Republicans in the United States House of Representatives today concluded a chaotic 10 day stretch with the election of a new House Majority Leader and House Majority Whip.
Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Cal.) will takeover for Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) as Majority Leader, the second-ranking member of the House behind Speaker John Boehner (R-OH). McCarthy has been the Majority Whip, the third-ranking member of the House, since Republicans took control of the body in 2010.
Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) was elected today to succeed McCarthy in his old job.
So what does all of this mean for Alabama?
First of all, Scalise’s election to the number three spot gives southerners a real voice at the leadership table for the first time since Barack Obama became president in 2008.
“Southerners think different than Northeasterners, Midwesterners, Plains states people,” Alabama Congressman Mo Brooks (R-AL05) told NPR earlier this week.
Brooks is one of many southern Republicans who have grown frustrated with southern state representatives being looked over for leadership roles, in spite of the South being the GOP’s largest base of support on the national level.
“For whatever reason, in this particular conference, the South has been discriminated against, and the heart of the South in particular has been discriminated against, and is zero for the scoreboard,” Brooks said.
Scalise’s election changes that, and at least one Alabama congressman had a lot to do with it.
Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL03) was instrumental in propelling a southern into House leadership. He organized numerous dinners with southern members over the past few months to get them all on the same page. This week he organized meetings with leadership candidates and southern members of the House, helping the region flex its muscle. It paid off.
In addition to Scalise being from the South, his Louisiana congressional district (LA-01) deals with many of the exact same issues as Alabama’s 1st Congressional District, because of their shared geography on the Gulf Coast.
For instance, regulations on red snapper season have been a major source of concern for south Alabama’s economy in recent years. Scalise actually joined Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-AL01) on a red snapper fishing trip recently, and the two will undoubtedly have an opportunity to work closely together moving forward on issues of mutual interest.
Rep. McCarthy, the new Majority Leader, has also visited south Alabama in recent months to tour Mobile’s Austal USA shipyard. Austal is currently building the Littoral Combat Ship for the U.S. Navy.
“By hosting Congressman McCarthy… we demonstrate(d) the importance of the Littoral Combat Ship to the future of the U.S. Navy, and the jobs that are hosted here in Southwest Alabama, to this important decision maker,” Rep. Byrne said at the time.
The importance of having a key House leader like McCarthy on board with Austal’s mission in Mobile cannot be overstated. The Littoral Combat Ship program has been clouded by some uncertainty, due in part to deep defense cuts implemented by the Obama Administration. McCarthy has indicated his support for the program, making his rise to the second-ranking spot in the House even more important for Alabama.
Another Alabama representative, Martha Roby (R-AL02), has for the last several years been a member of McCarthy’s “Whip Team,” which is tasked with helping the Whip count votes and rally support for legislation before it goes to the floor for a vote. McCarthy and Roby worked closely together on her Working Families Flexibility Act, which allowed private-sector workers to receive paid time off or “comp time” for overtime hours worked. Numerous legislators before Roby had tried, but failed, to pass similar bills. Roby’s close relationship with McCarthy was instrumental in ensuring her bill didn’t meet the same fate.
Today’s House GOP leadership elections did not result in a seismic shift in the Congressional power base, but they were beneficial to Alabama in ways that most people will never see. Inside Congress, it’s all about relationships, and with the new crop of House GOP leaders, Alabama’s delegation is well positioned.
Now if Republicans could just win the Senate in November… (Read: No state gains more than Alabama if Republicans take over US Senate)
Follow Cliff on Twitter @Cliff_Sims
