House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in the House chamber on January 7, 2023.
Last week, rank-and-file lawmakers were able to propose amendments on the floor for the first time since May 2016.
  • The House just used an open process for amending legislation for the first time in 7 years.
  • Democrats proposed nearly 60 amendments to a largely symbolic bill put forward by the GOP.
  • The use of the process — a concession from McCarthy to his right flank — has some Democrats excited.

For the first time in nearly seven years, the House of Representatives did something that one might expect it to do on any normal day: engage in a relatively free-form debate over amendments to a major piece of legislation.