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☆ GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz on his decision to vote 'present' in the final House speaker roll call vote despite his opposition to McCarthy: 'I ran out of things I could even imagine to ask for'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Matt Gaetz was one of the last holdouts in backing challengers to Kevin McCarthy's speakership bid. Gaetz told CNN that he "ran out of things" to ask for by the end of the public leadership fight. However, by the 14th ballot — when the vast majority of the conservative holdouts had finally moved behind McCarthy — Gaetz shifted his vote from Jordan and instead recorded himself as "present." Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama after the 14th round of voting then confronted Gaetz and appeared to lunge at the Floridian over the vote. CNN reported that Gaetz on Monday had asked McCarthy to chair a House Armed Services subcommittee, but the GOP leader had declined the request.

☆ House speaker chaos signals Donald Trump’s shrinking influence
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Trump's allies repeatedly rejected Kevin McCarthy as House speaker, displaying his power's limits. A week of House speaker chaos revealed one thing about Donald Trump: He can't get his MAGA house in order. The drama started on Tuesday, and it wasn't until Friday that McCarthy managed to make headway in flipping members' votes. "The president needs to tell Kevin McCarthy that, 'Sir, you do not have the votes, and it's time to withdraw.'" House members who are responding to the MAGA base have no reason to fear Trump on this, he said.

☆ 2 years after the Jan. 6 insurrection, election deniers are still in the building — and holding the speakership hostage
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A group of 20 ultra-conservative Republicans continues to stonewall his leadership ambitions. More than half denied the 2020 election result and a handful are mentioned in the now-dissolved January 6 committee's report. But several of the political personalities at the heart of that attack are the same ones now holding the speakership hostage. All three lawmakers denied allegations that they were involved in planning the event. Meanwhile, the FBI seized the phone of Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania in August of last year.

House Dem whip says caucus will keep voting in speaker race House Democratic whip Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass, said her caucus will stick around and continue voting in the speaker race. Davidson suggested there are "a couple procedural paths" where McCarthy could become speaker if Republicans changed the threshold needed to win the election. The polarization is too great.” Cole said that for all the House GOP divisions, “there’s no question” that most members in the caucus are closer in policy and vision to the anti-McCarthy rebels than they are to centrist Democrats. As Biden celebrated an upgrade to an aging bridge linking Kentucky and Ohio, House Republicans deadlocked on the basic task of electing a speaker, foreshadowing what is likely to be two years of infighting. The McCarthy-aligned Congressional Leadership Fund and the conservative Club for Growth agreed to not pick sides in some competitive House GOP primary races in exchange for supporting McCarthy's bid for speaker.

WASHINGTON — Republican leader Kevin McCarthy and his conservative detractors will square off for a second consecutive day as lawmakers prepare to resume voting Wednesday to pick the next House speaker. Three separate votes were held, and each time McCarthy, R-Calif., a veteran member of GOP leadership, fell short. It was the first time in 100 years that the speaker vote has gone to multiple ballots. Without a speaker, House lawmakers can’t be sworn in, committees can’t be formed, and GOP investigations into the Biden administration can’t begin. Trump, who previously endorsed McCarthy for speaker and had been making calls on his behalf, has gone silent on his support.

In the third round of voting on Tuesday, all 20 of the lawmakers defying Mr. McCarthy voted for Jim Jordan of Ohio instead. Mr. Jordan, who himself voted for Mr. McCarthy, is a founding member of the Freedom Caucus and has repeatedly cast doubt on the 2020 election. Nineteen Republicans did not support Mr. McCarthy on the first two votes, casting their ballots for others, including Mr. Biggs and Mr. Jordan. 1st Zeldin Jordan Jordan Luna , Fla. 13th Fla. 13th Jordan Jordan Jordan Miller , Ill. 15th Ill. 15th Jordan Jordan Jordan Norman , S.C. 5th S.C. 5th Biggs Jordan Jordan Ogles , Tenn. 5th Tenn. 5th Jordan Jordan Jordan Perry , Pa. 10th Pa. 10th Biggs Jordan Jordan Rosendale , Mont. 2nd Biggs Jordan Jordan Roy , Texas 21st Texas 21st Donalds Jordan Jordan Self , Texas 3rd Texas 3rd Jordan Jordan JordanLee Zeldin, a former representative from New York, received one vote (from Andy Harris of Maryland) on the first ballot.

☆ Kevin McCarthy loses latest House speaker vote to sophomore Rep. Byron Donalds after failing to win over any of the conservative holdouts
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Kevin McCarthy lost another House speaker ballot on Wednesday, his fourth whiff in two days. This time, anti-McCarthy advocates nominated Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida as their pick. The only other deviation was that Republican Rep. Victoria Spartz of Indiana voted "present," which shrank McCarthy's support to 201 votes. The anti-McCarthy camp has so far proposed rallying behind Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Jim Jordan of Ohio, and Byron Donalds of Florida. McCarthy refused to back down ahead of the latest doomed vote, insisting that he's still the favorite among the broader Republican caucus.

