There are many who are to blame for the complete breakdown in the operations of the U.S. House of Representatives, but a large share of that blame belongs to the Democrats, all of whom voted to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy from his post.
Yes, McCarthy is a Republican, but sometimes, SOMETIMES — politicians have to put the interests of the country above their party. And yes, Kevin McCarthy is a sniveling snake on so many levels, but he did do the right thing in June when he achieved a compromise with President Joe Biden to raise the debt ceiling and again recently to pass a budget to avert a shutdown.
Democrats complain that McCarthy could not be “trusted” and that he’s a liar (all of which are true) — but really? All politicians are liars, from Joe Biden on down. Do they think the people don’t know that?
So for a few weeks — or however long it takes for the GOP to choose a new speaker — the Democrats will have their chance to gloat over the dysfunction of the Republicans. But absent some grand strategy on their part, the country will fail to function, while also leaving aid to Ukraine and Israel twisting in the wind — and the only ones who truly will benefit from our chaos will be Putin, Donald Trump, and the terrorist organizations.
In addition, as odious as McCarthy may be (in the eyes of Democrats), his possible successors will be far worse. By siding with the loathsome Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz — whose only goal is to bring anarchy to our government — the Democrats not only have plunged Congress, the country, and the world into darkness, but they also have forgotten the cardinal rule of politics: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Or, to put it another way, sometimes you have two choose the lesser of two evils — and the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t.