The Gang of 7 may have saved the Republican party
Mike Johnson of Louisiana has been voted in as Speaker of the House after about three weeks of the House being able to do very little (read that carefully). As Goetz the leader of the “Gang of 7” who deposed McCarthy after his broken promises said, (paraphrasing) ~~ the few actual legislative days missed would often taken up naming post offices.
Critics of the 7 said they stepped on a rake. Turns out it was a handy tool grab to get some things cleaned up
The handful of extraordinary RINOs (as compared to the many dozens of louts and rank-and-file Republican weasels including Iowa’s delegation) who complained the loudest about how bad deposing McCarthy made the body look (with absolutely no self awareness) all while they drug out the process of replacement, got their pound of flesh by not approving earlier consensus replacements emanating from the caucus. But it appears that pound did not come from the “gang of 7” — rather they ripped it from their own sensitive hides as now they have perhaps a more culturally conservative Speaker than we otherwise could anticipate. The Gang of 7 may have saved conservatism in the Republican party.*
Read about Speaker Mike Johnson here: Five Quick Things: Has Mike Johnson Broken the Left Already? They may well be the GOAT and not in the old usage of the term.
Some days ago, prior to Johnson’s selection, we responded to an article decrying the gang of 7 as having no plan and stepping on a rake. It seems now the rake is a harvester that has been brought to hand.
House Republicans and a Field of Rakes
We responded at the time, (verb tense changed here):
The degree of anxiety by some over not having a Speaker is overwrought at this stage. One wonders: are they fearful some line might be crossed? What is the line that is in danger of being breached? It must be invisible as they express no concern that McCarthy was capable of and did compromise us to fiscal oblivion, broke promises, manipulated key matters in secret.
There is derision expressed at the 7 because “what is their plan . . . they had no plan”. Well apparently the plan of the critics of the 7 was passivity or support of McCarthy’s business as usual and secret, unexplained and unjustified deals. Their plan was McCarthy’s plan that they were not even in on.
Twenty-five years of continuing (irresponsible) resolutions is enough. Here is a plan — you break your word to someone without justification and the consequences we promised happen.
The result of the 7’s action (perhaps the plan) was to hopefully mature-up the caucus and force the rise of an actual not business as usual leader and to draft him or her. No doubt they had alternatives in mind but Identifying one at the outset would make it look like a coup which would risk comity, while enforcing an agreement among mature people should not and any Republican could offer themselves.
The 7 did not offer one of their own and even offered to resign from the caucus as a group in favor of a genuine conservative (Jordan) so that the pearl clutchers might not get the vapors in their presence, catch their breath and do the right thing for the Party and the country.
We can agree that someone needs to be in charge but as a change agent and McCarthy was not that.
We do not think for one moment that the RINO element and Iowa’s delegation was holding out for someone like Johnson. They wanted McCarthy back or someone more like him.
