Three priorities for House Republicans in 2023

OPINION:

Now that the House leadership hubbub is behind us, Republicans can get to work.

By debating their leadership in the first place, House Republicans have already proved that they are listening to their constituents. Despite the mainstream media’s narrative of a “fractured chamber,” the recent debates are testaments to truly representative government, with legislators discussing and arguing for the greater good, just as they were elected to do. This is how the Founding Fathers wanted our constitutional republic to operate.

Now, looking ahead to the rest of 2023, the name of the game is doing anything and everything humanly possible to defeat the Biden agenda. This radical leftist agenda is eating away at traditional American values. Just last week, the Biden administration once again violated the Constitution by proposing to unilaterally reduce or pause certain student loan payments, slapping Americans who have repaid theirs in the face while spitting on individual responsibility.

Despite campaigning as a “centrist” for decades, President Biden’s brand of left-wing identity politics has been unprecedented, and it has no place in the White House. Americans don’t want it there either, with Mr. Biden’s approval rating still well below 50%.

Here are three specific ways for House Republicans to represent constituents and fight back:

• Investigate, investigate and investigate.

After years of “Russian collusion” narratives, tax return talk and the Jan. 6 committee, Republicans can take a page out of the Democrats’ playbook and flip the script on Mr. Biden.

The first place to start is Hunter Biden’s laptop, revealing its contents to the American people while also investigating the Big Tech censorship that suppressed the laptop story leading up to the 2020 election. From Facebook to Twitter and the rest of Silicon Valley, the insistence of left-leaning technology executives to protect the Biden family at all costs — at the expense of free speech and democracy — should come under intense scrutiny. Censorship is as un-American as it gets, especially when it’s done for blatantly political reasons.

Another subject worthy of investigation is the origin of COVID-19. The fact that the coronavirus may have leaked from a Chinese research lab — not to mention that Dr. Anthony Fauci may have connections to said lab — couldn’t be of higher interest. The pandemic totally upended American society for years, so Americans deserve to know the truth about how it started, if and to what extent the federal government erred, and the best course of action now.

And last but certainly not least, Republicans must investigate the political weaponization of the CIA, FBI and Department of Homeland Security against former President Donald Trump and conservative activists across America — before, during and after his presidency. The formation of a new “Church Committee” is encouraging. Still, unless there are serious reforms and firings, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other Republicans will have failed to uphold their oaths of office.

It may be elusive, but accountability still matters to those of us living outside the Beltway.

• Defund the IRS.

Republican action cannot stop at investigation, however. There are also gains to be made in public policy, reaffirming the values of limited government and freedom.

This includes reversing Biden Democrats’ decision to hire tens of thousands of new IRS agents, who are making it harder than ever to be an entrepreneur and contribute to the free market. Congress can block Mr. Biden’s new IRS brigade by defunding the agency’s attempts to go after middle-class families and small businesses. Rep. Elise Stefanik, New York Republican, recently introduced and passed the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act to do just that. Republicans should make taxpayer protection a calling card of their 2023 agenda.

Protecting taxpayers is broadly popular, and it will make the Republican Party even stronger on the economy heading into 2024. Republicans have the Holman rule at their disposal to mitigate bureaucratic overreach, and they should use it posthaste.

Remember: It’s the economy, stupid. The elected officials who oppose the Biden administration need to make clear that they are the people to trust on inflation, taxation and other pocketbook issues.

• Solve the illegal immigration problem.

America is in the midst of a historic influx of illegal immigration and crime to boot. Cities like El Paso, Texas, are overwhelmed with illegal migrants, and the Biden administration has done nothing to enforce federal law. The Democratic Party’s top priority seems to be “open borders,” inviting and incentivizing criminals to cross the U.S.-Mexico border through inaction and ineptitude.

Just like with inflation and tax policy, Republicans can make immigration a calling card issue. They need to show that Republicans are the adults in the room, putting forward concrete proposals to make the border more secure and make Americans safer. Never before have we seen a border crisis like this one, with nearly 3 million illegal migrant crossings last year alone — and that’s only the official count.

The House needs to have an official vote on a bill codifying the Trump-era “remain in Mexico” policy. Republicans and Democrats should go on the record for the one immigration policy that has actually made a difference in stemming illegal immigration.

Safety. Security. Freedom. Transparency. Accountability. Those need to be the staples of the Republican platform in 2023, setting up success in 2024 and beyond.

• Ted Harvey serves as chairman of the Committee to Defeat the President.