As of: February 7, 2024, 12:43 p.m
By: Lisa Mahnke
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There is chaos in the House of Representatives.
Hardly any initiative fails; the consequences could be dramatic.
What's behind it?
Washington, DC – Mike Johnson, Republican Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, is in complete disarray.
The crowning moment was the public impeachment debate surrounding Homeland Security Secretary Alexander Mayorkas, which in itself lacked a constitutional basis.
Despite the Republicans' confidence, it failed by a few votes and made a mockery of the House of Representatives - not for the first time.
Shortly after the failed impeachment, a bill for $17.6 billion in aid to Israel also failed.
It was a gamble from the start because approval would have required a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives.
For the Democratic government, which does not take Johnson's six-seat majority (219-213) seriously and sees it more as a driving force for Donald Trump's election campaign stunts, the failure of the Republican initiatives is a disaster.
Blockade in migration policy: electoral political calculation or serious criticism?
The voting behavior of the House of Representatives raised suspicions, a law on migration policy is just another of many examples: After months of demands for tougher migration policy, Johnson's Republicans made a U-turn and rejected the conservative migration law before it was even introduced into the House of Representatives.
While Joe Biden compromised and was ready to implement the law, the bill was not radical enough for Republicans.
CNN
assumed that Trump wanted to push ahead with a crisis leading up to the US election in November.
“We obviously have no confidence that Secretary Mayorkas would enforce it.
He is not enforcing the laws that are currently in place,” Mike Johnson said in a press conference.
However, the blockade tactic also paralyzes the House of Representatives, which should actually cooperate more for its own legislative initiatives due to its narrow majority.
To say that existing laws are not being enforced also calls into question the work of the House of Representatives.
With their blockade, the Republicans in the House of Representatives could lead to a shutdown or international consequences.
© CHIP SOMODEVILLA / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP
What the House of Representatives is successfully doing through the tactic, however, is blocking the government.
Success also seems remote for the 60 billion aid package for Ukraine and another law for aid to Taiwan.
The house also has a significant influence on international politics - in this case in favor of Russia and China.
Will the shutdown follow soon?
– Trump enjoys loyalty from many Republicans
With the spending deadline on March 1st in mind, the Republicans' strategy could not only make government work more difficult, but could also lead to a complete government shutdown, a so-called “shutdown”.
In Congress, the deadline has already been postponed through an interim budget in order to avoid such a budget freeze.
By March, i.e. within three weeks, Congress would have to pass legislative initiatives to fully fund government agencies.
My news
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There will certainly be negative views of the blockade by the Republicans in the House of Representatives in the swing states, which could be their downfall in the next election.
However, a bad image of the Republicans does not necessarily have to be transferred to Trump, who portrays his numerous court cases as tyranny and oppression by the Democrats and continues to use the rhetoric of a strong man who can repair America.
Polls also show that Trump remains popular.
(lismah)