In the just-concluded midterm elections, Republicans eked out a slim majority in the House of Representatives. But so far, not much has been proffered on upcoming legislation. Most of what has been made public so far amounts to revenge politics:
Investigation into Hunter Biden’s laptop on suspicion of million-dollar influence-peddling in Ukraine and possibly China, in the hopes of impeaching President Biden. No mention, of course, of any inquiry into what prompted Saudi Arabia’s crown prince to award $2 billion to Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Is that money earmarked for Donald Trump’s 2024 reelection campaign, or perhaps, more likely, to his legal defense fund? Suspicions persist that it was for aiding and abetting the squelching of questions into the murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi during Trump’s tenure.
Investigation into Jan. 6 committee members with a view to — no one has said for quite what yet, other than to shift blame from Trump to Nancy Pelosi and Capitol law enforcement for poor preparation for the attempted coup that was ignored by security and fomented by the ex-president and his henchmen. No investigation of authorities in the FBI, National Security Agency or anywhere else as to why so many red flags showing up on the internet beforehand were oh, so conveniently dismissed.
Impeachment of Attorney General Merrick Garland for investigating Trump at all.
Impeachment of Alejandro Mayorkas, secretary of Homeland Security over his mishandling of all things pertaining to immigration and the border (see below).
Investigation into Anthony Fauci for mishandling the COVID epidemic. But wasn’t it Trump who downplayed the disease, wouldn’t wear a mask, applauded others who wouldn’t and suggested injections of bleach might kill the virus?
As to the issues Republicans ran on, it may be pointless to address them:
Inflation seems to be abating; gas prices rival pre-COVID times; holiday spending is as high as ever; unemployment is under 4% and fears of recession are receding.
Decreasing crime would mean some kind of sensible, national gun control, but of course, the GOP is more interested in preserving the Second Amendment than in preserving life (at least outside the womb).
Immigration is an intractable problem unlikely to be resolved merely by impeaching Secretary Mayorkas. No recent Republican has had a viable, humane solution to any of the issues, especially if requiring bipartisanship. Ronald Reagan might be the last man who saw the benefits of new immigrants and advocated amnesty for long-term “illegals.” Contrast that with the current DACA controversy.
Be aware: Kevin McCarthy is already resisting a bipartisan “framework” to raise the debt ceiling. This could mean the country held hostage while the MAGA right vies for concessions come January. The Affordable Care Act, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, even veterans benefits may all be up for cuts. Was this the intent, or did the GOP electorate not have any idea what their vote might mean? The rest of us did.
P.V. Lee lives in Brownsville.
