By Ashley DeNegre.
In December 2023, Axios reported that the 118th Congress has been historically ineffective, with just 20 bills signed into law during 2023. To those of us who have watched with frustration, this record is unsurprising, however, we find it necessary to state in plain language that CD-7 residents – those represented by Congressman Tom Kean, Jr. – deserve better.
As one of 18 House Republicans representing a district that supported Joe Biden in 2020, Kean, Jr., has been identified as vulnerable in 2024 by several organizations, yet he continues to vote with the House extremists determined to undermine American democracy.
For example, he supported election denialist Jim Jordan for Speaker of the House following Kevin McCarthy’s October 2023 ouster. More recently, Kean, Jr., voted in favor of formalizing an impeachment inquiry into President Biden. Given the lack of evidence of impeachable offenses, and the almost certain impossibility that the Senate would vote to convict, the inquiry amounts to nothing more than political theater with no benefit to CD-7 or the US population at large.
Meanwhile, due in large part to far right Republicans’ obstructionism, Congress has repeatedly failed to accomplish one of its primary responsibilities, passing a budget; instead, it has relied on continuing funding resolutions as a stopgap to avoid a government shutdown. According to the Congressional Research Service, a nonpartisan organization that provides policy and legal analysis to the House and Senate, approximately 6,600 federal employees reside in CD-7. At a minimum, those individuals face the possibility of financial impact in the event of a shutdown, however, the burden would likely extend into the greater constituency. Therefore, working with Democrats to finalize a budget would benefit the citizens of CD-7 – and reflect the moderate stance on which Congressman Kean, Jr., campaigned – much more than his continuing engagement in the partisan games that have paralyzed the 118th Congress.
Figure. The 118th Congress has been far less effective than other sessions, falling short even as compared to other unproductive Congresses
Congressman Tom Kean, Jr. is part of one of the most historically ineffective congresses, with just 20 bills signed into law during 2023. Congress has repeatedly failed to accomplish one of its primary responsibilities, passing a budget.
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