The House Makes Doing Nothing Look Hard
The two big pieces of legislation, the farm bill and the immigration overhaul, probably are dead on arrival.
Let the chips fall where they may.
Photographer: Mark Wilson/Getty Images
If both the farm bill and an immigration measure actually reach the floor on Thursday, the House is going to look like a real legislative body, at least on the surface. Don’t be fooled. The Republican majority is just passing the buck as usual. Or, I should say: Speaker Paul Ryan is passing the buck, as he usually does. Which is why he’s been such a disappointment.
It doesn’t really matter whether the farm bill, which was defeated the first time the House voted on it a month ago, passes this time. What’s at stake is only which version of a partisan measure is going to be ignored by the Senate, which everyone believes will actually write the eventual renewal of authorization for agriculture programs, including anti-poverty spending that many conservatives oppose. Most likely, that will come after a temporary bill extends the deadline beyond Sept. 30 so that the issue can be dealt with during a lame-duck session after the midterm elections. It’s even possible that House Republicans will be so stuck on positions that have no chance of passing the Senate that they would rather postpone action into 2019 and the new Congress, even though the odds are that doing so would give Democrats additional clout.