Republicans Choose Trump Ally Jim Jordan As Their New Nominee For House Speaker

Jordan, an Ohio Republican, will try to rally his colleagues in the currently divided House Republican majority on his proposal before a vote that could overturn it as early as next week.

Frustrated House Republicans are struggling to decide who to pick for ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the future direction of their party. Unfairly, in the second week, the Council was plunged into chaos, bringing all other activities to a halt.

“I think Jordan will do a good job,” McCarthy said before the vote. “We need to refocus.”

Attention quickly turned to Jordan, chairman of the Judiciary Committee and founder of the extremist Freedom Caucus movement, as the next potential candidate after it became clear that protesters would withdraw their support after Majority Leader Steve Scalise abruptly suspended his candidacy.

But not all Republicans want to see Jordan as the president's second in command. Worried and exhausted, Republican lawmakers worry that the House majority is mired in infighting, and some are reluctant to give credit to the Jordanian wing, which has fueled the unrest.

“If we want to be the majority party, we have to act like the majority party,” Congressman Jordan said, giving him one last chance. Austin Scott, R-Ga.

Although the fiery Jordan has a long list of people starting to voice opposition, Jordan's supporters in the House say it will be harder to vote against the Trump ally in a public vote because he is so mainstream and popular among others. Conservative Republican voters.

“I feel pretty good,” Jordan said at the start of the morning session.

Other speaker options were also discussed. Some Republicans have proposed giving more power to Reps. Patrick McHenry, who only serves as speaker of the DPR, to lead the DPR for one term.

Without a speaker, the House of Representatives could not function at a time of chaos in America and war abroad. Political pressure is mounting on Republicans to change course, regain majority control and govern in Congress.

With the House now split 221-212, with two open seats, any candidate could lose some Republicans who fall short of the required 217-vote majority compared to the opposition Democrats, who will surely support themselves, the New York representatives. Hakeem Jeffries.

Absences over the weekend could lower the required majority threshold, and Republicans said about a dozen lawmakers were missing as of Friday evening. No voting was scheduled before the weekend due to low voter turnout.

Scalise, who announced his decision to withdraw from the race, said late Thursday that the Republican majority had not united and "reopened the House. But clearly not everyone is there."

When asked whether he would support Jordan's research, Scalise said, "There are certainly people who are not doing this for themselves and their own interests."

But Jordan's allies seized on the idea that the far-right leader had already made up his mind.

"Let him talk. Have him talk tonight," said Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind. “He is the only person who can unite our party.”

Jordan also drew high praise Friday from Republican campaign chairman Richard Hudson, who is trying to unite the warring factions.

“Defining Speaker Kevin McCarthy was a mistake,” Hudson wrote on social media, saying the party was at a crossroads blocking Scalise. "We must unite for a leader"

Earlier this week, Jordan was nominally eliminated from contention, losing to Scalise 113-99 in home voting.

Scalise struggled to get more than 100 votes, mostly from Jordan supporters. But many of the front-runners, following in Trump's footsteps, have begun a long struggle to replace McCarthy after his historic ouster.

Opponents argue that Scalise is not a better choice for majority leader, that he needs to look after his health while battling cancer, and that he is not the leader they support.

Several Republicans have announced ties to people other than Jordan, McCarthy or Scalise, including former President Trump. The chairman of the DPR does not necessarily have to be a member of Congress.

Trump, the Republican presidential nominee in 2024, repeatedly discussed Scalise's health in a radio interview broadcast Thursday.

Scalise has been diagnosed and is being treated for a type of blood cancer called multiple myeloma, but he said he is definitely ready to speak.

On Friday, another California Republican, Rep. Tom McClintock, made a motion to reinstate McCarthy during the morning session, but it was rejected.

“I told them, no, don't do that,” McCarthy said. “Let's wake up and have an election.”

The situation is not much different from earlier this year, when McCarthy faced a similar backlash from other right-wing groups, who ultimately elected him president and then orchestrated his historic downfall.

But this time the numbers are even more frightening and the problematic political dynamics are even worse.

Frustrated Democrats, waiting for the Republican majority to recover from McCarthy's impeachment, urged them to intervene.

“House Democrats continue to make it clear that we are ready, willing and able to find a bipartisan path forward,” Jeffries said, including repealing a rule that would have forced lawmakers to challenge the House speaker's vote. “But we need the mainstream Republican Party to turn away from the extremists and work with us.”