crazy week of the United States Congress

Better than Hollywood, the United States Congress has had a crazy week that started as a family comedy, before taking on the accents of a burlesque, then a thriller, ending with a breathless scene on Saturday January 7th this morning.

Everything was an arid procedure: The election for the chairman of the DPR, for the first time in more than 160 years, took four long days and 15 votes.

The baby and the dog

It all started on Tuesday in a festive mood: the representatives elected in November will be sworn in for the first time. They had invited their relatives who, from the balcony, would clap at the oath.

But the rules stipulate that first, they choose their leader, ie speaker from the room. Republican Kevin McCarthy is expected to take the role, his party close to regaining its majority in this chamber.

Except for a handful of diehards, representing the right of the right, refusing to cast their vote, denouncing him pell-mell for being too timid, not supporting Donald Trump enough, embodying system or have no faith.

Votes linked but no one won the required majority. The family took the opportunity to visit Washington. Some of the kids got off the hemicycle, fell asleep there, bored.

Democrat Jimmy Gomez is keeping his 4 month old baby with him. He let out a knowing laugh as he voted with the crazy little Hodge in his stomach. On Thursday, Republican Nancy Mace voted with her dog Libby under her arm.

Also read: United States: Which Republicans are blocking the House of Representatives vote?

Popcorn and alcohol

Meanwhile, the atmosphere turned absurd. Typically, sittings in the House are governed by strict rules that strictly prohibit dogs, but also criticize other elected officials, speculate on their motives, scorn them…

But this rule must be adopted after the vote speaker​. Taking advantage of this void, elected officials are having fun. Republican Kat Cammack took the lead accusing the Democrats of carrying “popcorn, blankets and booze” to enjoy the show.

Amidst this chaos, Clerk Cheryl Johnson is trying to remind people that her role is to be upheld order and decency until the selection of speakers. Without much impact on the most turbulent.

I love it !apart from republican rebel Lauren Boebert, who saw the chaos as a sign of a healthy democracy.

Unconvinced, a growing number of elected officials showed their annoyance with votes following each other mechanically: Democrat Maxine Waters sighed, Republicans left the session during troublemaker Matt Gaetz’s speech…

Negotiations

In this confusion, negotiations started piecemeal, fueling all the speculation.

The cameras, strictly permitted to record in the tiniest of angles, caught left-leaning Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez elected in deep discussion with Republican Paul Gosar. But in 2021, he posted an animated video showing him killing it. This time, he asked about the Democrats’ strategy.

Republican George Santos, insulted Tuesday by colleagues because he lied on his CV during his campaign, took advantage of this palaver climate to break out of his isolation.

Friday, after a night of negotiations, elected Republicans prayed at the foot of the perch, hoping the situation would open up.

As the session resumed, Kevin McCarthy moved in behind the scenes. He kept leaving his seat to chat in the gallery adjacent to the hemicycle. His efforts seemed to bear fruit first, fifteen elected officials were in line.

Late in the afternoon, the meeting was adjourned, losing only a handful of votes.

This continued late at night. Kevin McCarthy showed his optimism. The disappointment was even more acute when the 14th vote failed by one vote. Face defeated, he rushed to the dissidents’ bench, before regaining his composure. And to plead for a new vote.

One more time, one more time, shouted his supporters, determined to win this war of attrition. This time it would be a good one, the rebels abstained, which was mechanical enough to give him a roost. It was past midnight, applause resounded.