The Status of the House Governing Body: Replacing the North Carolina Representative Patrick McHenry with a High-Energy Speaker
It is not clear whether the broad support on Capitol Hill for aiding Israel’s war effort might help break the logjam over sending more military supplies to Ukraine, or simply complicate the heavily politicized negotiations over doing so. A growing number of Republicans are resisting continued aid for Ukraine and suggesting that any additional assistance would have to come with major Democratic concessions, including more restrictive immigration laws.
In the interim, the House is under the control of Representative Patrick T. McHenry, the North Carolina Republican who was named temporary speaker after Mr. McCarthy’s removal. Many House aides believe Mr. McHenry has only limited governing powers that do not include the right to take major legislative action. An acting speaker could do what a majority of the House agreed to do, despite the fact that there is no precedent.
The House is not powerless. It can come into session and consider legislation,” said Sarah Binder, a congressional expert and professor of political science at George Washington University. “At the end of the day, it’s a matter of interpretation.”
Leading members of both parties have used the war between Israel and Hamas to slam the far-right Republicans who voted along with all Democrats to remove Mr. McCarthy from the speakership. They argue that the G.O.P. rebels’ tactics have neutered the House’s ability to respond to the worst fighting between Israelis and Palestinians in over half a century.