Chinese state media is saying that the U.S. Congress’ multiple day deliberations over choosing a House speaker is evidence of democracy in “decline” and “deterioration.” However, Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin said on the House floor that debate is a naturally occurring part of a government that answers ultimately to the people.
The Republican majority’s disagreement over who should become speaker has continued to stymie the House of Representatives. Through multiple rounds of voting, GOP leader Kevin McCarthy has repeatedly failed to earn the 218 votes needed to win the speaker’s gavel. The last time a speaker’s race went multiple ballots in the House was 100 years ago.
The Global Times, which is widely recognized as the flagship newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, published an editorial that said the speaker race is evidence of “chaotic phenomena of spread and aggravation of the disease of the U.S. political system.”
“What happened in the highest hall of ‘U.S. democracy’ is not a simple farce, but a political thriller with huge destructiveness, and a wide-ranging and far-reaching impact,” the editorial said. “This not only worries Americans, but also political observers from quite a few countries internationally.”
Referencing professors from Chinese universities, another Global Times’ article said the last few days in Congress has shown “the U.S. political system has declined and its political ecology has deteriorated.” And that the U.S. federal government is “unable to react to the real demands of Americans.”
The editorial also said that with American politics in seeming disarray the U.S. could become increasingly aggressive and unpredictable in its posture toward China.
On Wednesday morning, Gallagher, a McCarthy supporter who is expected to chair the House Select Committee on China, addressed some of the concerns that have been raised about the prolonged debate. He said some are “salivating” about the dramatic headlines, referring primarily to his political opponents.
“Sure it looks messy,” he added. “But democracy is messy by design. And that’s a feature not a bug of our system. We air it all out in the open for the American people to see.”
Gallagher said this is important because at the end of the day the government is not in charge, rather, the American people are in charge.
All Republican members and some Democratic members of Congress were seen giving him a standing ovation after his comments.
The House was scheduled to reconvene at 10 a.m. MST on Thursday where the seventh ballot for speaker is expected.