When Rep. Jim Jordan failed on a second ballot last week, he was still the Republicans’ speaker-designate, and the Ohio congressman still expressed optimism that he’d get the gavel eventually. But a variety of his colleagues saw the writing on the wall — and some of the most ambitious among them started letting others know they, too, were interested in the position.
With this in mind, by the time the right-wing House Judiciary Committee chairman was ousted as the GOP’s nominee, several members rushed to fill the leadership void.
After Kevin McCarthy was forced out, two members ran to succeed him (Jordan and Steve Scalise). After Scalise was also rejected by many of his own members, there were again two contenders for the post (Jordan and Austin Scott). Now that Jordan has joined the club of former speaker-designates, the field of contenders is considerably larger. NBC News reported:
House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik said Sunday that nine candidates have joined the race for speaker after Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, dropped his bid last week. Stefanik, R-N.Y., noted on X [the platform formerly known as Twitter] that the deadline to announce speaker bids was noon ET Sunday.
To be sure, nine is a lot, but members not only see an opportunity, they also see no downside to throwing their hat into the ring and seeing what happens. The list as it currently stands:
- Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota
- GOP Conference Vice Chair Mike Johnson of Louisiana
- Jack Bergman of Michigan
- Byron Donalds of Florida
- Kevin Hern of Oklahoma
- Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania
- Gary Palmer of Alabama
- Austin Scott of Georgia
- Pete Sessions of Texas
Of the nine, only two — Emmer and Scott — voted to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election.
That said, before anyone suggests this makes them “moderates” on matters related to democracy, let’s not forget that when Texas filed a lawsuit, urging the U.S. Supreme Court to help overturn Donald Trump’s defeat, both Emmer and Scott were among the many House Republicans who signed onto a ridiculous legal brief endorsing the indefensible gambit.
For now, the candidate generating the most attention is the House majority whip, and for good reason: Emmer has received McCarthy’s endorsement, and a variety of news organizations have already described him as the “front-runner“ to win the GOP’s nod in the wake of Jordan’s failure. It’s also worth noting for context that in late September, as far-right members plotted to take down McCarthy, The Washington Post reported that the cadre of Republicans were “coalescing around nominating a member of McCarthy’s leadership team, Rep. Tom Emmer (Minn.), to be the next speaker if they can successfully oust McCarthy.”
A month later, they might get their wish.
So, is that it? Emmer will prevail? Maybe, but there’s something important standing in his way. Politico reported:
Former President Donald Trump privately conveyed to allies on Friday he does not back House Majority Whip Tom Emmer’s bid for speaker, throwing another wrench into an already chaotic process to find the next person to hold the gavel.
There are a variety of reasons Trump has a problem with Emmer — the fact that the Minnesotan voted to certify President Joe Biden’s victory is, not surprisingly, at the top of the list — and the dispute is already going public. Steve Bannon, for example, told his audience late last week that Emmer “hates“ the former president. Complicating matters a bit, McCarthy apparently seems intent on keeping the door ajar on a possible comeback bid. “I’m supporting Tom Emmer, but I’m going to tell you: I’m still a member of Congress, and I’m going to lead in any capacity to protect America,” the California Republican told NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.” For good measure, some House Republicans expect each of the new nine contenders to fall short, and are considering what happens next. Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington told Politico that he’d been encouraged to run for speaker by his fellow Texans, but added, “I’m standing down for this round.” Implicit in the quote was his apparent belief that this won’t be the final round. A forum for the announced candidates is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET Monday. An internal conference vote will probably follow roughly 24 hours from now. Watch this space.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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