The Speaker of the House chaos was worth it

By David Swegle

After a prolonged four-day speakership election, the Republican majority in the House is now positioned to govern effectively and maintain conservative campaign promises. The House Freedom Caucus, though it only constitutes a small minority of the Republican conference, staged a successful rebellion against the uniparty congressional establishment, yielding fruitful rule changes and forcing floor votes on important issues.

Going into the Jan. 3 speaker of the house election, many politicians and pundits criticized the few holdouts who refused to pledge their vote to Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-C.A., saying they were just grandstanding for attention and that it was an embarrassment for the party to appear divided. Indeed, they warned that if Freedom Caucus members didn’t fall into line, the Democrats would have the opportunity to elect one of their own to the speaker’s chair.

McCarthy was able to meet the demands of the conservative holdouts and received the speaker’s gavel after 15 votes. The process was long and tedious at times, but it certainly was not an embarrassment to the Republican Party, as many claimed. In fact, just the opposite is true, as the slim Republican majority now stands equipped to do the work the American people elected them to do. The so-called “concessions” that McCarthy was forced to agree to in order to gain the necessary votes for speaker should have been universally demanded by all Republican congressmen. The fact that only a few were willing to make the demand is frustrating.

These concessions will now limit bills to a single subject, allow representatives a minimum of 72 hours to review bills before voting, and restore the one-person motion to vacate the chair. In addition, votes on congressional term limits and the southern border will be brought to the floor. McCarthy also agreed to the creation of a committee to investigate the weaponization of federal agencies like the FBI and the Department of Justice.

Some claimed that the Republicans should have settled this behind closed doors before Jan. 3 in order to keep individual members’ differences from being aired out in the public. But this chaotic speaker election allowed the American people to gain a deeper insight into the congressional political process.

The McCarthy holdouts forced their colleagues to gather on the House floor and debate the issue in the open. With C-SPAN cameras zooming in on various conversations taking place across the room, the American people sitting in their living rooms were able to watch as their elected representatives argued and bargained. The transparency was refreshing.

Time will tell what the long-term outcome of the speakership election will be, but it is clear that the Freedom Caucus’ gamble to withhold support from McCarthy until its demands were met has paid off. Conservatives should be grateful for the chaos and overjoyed at the outcome.