NO MORE BS: The Speaker, The Majority, and The Minority Leadership

In the legislative branch, the legislators have two jobs, write laws and scrutinize the government.  The laws written should do the most good, for the most people, consistent with the U.S. Constitution, which makes sense.  These laws are not to be interpreted by the judicial because the legislators were too lazy to read the laws they are passing.  Nor should the judicial and the executive branches of government be forced to put up with “pork-filled, bloated bills.”  If the law is too difficult to read in chambers and committees, that piece of legislation needs culled and cut until it is easy to understand.

Thus, bringing up the three leadership roles of the speakers of the House.  Important to note, the Speaker of the House does not have to be an elected legislator.  The House’s Speaker can be, and maybe should be, elected from an independent, neutral party.  Regardless, the House Speaker and majority and minority leaders are elected on the first day of a new Congressional session.

The Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives has the following duties:

• • • Responsible for administering the oath of office to the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives
    • Permits Members to speak on the House floor
    • Chooses Members to serve as Speaker Pro Tempore
    • Counting and declaring all votes
    • Appointing Members to committees, sending bills to committees, and signing bills and resolutions that pass in the House.
    • The Speaker is third in line, behind the Vice President, to become President should the President be unable to fulfill their duties.

The Majority Leader has the following duties:

• • • The majority leader is second-in-command to the Speaker of the House.
    • The majority leader schedules legislation to be considered on the House floor
    • Organizes daily, weekly, and yearly legislative plans
    • Consults with Members to understand how party members feel about issues
    • Works to advance the goals of the party.

The Minority Leader has the following duties:

• • • The minority leader serves as the floor leader of the “loyal opposition” and the minority counterpart to the Speaker of the House.
    • The minority leader is responsible for leading the minority party in the U.S. House of Representatives.
    • Include speaking for the party and its policies
    • Protecting the minority’s rights
    • Nominating minority party Members to committees

The majority and minority leaders continue to represent his or her district in the U.S. House of Representatives.  However, the majority and minority leaders usually do not serve on committees and do not lead floor debate on major issues.  Important to consider, much of the “duties and roles” of the majority and minority leaders are not written in the U.S. Constitution but are only traditional activities that previous speakers, majority, and minority leaders have engaged upon, usually to the detriment of the American Citizen.

Nowhere in this list of job duties does it declare the ability to write foreign governments, visit foreign governments, engage upon duties held by the executive or judicial branch, or grandstand extremist issues to force changes upon the American body culturally, socially, or religiously.  Nowhere in this list of duties is the Speaker, the majority or minority leader responsible for weaponizing government against the American people.  Nowhere in this list of job duties and roles allows the Speaker of the House to act like a monarch over a medieval fiefdom.

The Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives has been eroding the executive branch’s powers for several presidencies now.  Since the media is not calling upon the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives to restrict themselves solely to the duties outlined in the U.S. Constitution, we, the people, must remind and scrutinize!  Knowledge is power; and right now, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives is cashing in on Americans’ ignorance and, in conjunction with a conniving media, to protect the American People’s abuse, the waste of taxpayer dollars, and the support of a medieval fiefdom.

I encourage all to observe, understand, and scrutinize the politicians’ actions in leadership positions, including the U.S. House of Representatives’ Speaker, the majority and minority leaders.  When you catch them acting outside their assigned roles, duties, and responsibilities, be the loyal opposition and call them out for the neglect of their duties!

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.