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Far-right House Republicans outraged that nearly two dozen members of the GOP conference have voted against Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan for Speaker have thrown the body into chaos while opposing the election of a temporary Speaker – an effort they are working to block.
After insisting he would press for a third vote Thursday morning, Jordan met with House Republicans and agreed to put his quest for the Speakership on pause and allow Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry to be elected to that role temporarily.
“Per a source in the room, McCarthy screamed at Matt Gaetz to sit down when he went to the mics, with the source saying Rep. Bost ‘almost lunging at him,’” Axios’ Juliegrace Brufke earlier Thursday reported. “McCarthy advocated for empowering McHenry while Jordan staying on as speaker designee, per two sources.”
It appears McHenry will not become temporary Speaker.
“Too much opposition to the ‘Patrick McHenry temporary plan’ in the three-hour House GOP conference meeting,” CBS News’ Scott MacFarlane reports. “Jordan’s most ardent supporters blasted the idea before and after meeting, including Rep Scott Perry (R-PA) and Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).”
“Jordan will try again,” he notes, apparently meaning he will press for a third vote.
READ MORE: White House Urges Republicans to ‘Join This President at the Adults Table’
“We’re handing our majority back over to the Democrats by going along with a power-sharing agreement. It’s absurd. It’s the biggest ‘F-U’ to Republican voters I’ve ever seen,” cried far-right U.S. Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana on Thursday.
“We’re handing our majority back over to the Democrats by going along with a power-sharing agreement. It’s absurd. It’s the biggest ‘F-U’ to Republican voters I’ve ever seen.”
— Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) on possibility of giving expanded powers to acting Speaker McHenry (R-NC) pic.twitter.com/Eu9iDPSlzF
— The Recount (@therecount) October 19, 2023
“There’s nothing I’ve ever wanted more in this Congress than for Jim Jordan to be the Speaker,” Banks continued. “What they’re doing right now is walking Republicans off the plank. We don’t deserve the majority if we go along with a plan to give the Democrats control …”
U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who led the charge to oust Kevin McCarthy as Speaker, is vehemently opposed to empowering McHenry as temporary Speaker, calling it, “a constitutional desecration.”
Matt Gaetz, who initiated the chaos in the House, is outraged because of efforts to get the House back to work by empowering Patrick McHenry:
“I am against speaker-light, I am against Bud Light, I believe it is a constitutional desecration not to elect a Speaker of the House.” pic.twitter.com/UZ03tZBtDz
— Republican Accountability (@AccountableGOP) October 19, 2023
Punchbowl News’ Mica Soellner reports Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), who had some support in January to become Speaker, “predicts the resolution” to vote to elect McHenry Speaker Pro Tempore “is dead.”
“I don’t think it’s going to come to the floor,” Donalds said.
She reports Rep. McHenry “expressed in conference he does not support the resolution to empower him temporarily.”
Punchbowl’s Jake Sherman adds House Republican Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who lost his attempt to become Speaker last week, “says he’s opposed to the resolution to empower a temporary speaker.”
“I’d rather us focus on getting a speaker elected,” Scalise said.
READ MORE: ‘Guerrilla Tactics Against MAGA Bullying’: House Republicans Opposed to Jim Jordan Have a Plan
Punchbowl’s Max Cohen adds that U.S. Rep. Pat Fallon “is also a ‘hard no’ on speaker pro tem resolution.”
“And if we go through X amount of more votes, we go through X amount of more votes, but we can’t kick the can down the road and say we’re going to worry about this two months from now,” Fallon said.
Congressman Troy Nehls, Republican of Texas, “says he opposes the McHenry resolution & still wants Trump as speaker for 100 days,” Punchbowl’s John Bresnahan reports.
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