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Accessibility statementSkip to main content Democracy Dies in Darkness SubscribeSign in Advertisement Close The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness OpinionsEditorials Columns Guest opinions Cartoons Submit a guest opinion Today's Opinions newsletter OpinionsEditorials Columns Guest opinions Cartoons Submit a guest opinion Today's Opinions newsletter OPINION THE ELUSIVE ‘MODERATE’ REPUBLICANS WOULD OWN A SHUTDOWN By Jennifer Rubin Columnist|AddFollow November 14, 2023 at 7:45 a.m. EST Flanked by fellow Republicans who represent districts President Biden won in 2020, Rep. Michael Lawler (N.Y.) talks to reporters on Sept. 19 at the Capitol. (Elizabeth Frantz for The Washington Post) Listen 4 min Share Comment on this storyComment Add to your saved stories Save Some House Republicans want to include aid to Ukraine and Israel in the funding bill to avoid a shutdown on Friday. Others want to include only aid to Israel. Speaker Mike Johnson’s idea: Include neither. Neither does it include social spending cuts that MAGA members demanded. WpGet the full experience.Choose your planArrowRight That pretty much sums up the unserious, fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants approach to a job for which the Louisiana Republican was unqualified and unprepared to occupy. (As CNN observed, “Johnson is hugely inexperienced and has no pedigree in manipulating his party’s fractious majority or in finding legislative tricks that can unglue votes.”) The Post reported that in formulating his head-scratching scheme, Johnson tried to “appease the hard right while trying not to alienate the centrists.” However, his “two-tiered funding schedule that does not include other demands from across the GOP conference, like steep budget cuts, a border security proposal and funding for Israel or Ukraine … angered the hard right, puzzled the middle and was mocked by the White House.” Advertisement Story continues below advertisement Well, that’s the sort of gambit you get when you put a Christian nationalist with no legislative expertise in the job. But we should be clear: The blame for another possible shutdown rests not merely with the speaker and the hard-liners who cheered him on but also with the rest of the caucus, the ones who feign to be “moderate” or “normal” Republicans. Time and again, they have acted as if they were powerless to outvote the nuttiest members of the caucus. They refused to look for common ground with Democrats after Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) lost the speaker’s gavel. They went along with the right-wing’s choice of ill-equipped Johnson. They have never showed any inclination to pry loose a reasonable spending bill through a motion to discharge. Follow this authorJennifer Rubin's opinions Follow These cowering Republicans, especially the 18 Republicans sitting in seats from districts President Biden won in 2020, know they are in trouble. In late September, for example, weeks before the first shutdown deadline, Rep. Michael Lawler (R-N.Y.) insisted in an interview with the New York Times, “We’re going to have to find areas of agreement. … And for the handful of people that are unwilling to do that, it’s frankly destructive to the country and really harmful to the American people.” So what did he do? He went along with Johnson’s selection. Perhaps he is one of the “handful” unable to look out for the country’s well-being. Advertisement Story continues below advertisement Likewise, at the end of September, Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) was out urging Republicans to work with Democrats to avoid a shutdown. Instead, he stuck with the far right, did not make a concerted effort to reach a deal with Democrats and voted for Johnson. Had he done what he’d urged, there might have been a bipartisan deal to put the funding issue to bed and a competent speaker able to differentiate between his religious views and constitutional obligations. Then there is Rep. Thomas H. Kean (R-N.J.), who ran as a moderate in the mold of his father, a former governor. “Congressman Kean and the rest of the Biden 18 must make a choice: Will they stand with the American people, decency, and democracy here, and around the world, or will they choose Trumpism, and chaos,” Reed Galen, a co-founder of the anti-MAGA Lincoln Project, said in a news release before Johnson was selected. “They have a responsibility to their constituents to support the institution by finding other choices for Speaker. It’s time for these 18 to put America before politics and finally say enough is enough. Election deniers, conspiracy theorists, and unprincipled autocrats should not rule over the U.S. House of Representatives.” But sure enough, Kean also threw his lot in with Johnson, who sits on the precipice of a shutdown. Even if Johnson’s plan makes it through the rules committee and passes on the floor, it is far from clear that the Senate’s Democratic majority (or, frankly, many in the Republican caucus that held out for Ukraine aid last time) will go along with Johnson’s scheme. On Monday, the White House issued veto threats for both of the spending bills. Advertisement Story continues below advertisement And so, again, a shutdown looms. You can bet the Mike Lawlers, Don Bacons and Tom Keans will bemoan their colleagues’ extremism. But if dysfunction is their concern, they had best look in the mirror. Any number of them could have headed off this possible debacle. They chose instead to be partisan loyalists. Voters should remember next November when they are looking to blame officials who cannot seem to get anything done. Share 1302 Comments More from Opinions HAND CURATED * Opinion|Joe Biden: The U.S. won’t back down from the challenge of Putin and Hamas November 18, 2023 Opinion|Joe Biden: The U.S. won’t back down from the challenge of Putin and Hamas November 18, 2023 * Opinion|Can AI solve medical mysteries? It’s worth finding out. November 15, 2023 Opinion|Can AI solve medical mysteries? It’s worth finding out. November 15, 2023 * Opinion|What causes such maddening bottlenecks in government? ‘Kludgeocracy.’ November 14, 2023 Opinion|What causes such maddening bottlenecks in government? ‘Kludgeocracy.’ November 14, 2023 View 3 more stories Loading... Subscribe to comment and get the full experience. Choose your plan → Advertisement Advertisement TOP STORIES Politics Reporting and analysis from the Hill and the White House Biden campaign works to ease Democratic anxiety over reelection chances Analysis|Voters must take Trump seriously and literally. The stakes are that high. 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