Following Steve Scalise's exit from the race for the speakership, Ohio's Jim Jordan became the GOP's next likely choice to serve in the role.
Incredible news: Jim Jordan just won the GOP conference nomination for Speaker of the House!
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) October 13, 2023
He received 152 votes on the secret ballot but he will need 217 votes on the floor of the House next week to become Speaker.
Please encourage your congressman to vote for Jim Jordan!
Jordan received the needed votes in conference to be considered, but he'll need 217 votes in the full House.
No, not that Full House … we mean the one filled with self-interested politicians who seem incapable of accomplishing anything useful.
Jim Jordan's current roadblock is coming from GOP establishment types.
Jim Jordan was involved in Trump's conspiracy to steal the election and seize power; he urged that Pence refuse to count lawful electoral votes. If Rs nominate Jordan to be Speaker, they will be abandoning the Constitution. They’ll lose the House majority and they’ll deserve to.
— Liz Cheney (@Liz_Cheney) October 13, 2023
Some of the first criticism came from the retired RINO caucus.
Oh shut up man. 8 people took out McCarthy. And Jim Jordan is a legislative terrorist https://t.co/iBpFBqmb0M
— Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini) 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@AdamKinzinger) October 14, 2023
Not to be outdone by Cheney, former Ukrainian congressman, Adam Kinzinger, is taking shots at Jordan as well.
The opposition to Jim Jordan that actually matters, however, is not coming from failed GOP politicians but rather from establishment holdouts within the party.
Establishment Republicans are trying to stop Jim Jordan from becoming Speaker.
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) October 14, 2023
Many of them are openly talking about making a deal with Democrats rather than vote for a conservative Speaker
The ringleader? @RepMikeRogersAL.
You may remember him for trying to fight Matt Gaetz. pic.twitter.com/qhrKgMftKu
If you're more interested in working with Democrats than members of your own party, you may want to think about why Liz Cheney was forced into early retirement by the voters of Wyoming.
🚨 JUST IN: Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL) is working with Democrats on voting for an alternative Speaker rather than voting for Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) for Speaker of the House.
— Proud Elephant 🇺🇸🦅 (@ProudElephantUS) October 14, 2023
This traitor needs to be primaried — ASAP! pic.twitter.com/cvsHPA7541
Pathetic.
Jim Jordan worked at Trump’s side to try to overthrow an American election. He’s a traitor. Just like Trump. https://t.co/PxmZZCi5Ze
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) October 14, 2023
Stop it already! We already like Jim Jordan. You don't have to keep selling him.
Jim Jordan isn’t going to be Speaker unless you make every Republican go to the House floor and vote in public. If they wait until they have the votes behind closed doors, where people don’t have to expose themselves to the base, it will never happen.
— Steve Deace (@SteveDeaceShow) October 14, 2023
The horsetrading that goes on behind closed doors between politicians would likely turn our stomachs, but public votes have a way of scaring squishy statesmen to make popular choices, often against their instincts.
News:
— Taylor Popielarz (@TaylorPopielarz) October 13, 2023
Per a House Republican, a second secret vote was taken on supporting @Jim_Jordan on the floor:
152: Yes
55: No
Members are going home for the weekend while Jordan works to shore up support (he can only lose 4 GOP votes).
Currently eyeing floor vote on Tuesday, but TBD.
With 55 'no' votes on the secret ballot, Jordan has some work to do, but how many of those votes were in favor of another candidate or in opposition to the Gaetz revolt against McCarthy, rather than hard opposition to Jordan?
We're guessing Jordan eventually picks up most of those votes, but no candidate can weather many holdouts.
Any nominee faces the same difficult math, so representatives will also likely be weighing the public perception of a party that can't even manage to elect its leadership.
There will be a PUBLIC roll call vote on Tuesday for the Speaker role.
— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) October 14, 2023
NO MORE SECRET BALLOTS!
We want transparency and we deserve it. Americans are TIRED of WEAK slimy leadership.
Make sure your Congressman VOTES for Jim Jordan! We will be taking names.
We'll see if the vote actually happens on Tuesday. If not, Jordan clearly doesn't have the votes … yet.
If a public vote is taken, Jordan will have most, if not all, of the votes needed to become Speaker and will either win outright or the goal will be to pressure the holdouts to cave.
If the vote margin is small, that pressure will become enormous, as the Speaker position remains vacant, to the delight of Democrats.
It’s outrageous that Jim Jordan has been nominated by the party, has the support of McCarthy and McHenry, and yet Mike Rogers and a few House Republicans would rather work with Democrats. If you’re a House Republican, please vote for Jim Jordan—not Hakeem Jeffries. https://t.co/n7DQFCTNGa
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) October 14, 2023
See what we mean? The opposition won't likely hold up long against accusations of working with Democrats and favoring Hakeem Jeffries over a known GOP entity, especially when the forced-out speaker, Kevin McCarthy, already supports Jordan.
Democrats are super pissed about Jim Jordan becoming speaker. A sign that the GOP has finally grown a set and maybe done something right
— The Dank Knight 🦇 (@capeandcowell) October 14, 2023
Look, GOP, if you're not going to get anything else right, at least you can make Democrats mad. We at least deserve that.
— Elizabeth For TRUMP! (@Eliz_Hightower) October 14, 2023
Dang! That's way too accurate. LOL.
Hey, every circus needs a ringmaster. Time will tell if it's Jim Jordan.
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