Hakeem Jeffries Promises to Find Common Ground with House Republicans
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries says he plans to bring a spirit willing to cooperate with the newly elected Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.
In a Sunday (Jan. 8) appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Jeffries, who represents a district that snakes around Central and Eastern Brooklyn and parks of Queens, N.Y., said he’s willing to do the needed work to govern, “Clearly we are going to have strong disagreements at times. But we can agree to disagree without being disagreeable. That is what I believe the American people would like to see in terms of a functional House, a functional Senate, a functional government.”
The nation was glued to C-SPAN coverage of an historic 15 votes over four days and nights to eventually install McCarthy of California. A faction of 20 GOP members repeatedly voted for other Republican members of the House, and even former president Donald Trump, rather than McCarthy. While the Democrats were unwavering in their support of Jeffries for Minority leader, House Republicans had to maneuver and negotiate to end the standoff to electing a majority leader.
The holdout GOP faction demanded as a concession that a single member be able to ask for a recall of the speaker- the “motion to vacate,” provision that hasn’t been used since 1910. This essentially allows the GOP to hold a vote of no confidence, and replace its own speaker.
As the GOP battles internally, Jeffries has made a point to reach out to his colleagues to let them know they need not expect difficulty in working with their across the aisle colleagues, telling NBC, “If Kevin McCarthy is willing to try to find common ground in that regard, they will find willing partners amongst House Democrats.”