While the majority party has elected their nominee on the first ballot over the past century, this year could be different. Members vote "viva voice," meaning they stand when their names are called by a reading clerk and verbally announce who they are voting for. Members can vote for anyone (even people who are not members of the House), vote present, or not vote at all. If every member doesn't show up, or if some vote present instead of supporting a candidate, that decreases what the majority vote needs to be. Political parties are much stronger now than they were then, when House members were often more loyal to their region.

WASHINGTON — A weekslong standoff between Republican leader Kevin McCarthy and his conservative detractors comes to a head Tuesday as lawmakers prepare to vote on a new speaker of the House. But nine members of that group, including Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry, R-Pa., characterized his proposals as too little, too late. "Despite some progress achieved," the Freedom Caucus group wrote, "Mr. McCarthy’s statement comes almost impossibly late to address continued deficiencies ahead of the opening of the 118th Congress on January 3rd." McCarthy, who has Trump's endorsement and easily defeated Biggs to win his party's nomination for speaker, isn’t backing down. He is already moving into the speaker’s suite, and upon leaving the Capitol on Monday he predicted that the day of the speaker vote would be a "good day."

☆ Kevin McCarthy loses first ballot for House speaker, with 19 hardline Republicans voting against him to show the would-be leader who's boss
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Warren Rojas | Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rep. Kevin McCarthy is fighting an uphill battle to become House speaker. Nineteen Republicans voted against McCarthy's bid for speaker. The vote also marks the first time in 100 years that the House failed to elect a speaker on an initial ballot. Lawmakers, however, cannot take their oaths of office until a House speaker is elected. Here are the 19 Republicans who voted against McCarthy:

☆ At least 3 House GOP leaders who dodged Jan. 6 committee subpoenas plan to haul in witnesses for their own investigations in the 118th Congress
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The January 6 committee deposed over 1,000 witnesses about Trump's 2020 election fraud scheme. Seven House Republicans elected not to answer the committee's questions. Defying this probe could empower Democrats to do the same when Republicans take control in 2023. The highest profile holdouts include House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jim Jordan of Ohio, who are vying to become House speaker and Judiciary chairman, respectively, in the next Congress after flipping control of the chamber this fall. January 6 committee members unanimously voted on December 19 to refer McCarthy, Jordan, Biggs, and Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania to the House Committee on Ethics for failing to comply with the subpeonas.

☆ Trump won't be able to terminate the US Constitution but a Republican-led effort to rewrite it continues
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Advocates on both sides of a long-running effort to rewrite the Constitution will face off again in 2023. Meckler's organization is one of the largest players in the Article V push. Article V requires there to be 34 states for a convention to be formed. Convention of States is not alone in its pursuit of the Article V movement. Outside of Convention of States, efforts to call a convention to pass a Balanced Budget Amendment also continue.

☆ Conservatives vying to derail Kevin McCarthy's speaker bid may not be able to stop him. But forcing multiple votes — the record is 133 — could still make for a historic fight.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Kevin McCarthy is working to clinch the votes needed to become House speaker in 2023. Around a dozen House Republicans currently have issues with giving him the job. Should getting a promotion require more than five dozen ballots, McCarthy would move into Howell Cobb territory (63 ballots; 1849). In order to push McCarthy past Banks in terms of all-time ballots, blockers would have to keep McCarthy at bay at least 134 times. "We may see the cherry blossoms before we have a Speaker," the Trump-aligned Floridian said, citing DC's seasonal spectacle.

☆ Trump tells House GOP holdouts to drop their opposition to Kevin McCarthy's bid for speaker, says they're 'playing a very dangerous game'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Trump has called on House GOP holdouts to drop their opposition to McCarthy's speakership. During a Brietbart interview, the former president said McCarthy "deserves the shot" to lead. "Look, I think this Kevin has worked very hard," Trump said during the interview. Hopefully, he's going to be very strong and going to be very good and he's going to do what everybody wants." But I have to tell them, and I have told them, you're playing a very dangerous game," he added.

☆ Kevin McCarthy's impossible GOP math
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Republican leader Kevin McCarthy is far from assured of winning sufficient support in his party to become House speaker next month. The tiny GOP House majority that takes over in January, after a disappointing midterm performance, would mean a fragile governing mandate for any party at any point in American history. McCarthy’s impossible mathFrom a broader political perspective, it might be in McCarthy’s interest to stand up to the most extreme members of his conference. The path to the GOP majority went through comparatively moderate seats in places like New York that will be most at risk in the 2024 election. But it also reflected Greene’s growing personal power, after she broke with some radical GOP members and lined up to support McCarthy’s speakership.

☆ Effort to impeach Alejandro Mayorkas will only complicate the immigration puzzle
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

They want the incoming Republican-controlled House Judiciary Committee to launch an impeachment investigation of Mayorkas ASAP in early January. While their alleged crimes are very different, any impeachment effort against Mayorkas would likely end similarly: Belknap was acquitted in a Senate trial. Democrats, controlling the Senate majority, would surely do the same if Republicans could even muster the majority needed to impeach Mayorkas. McCarthy would rather just see Mayorkas resign, although there’s no indication Mayorkas will. “If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action and every failure.

