Dhe Republicans in the US House of Representatives have not overcome their identity crisis with the election of Mike Johnson as speaker. In the last three weeks, however, they have involuntarily made a public statement of their position. The most important lesson from the three weeks of chaos since Kevin McCarthy’s dismissal is that Donald Trump actually has veto power in Congress, but no decision-making power.
The former and possibly future president was unable to push through his preferred candidate, the agitator Jim Jordan. There are still a handful of brave Republicans who do not seek salvation in confrontation alone. But Trump was able to prevent all candidates who he feared would place the well-being of the country more seriously than their loyalty to him.
The “establishment” defeated
Neither the Democratic President Joe Biden nor America’s Western partners can accept the fact that the formally most powerful Republican in Washington is now a shrewd lawyer who, almost three years ago, put a lot of energy into the project of disenfranchising millions upon millions of Americans and the voted out Trump to keep in office. However, they weren’t much better off with the opportunist McCarthy.
The more acute question is whether blind loyalty to Trump will guide Johnson when it comes to urgent budget issues – including support for Israel and Ukraine.
There is already resistance in Congress to Biden’s plan to get Republicans on board by linking both (and other) concerns. Johnson has sometimes supported Kiev aid, sometimes rejected it. He should at least listen when supporters explain why it is in America’s interest to stop Putin.
At best, the loud Trumpists are, for the moment, inspired enough by their victory over the “establishment” to give the new speaker a little more leash. Because ultimately Johnson is one of their own.
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