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AG (Attention Getter)

In January, it took a historical 15 ballots to elect Republican Represenative (CA) Kevin McCartyh as Speaker of the House of Representatives after the 118th Congress began it's session, a process that typically takes just one ballot. It is just the latest example of disorder and disagreement in the GOP as a whole, and specifically it's Congressional majority.

BG (Background)

Right now, the partisan makeup of the U.S. government is pretty divisive. There is a Democrat in the White House, a Democrat-controlled Senate, but a Republican-majority house, despite an underwhelming midterm performance for the GOP. However, thanks to certain members of the Freedom caucus, a group of representatives continue to threatan Kevin McCarthy and the power that he holds as speaker as they are not willing to work together and function.

Q (Question)

What is the agenda of Congressional Republicans?

Answer (Summary Of Speech)

The simple answer here is that Republicans don't have a constructive agenda, and they are more focused on stopping the Biden administration/Democrats from making progress with their agenda, thanks in part to the divided political climate that occupies the country. Republicans want to halt Democratic progress, can't work together, and this is partially because they are all at varying levels of extremeness/moderacy, which makes choosing focuses difficult.

R1 (First Reason)

Republicans' main priority is to stop Democrats. The New York Times 12/1/22 explains that Republicans "wasted no time" once the new Congress began in creating a counterproductive agenda meant to target Biden's administration, and potentially call for investigations into the President with the goal of impeachment. But this strategy actually harms the party. TIME 11/16/22 says that Republicans should focus on representing their voters, not just functioning as an anti-Biden barrier in Congress.

R2 (Second Reason)

Republicans can't unite within their party. Politico 1/7/23 explains that GOP infighting has left the country in a disfunctioning state, and this was shown on national television for Americans to see in the case of the speaker elections. Democrats are also not willing to help Republicans get anything done, as can be expected. As The Hill 1/9/23 says that Democrats are clearly unwilling to help, with them saying it's up to McCarthy and the GOP to organize themselves. A lack of unity for the GOP means that they are incapable of making any progress legislatively, given their slim 222-seat majority.

R3 (Third Reason)

The Republican Party has very differing levels of extreme/hardcore views. Pew Research Center 11/9/2021 explains that the only common belief all Republicans have in common with each other isn't anything regarding policy, but rather, their disdain for Democrats. There are typically four separate factions of the right, with some wanting more modern policy stances, while others resist change. This is especially apparent with the issues of abortion, tax reform, and immigration.

C (Conclusion)

Republicans don't just have one agenda, but rather they all have separate ideas of how they should be governing with their new majority. They can't unite behind common goals, and are unable to accomplish anything legislatively. The one thing we know for sure is that the next two years will be a key test for the GOP as a whole.