The House speaker’s podium is now being held by a Republican. This will bring new priorities, investigations, and partisan gridlock which could slow down President Joe Biden’s agenda.

Kevin McCarthy, the House speaker after a historic, contentious nomination battle, has stated in the weeks following the Nov.8 election that Democrats will no longer be ruled by one party in Washington.

McCarthy’s attempt to take control of the gavel was not easy. The ascension of the California lawmaker was thwarted by a group of conservative hardliners who wanted greater influence in the House. They voted against McCarthy on 14 ballots. This was the first time in over 100 years that the process of electing a speaker required more than one ballot.

McCarthy accepted committee assignments and rules to win the position of speaker. He gave more power to his opponents.

To be investigated

Republicans control only the House. This means that the GOP cannot do much legislatively as long as Democrats control both the Senate and Biden have the veto pen. Instead, Republicans have the ability to leverage their investigative power.

Expect the GOP to exert its influence in oversight of the White House, COVID-19 and the southern border.

Alyssa D’Cunha, cochair of WilmerHale’s congressional investigations practice, stated that “Republicans are ready to hit the ground running.” “I believe the question is, what’s going to be on table?”

Kentucky Rep. James Comer is one lawmaker worth keeping an eye on. He is scheduled to be the Chair of the House Oversight Committee. This committee is considered to be the most important investigative chamber in the chamber.

Comer promised to conduct extensive investigations into Hunter Biden’s financial transactions and compliance with tax laws. He is concerned that Joe Biden may have been compromised by Hunter Biden’s business interests.

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Comer wrote in an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal that “If Mr. Biden has family members who have dealt with foreign adversaries it could compromise his decision making as president in ways that threatens national security.”

Pay attention to Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan who will likely be the House Judiciary Committee’s Chair.

Jordan is expected open an aggressive probe of the Department of Justice in its search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home and his handling of classified information.

What can they do?

Despite the possibility of partisan gridlock lasting for two years, both the Republican-led House (and the Democratic-led Senate) will need to work together in order to pass the next annual budget bill. Otherwise, the federal government could be shut down.

There might be other areas of agreement, given that both chambers have small majority and will need to work together to achieve anything.

Both sides want to limit Big Tech.

Republicans demand accountability for the censorship of GOP members, perceived collusion between Big Government & Big Tech, and bias against conservatives.

Democrats are focusing their investigations on antitrust issues and tech industry’s handling hate speech. They also want to investigate the rise in white nationalism and the connection between social media and mental health. .

Although the parties may have differing views, they all claim that they want accountability. They have enough moderates who are willing to work across the aisle such as Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota and Republican Rep. Ken Buck from Colorado, both of whom have worked on antitrust legislation.

Although it is not clear what type of legislation the parties might agree on, it is possible that both the Senate and House committees will include tech executives as witnesses at various hearings.

Although Republicans and Democrats may be able work together to lower inflation, the two parties have differing ideas. While the GOP has been focused on reducing spending, Democrats have continued pushing social spending programs, such as the axed child credit, to aid American families.

What’s on the table?

It’s unlikely that key Democratic priorities will be able to pass a GOP-controlled House after the end of Democratic total control.

House Democrats introduced legislation to codify abortion rights after the Supreme Court injunction invalidated the constitutional right to abortion in June. Although the Senate failed to approve these efforts, they showed a Democratic commitment that eventually abortion rights would be enshrined in law.

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This aspiration will not be supported by a GOP-led House of Representatives. The Republican leadership praised the Supreme Court’s decision last summer.

Republicans control the House and any chance of restoring the expanded child tax credit, a key Democratic priority, is unlikely.

The credit was included in the Omnibus Spending Bill that passed at the end of December. Democrats tried to get it through, but Republicans opposed it in negotiations. They claimed the credit would raise inflation.

It is possible to continue aiding Ukraine, as long as it is defending itself against Russia.

McCarthy stated that there would be no “blank checks” for Ukraine if McCarthy is speaker.

On the Senate side, however, there is broad bipartisan support for more financial and military assistance to Ukraine. Expect to see some back-and-forth between the House of Representatives and Senate regarding how much and what type of assistance should be given to Ukraine, despite McCarthy’s skeptical outlook.

Even though there are signs of partisan warfare in D.C. the White House is optimistic about working with Congress. Biden cited the passage of the $1.7 trillion Omnibus Bill – which was supported by 18 GOP senators, nine House members and nine Democrats – as proof that Republicans and Democrats can come to an agreement in a divided Washington.

Biden stated that “this bill is further proof Republicans and Democrats can work together to deliver for America’s people, and I look forward to continuing bipartisan progress in this year,”