Congressional Republicans are failing due to incompetence

After last year’s midterm elections, when Republicans won sweeping gains in both houses of Congress and shifted power in the Senate from blue to red, liberal pundits were understandably concerned about what new legislation would pass the legislature before the next election in 2016. With campaign promises ranging from creating new jobs to stopping ISIS, Republican Congressmen and women claimed that they would end political gridlock and take action to counter the policy of the Obama administration.

So where exactly is this dramatic change? Lost in pontification.

Presumably to distinguish themselves from the do-nothing Congress that preceded them, Republicans decided to take on the controversial issue of abortion. As a party defined by its staunch anti-abortion stance, passing policy-altering limitations on abortion rights should have been a piece of cake…right?

Not so. The bill that came to the floor for debate was a horror show, banning abortions after 20 weeks, with exceptions for life of the woman and cases of rape or incest of a minor — but only if these incidents were reported to police. Dissent quickly emerged as moderate, predominantly female Republicans cried foul, arguing that those who suffered from a traumatic episode should not be forced to relive an incident in a police station. Rather than compromising to resolve this difference, Republicans scrapped the bill entirely, opting to pass one that stops federal funding for abortions — a provision that has passed in every appropriations bill since 1976. In short, Republicans accomplished nothing.

In a similar demonstration of ineptitude, Republicans in Congress have supported the plaintiffs in the upcoming Supreme Court case King v. Burwell, advocating a decision that would strip tax credits for federally controlled health care exchanges. In doing so, the Affordable Care Act would be rendered useless and insurance would be too expensive for many low-income families relying on the tax breaks. How is this action beneficial to Republicans? Well, they don’t exactly know anymore.

Since King v. Burwell was filed in July of 2014 when the Republicans were just an obstructionist minority, striking down the tax provision would have been a major win for the party, sending their Democratic counterparts into a panicked tizzy to find a solution to the resulting healthcare problem. Now that the Republicans are in control and the collapse of the healthcare system will be in their laps, they have switched strategies to blaming the President for not preparing for the systemic demise of the Affordable Care Act — a demise they crafted and are actively encouraging.

Instead of breaking new ground, congressional Republicans are breaking their backs reinventing the wheel, creating new problems where solutions already exist. In short, Congress is not running because the Republicans keep shooting themselves in the foot.

Sarah Green is a sophomore majoring in economics. Her column, “Power Politics,” runs Mondays.