Biden Extends Hand for Cooperation... Tells McCarthy "Ready to Work with the Republican Party"

by Kwon Jaehee

Published 07 Jan.2023 16:19(KST)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] U.S. President Joe Biden on the 6th (local time) congratulated Republican Kevin McCarthy on his election as Speaker of the House and expressed his willingness for bipartisan cooperation.

On the day McCarthy's election was confirmed after 15 rounds of House votes, President Biden issued a statement saying, "I am ready to work with the Republicans."

He added, "Now is the time to govern responsibly and ensure that we put the interests of American families first."

This was interpreted as an olive branch extended in a situation where the Republicans hold the majority in the House.

On the fourth day of the congressional deadlock following the previous House vote, the plenary session was held to continue voting for the Speaker of the 118th Congress, and after the 15th vote past midnight on the early morning of the 7th, the winner was confirmed.

House Minority Leader McCarthy was elected with 216 votes, defeating the Democratic candidate for Speaker, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who received 212 votes.

President Biden, who lost the House majority to the Republicans in last year's midterm elections, has continued to emphasize 'cooperation' since the new year.

On the 4th, he visited Covington, Kentucky, and gave a speech on the importance of the Infrastructure Law, which he proposed and which Congress passed bipartisanship in 2021.

The Infrastructure Law is an astronomical budget law amounting to $1.2 trillion (approximately 1,515 trillion won), aimed at improving infrastructure across the United States and rebuilding the middle class through it.

Although it involved an enormous budget, it passed with Republican cooperation in the Senate, where the seats were evenly split 50-50 at the time, and is regarded as a representative bipartisan bill.