He finally begins to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Republican Kevin McCarthy managed on Friday to convince some Trumpists to support his candidacy for the post of “speaker” of the American Congress, not enough however to clear the way for him to the perch.
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The Capitol, attacked exactly two years ago by supporters of Donald Trump, is plunged into another type of chaos, paralyzed by the revolt of very conservative elected officials.
Favorite to replace Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy has for the first time made significant progress in his candidacy on the fourth day of unprecedented negotiations.
“Surprise”
“We’re going to surprise you,” he promised as he entered Congress on Friday morning, facing a crowd of reporters questioning him regarding the viability of his candidacy.
But the 50-year-old, a member of the Republican general staff for more than 10 years, still had to bring a handful of elected officials into line, some of whom have pledged never to support him.
The third most important figure in American politics following the president and the vice-president, the “speaker” needs a majority of 218 votes to be elected. Mr McCarthy currently capped at 213.
This hard core of elected Trumpists is taking advantage of the very thin Republican majority won in the November mid-term elections to set their conditions.
“Some progress”
The paralysis of the American Congress has very concrete repercussions: without a “speaker”, elected officials cannot take the oath or therefore vote on a bill.
The 434 members of the House of Representatives, the scene of this singular spectacle, will continue to vote until a president is elected.
What is generally only a matter of a few hours might extend over several weeks: in 1856, the elected members of Congress only agreed following two months and 133 turns.
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Kevin McCarthy, however, does not currently have a credible competitor. Only the name of group leader Steve Scalise is circulating as a possible alternative, without his chances seeming serious.
The annoyance was palpable among the members of the “Grand Old Party”, who largely support the candidacy of Kevin McCarthy, giving rise to very heated debates. Many of them have also left the hemicycle in protest during the speech of Matt Gaetz, one of the elected head of the sling.
In the Democratic ranks, where the elected officials all stand up en bloc at each vote, as if to underline the Republican divisions a little more, we are busy somehow. Joe Biden’s party may show unity around its leader Hakeem Jeffries, but the camp does not have enough votes to end this paralysis.
The Democrats also strongly denounced Friday the stranglehold of the faithful of Donald Trump – many of whom still refuse to recognize his defeat in 2020 – on the Republican Party, two years following the attack led by his supporters once morest the seat of Congress.
“The chaos in the House of Representatives is just another illustration of how an extreme fringe (…) prevents them from governing,” assured the leader of the Democrats in the Senate, Chuck Schumer.
The anniversary of the Capitol assault “should serve as a signal to the Republican Party to reject the Trumpism that has led it from failure to failure,” he said in a statement.
This second anniversary was marked by a minute of silence on the steps of the United States Congress.
