House Democrats should take advantage of the current impasse among House Republicans and back retired Rep. Fred Upton (Mich.) or another moderate Republican to become House speaker with a bipartisan coalition. This would be great for the country.
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Sure, it sounds quixotic. But we’re in uncharted territory. With a bloc of ultraconservative Republicans currently opposed to Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, the House on Tuesday didn’t choose a speaker on its first ballot for the first time in 100 years.
At least right now, McCarthy himself and most other House Republicans seem committed to trying to jam through McCarthy as speaker. But there is a real possibility that the party eventually bends to the demands of its ultra-right wing and coalesces behind someone even more conservative than McCarthy, who is no moderate. In his potentially doomed effort to become speaker, McCarthy allied himself with fringe figures such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) and promised endless investigations of the Biden administration.
It’s not clear that Rep. Steve Scalise (La.), the No. 2 Republican in the House, or the No. 3 Republican, Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), who are the most likely people to become speaker if McCarthy eventually bows out, are more personally conservative than McCarthy. But if the ultra-right members effectively depose McCarthy, whoever is the speaker would be even more beholden to a bloc that is way to the right of the country and seems more interested in tearing down institutions (the FBI) and people (Hunter Biden) than governing. That would be terrible for the country.
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So, while the Republicans are fighting among themselves, Democrats have an opportunity to create a House run by moderate Republicans. They should seize it.
Upton, who didn’t run for reelection last year after serving in the House since 1987, has floated his name as a potential speaker if the Republican majority can’t agree on someone. (The speaker doesn’t have to be a sitting member of the House.) There are 212 Democrats in the House, so if they all backed Upton along with six Republicans, he would have the necessary votes.
Upton told the Detroit News that he would have some backing among Republicans. I’m not sure if he is right, but there are 18 Republicans in districts where Biden won in 2020. They might prefer a more moderate Republican leadership in part to enhance their own reelection chances. So this is not a totally pie-in-the-sky idea, although Republicans would probably have to remain deadlocked through many more votes and the process would have to stretch out a few more days for it to happen.
Upton would be an ideal figure for this role. He knows how the House works, having served there for more than 35 years. He was not a backbencher, having chaired the powerful Energy and Commerce committee. He has strong enough ties with President Biden that Biden praised Upton in a 2018 speech right before the midterms — infuriating local Democrats who felt Biden’s remarks helped Upton win reelection. Most important, Upton is one of the few reasonable Republicans who have served in office in recent times. He voted for Donald Trump’s impeachment after the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, one of only 10 Republicans to do so.
Upton has pledged he would appoint equal numbers of Democrats and Republicans to key committees. This might ensure gridlock, but it’s better than having extremists dominating committees, as was going to happen under McCarthy and will be even more likely with a Republican speaker fully embraced by the House Freedom Caucus. Democrats could require Upton’s leadership team to include some in their party in exchange for their votes. And while Upton is still a Republican and would likely lead the chamber in a much more conservative way than Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) did, he is much less conservative than anyone that the Republican majority would choose as speaker.
Upton is a strong choice, but there might be another moderate Republican, either in the current House or not, who would be even better. What’s really important is installing a Republican in the speaker’s role who is not beholden to the party’s most right-wing members. I know this sounds far-fetched, particularly the idea of any Republicans breaking ranks and supporting a Democratic-backed figure for speaker. But there some precedents at the state level, including earlier this month when Ohio Democrats joined with some Republicans to elect a more moderate Republican as House speaker.
Democratic members of Congress spent Tuesday emphasizing how united they are around their new leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, and mocking the Republicans for their disorganization. I worry that some congressional Democrats would rather have a poorly run GOP House that they can run against in the 2024 campaign than a complicated bipartisan coalition where voters could blame both parties if there is gridlock.
It would be a huge mistake right now for Democrats to prioritize electoral politics over governing. A House dominated by radicals is more likely to drastically cut government spending, roll back key programs, shut down the government and default on the national debt. The lives of everyday Americans would suffer under such a leadership.
House Democrats should stop acting as if Republicans-in-disarray is a fun movie for them to watch and start acting as though this is a crisis they can use to ensure better government for the next two years. Democrats mobilizing behind Upton or another moderate Republican to be speaker is the kind of mature, patriotic act that America desperately needs.
