctional. (NY Times headline today: “To the World, McCarthy’s Exit Is Just Another Example of U.S. Disarray”).
As I’ve said here, in the long run the Democratic Party suffers as well. Any major party needs a healthy, sane foil with which to compromise, learn from, and check its excesses. I truly look forward to the day the Republican Party regains its sanity.
Interesting theory about why McCarthy suddenly caved:
In that case, since they were reflexively expecting Democrats to vote against a CR that they had no chance to read before voting on, does that make Jamal Bowman the hero of the hour?
the republicans don’t need to vote for jeffres. they just need to not be there or vote present. take the count down so that the dem votes are the majority. pelosi did that for boehner, he didn’t have enough votes and pelosi worked with her conference to make the votes he had the majority.
when mccarthy won the speaker vote, he won because the group that previously voted no voted present.
What are you talking about?
“If Jamal Bowman cared about the good of the country, he would have pulled a fire alarm before my speakership vote.”
by voting present you lower the over all vote count and don’t need 218. boehner won with 216 votes due to present votes.
No members voted present in January 2015. There were several NY Democratic legislators who were absent from the vote due to attending Mario Cuomo’s funeral that day, and others who couldn’t get back to DC due to weather. Cite. The fact that Boehner lost so many Republican votes was a surprise to everybody. Regardless, there was certainly no organized effort by Democrats to make it easier for Boehner to be elected Speaker
yes, now i remember, i had it quite muddled up in my memory. thank you for the cite.
Another point occurred to me to explain why Democrats didn’t give any assistance at all to McCarthy in staying Speaker – a basic rule in public negotiations is that you have to take into account the likelihood of future negotiations. That means probably don’t give away the farm for peanuts, even if you really would like those peanuts – if you do, then future negotiators will know that you’re willing to give away a lot in exchange for very little. If Democrats had, despite McCarthy’s lying, false blame, Trump-excusing, Jan 6th denying, etc., helped McCarthy retain his job, future Republicans would have known that Democrats would bail them out with nothing in exchange. This way we help establish that if Republicans want help, there is a standard of decency they must adhere to, as well as offer actual concessions.
Well yeah. Pretty sure the D side would have helped him out in return for a significant price. McCarthy’s final offer was apparently nada. “Do what I want or I’ll hit myself and throw things on the floor!”
The Ds are the adults in the room in any adult who has dealt with toddlers know you do not negotiate during a tantrum. Doomed in the future if you do.
Maybe the Rs will coalesce behind another R. Scalise. Whoever. Hard to imagine any R being worse for the country than McCarthy on his short leash with spiked choke collar. And maybe they dysfunctionally vote and vote until they get past being the tantrum party and come to the D side to have a mature discussion about how to proceed. After they change into dry underwear.
Or maybe they can’t get their s*** together, the government stops being funded, Ukraine is not funded, millions of people are thrown out of work, the economy goes into recession or worse, and then the really bad shit starts to happen.
That was just as likely no matter what the Democrats did.
Is that a reply to me or DSeid? Or both?
To you.
Well you can’t get much worse Gym Jordan ! But forget anyone moderate as many of today’s Republicans voters are not interested in what democrats think and the officials are fearful of being ko’d in there next primary. In much of South Carolina it’s not to wise “ or healthy “ to discuss the democrat position to your neighbors….In my first week I was bluntly told 1) Nice to meet you 2) Good Luck 3) Please keep your Northern Politic’s to your self!