11 bills and counting. That's the number of major bills House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) passed with support from more Democrats than Republicans during his time in office. One for each month he worked the job.
Most recently, on Wednesday night, he passed a three-month continuing resolution that will fund the government through December. By contrast, Mr. Johnson has accomplished almost nothing that Democrats do not support.
Let's look at it in detail. They give a good indication of what the Unionist Party really values. (Spoiler alert: Many Republican voters don't care about that.)
First, they care about spending a lot of money of your money. Second, they are concerned about war in Ukraine. Third, they are concerned about spying on former President Donald Trump (and you).
And finally, they care about George Santos.
The first Democratic-led spending bill was introduced quickly during Johnson's term as prime minister, arriving in November 2023, less than a month after he took the gavel. Johnson has promised to split the fight into two parts, give Democrats what they want, and then pick much-needed battles on border security once he loses influence. 93 of the 95 “no” votes came from its own party, but CR was funding the government until January
passed There were 209 Democratic votes and 127 Republican votes. As expected, the border battle came to nothing, and the Speaker promised to use the National Defense Authorization Act to actually fight it.
This kind of single-party kumbaya may be happening behind the scenes as usual in Washington, D.C., but it's rare to see it practiced so openly and on record in the House of Representatives.
December has arrived in the blink of an eye, but what will happen? There's no fight. This was also as expected. Too many Republicans worship the altar of the Pentagon (and the permanent defense industry that makes billions from it) to have a legitimate fight over the NDAA. It doesn't matter that the leadership and upper echelons of the Pentagon have been primarily focused on the Democratic Party's radical social engineering and critical race theory while losing wars. If they want money, they'll get it.
Then, on December 14, Johnson
passed On the NDAA, there were 163 Democrats and just 147 Republicans. All measures to rein in the excesses of liberal Democrats at the Pentagon have been stripped away. Instead, a provision was added extending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which intelligence agencies used to spy on and sabotage the last Republican president. A whopping 118 Republicans voted against it. See you in the new year.
Then the January spending “battle” began. Prime Minister Boris Johnson had vowed to take a strong position as he looks to push through 2023 and make a fresh start. But as expected, he didn't. The House passed a CR that again suspended the rules and extended funding through March. vote 107 Republicans voted in favor, 106 opposed, and 207 Democrats voted in favor.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson then took a sudden detour into tax reform. This is something Republicans can usually support, but the move, while fulfilling many of the promises the party has made to corporations, is catering to K Street lobbyists while Main Street voters suffer. Many people couldn't shake the impression. Additionally, Democrats included tax credits for illegal immigrants as part of steady progress toward normalizing and legitimizing amnesty. that
passed There were 169 Republicans and 188 Democrats.
But that March CR ran out of time, and Congress had yet to pass the massive and damning “omnibus.” (If this seems like a lot of standing resolutions, it's because Congress hasn't passed an actual budget by the book since 1996, which is before at least one current member was elected.)
passed Once again, there are more Democrats than Republicans. This time, there were 207 Democrats, 113 Republicans in favor, and 97 Republicans against.
Next came the bill for the omnibus. Congress liked the idea so much that it was passed twice. of
passed first Democrats received 207 votes and Republicans only 132. second There were 185 Democratic votes and only 101 Republican votes.
Next was FISA. Remember FISA? It was a type of intelligence tool that nations promised to use only against terrorists and other bad actors but ended up using against all kinds of domestic adversaries. is. President Trump remembers FISA. Regardless, this should have been a flat “no” from the party that wanted the country to eliminate FISA, but assuming that underestimates how despicable the Republican Party's relationship with the intelligence and defense communities is. You will probably be doing it. Mr. Johnson reversed his previous anti-FISA vote and decided to reauthorize it. passed In April, 147 Democrats and 126 Republicans voted in favor.
