Kevin McCarthy has “gone fishing”
Even as the battle begins for raising the debt ceiling begins, Republicans are investing their time in investigations of President Biden. Politico reported that House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer issued subpoenas to the FBI regarding a “highly credible” whistleblower complaint. He is requesting documents, though it is not clear what documents he seeks or what his investigation entails. Backing him up is Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who sent a letter to the FBI claiming that they have material regarding “an alleged criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Biden and a foreign national relating to the exchange of money for policy decision.” President Biden left the vice presidency in 2016. Since Grassley has been in the Senate since they built the Capitol, you might think he would have been involved in this investigation back then. Why it is now of utmost urgency is puzzling, but then, so are Republicans.
Clearly, Republicans have no basis for their so-called investigation and cannot even put a name to it. As Politico reported: “The GOP has made clear for months that the ultimate goal of its Biden oversight is to find a smoking gun that might link the president to the business deals of his son Hunter, who is also under a federal investigation.” In other words, Republicans have “gone fishing.” They have no specific targets or goals; they’re just looking for something. This is a classic example of your tax dollars at waste. They should, instead, be sitting down with other members of the House to find a solution to the looming debt ceiling crisis instead of going fishing.
McConnell has apparently agreed to attend next week’s meeting, but he believes that any deal must be reached between Biden and McCarthy. Indeed, Thom Tillis (R-NC) is quoted by Politico that President Biden “must make a counteroffer” to House Republicans’ proposal, “And a counteroffer cannot be a clean debt ceiling.” We already knew that was coming. Republicans will never do anything simply for the good of the people; it’s just not their nature, but Democrats aren’t giving up. Hakeem Jeffries recently wrote in a letter to his colleagues: “It is now time for MAGA Republicans to act in a bipartisan manner to pay America’s bills without extreme conditions.” Apparently, not only MAGA Republicans but two of Democrats’ own.
Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema are pushing for a bipartisan deal while thumbing their respective noses at Democrats’ insistence that the ceiling be raised with no negotiation. Is anyone surprised? Sinema is no longer a Democrat, and Manchin has always been one in name only. Manchin is blowing up the airwaves with his goal of bipartisan talks while Sinema is dining with Kevin McCarthy. What’s up with these two? It’s funny how Republicans are applauding Sinema’s efforts to “bring people together,” but she’s not exactly a master at that. Neither is Manchin. Both are the reason we still have the filibuster.
Things aren’t looking good right now, but let’s hope that they can all get together enough to do the right thing. The people of this country are depending on all of them.
Shirley is a former entertainment writer and has worked in the legal field for over 25 years