NYT's Nick Kristof has some thoughts on which Republicans are best suited to be House Speaker

Nick Kristof’s Democratic gubernatorial campaign in Oregon may have crashed and burned, but in his mind, he’s still a razor-sharp political expert.

So it should come as no surprise to anyone that he has thoughts about the ongoing clown show in the House of Representatives. It should also come as no surprise to anyone that his thoughts are rather silly.

See for yourselves:

With the U.S. House of Representatives in chaos, it's time for sensible R's and D's to join forces and elect a respected moderate Republican from outside the House to actually provide leadership, as William Cohen and Alton Frye suggested: https://t.co/2XNBRWkKr8 (1)

— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) January 5, 2023

Sounds promising, doesn’t it? Wait’ll you hear the rest of Nick’s thoughts:

Cohen and Frye suggested Larry Hogan, Fred Upton or John Kasich for Speaker; any would be far better than those now considered. I'd also suggest former South Carolina Republican governor David Beasley, who has led the UN World Food Program as it won a Nobel Peace Prize.

— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) January 5, 2023

You forgot to mention Sen. Palpatine. https://t.co/ji1BcoacVf

— David Harsanyi (@davidharsanyi) January 5, 2023

An honest mistake.

David Beasley's negotiations with Somali warlords prepare him well to deal with House members who, while no less fierce, aren't as well armed. And a moderate R like him in the Speaker's job, gaining it with some D support, would be a milestone toward governance over name-calling.

— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) January 5, 2023

Would it work for Beasley, Hogan, Upton or Kasich to become Speaker, elected with some R and some D support? No idea. But the present path is toward utter dysfunction in the House, so it's time to get creative and turn to better people who believe in governing.

— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) January 5, 2023

“Better people” like … John Kasich? The John Kasich who refused to gracefully bow out of the 2016 presidential race despite having no shot at winning the nomination, diverting critical votes from better candidates and thereby ensuring that Donald Trump would be the GOP nominee? The John Kasich who did all that and then went on to pretend that Donald Trump posed an existential threat to our country and went on to endorse and vote for Joe Biden? That John Kasich?

I don't agree with Beasley or the others on many issues. But they get things done. At WFP, Beasley has been saving lives worldwide from famine, in the face of wars, drought and climate change, working not just across the aisle but across war zones. So much better than Scalise etc

— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) January 5, 2023

I see pushback from folks who say moderate Rs should just vote for Hakeem Jeffries. I'd like that, but won't happen. Next Speaker will be a R. Realistic choice is a far-right R held hostage by the R vandal fringe, or a more ind outsider like @WFPChief, @JohnKasich @GovLarryHogan.

— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) January 5, 2023

Stop it, Nick. Just … stop. You’re embarrassing yourself.

New psychotropic just dropped. https://t.co/ApTCoTkexQ

— Varad Mehta (@varadmehta) January 5, 2023

Drugs could certainly explain Kristof’s thought process, yes.

West Wing fantasy. https://t.co/h6ZjQjN1ug

— Anthony Michael Kreis (@AnthonyMKreis) January 5, 2023

No kidding. Despite what an uncomfortable number of liberals believe, “The West Wing” is not real life (though it did get depictions of Democrats as obnoxiously self-righteous and annoying right).

If you unironically suggest Larry Hogan as speaker I’m just going to assume that you don’t know what you’re talking about https://t.co/X1lzWZ6qA3

— Yukon Gold Never Existed (@Yukongold1898) January 5, 2023

Well, with Nick Kristof, that’s usually a pretty safe assumption.

All of these people have something in common: None of them will be speaker of the House https://t.co/bEGHwz3YfE

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) January 5, 2023

Bless your heart, Nick.