Conservatives in the House of Representatives are demanding that Congress remain in Washington until the chairman’s debacle is resolved — a prospect sure to inflame tensions among lawmakers who have not spent extended stays in their districts since early September.
The right-wing, 60-member House Freedom Caucus issued a message titled “no speaker, no recess,” urging leaders to cancel the upcoming two-week recess if a speaker is not elected.
“The Republican leadership should have kept Republicans in Washington this weekend. Our work is not done yet,” the letter said.
“In fact, we’re starting at ground zero after Jim Jordan, perhaps one of the most popular Republicans in the country, was ousted by Republicans in the House of Representatives.”
Republicans in the House of Representatives entered the weekend on Friday after Jordan’s nomination for chairman of the judiciary fell apart – after opposition grew by only three votes over the course of the week.
Hern handed out hamburgers, along with a flyer advertising himself as a speaker
Sessions handed out flyers touting himself as the person qualified to “unify the conference” and help expand the majority in the House of Representatives — noting that he headed the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) at the time the Republican Party won 63 seats in 2010.
The conference then held a secret ballot in which 112 Republicans voted against keeping Jordan as their candidate and 86 voted in favor.
Jordan was the second candidate to withdraw since McCarthy’s impeachment: Majority Leader Steve Scalise originally won the nomination, but dropped when he realized he could not sway enough right-wing Freedom Caucus members in his favor.
Any Republican who wants the top job can afford to lose just four votes in the House of Representatives.
They return Monday evening for a candidate forum where nine lawmakers will make their pitch for the top job.
Some Republicans were upset that the conference would last a weekend before a new speaker was chosen. Others were eager to return home after five full days in Washington.
“Get out of my way, some of us have flights to catch!” Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., yelled at reporters after a meeting where it was announced there would be no weekend votes.
This past weekend, the nine candidates focused on making calls and drumming up support.
Majority Whip Tom Emmer, the No. 3 Republican in the House of Representatives, is a favorite in the race. He has the support of former chairman Kevin McCarthy.
Rep. Byron Donalds, a member of the Freedom Caucus, has also rallied support.
After Donald Trump’s allies claimed on Friday that the former president was not a fan of Emmer, the whip was cracked on a phone call with Trump in which he reportedly kissed the ring.
“I think he’s my biggest fan now because he called me yesterday. He said to me, “I’m your biggest fan.” So I don’t know anything about that. We’re looking at a lot of people, and you know they’re trying to stay out of that as much as possible,” Trump told reporters about the call.
The nine Republican candidates for the House of Representatives have the tough task of securing 217 Republican votes to become the next leader of the Republicans in the House of Representatives.
Trump said it might only be Jesus Christ who could deliver a guaranteed victory.
“I said there’s only one person who can do it all. Do you know who that is? Jesus Christ. If he came down and said I want to be a speaker, he could do that. Furthermore, I have not seen anyone who can guarantee it. But at some point I think we’ll have someone soon.”
The GOP conference will then vote on Tuesday. Each round, the party with the lowest votes is eliminated until it emerges from the final round with a winner.
Other candidates in the race include Rep. Republican Study Committee Chairman Kevin Hern, Rep. Mike Johnson, vice chairman of the GOP conference, Texas Rep. Pete Sessions, Alabama Rep. Gary Palmer, who heads the Republican Policy Committee, Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga., who last week challenged Jordan, Republican Michigan Rep. Jack Bergman and Pennsylvania Rep. Dan Meuser.
Hern, who also spoke with Trump, distributed a handout along with McDonald’s hamburgers to House offices, where he emphasized the need for leadership to address budget cuts and border overreach.
Sessions handed out flyers touting himself as the person qualified to “unify the conference” and help expand the majority in the House of Representatives — noting that he headed the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) at the time the Republican Party won 63 seats in 2010.