In a surprising twist to the U.S. political scene, the House of Representatives has been left leaderless for the past two weeks, leading to a legislative impasse. After the ousting of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the bid for the speakership remains contentious, particularly within the Republican party.
The House voted 200 to 232 on Tuesday afternoon, with 20 Republicans voting against Jordan. A number of legislators supported former Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise in their votes for prior candidates.
Specs & Features of the News:
- House in Limbo: Without an elected Speaker, the House remains paralyzed, unable to pass any bills or approve White House requests. This includes critical emergency aid requests, such as support for Israel during its war with Hamas.
- First Vote Result: Republican Jim Jordan, an ally of former President Trump and a right-wing Ohio congressman, failed to secure the required votes in the initial round. Earning 200 votes, he fell short of the 217 needed to clinch the Speaker’s gavel.
- Democratic Counterpart: Although the Democratic nominee, Hakeem Jeffries of New York, garnered more votes (212) than Jordan, the Democrats being the minority party in the House rendered this lead insufficient.
- Intra-Party Resistance: Despite intense lobbying, 20 Republicans opted not to vote for Jordan. Instead, many showed support for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, while others supported different candidates. Interestingly, three votes even went to Lee Zeldin, who retired from the House in January.
- Key Issues: A group of New York Republicans opposed Jordan, citing his resistance to benefits for 9/11 attack survivors among other concerns. Yet, New York Republican Elise Stefanik hailed Jordan as a “patriot” and an “America First warrior.”
- Further Voting: The House Judiciary Committee, initially intending to conduct a second vote on Tuesday, rescheduled it for Wednesday at 11 a.m. ET.
- Jordan’s Track Record: A member of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, Jordan has had past disagreements with fellow Republicans. Post the first vote, he held meetings with several GOP members who opposed him.
- Democratic Stance: Democrats have seized the opportunity to portray Jordan as an extremist. Nancy Pelosi remarked that Jordan had seemingly underestimated the resistance against him, while Democratic minority leader Jeffries expressed readiness to collaborate with Republicans to identify a mutually agreeable Speaker.
- Next in Line: If Jordan’s support wanes, the next possible candidate for Speaker is Minnesota’s Tom Emmer, the third highest-ranking Republican in the House.
- Historical Context: The election process for Speaker has historically been fraught with challenges. Former Speaker McCarthy took 15 voting rounds across four days to secure the position.
Jordan won’t have the support of Republican congressman Ken Buck of Colorado on the floor. Buck has expressed worry about Jordan’s part in stoking conspiracy theories that claim Trump was cheated out of the 2020 election.
As the House prepares for another round of voting, the question looms: Will Jim Jordan be able to bridge the divide within his party and emerge as the House Speaker, or will the resistance from his fellow Republicans prove insurmountable? The coming days promise high political drama on Capitol Hill.