Todd Whitcombe: a minority to blame for the debacle of the American president

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The whole debacle has highlighted the ability of a minority to hold the majority hostage.

Winston Churchill once said, “Democracy is the worst form of government – except all the others that have been tried”.

Last week we witnessed the difficulties of democratic systems south of the border. It took 15 ballots and serious compromises by the majority for the minority of Republican representatives in Congress to elect Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House.

The president is a powerful position in the American model of governance. Not only are they second in line to the presidency, but they are responsible for scheduling bills and appointing committee members.

But the whole debacle has highlighted the ability of a minority to hold the majority hostage. About 200 Republicans supported McCarthy and 20 did not. However, needing 218 votes for a majority – if all members voted – it took 15 ballots before McCarthy could convince enough of his colleagues to vote for him.

And now Congress will be held hostage to the whims and desires of a small group of individuals, because one of the concessions McCarthy made was to restore the ability for any member of Congress to call a vote. of “no confidence” in the Speaker (a “motion to vacate the Chair”) thus triggering another round of voting for the office of Speaker.

Of course, our system is different. It is a parliamentary system in which the party with the most seats is invited to form the government and the leader of that party assumes the responsibility of Prime Minister. When a party is in the majority, the Prime Minister leads with a certain level of autonomy as legislation can be passed on a party’s vote.

But in the case of a minority, the parties must reach an agreement and assemble a coalition which can then be held hostage by the coalition partners. They need each other to stay in a role of government. The tyranny of the minority can take over.

Fortunately, in this country, we tend to elect representatives who put the good of Canadians first and recognize the value of a strong social construct. They are not our “best”, as some would say, but simply people who try to make sure that we have a strong country. Without too much fuss.

Todd Whitcombe is a professor of chemistry at UNBC.

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