Defiant Jordan vows to stay in the battle for House speaker and urges colleagues to get behind him ‘as soon as possible’ as third vote expected Friday
Firebrand Ohioan Jim Jordan has vowed to stay in the race for speaker and head to another vote on Friday, urging his colleagues to get behind him “as soon as possible.”
After winning an internal nomination, Jordan lost 20 votes on his first vote as speaker and 22 on his second. He will move to a third vote on Friday morning.
Jordan said he hopes the House can get a speaker today, noting that while many speculated he would lose more than 20 votes between the first and second ballots, he only lost two votes.
Firebrand Ohioan Jim Jordan has vowed to stay in the race to remain speaker and head to another vote on Friday, urging his colleagues to get behind him “as soon as possible”
“We picked up some, we lost some. I think those we lost can come back. So look. There have already been several rounds of voting for the speaker. We all know that. All I know is we need the speaker as soon as possible.”
He started by talking about American exceptionalism: the Wright brothers’ takeoff and Air Force pilot Chuck Yeager’s breaking of the sound barrier happened in the same lifetime: 66 years apart.
He then turned to American grievances and cast himself as the one who would change the nation’s trajectory.
“I think people are starting to have doubts and wonder about their government and where our nation is going. They see an open border. They see crime on the streets. They know what it costs to put gas in their car. They know what it costs to put food on the table. They see a war and Israel our strongest ally Israel, what is happening there and the help Israel needs.
Jordan started by talking about American exceptionalism: the Wright brothers’ takeoff and Air Force pilot Chuck Yeager’s breaking of the sound barrier happened in the same lifetime: 66 years apart.
‘And they see a government that has been weaponized against We the People. The very government that should serve us has turned against the taxpayers who pay for it.’
Jordan, chairman of the powerful Judiciary Committee, continued: “I think the American people are thirsty for change. I think they are hungry for leadership.”
Jordan’s path to the speakership looks no more optimistic Friday than it did earlier this week. On Thursday night, Jordan met privately with fourteen of his backers and none of them said they had been moved to vote for him after the meeting.
At least one Jordan supporter — Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis. – has left the city, he is in Israel. Others may have done so too. Still others who voted for Jordan in previous ballots are expected to turn against him.