WASHINGTON (WHTC-AM/FM) – When members of Congress return to the Nation’s Capital next week, following the conclusion of the Easter/Passover holiday break, there may be some efforts to change the rules of how they conduct business.
Since the first of the year, the House has been working under “emergency” standards set by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) that bypassed the traditional committee hearing process for legislation, bringing bills directly to the House floor for a vote without debate on amendments. Those standards expired at the start of this month, and if St. Joseph Republican Congressman Fred Upton has his way, they won’t come back when lawmakers come back to Capitol Hill.
“She’s been able to steamroll the committee process and simply bring up the same bills that she was able to pass last year that didn’t go anywhere,” Upton said during a recent appearance on “WHTC Morning News.” “So we’re off to the races, and let’s hope we can work together on a number of different issues, knowing that we have divided government, and we have some pretty big issues to deal with.”
On Monday, US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) claimed that he and his fellow Democrats can move their agenda without support from minority Republicans, saying that the rules bypass the filibuster roadblock and pass legislation with just a simple majority, which the Dems currently have via the tiebreaker vote from Vice President Kamala Harris (D-California).
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