By Ruzeki, Shadow News
Published 11:00 PM EAT, Mon January 2, 2023
This story is being updated as soon as new information is available.
What we cover here
McCarthy confronts Gaetz on House floor during chaotic 14th round of voting for speaker
From Shadow News' Ruzeki
(Shadow News) After Rep. Matt Gaetz voted "present" in the 14th ballot for House speaker, Rep. Kevin McCarthy went over to talk to the Florida congressman.
Gaetz pointed fingers at McCarthy and when McCarthy walked away, Rep. Mike Rogers lunged at Gaetz.
If Gaetz doesn’t flip his vote to yes, McCarthy cannot win speakership, based on the tally so far in the voting.
Two sources tell our press associates that Gaetz wants to adjourn chamber until Monday.
By Ruzeki NOW: House voting on 14th ballot for House speaker
(Shadow News) The House is now voting on a 14th ballot for House speaker.
Rep. Kevin McCarthy has momentum, but he needs a handful of GOP hardliners to either flip their vote or vote "present" to bring the threshold for the majority down. Six Republicans did not vote for him on the last ballot.
With the speakership election in its fourth day, the House cannot move forward with any other business until a leader is elected. Kevin McCarthy is locked in a fight for his political future as the California Republican attempts to win the votes he needs to become speaker of the US House of Representatives in what has now become the longest contest in 164 years.
About this process:
- A nominee needs 218 votes, but the number required could change if members withhold their votes. The House can't kick off the new Congress or swear in new members until a speaker is elected.
What happened Yesterday:
- GOP leader Kevin McCarthy failed Thursday to secure enough support to win the speakership after eleventh round of voting – and lawmakers decided to postpone future votes until Friday noon.
- House members can't be sworn in until the speaker stalemate ends. Neither McCarthy nor the Republicans voting against him appear ready to back down.
- House Democrats united behind caucus chair Hakeem Jeffries of New York as leader of the Democratic minority, a historic move that makes him the first Black lawmaker to lead a party in Congress.
The House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy faces a make-or-break moment as he seeks to lock down the support necessary to become the next speaker in a vote that has turn into a chaotic and contentious once-in-a-century floor fight.
The 118th Congress is set to convene to elect a new speaker, but Kevin McCarthy does not have the votes to secure the gavel – a major problem for the California Republican that threatens to tear apart the incoming House GOP majority. Kevin McCarthy fails to shore up the support he requires to win in the initial round of voting, the race for speaker has gone to multiple ballots – something that hasn’t happened since 1923.
Kevin McCarthy faces a determined contingent of hardline conservatives. The group is using the leverage they have in the razor-thin Republican majority to extract concessions as they deny the GOP leader critical votes. Mr McCarthy has already given in to a number of their demands, including making it easier to topple the sitting speaker, but his efforts have not been enough.
Though Mr McCarthy has made clear he has no plans to drop out of the race, the fight has cast a long shadow over the incoming House Republican majority. And the deal-making McCarthy has engaged in to try to win over critics may mean he has a weaker hand to play in his position of authority if he does become speaker.
To be elected the House Speaker, a candidate needs to win a majority of members who vote for a specific person on the House floor. That amounts to 218 votes if no member skips the vote or votes “present.”
House Republicans will hold 222 seats in the new Congress – so for McCarthy to reach 218 votes, he would only be able to afford to lose four GOP votes. So far, at least 20 Republicans have opposed him.
The fact that the election is advancing to multiple ballots has raised the question of whether a viable alternative could emerge since Mr McCarthy can’t get the required votes. The GOP leader’s allies and foes alike have attempted to quietly game out what could happen if he fails to secure the gavel on the first round and lawmakers move into uncharted territory.
Mr McCarthy is facing a longshot challenge in the race from hard-right Republican Rep. Andy Biggs. McCarthy has defeated the Arizona congressman before – by a resounding vote of 188 to 31 in November when the House Republican conference voted for McCarthy to be its leader. But the longshot challenge has still complicated McCarthy’s effort to become speaker and threatens to draw support away from the GOP leader in the critical vote.
After the far-right House Freedom Caucus denied his ascension to the speakership in 2015, McCarthy spent years courting the conservative wing of his party and worked hard to stay in former President Donald Trump’s good graces.
Mr McCarthy has gotten some key backup from Mr Trump, who publicly endorsed his speaker bid and encouraged others to support McCarthy. His congressional allies have also banded together in effort to act as a counterweight to his critics.
But when a red wave never materialized in the November midterms, the razor-thin majority that resulted for Republicans empowered a small band of conservatives – long distrustful of McCarthy – to make demands.
What has unfolded over the last two months is an all-out scramble for the speakership, which has taken the form of strategy sessions with close allies on and off Capitol Hill, intense negotiations over rules changes and non-stop phone calls with members.
McCarthy has been in deal-making mode, but if he does win the gavel, some of the concessions he has made may make it more difficult for him to stave off future challenge to his speakership.
In one change that could weaken his hand in the future, McCarthy has told lawmakers – as first reported by our press associates – that he would support a threshold as low as five Republicans to trigger a vote on deposing the speaker, known as the “motion to vacate” the speaker’s chair, a major concession for him and one that moderates worry will be used as a constant cudgel over his head.
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