In the News

Rep. Kevin Hern looks forward to greater influence in next Congress

Randy Krehbiel, Tulsa World

Washington, DC, November 14, 2022
First District Congressman Kevin Hern wasn’t tipping his hand Monday afternoon just before Republicans began the process of choosing top leadership and likely the Speaker of the House of Representatives for the 118th Congress.

“I want to see who else might be running,” Hern said by telephone from Washington. “If there’s a better way — clearly, having been in business for 35 years, it’s important we have good leadership. I don’t particularly know all the ideas of every person who wants to run for leadership. That’s why we have these big conference meetings.”

Asked about Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California, considered the most likely choice for speaker, Hern said, “Probably no one worked harder in the Republican Conference, in the history of the conference, to get us to the majority. Clearly that’s the first hurdle.”

At the time Hern was speaking, a Republican majority appeared likely but not certain. The GOP had secured 212 of the 218 House seats needed for majority. Democrats were at 204, with 19 seats undecided.

Monday evening, the Republican Conference — that is, all 212 GOP members of the 117th Congress — met to hear from candidates for speaker and other leadership positions. Hern said the meeting is likely to include a lot of negotiating on rules and other issues as those candidates jockey for position in Tuesday’s formal conference vote.

The final vote for speaker occurs on the House floor and isn’t taken until the new Congress convenes in early January.

McCarthy is expected to be challenged by at least one other Republican as factions within the party seek leverage.

“(Monday) night you have to declare, … and then all the dealing will take place overnight, before the votes tomorrow,” Hern said.

However Tuesday turns out, Hern’s path for the the next two years appears set. Besides moving up the pecking order in the House Ways and Means Committee, he expects to be named chairman of the Republican Study Committee on Thursday.

The Republican Study Committee is the largest partisan policy caucus in Congress and formulates and articulates much of the policy advocated by the House GOP. Hern said he expects 80% of the Republican Conference to join the Study Committee.

“The Republican Study Committee has been known for 50 years as the conservative conscience of the Republican Conference,” Hern said. “My job as the chair is to lead a group of great individuals to help them understand the policies. They can have their own politics, but the policies that matter to Americans, that matter to Oklahomans and certainly matter to the people of the 1st District, issues like how do we get inflation under control, tax issues, how do we get jobs back from China and around the world.”

Hern belongs to two Ways and Means subcommittees: Health and Select Revenue Measures, commonly known as the tax subcommittee.

Among tax issues of interest to Hern are income tax brackets scheduled to revert to 2016 levels in 2026, and continued debate over international and multinational tax collection.

In the area of health care, Hern said he plans to continue to work with policy recommendations formulated last year that are intended to lower medical costs.

“And then we look at a lot of bipartisan issues that are really impactful to our state, in smaller manufacturing and trade” Hern said. “We’re working closely with our Democrat colleagues across the aisle. I don’t see that changing as we move into the majority.”

Republicans complained mightily the past few years about “one-party” rule despite the House Democrats’ narrow majority.

“Probably not,” Hern said when asked if the GOP is likely to be much different with its own slim advantage.

“That’s just the way the House operates,” he said. “It’s a simple majority. There really is very little voice of the minority (party). I will tell you, though, that there are many of us that have great relationships on Ways and Means. I work very close with several of the Democrats on Ways and Means to push good oversight policy in the Department of Treasury. I think that will continue.

“Regardless of what the press wants to say, there is a lot of bipartisan work,” Hern said. “Obviously, some committees are obviously more contentious. They play out on TV. … But where the policy work goes on, there is a lot of bipartisan working together.”