News/Commentary

GOP Leader McCarthy pitches GOP answer to Biden’s mess if they retake House

June 14, 2022 | | Print Article

(Video: Fox News)

Faced with reelection every two years, the argument could be made that Congress never stops campaigning. That said, House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) signaled that his party had zeroed in on the platform heading into November as teed up by President Joe Biden.

During a discussion with Fox News host Sean Hannity on his eponymous program, McCarthy pointed out the damages of inflation brought about by Biden’s policies while Democrats continue to focus on promoting the investigation of the January 6 committee.

Hannity posed the simple question, if the Republicans are able to secure a majority in both the House and Senate during the midterms, “What would be different?”

McCarthy began by harkening back to then-House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich’s (R-Ga.) 1994 “Contract With America” that outlined a legislative agenda ahead of a midterm election by telling the host, “We’re gonna make a ‘Commitment to America,’ we’ll lay out exactly what we’ll do.”

“We’ll make America energy independent. That’ll make the gas prices lower – put more money into your pocket. We will secure the border,” he went on. “The other thing we’ll do, we’ll make sure your streets are safe. We’re gonna go into these communities, we’ll provide them cop grants only if their DAs uphold every single law.”

The minority leader then hinted at how influential the successes of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) have been when he added, “We’ll provide a ‘Parents Bill of Rights,’ that you have a right to say where your kids go to school and input into your kids’ education. That’s just the start of what we’ll do.”

The platform that McCarthy is proposing has been fully supported by former President Donald Trump despite protestations from supporters who feel that the California lawmaker does not have the best interests of conservatives in mind.

In his endorsement of McCarthy on June 4, the president noted the plans for the future and said, “Kevin is building a ‘Commitment to America’ platform to Grow our Economy, Fight Big Tech Censorship, Secure the Border, Strengthen our Military, Defend the Second Amendment, Improve our Health Care, Restore American Energy Independence, Support our Brave Veterans, and Uphold the Rule of Law and American Values.”

This is not the first time the top House Republican attempted to capitalize on successes of the past. Ahead of the 2020 election where the GOP had anticipated gaining control of the legislature, they had used the same branding to promote their agenda.

Gingrich’s “Contract with America” has been viewed as a pivotal factor in Republicans gaining control of the House of Representatives for the first time in 40 years during the 1994 election and saw the Senate flip as well. For the effort to pay off in the long-run McCarthy is going to need to further the distinction between the Republicans and Democrats, which he did by pointing to the obstruction of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in passing simple measures like protections for SCOTUS family members.

More importantly, should the Republicans win majorities in November, they are going to have to adhere to the promises of their “Commitment to America” or they are likely to lose voters’ favor come 2024.

Kevin Haggerty
Latest posts by Kevin Haggerty (see all)

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.

Latest Articles