Republicans Take Control of House of Representatives; President Biden Says He’s ‘Ready to Work’ with GOP
Republicans secured control of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, sealing a razor-thin margin divides the two chambers of Congress and promises to complicate President Joe Biden’s pursuit of his legislative agenda.
The GOP on Wednesday evening reached the 218-seat threshold needed to take the leadership of the House. The re-election of California Rep. Mike Garcia, in the state’s 25th district covering Lancaster and Palmdale, put the party over the top to victory, as reported by the Associated Press. The Senate remains in Democratic control but by the slimmest (50-49) of margins.
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Another California House member, veteran GOP Rep. Kevin McCarthy, is poised to become Speaker when the new Congress is sworn in in January.
Biden vowed that he was “ready to work” with Republicans, in a statement issued Wednesday.
“Last week’s elections demonstrated the strength and resilience of American democracy,” a statement from the president said. “There was a strong rejection of election deniers, political violence, and intimidation. There was an emphatic statement that, in America, the will of the people prevails.”
The decision on the fate of the House came down around the same time that Los Angeles election officials finally declared a winner in the mayoral race. In that contest, Democratic congresswoman Karen Bass defeated businessman Rick Caruso to become the city’s first female mayor.
The GOP takeover of the House promises to bring more partisan jousting in the 24 months leading up to the 2024 presidential election.
At a time of great division among blue and red states, Hollywood insiders are warily eyeing the shifts in Washington with grave concern as far-right Republicans pursue more efforts to curtail abortion rights, to reverse hard-won gains for LGBT civil rights and to appoint conservative judges to the federal bench.
Republicans have also become increasingly hostile to the entertainment industry, which is unlikely to change any time soon. Industry insiders are already worried about getting any major M&A deals approved given the fraught climate in D.C. on both sides of the aisle. Republicans have also aired major beefs with tech giants such as Facebook, setting the stage for investigations and a possible push for breakups or regulation.
“Americans are ready for a new direction, and House Republicans are ready to deliver,” McCarthy wrote in a tweet after Garcia’s election was finalized.
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