It would be hard to overstate how bad House Republicans look as they struggle to seat a speaker. In a classic case of the tail wagging the dog, the spotlight and power have shifted to some of the most extreme elements in the Republican Party. Fringe members, who wouldn’t recognize a swing voter if they stumbled over one and could not win a competitive district if their lives depended on it, are for now the face of the House GOP.
It is also hard to put too much emphasis on the reality that the 2024 election is 386 days from now. The old cliché holds that a year is a lifetime in American politics. Two years ago, President Biden was dealing with the House Progressive Caucus, who for months had been holding hostage a largely noncontroversial infrastructure package, making Biden and the Democratic leadership look hapless and impotent. The political environment at this point two years ago was so hostile for Democrats that it was the biggest single factor in tipping the Virginia governor’s race into the Republican column—what had
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