That same month, United Party leaders leveraged the Republican Party's dedication to the foreign country of Israel and the Democratic Party's dedication to the foreign country of Ukraine to craft both bills and a security bill to counter China in the Indo-Pacific. Johnson won the support of his fellow Democrats by ruling out anything about securing the nation's borders. I passed There were 165 Democrats in favor and only 151 Republicans in favor.
The next day, unsurprisingly, Johnson
Sent The support of 101 Republicans and 210 Democrats provided even more funding to Ukraine. There were 112 Republican no votes. No Democratic Party? zero.
And on Wednesday, CR received 132 Republican votes but crossed the finish line by 209 Democrats.
oh don't forget George Santos. In the run-up to passing the NDAA and FISA in December, the Republican Party took its time expelling Republicans as liars and likely sociopaths, but their brilliance led to many others who voted to expel them. He became a much more interesting person than a liar or a cheater. The vote was important because Republicans hold a narrow majority and the seat will almost certainly flip to Democrats in the special election. Of course, this made their stance seem even more principled than usual.
Regardless, the vote was controversial, with 105 Republicans voting in favor of expelling Santos and 112 voting against it. Naturally, the Democratic Party
rescuedelivering 206 votes for such a moral cause. Huh.
That's it. Democrats cast 11 primary votes for speaker. This kind of single-party kumbaya may be happening behind the scenes as usual in Washington, D.C., especially in the Senate, but to see it practiced so openly and on record in the House of Representatives is rare. This is not only a stain on Prime Minister Johnson's leadership, but also on the cohesiveness of House Republicans as an actual political party.
“Can anyone name one thing that the extreme MAGA Republicans in the House of Representatives could have done on their own to make life better for the American people?” Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries
asked Reporters after CR on Wednesday. “One thing? Just one thing?”
Political rhetoric aside, he's right. I really can't think of anything. Sure, you can blame the small Republican majority (and some of the more rebellious, camera-hungry members of Congress), but that's not all. For me personally, it reminds me of a scene from Disney's “''.
Aladdin”, seven guards with swords cowered in fear, pointed at the little monkey and shouted, “He has a sword!”
It's a cartoon, but as far as Republican negotiations go, it's reality. The House has the sword, but lacks the will to utilize it in real time. This is how the Democratic Party wins over and over again.
The next exam is in December. That's when the real spending war begins. If Trump wins in November, it will literally determine whether he can govern in his first year or whether Democrats can force him into their priorities. Johnson has promised to fight, so I'd like to see it. The new chairman of the Freedom Caucus told Beltway Brief this week that the caucus would challenge Johnson's position in January if he backs out of his pledge.
But if history is our guide, it's not much better.
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In other news
Mitch McConnell forges common cause with Zelensky in Democratic campaign
Volodymyr Zelensky quickly attracted the attention of Republicans during his tour of the United States.
openly attack Party nominee Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio). Rumor has it that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), who has strangely made Ukraine the cornerstone of his accomplishments, has quietly given President Zelensky the green light to intervene in such a close election. It is said that this has boosted the confidence of foreign leaders.
The rumors seemed a bit far-fetched until President Zelensky arrived in Washington. The House of Representatives had already reacted to the provocation and launched an investigation into Kamala Harris' use of Air Force resources to transport foreign agents. The probe, like most Republican investigations, won't go anywhere, but it at least destabilizes the House's position. Meanwhile, on the other side of the building, Mr. McConnell staked out his position, guiding the Ukrainian leader shoulder-to-shoulder around the Capitol.
The outgoing leader's cocky attitude toward the party's candidates is consistent with this persona, and the continued diversion of taxpayer funds to Ukraine in a huge and disgusting December omnibus bill has led to a potential 2025 This is consistent with his intention to constrain the foreign policy of the Trump administration in 2019. His colleague, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R.S.C.), has gone so far as to propose binding the next three administrations' foreign policy toward Russia with a 10-year war spending bill.
I can't help but wonder what the future would hold if more Republican senators showed this kind of dedication to American security and to American workers.
Breitbart: McConnell invites Never Trumper: Republican Senate luncheon urges increased Pentagon spending
