House Republicans head back to square one
Byron York
HOUSE REPUBLICANS HEAD BACK TO SQUARE ONE. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) called an early morning — 8 a.m. — news conference Friday to say he was not going to give up his effort to become speaker of the House. “My favorite scripture verse is 2 Timothy 4:7,” Jordan said. “Fight the good fight, finish the course, keep the faith. And I tell folks I love that verse because of the action in it.” Jordan’s point is that he will keep fighting and finish the course by winning the speakership.
By 11:30 a.m., Jordan had lost another vote in the effort to become speaker. That makes three votes Jordan has lost, with Republicans no closer to having a speaker since a group of eight Republicans plotted the ouster of then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on Oct. 3.
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Jordan’s third loss came after Republicans on Thursday broadly rejected a proposal to give the speaker pro tempore, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC), some of the powers of speaker for a specific period of time. The move would have allowed the House to pass some widely supported measures, such as a resolution supporting Israel, but it would have required the support of at least some Democrats. And that was, apparently, a red line for Republicans. We hold the majority, many Republicans argued, and we will not go begging Democrats for help in doing something a majority should always do for itself. Besides, if any Democrats did help, they would demand something in return, and no Republican wanted to get into that kind of bargaining.
So, with Jordan losing again and the McHenry temporary option dead, what is left for Republicans? It will likely be time to go back to square one and look for a new candidate for speaker. McCarthy has been dumped, Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) withdrew for lack of support, Jordan failed, the McHenry option failed — everything that has been tried so far has sputtered. So it’s time for a new candidate.
Who could it be? Some possibilities are obvious. Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK), chairman of the Republican Study Committee, wanted to run at first but chose not to when he could not find enough support to go forward. But that was before everything else failed, and things might be different now. Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA), who has strongly supported Jordan, has gone back and forth about running but might find conditions right to jump in. And Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN), the Republican whip, was the subject of much early talk and might be more interested now. Or it might be someone else.
What about Jordan? There’s no doubt he is tenacious. He was a wrestler in college at the University of Wisconsin. And not just a wrestler — he won the NCAA championship in his weight class two years in a row, 1985 and 1986. You can watch old videos of his matches. You’ll see an athlete who is aggressive, tough, and relentless, much like Jordan is today as a member of Congress.
The point now is that Jordan has been an extremely effective member of Congress. He’s very valuable to the Republican Party in the House. But that doesn’t mean an effective, valuable member necessarily becomes speaker. Having seen McCarthy deposed through a minority maneuver that left many members furious, Republicans will now have to start over and find the right person.
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