After a nearly a year of having done nothing, House Republicans have rewarded themselves by canceling all of their remaining votes and leaving town until after November’s midterm election.
In a departure from their original schedule, the House plans to adjourn at the end of the day Thursday until after the midterm elections, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced.
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Lawmakers will now have extra time to hit the campaign trail, leaving Washington until the lame-duck session in November.
The House was originally set to be in session through Friday to vote on consolidated packages of so-called “jobs bills” and measures to boost domestic energy that it has already passed. Now, members will be able to head for the exits as soon as the House finishes work on the energy package.
DCCC Chairman Rep. Steve Israel responded by putting Republicans on blast, “House Republicans are now abandoning any pretense of doing actual work for the American people, skipping town one day after doing the bare minimum required to keep the government functioning but blocking any progress for the middle class. House Republicans have proved yet again that they are only interested in doing their jobs long enough to stack the deck for special interests and launch political stunts. Democrats are committed to jumpstarting our middle class, not setting the government on autopilot and then heading for vacation.”
House Republicans aren’t even trying to fool the American people anymore. It doesn’t matter that the “jobs bills” that the House was supposed to vote on were not really jobs bills. In House Republican speak, anything that provides a tax cut to the wealthy or guts a regulation is a jobs bill. The reality is that House Republicans don’t do what most people would consider to be jobs bills.
John Boehner is fond of saying that jobs are his top priority, but the Speaker couldn’t even stick around town long enough to vote for his fake jobs bills. The best part about this whole deal for House Republicans is that they will still be getting paid for assigning themselves more vacation.
The American people need a Congress that will show up for work. If you decided on your own to not show up for work, you’d be fired on the spot. Voters need to give House Republicans the same treatment.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
