The House G.O.P.'s Incredible Shrinking Majority

[RandySF]

When Republicans assumed control of the House early last year after winning a narrow majority in the 2022 midterms, Representative Earl Blumenauer, a veteran Democrat from Oregon, made a bold prediction: His party had a slight chance of reclaiming power before the next election — through sheer attrition.

Republicans commanded just a thin edge over Democrats, 222 to 213, Mr. Blumenauer reasoned, and typical turnover in recent years suggested that could shrink further. Plus, a certain new Republican representative from New York by the name of George Santos did not seem likely to survive a cascade of ethics issues and criminal charges.

Still, Mr. Blumenauer’s prognosticating seemed more like liberal wish-casting given the dominoes that needed to fall to fulfill it. A year later, though still highly unlikely, it suddenly doesn’t seem all that far-fetched.

Day by day, thanks to a combination of coincidence, scandal, health issues and political turmoil, the G.O.P. majority keeps getting smaller.


https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/16/us/politics/republicans-house-majority.html

[Maraya1969]

1. Free link.

https://archive.is/CkqH7

[sheshe2]

2. Thank You!

[sheshe2]

3. Love the last paragraph.

Even with the shifting numbers, it is hard to see the Republican membership falling below that of Democrats, though it is possible that on some days, more Democrats than Republicans could be on the floor and voting because of illness or any number of other reasons. Democrats say that if that were to become a regular occurrence, they would not hesitate to capitalize on the situation.

[Hekate]

4. Thanks! Love this para...

Republicans are in a real numerical bind. At a time when House Republicans regularly face internal rebellion from hard-line conservatives, Mr. Johnson has absolutely no cushion if he chooses to rely strictly on the votes of his own party, which is part of the reason he cut a deal with Democrats on spending to avoid a shutdown later this week, further angering the hard right.

[Cha]

5. Shrink Harder magas.

Thank you!

[Wonder Why]

6. The really sad thing is that they just quit so they will only be remembered

as cowards and failures in history. Had they instead, for once in their lives, finally voted against the clowns, they would have at least be remembered for doing something positive for their country.