Summary
The Republican majority in the House of Representatives is facing uncertainty due to members resigning to join Donald Trump’s Cabinet.
This includes Matt Gaetz, Mike Waltz, Elise Stefanik, and Lori Chavez-DeRemer, with Victoria Spartz stepping away from committee work.
These departures, coupled with potential special elections, could jeopardize the Republican majority’s ability to pass legislation, particularly Trump’s agenda.
It’s unclear what’s really happening with Victoria Spartz. As of right now, it just seems like she’s having a little temper tantrum. She is “stepping away from committee work” because she didn’t get the assignment she wanted. And saying “I won’t participate in the caucus” is kind of meaningless.
The critical thing is: will she vote for Mike Johnson for Speaker, or vote “present”? It probably won’t matter, though, as the three reps who are leaving for other appointments can’t take their new jobs until Jan 20th at the earliest, so they will be around to vote for Mike…
… But wouldnt it be wild if the votes weren’t there for Mike, and it takes forever to elect a speaker again, and because of that Congress can’t affirm Trump’s victory on time? It won’t matter – Trump will take office regardless – but it would piss him off to no end that his certification was scuttled by Republicans, while he wasn’t able to disrupt Biden’s four years ago.