JCwire Washington, D.C.
Newly elected House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-WI, reaffirmed his commitment to legislative inaction on Sunday. “We will not bring legislation to a President we don’t like. We will wait it out for one we do like, be it 2016, 2020, or 2024.”
Confirming promises he made in closed-door sessions with Tea Party Republicans in exchange for his nomination, the newly minted Speaker told House members, “We will not be rushed and bullied into action. The House will stand its ground. I will reunify our party around basic conservative values: namely, exclusion, privilege, and the right to bear high-capacity assault weapons.”
Representatives from the House Freedom Caucus claimed victory, noting that Speaker Ryan had improved his positions not only on national issues such as immigration but also on process fundamentals. Member Mo Brooks, R-AL, said he had been assured that no major legislation would be brought forward without first being approved by the group. “We put it in language referencing ‘a majority of Republicans,’ but realistically there is no majority without us. This gives us control of the House. Since the Senate can’t move anything without the approval of the House, and nothing goes to the President except through Congress, we effectively have a legislative veto over everything. I’ve been waiting a long time for this!”
Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-CA, clarified that “this is not a new management structure. We are simply following the well-established Hastert Rule of governance,” named after the former Speaker and recently convicted felon Dennis Hastert of Illinois. “The fact that Speaker Ryan immediately removed Mr. Hastert’s portrait from the Speaker’s Lobby has no bearing on his allegiance to the Rule.”
Rep. Ryan blamed Congressional failings on his predecessor. “Mr. Boehner was all too willing to compromise with the enemy to get things done. On my watch, we will not bow to opponents or the twisted arguments of logic. We are not afraid of stalemate, for in so doing we show the principles of which we are made. We are the party of our own morality. If we have to sit on legislation for years, make no mistake: we have that resolve.”
House Whip Steve Scalise, R- LA, expanded on the strategy. “The American people don’t want answers and solutions to our national and international problems; they want to feel good about stating their opinions and beliefs. Congressional Republicans have consistently given them that solace.”
Speaker Ryan closed his comments by saying, “I look forward to guiding our party and our nation through times both obedient and turbulent. Government will work better with consensus on the issues. That’s why we are hosting a kick-off party in the Lobby with free Kool-aid for all attendees!”