After three weeks without a speaker of the House, Republicans finally elected a new speaker this week.
But North Dakota Republican Senator Kevin Cramer says the ordeal makes him concerned about a lack of respect for political institutions and history.
Cramer, who served in the House from 2013 to 2019, is dismayed that a handful of Republican House members were able to stand in the way of the entire assembly.
“The collective of the 435 (House members) is what matters; not one person, not one individual,” Cramer said. “And the lack of respect for that used to be a liberal thought. It has definitely creeped into the right, where, the way I often put it is, it used to be we wanted a Republican Speaker of the House. Now there are some Republicans that want a Republican king.”
Republicans unanimously elected Louisiana’s Mike Johnson as House Speaker on Tuesday.
Cramer made his comments on KNOX’s Critical Thought program with Noah Chelliah.