House Speaker Ongoing Melodrama

[CKwi88]

(10-21-2023, 07:13 PM)JustWinBaby Wrote: Again, when it comes to electing Speaker, it's only a majority of those voting.  The Dems are giving those 8 or so Repubs power, deliberately & knowingly, by casting opposition votes.  I completely agree if the shoe were on the other foot the Repubs would do the same.  But if there was an agreement, or Pelosi/Jeffries actually wanted to end this, all they had to do the first time or now is have like 10 members not show up or vote present.

Both parties are playing a game of chicken here. BOTH.  And it's all politics.  Clearly the Republicans will deservedly take most of the blame, which is what the Dems are hoping to achieve.  Meanwhile, the world is kind of on fire.  The Dems can end this, but they also won't.  They are not blameless by any stretch.

Are the Republicans, at least in theory, able to elect a speaker and reopen the house without anything from the Democrats?

Yes, they are. Unequivocally. Their inability to come together as the majority and elect one of their members to be speaker, like it has been done for the past 200+ years is what is causing this first and foremost. 

Dems have no obligation to capitulate to the GOP.