Sign up for a weekly roundup of thought-provoking ideas and debates
Sure, it sounds quixotic. But we’re in uncharted territory. With a bloc of ultraconservative Republicans currently opposed to Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, the House on Tuesday didn’t choose a speaker on its first ballot for the first time in 100 years.
At least right now, McCarthy himself and most other House Republicans seem committed to trying to jam through McCarthy as speaker. But there is a real possibility that the party eventually bends to the demands of its ultra-right wing and coalesces behind someone even more conservative than McCarthy, who is no moderate. In his potentially doomed effort to become speaker, McCarthy allied himself with fringe figures such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) and promised endless investigations of the Biden administration.
It’s not clear that Rep. Steve Scalise (La.), the No. 2 Republican in the House, or the No. 3 Republican, Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), who are the most likely people to become speaker if McCarthy eventually bows out, are more personally conservative than McCarthy. But if the ultra-right members effectively depose McCarthy, whoever is the speaker would be even more beholden to a bloc that is way to the right of the country and seems more interested in tearing down institutions (the FBI) and people (Hunter Biden) than governing. That would be terrible for the country.
Follow Perry Bacon Jr.'s opinionsFollow
So, while the Republicans are fighting among themselves, Democrats have an opportunity to create a House run by moderate Republicans. They should seize it.
Upton, who didn’t run for reelection last year after serving in the House since 1987, has floated his name as a potential speaker if the Republican majority can’t agree on someone. (The speaker doesn’t have to be a sitting member of the House.) There are 212 Democrats in the House, so if they all backed Upton along with six Republicans, he would have the necessary votes.
Upton told the Detroit News that he would have some backing among Republicans. I’m not sure if he is right, but there are 18 Republicans in districts where Biden won in 2020. They might prefer a more moderate Republican leadership in part to enhance their own reelection chances. So this is not a totally pie-in-the-sky idea, although Republicans would probably have to remain deadlocked through many more votes and the process would have to stretch out a few more days for it to happen.
Upton would be an ideal figure for this role. He knows how the House works, having served there for more than 35 years. He was not a backbencher, having chaired the powerful Energy and Commerce committee. He has strong enough ties with President Biden that Biden praised Upton in a 2018 speech right before the midterms — infuriating local Democrats who felt Biden’s remarks helped Upton win reelection. Most important, Upton is one of the few reasonable Republicans who have served in office in recent times. He voted for Donald Trump’s impeachment after the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, one of only 10 Republicans to do so.
Upton has pledged he would appoint equal numbers of Democrats and Republicans to key committees. This might ensure gridlock, but it’s better than having extremists dominating committees, as was going to happen under McCarthy and will be even more likely with a Republican speaker fully embraced by the House Freedom Caucus. Democrats could require Upton’s leadership team to include some in their party in exchange for their votes. And while Upton is still a Republican and would likely lead the chamber in a much more conservative way than Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) did, he is much less conservative than anyone that the Republican majority would choose as speaker.
Upton is a strong choice, but there might be another moderate Republican, either in the current House or not, who would be even better. What’s really important is installing a Republican in the speaker’s role who is not beholden to the party’s most right-wing members. I know this sounds far-fetched, particularly the idea of any Republicans breaking ranks and supporting a Democratic-backed figure for speaker. But there some precedents at the state level, including earlier this month when Ohio Democrats joined with some Republicans to elect a more moderate Republican as House speaker.
Democratic members of Congress spent Tuesday emphasizing how united they are around their new leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, and mocking the Republicans for their disorganization. I worry that some congressional Democrats would rather have a poorly run GOP House that they can run against in the 2024 campaign than a complicated bipartisan coalition where voters could blame both parties if there is gridlock.
It would be a huge mistake right now for Democrats to prioritize electoral politics over governing. A House dominated by radicals is more likely to drastically cut government spending, roll back key programs, shut down the government and default on the national debt. The lives of everyday Americans would suffer under such a leadership.
House Democrats should stop acting as if Republicans-in-disarray is a fun movie for them to watch and start acting as though this is a crisis they can use to ensure better government for the next two years. Democrats mobilizing behind Upton or another moderate Republican to be speaker is the kind of mature, patriotic act that America desperately needs.
