Ever since the rise of the TEA Party, which gave way to the TrumpubliKKKan MAGA cult, today’s Republican Party has become incapable of being governed. John Boehner couldn’t do it. Paul Ryan couldn’t do it. Most recently, Kevin McCarthy couldn’t do it. The last Republican speaker able to keep his party together was Dennis Hastert and he turned out to be a serial child molester (so, maybe Matt “Venmo” Gaetz — if they don’t expel him first?).
In contrast, Nancy Pelosi led the party for twenty years (2003-2023) and was speaker for eight of those years (2007-2011 and 2019-2023) and she did a great job keeping her party together. And Democrats, too, have to walk the tightrope of internal squabbles and competing interests (Black caucus, Hispanic caucus, leftist PROgressive caucus, moderate Democratic Leadership caucus, conservative Blue Dog caucus). The difference is that Democrats know how to act like grownups. They hash out their differences, make deals, make concessions, understand that compromise is not a dirty word, it’s how you get things done and, yes, make bipartisan deals across the aisle.
Nancy Pelosi is gone now, and a new generation led by Hakeem Jeffries is at the helm and he, too, has maintained an organized and cohesive Democratic minority despite the wide range of differing viewpoints and competing interests among them.
Republicans say that “government is the problem” and when they get elected they sow chaos and devastation to make it a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Then Democrats get elected, govern responsibly, clean up the mess left by the parade of pooping Republican elephants and make government work.
Ever since the rise of the TEA Party, which gave way to the TrumpubliKKKan MAGA cult, today’s Republican Party has become incapable of being governed. John Boehner couldn’t do it. Paul Ryan couldn’t do it. Most recently, Kevin McCarthy couldn’t do it. The last Republican speaker able to keep his party together was Dennis Hastert and he turned out to be a serial child molester (so, maybe Matt “Venmo” Gaetz — if they don’t expel him first?).
In contrast, Nancy Pelosi led the party for twenty years (2003-2023) and was speaker for eight of those years (2007-2011 and 2019-2023) and she did a great job keeping her party together. And Democrats, too, have to walk the tightrope of internal squabbles and competing interests (Black caucus, Hispanic caucus, leftist PROgressive caucus, moderate Democratic Leadership caucus, conservative Blue Dog caucus). The difference is that Democrats know how to act like grownups. They hash out their differences, make deals, make concessions, understand that compromise is not a dirty word, it’s how you get things done and, yes, make bipartisan deals across the aisle.
Nancy Pelosi is gone now, and a new generation led by Hakeem Jeffries is at the helm and he, too, has maintained an organized and cohesive Democratic minority despite the wide range of differing viewpoints and competing interests among them.
Republicans say that “government is the problem” and when they get elected they sow chaos and devastation to make it a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Then Democrats get elected, govern responsibly, clean up the mess left by the parade of pooping Republican elephants and make government work.