The US House of Representatives is still unable to get to work. Republican presidential candidate Kevin McCarthy also failed to win a majority in a seventh round of voting in three days. Radical party members continue to resist, although McCarthy once more made concessions.
The election of a Speaker of the House of Representatives is normally a formality. The leader of the largest party usually wins a majority in one round of voting. For the first time since 1923 things are different now. Although the Republicans have a majority of 222 of the 435 seats in the House of Representatives, 20 radical right-wing Trumpists were always opposed.
That is why it has not been possible to elect a chairman for three days. The Democrats voted unanimously each time for their own candidate Hakeem Jeffries, but that yields 212 votes while 218 are needed.
Possible breakthrough
A breakthrough seemed possible on Thursday. American media reported that McCarthy had made new concessions to the radical mutineers within his party. One of their wishes is to give any Delegate the power to request a vote of confidence on the position of the President. At present, only a party leader can force such a vote.
McCarthy initially did not want to agree to this, proposing a minimum of five Deputies as a compromise. Now he would have granted the demand, but in doing so he undermines his own power. Radical party members can delay decision-making at any time by requesting a vote of confidence, to promote their own agenda. In addition, McCarthy is said to have pledged that the party’s radical right wing may nominate one third of its members for the powerful committee that decides the rules of the House of Representatives.
Vote for Trump
It turned out not to be enough. In the seventh round of voting, a 21st dissident was also added. Of them, 19 voted for Byron Donalds, a Republican from Florida. Matt Gaetz, one of the most prominent opponents, even voted for Donald Trump as chairman. In theory, anyone with enough votes can become president, even if someone is not a member of the House of Representatives or has run for office. One Delegate abstained from voting.
The pressure on McCarthy to step down as a candidate or to make more concessions will now only increase, although the question is whether the obstructions will be satisfied with even more concessions. As long as there is no speaker, the House of Representatives cannot actually function, pass legislation, or put committees to work. The elected members cannot be sworn in until there is a chairman, and only then can the internal rules be established to which the House commits itself for the next two years.