“I’ll get 218,” McCarthy told CNN, referring to the votes he’d need to become House speaker. Video Ad Feedback Bash asks Pelosi if McCarthy has what it takes to be House Speaker. “I’m not going to talk about hypotheticals,” said Biggs, who lost his conference’s nomination to become speaker last month after securing 31 votes. But McCarthy’s detractors said it’s an issue very much still on the table and think he may end up needing to embrace it if he still doesn’t have the speaker votes by January 3. But he refused to rule out a scenario where his caucus would help elect the next speaker if McCarthy couldn’t get the votes.

☆ McCarthy says ultra-conservative GOP holdouts are 'squandering this majority' by opposing his bid for House Speaker
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

California Rep. Kevin McCarthy is the Republican nominee for the next Speaker of the House. In order to win the seat, he needs almost all 222 GOP House members to vote for him on Jan. 3. McCarthy faces holdouts in his party, who he says would "squander" a GOP majority by opposing him. McCarthy, in an interview with Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures," said those GOP holdouts, by opposing his bid, would be "squandering" the Republican majority set to take control of the House of Representatives in the next congressional session. The 118th Congress, which convenes on January 3, 2023, will have 222 Republican members, compared to 212 Democrats.

☆ Kevin McCarthy says Democrats could select the next speaker if Republicans 'play games' on the House floor
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

McCarthy said Republicans could cede control of the House in January if they aren't unified. While on Newsmax, the Californian warned against the GOP playing "games" on the House floor. McCarthy is working to round up votes among GOP members that he'll need to lead the lower chamber. If we play games on the floor, the Democrats could end up picking who the speaker is," he said. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia cautioned against a handful of Republicans potentially joining Democrats in selecting a more moderate speaker.

☆ Former House Speaker Paul Ryan says there's no one 'better suited' to lead House Republicans than Kevin McCarthy: 'He's been good for conservatives'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Paul Ryan said there was no one "better suited" to lead House Republicans than Kevin McCarthy. McCarthy is trying to lock up votes to lead the House, which will have a slim GOP majority in 2023. Ryan also told Karl that he believed McCarthy would get at least 218 votes on the floor, and expressed confidence in the lawmaker's abilities to lead Republicans. "There isn't anybody better suited to running this conference than Kevin McCarthy. He's been good for conservatives, frankly, but he's also a person who really understands how to manage a conference."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., meets with reporters Wednesday after he fended off a challenge by Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and was re-elected as Republican leader. And we turned off a lot of these centrist voters," McConnell said Wednesday. “Much criticism is being placed on the fact that the Republican Party should have done better. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., speaks after he was nominated to be House speaker on Tuesday. “What I hope we learned from this is you can’t win the general election merely because of your base vote.

☆ Republicans in disarray as McConnell faces a leadership challenge, McCarthy scrounges for votes to become speaker, and Trump seeks to stake his claim for 2024
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( John L. Dorman | Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Republicans last week faltered in producing the red wave election they had sought for over a year. McConnell now faces a leadership challenge, while McCarthy is looking for votes to lead the House. And on Tuesday, Scott informed colleagues that he would challenge McConnell, who since leading the Senate GOP caucus in 2007 has retained strong support within the party. The House Republican Conference on Tuesday voted 188-31 in favor of McCarthy leading the caucus over conservative challenger Andy Biggs of Arizona, but the California lawmaker will need 218 votes to win the Speaker's gavel next year. Republicans, already trying to navigate the new landscape on Capitol Hill, will have a lot to figure out as the 2024 presidential election looms.

☆ Marjorie Taylor Greene supports Kevin McCarthy's bid for House speaker, says it's a 'bad strategy' for fellow Republicans to challenge him
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene expressed support for Rep. Kevin McCarthy's bid for House speaker. Greene criticized the possibility of fellow conservative Republicans challenging McCarthy. Cheney, a staunch critic of former President Donald Trump, lost her reelection, but could technically become House speaker if she receives enough votes, though such a move is uncommon. The current opposition to McCarthy could be a sign of more internal division to come under a House Republican majority. Greene, also a member of the House Freedom Caucus, had previously voiced concerns about McCarthy's leadership after House Democrats removed her from her committee assignments last year in light of her past inflammatory statements.

Share this -Link copiedCommittee votes to subpoena Trump The committee voted on Thursday unanimously to subpoena Trump. Trump would not be the first president to be subpoenaed, nor would he be the first former president subpoenaed by Congress. "Even before the networks called the race for President Biden on Nov. 7th, his chances of pulling out a victory were virtually nonexistent, and President Trump knew it," Kinzinger said. “At times, President Trump acknowledged the reality of his loss. “What did President Trump know?

That's based on a Secret Service email from 9:09 a.m. "The head of the President’s Secret Service protective detail, Robert Engel, was specifically aware of the large crowds outside the magnetometers," Schiff said. A Secret Service report at 7:58 a.m. said, "Some members of the crowd are wearing ballistic helmets, body armor carrying radio equipment and military grade backpacks." On Dec. 26, a Secret Service field office relayed a tip that had been received by the FBI, Schiff said. Trump would not be the first president to be subpoenaed, nor would he be the first former president subpoenaed by Congress.

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