Rep. Garamendi (D-CA): Kevin McCarthy Would Have No Easy Task as Speaker
House Speaker Paul Ryan threw his weight behind Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as a replacement for when he retires from his position in January.
The Wisconsin Republican told NBC Friday that “Kevin’s the right guy to step up.” Although, it’s unclear how much Ryan’s endorsement would boost McCarthy’s prospects.
The Majority Leader jockeyed to replace former Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) in 2015 but abruptly bowed out of the race, citing a potential lack of support from the party at the time, particularly from the conservative Freedom Caucus.
And Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA) thinks that even with Ryan’s backing this time, McCarthy may get a little *déjà vu*.
“Given the extraordinary fracture that exists in the Republican caucus between the more normal Republicans and the Freedom Caucus, it’s nearly an impossible task,” Gramendi told Cheddar Friday.
Additionally, half of the district that McCarthy represents relies on Medicaid, which is something the GOP wants to cut. Taking the party position as Speaker could damage McCarthy’s standing with his constituents, said Garamendi.
Ryan announced earlier this week he would not seek re-election, leaving the Republican party scrambling to find a replacement. Other potential candidates for Speaker include Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA), who was shot at a congressional baseball practice last year, and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), who heads the Freedom Caucus.
But that’s only part of the party’s problem. Ryan’s retirement also suggests that the GOP could find it tough to hold onto its majority in the House at the midterm elections.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/rep-garamendi-d-ca-president-trump-is-destroying-the-american-government).
The Cowboy State has become one of the world's top tax havens, according to the Pandora Papers, a trove of more than 11.9 million documents obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and The Washington Post. The papers reveal, among other things, how ultra-wealthy people from around the world move money into the U.S., invest, and spend it under a shroud of secrecy. Allison Tait, University of Richmond law professor, joined Cheddar to talk about Wyoming's laidback tax laws, their impact on the nation's economy, and provided some details on the financial arrangement known as the "cowboy cocktail."
Carlo and Baker preview President Biden's address to the nation as Omicron becomes the new dominant Covid strain. Plus, Trump gets booed for getting his booster and the White House gets a new puppy.
China and Russia are saying they want to work closer together in different areas after a recent call between Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin. What are the implications of a close partnership between Beijing and Moscow? Cheddar News breaks things down with expert Hagar Chemali.
Michele Schneider, Partner and Director of Trading Research & Education for MarketGauge.com, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where she says the spread of the Omicron variant and Jerome Powell's comments following the latest Fed decision are spooking investors heading into the weekend.
Carlo and Baker wrap up another week discussing the latest explosion in new Covid cases in the Northeast, President Biden's stalled agenda and more. Plus, Love, Hate, Ate featuring the question: why did movie dialogue get so hard to understand?
Since July 2021, families with children have received monthly payments from the federal government as part of the expanded child tax credit, a policy that may be expiring this month. Megan Curran, policy director at the Center on Poverty and Social Policy at Columbia University, joined Cheddar News to discuss.
During the pandemic, student loan debt repayment was put on pause amid an unprecedented crisis. However, on February 1, 2022, the schedule is set to resume, and currently it looks as though the Biden administration has no plans to extend it. Cody Hounanian, the executive director of the Student Debt Crisis Center, spoke to Cheddar about why he believes the loan collection pause needs to at least be extended as borrowers are still struggling with the resurgent pandemic and inflation. "There's really no good economic or policy or political reason as far as why they're focused on getting payments started now," Hounanian said. "We surveyed 33,000 people with student loans last month. Nine out of 10 told us that they are not ready to resume payments."
As the 2022 midterm elections fast approach, here are some politicians Americans should be on the lookout for. Democratic Massachusetts state senator Sonia Chang-Diaz, who was the first Latina and Asian American woman to be elected to the state's senate, now has her eye on the governorship with Republican Charlie Baker leaving. New Jersey GOP candidate for Congress, Billy Prempeh also bears watching, and while Boston's newest mayor, Democrat Michelle Wu, was already sworn in last month, all eyes will be on Beantown as the first woman and first person of color to hold the office tries to usher in a new era for the city.
