The U.S. House of Representatives on Monday passed its first package of measures since the proclamation of Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House, which modifies some of the parameters of the House’s operation over the next two years.
With 220 votes in favor and 213 against, the US Lower House has adopted the lines imposed by the most right wing of the Republican Party, which demanded a series of reforms within the House of Representatives in exchange for giving its support to McCarthy as president, as reported by ‘The Hill’.
The most controversial provision is a reform of the so-called ‘motion to vacate’, which until now required a Republican majority to invoke a motion to vacate the Presidency, while now it will require the vote of only one congressman.
Thus, a single representative will be able to force a motion of confidence to debate whether the president should continue in office. This, coupled with the slim GOP majority in the House, would mean that six Congressmen could unseat McCarthy if they believe he is not acting as agreed.
Other agreed reforms include the appointment of three members of the most pro-Trump congressmen to the Rules Committee, which is made up of 13 congressmen and is the body that decides which bills will go to the floor and what order they should follow.
With this new configuration of the committee, formed by nine members of the majority party and four of the minority, the Republican Party could lose freedom in the legislative initiative, since it would be exposed to the decisions of the three most radical congressmen.
Also, the new rules package eliminates proxy voting, which was instituted in 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic as a way for members to vote remotely. It also includes a promise of a future vote on a bill to change term limits, set at eight years, according to the newspaper.
McCarthy has defended the reforms by asserting that over the years there has been a «concentration of power» in the Speaker of the House of Representatives, taking it away from legislators.
«Lawmaking should be open to all deputies, not just a select few, so that the best ideas win,» he said in a statement released by his press office.
«By boldly moving away from the centralized legislation of the past and returning to regular order that empowers Members, committees and the public, House Republicans are keeping our commitment to making Congress more open, more accountable and more responsive to the needs of the American people,» he added.
However, from the Democratic Party, they have expressed concern about the agreements reached, calling the package «flawed.»
«What concerns me is not just what is written here, I am concerned about the secret deals Chairman McCarthy made with Freedom Caucus in exchange for their votes. As Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace said this weekend, and I quote, ‘we have no idea what promises were made,'» Jim McGovern, a member of the Rules Committee, has told ‘The Hill’.
«Is this what the majority leader meant when he talked about a new day on transparency? These rules are not a serious attempt at governing, they are essentially a far-right ransom note to America,» he has added.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
