Home Republicans’ failure to elect a speaker on Tuesday after a number of rounds of voting is not simply denying the GOP a pacesetter — it is holding up a lot of the functioning of the chamber.
The place is historically stuffed on the primary day of a brand new Congress, adopted by the swearing in of recent members, however with the ground struggle spilling into Wednesday, members-elect have but to take the oath of workplace.
Incoming lawmakers arrived on the ground on Tuesday with their households in tow, anticipating to pose for a photograph and get began with their first day as lawmakers, however have been as a substitute greeted with a several-hour wait because the speaker election went to a number of rounds of balloting — the primary time that is occurred in 100 years.
Each new Congress should move a brand new set of Home guidelines, so and not using a speaker to supervise adoption of these guidelines, none will technically exist.
With out an accredited Home Guidelines bundle by the top of enterprise on Jan. 13, committees will not have the ability to pay employees, in keeping with a letter despatched final week by the committee in command of administrative issues, which was first reported by Politico and obtained by CNN.
The identical memo warned that scholar mortgage funds for committee employees would not be disbursed if a guidelines bundle is not adopted by mid-January.
It is simply one of many some ways a battle over the following speaker may paralyze the Home and the Republican majority from working effectively of their opening days, with a number of the harshest penalties falling on rank-and-file staffers.
For committees whose chairs aren’t recognized, they are going to be headed up within the interim by the committee’s senior-most Republican who additionally served on the panel within the final Congress, in keeping with the letter despatched final week.
However with out totally functioning committees, to amend and approve payments earlier than they make their option to the ground for a vote, there shall be little legislating. Which means Republicans may have to attend earlier than tackling a few of their most urgent priorities, together with investigations into President Joe Biden’s administration and household.
Exterior of the speaker’s function successfully operating the Home, they’re additionally within the line of succession for president — elevating questions on what occurs if there is not any one within the place that is second in line for the presidency after the vice chairman.
The Senate president professional tempore is third in line. Sen. Patty Murray was elected to that function Tuesday, making the Democrat from Washington the primary girl to carry the place.
