After being routed out of office in the midterm elections, the Democrats on Capitol Hill have a lot of work to do. Not only do they have to regroup but they also have to determine who will lead the Democrats in the House. Although it has been suggested that the House’s No. 1 ranking Democrat will most likely be Nancy Pelosi, there is a stiff battle brewing for the No. 2 spot in the next Congress between Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn. The question is, how will race play in this decision and process since Hoyer is white and Clyburn is black?
Several letters have been written, one by Rep. Barbara Lee of California, the current chair of the 41-member Congressional Black Caucus and the other by Rep. Bobby Rush of Illinois, suggesting to members the importance of having an African American on the Democratic Party’s leadership team and supporting Clyburn for the post. On the other side of the ticket, there have been 30 House Democrats (all white) who directed a letter to other Democrats in support of Hoyer.
Hoyer, who’s from Maryland and has served in Congress for some 30 years, formally declared his candidacy for Minority Whip on Monday, Nov. 8 via a letter to fellow House members. He has also gathered support from seven Hispanic members, including Reps. Linda Sanchez, Joe Baca, Dennis Cardoza and Silvestre Reyes.
Clyburn, a South Carolinian, is the highest-ranking black member of Congress, if denied the post, it may be viewed as an affront to other members of the Congressional Black Caucus, who are anticipated to comprise more than 20 percent of the Democrats in the House during the next session.
–torrance stephens, ph.d.
