Last Updated on December 8, 2022
US Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-MT) will not support US Rep.Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) for Speaker of the House in January, and the reasons for his decision to support someone else for the position are enlightening.
“We need a leader who has the courage to fight and utilize every option to counter the destructive policies of the radical left. While Kevin McCarthy served as minority leader, I urged him to leverage our “must-pass” bills, like the federal and defense budgets, to prevent and change bad policies,” Rosendale wrote in his latest article, slamming McCarthy for being soft on Democrats, adding:
“At the very least, we could have forced Democrats to remove unrelated provisions from legislation — for example, the radical “climate justice” language in the infrastructure spending bill or vaccination mandates in the defense budget. Instead, he squandered every opportunity to protect Americans from woke policies and advance conservative values,” he reported.
Rosendale wrote out more of his reasoning, explaining in an op-ed that McCarthy already had shown he was too soft for the position, adding that what America needs is someone who will stand up to the Democrats, citing other problems where McCarthy has come up short of advocating for Republican voters, over the past two years.
“Change in Washington starts with electing the right speaker,” Rosendale wrote for the Billings Gazette this week, adding:
“Kevin McCarthy has made it clear that he is unwilling to challenge the status quo in Washington. We cannot continue to do the same thing with the same people and expect a different outcome.”
In the op-ed, Rosendale acknowledged that many candidates run for office on the platform of fixing Washington, which works well with Americans who want America fixed, listing things that Americans are most worried about, being the Border, Taxes, crime, and inflation, admitting that politicians are doing little to fix any of those problems.
“We need a drastic change in Washington — that starts with electing a Speaker who is dedicated to restoring the House rules and can stand up to the White House and Senate,” Rosendale wrote.
Rosendale went on to add more details about the qualities he wanted to see in the next Speaker.
“Over the years, Speaker Pelosi and Democrat leadership have incrementally changed the rules and processes in the U.S. House of Representatives to consolidate power in the top ranks of the majority party. These rules allow the Speaker of the House and the nine hand-picked members of the Rules Committee to dictate every step of the legislative process. This small group of super-legislators chooses what goes to the House floor and when it will be voted on. Having served as the Majority Leader in the Montana State Senate, I know what an effective, functioning legislative body looks like. This isn’t it.”
Rosendale wrote that he and some associates in the House proposed some rule changes and that McCarthy “made it clear that he is unwilling to meaningfully change the rules and challenge the status quo in Washington” in a terse statement about McCarthy’s general unwillingness to move out of his comfort zone, adding a blistering smackdown of fellow Republicans who are taking advantage voters:
“Current Republican leadership falls in with the majority of politicians who campaign on change but support the current system that provides them with undeserved power and privilege.”
Rosendale concluded by saying:
“If Kevin McCarthy couldn’t lead in the minority, he doesn’t have the ability to serve as Speaker of the House. We need a speaker who is strong enough to get things done with a Democrat-controlled White House and can unite the Republican party. You didn’t elect me to be a rubber stamp. We cannot continue to do the same thing with the same people and expect a different outcome. My promise is to always fight for Montanans while in Washington.”