Lawmakers: House Committees Can Still Investigate, Appropriate Without a Speaker

House committees can continue their imperative work of investigating President Joe Biden and writing appropriation bills before the impending government shutdown even though lawmakers voted Tuesday to remove Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-KY) as House speaker.

“This is an unfortunate event, but it’s not stopping our work,” House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) told Fox News on Wednesday.

“We’re going to continue from the committee member standpoint, from the committee staff standpoint, and we’re expecting a whole ‘nother batch of bank documents to come in this week from our subpoena last week, so all — everything’s moving forward,” he said. 

Aides to Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) told Breitbart News the committee will continue to perform its duties regardless of the speakership vacancy. However, Jordan is running for speaker, which could delay any committee activity. The speakership election is scheduled for next week.

While Comer and Jordan pledged to keep their committees operating at high speed, Appropriations Committee Chair Kay Granger (R-TX) might be under the most pressure to maintain normal order. Her committee must assemble a total of 12 appropriations bills before the government funding runs out in mid-November.

The committee previously approved 70 percent of the discretionary spending portion of the federal fiscal budget in four bills. The committee must pass 30 percent of its discretionary spending in eight more bills. “Each body is supposed to pass 12. We’ve passed more than 70 percent of the discretionary spending already,” McCarthy said Sunday.

“There is no reason to hit pause on appropriations,” Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) told Fox News on Wednesday. “I don’t want to have any misinformation out there that we have to hit pause on the work that we need to be doing right now, including on the spending bills.”

After the House voted to remove McCarthy, the Republican conference tabled its speakership election until the next week. Lawmakers left Washington, D.C., without a speaker and with time running out to pass the remaining appropriations bills.

HISTORIC: House Votes to Remove Kevin McCarthy from Speakership

“We could have committee hearings and investigations ongoing right now today,” Mace said. “But the House decided not to, and that won’t happen until after we have a speaker next week.”

Until the House elects a new speaker, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) will fill the seat for up to three legislative days in this case. The speaker sets the legislative agenda while the House majority leader schedules specific bills to be debated and voted on, Reuters reported.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.