Local pundits call Washington dysfunction 'a disaster'

The historic five-day effort to elect a new speaker of the House in Washington is likely to have a lasting impact on partisan politics and the ability of Republicans to govern, local pundits say.

After five days of voting, including a session late Friday night that continued into early Saturday — when the 14th and 15th votes were taken — Republican California Rep. Kevin McCarthy was finally named the new House speaker.

The multiple speaker votes, something that has not been seen in Washington in a century, put the House of Representatives at a standstill. It delayed the installation of new members, including two from Southwestern Pennsylvania: Democrats Summer Lee and Chris Deluzio, who were elected in November to their first terms in office.

But it’s the GOP that figures to be the big loser, according to Joe DiSarro, a political science professor at Washington & Jefferson College.

“What’s going on in D.C. is a disaster for the Republican Party,” DiSarro said. “The Republican Party is going to be raked over the coals by liberal media. It is a spectacle.”

The standstill prevented the House from conducting any business during the first week of the new Congress. Deluzio, who represents parts of Allegheny and Beaver counties, and Lee, who was elected to represent Pittsburgh, eastern Allegheny and the western portion of Westmoreland County, were in Washington last week expecting to be sworn in to office Tuesday.

Instead, they had to wait until early Saturday.

New members were allowed to vote in the speaker election but were unable to perform all functions of their new jobs.

Lee could not be reached for comment Friday.

Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters, who represents most of Westmoreland County and portions of Washington and Fayette, did not respond to requests for comment. Reschenthaler repeatedly supported McCarthy, according to public accounts of the speaker votes.

He released a statement Saturday afternoon that did not address the struggle over McCarthy’s election as speaker. It addressed the Republicans’ plans after taking control of the House.

Paul Adams, an associate professor of political science at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, said the ongoing internal battles among Republicans, who in November gained a slim majority in the House, could have a lasting impact on the party’s ability to move legislation through Congress.

“It’s kind of like a ‘snatching defeat from the jaws of victory’ kind of thing. Now, the story is about their fracture when this is usually a fairly perfunctory thing to elect a speaker,” Adams said. “Democrats can sit back, do nothing for a while and watch the circus.”

DiSarro, who calls himself a partisan Republican, said as the new speaker, McCarthy will be in a weak position. It creates a circumstance that is likely to hinder the GOP’s agenda.

“This enhances the power of the Democrats,” DiSarro said. “This is why, if you are a strong Republican, you will be thoroughly disgusted. This speaks about where the party is going and why they don’t know where they are going.

“It also speaks volumes about what could happen (in the presidential election) in 2024.”