I have watched the intrigues over the removal of the U.S. Speaker of the House with interest. I have also followed the post impeachment attacks on the Texas Speaker of the House Dade Phelan. Speakers of the House in our system are political partisan animals, and subject to the storms of politics. As can be seen right now, this brings the business of the people to a halt.
That is not the case in parliamentary systems, such as England and Canada. In a parliamentary system the Speaker of the House presides over the House but he or she is a non-partisan official to which a member is elected to serve. It is an honor to which a long serving and well-respected member is elected. That member must renounce all affiliation and connection with a political party. They no longer serve as the elected representative for their previous constituents or district. They preside over the debate and maintain discipline and decorum of the body.
We should explore this idea in the U.S. The presiding officer should preside fairly over the house and be responsible for managing the business of the house . There are various ways to construct such an office, and it does not require a statute or constitutional amendment. The House could experiment with this idea by changing its rules.
Anything that might help to make the House of Representative function is something we should consider.
jmhogglaw.com 