Jordan dropped from speaker nomination after three failed votes - LIVE

Rep Jim Jordan is out as the nominated speaker of the House Republicans after losing an internal ballot by a large margin.

According to Rep Kat Cammack, Mr Jordan lost by 112 votes to 86.

This comes after Mr Jordan lost further support on the third ballot of the full house.

On the first House vote, 20 Republicans voted against Mr Jordan, 22 did so on the second, and 25 on the third. Mr McCarthy took 15 rounds of voting before he managed to get across the line in January.

Acting Speaker Rep Patrick McHenry said on Friday afternoon said Republicans will return on Monday for a candidate forum following the removal of Rep Jim Jordan.

The “election process” will then begin on Tuesday morning, he added.

“The reason why I made that decision is, we need space and time for candidates to talk to other members,” he told the press.

A large and growing number of Republicans were starting to make calls to sound out fellow members about who they might support.

Key Points

• Republicans to return Monday for candidate forum

• Republicans relentlessly try to blame Democrats amid GOP dysfunction

• Jordan concedes

• ‘I’m concerned about where we go from here,’ McCarthy says

• ‘They want to say that we have no plan, Jim Jordan was a good plan’

The candidates: Kevin Hern

14:30 , Rachel Sharp and Ariana Baio

Kevin Hern is the leader of the Republican Study Committee, the largest conservative caucus in the House.

The representative from Oklahoma is only in his third term in Congress making him much less experienced than his competitors. However, he has touted his long, successful career in business as an advantage over the rest.

“I think you have to have a different set of skill sets,” Mr Hern told reporters this week.

“Strife is something that’s common when you have people working together and finding common solutions for it takes experience.”

Before being elected to Congress in 2018, the 61-year-old made millions as a McDonald’s franchisee and was part of the fast food outlet’s national leadership team.

During the last race for House speaker in January, he gained some votes from Republicans rebelling against Mr McCarthy.

The candidates: Tom Emmer

14:00 , Rachel Sharp and Ariana Baio

Tom Emmer is a Representative from Minnesota and the House majority whip.

He served as chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee for two cycles. In the first cycle, he successfully defeated numerous Democratic incumbents, giving then-House speaker Nancy Pelosi a much slimmer majority with which to govern.

He stayed in the job for the 2022 cycle when Republicans won the House, meaning he knows many of the freshmen incumbents and funneled money to them when needed. His time in the post also gave him significant face-time with Republican donors – a skill that would benefit him in a speaker’s race.

After Mr McCarthy’s ousting, Mr Emmer said he didn’t plan to run – but would instead back Mr Scalise. When Mr Scalise’s vote failed, he then backed Mr Jordan.

But after Mr Jordan’s attempt at the speakership failed, Mr Emmer formally announced he would run saying: “I will always be honest and direct with all of you, even if we disagree. I will never make a promise I cannot fulfill. I expect to be held accountable and you can expect that we will also keep you to your word.”

Here are the latest Republicans running for House Speaker

13:29 , Rachel Sharp and Ariana Baio

Nine House Republicans have announced that they will make a bid for Speaker of the House after the GOP failed to elect a new speaker last week.

Representatives Tom Emmer, Kevin Hern, Byron Donalds, Austin Scott, Gary Palmer, Jack Bergman, Mike Johnson, Pete Sessions and Dan Meuser all made their intent clear before the noon deadline on Sunday.

The new batch of candidates comes after Rep Jim Jordan was unable to secure 217 votes on the floor and Rep Steve Scalise couldn’t conjure enough party support.

As the House enters its third week without a leader, frustrations are growing about the legislative’s body inability to elect a speaker to replace the ousted Kevin McCarthy

Here’s a look at the possible contenders:

Here are the latest Republicans running for House Speaker

Republicans to return Monday for candidate forum

12:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Acting Speaker Rep Patrick McHenry said on Friday afternoon said Republicans will return on Monday for a candidate forum following the removal of Rep Jim Jordan.

The “election process” will then begin on Tuesday morning, he added.

“The reason why I made that decision is, we need space and time for candidates to talk to other members,” he told the press.

A large and growing number of Republicans were starting to make calls to sound out fellow members about who they might support.

Republicans relentlessly try to blame Democrats amid GOP dysfunction

09:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Like several other Republicans, Rep Austin Scott of Georgia tried to blame the Democrats after the removal of Rep Jim Jordan as the nominee for speaker.

“How does it make the Republican party look?” CNN’s Manu Raju asked Mr Scott.

“I think it makes Congress as a whole look very bad… The Democrats are not innocent in this. They’re not,” Mr Scott claimed.

Jordan says he ‘got to know’ GOP members

06:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Acknowledging his defeat on Friday afternoon, Rep Jim Jordan said he “got to know members in our conference that I didn’t really know that well over the last three weeks”.

Texas Republicans brings up Democrats and southern border after Jordan ouster

04:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Rep Chip Roy of Texas attempted to pivot from the GOP dysfunction to blaming Democrats for lacking border security on Friday afternoon following the ouster of Rep Jim Jordan as the nominee for speaker.

Jordan concedes

01:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Conceding defeat after his ouster as the GOP nominee for speaker on Friday afternoon, Rep Jim Jordan said, “We need to come together and figure out who our Speaker’s going to be. I’m going to work as hard as I can to help that individual”.

‘I’m concerned about where we go from here,’ McCarthy says

Sunday 22 October 2023 22:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Following the ouster of Rep Jim Jordan as a nominee for speaker, the last holder of the office, Rep Kevin McCarthy, told the press, “I’ve never seen this amount of damage done to just a few people for their own personalities, for their own fear of what’s going through … I’m concerned about where we go from here”.

‘Jim Jordan deserved better than that,’ Gaetz says

Sunday 22 October 2023 19:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Rep Matt Gaetz said on Friday afternoon that “the most popular Republican in the United States Congress was just knifed by a secret ballot, in a private meeting, in the basement of the Capitol. It’s as swampy as swamp gets, and Jim Jordan deserved better than that”.

‘We are in a very bad position as a party,’ McCarthy says

Sunday 22 October 2023 16:00 , Gustaf Kilander

The state of the House GOP

Sunday 22 October 2023 13:00 , Gustaf Kilander

‘They want to say that we have no plan, Jim Jordan was a good plan’

Sunday 22 October 2023 10:00 , Eric Garcia

Rep Jim Jordan’s exit came on the 17th day that the House of Representatives has not had a speaker after Rep Matt Gaetz (R-FL) filed a motion to vacate Mr McCarthy along with seven other Republicans and every Democrat.

Rep Nancy Mace (R-SC), who voted to vacate Mr Jordan, decried Mr Jordan’s exit.

“I think it is bull****,” she told The Independent. “They want to say that we have no plan, Jim Jordan was a good plan.”

Ms Mace criticised the fact that a large amount of Republicans just voted for Mr Jordan on the floor and then voted to oust him in a secret ballot.

“They just knifed him in secret in a backroom deal in the basement of the Capitol,” she said. “It’s disgusting.”

GOP elected officials during the Trump years

Sunday 22 October 2023 07:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Former Jeb Bush advisor Tim Miller asked on X on Friday: “Is there a better encapsulation of the GOP elected officials during the Trump years than Jim Jordan winning 194-25 GOP votes in the public ballot and then losing the majority by secret ballot?”

Jordan says he ‘got to know’ GOP members

Sunday 22 October 2023 06:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Acknowledging his defeat on Friday afternoon, Rep Jim Jordan said he “got to know members in our conference that I didn’t really know that well over the last three weeks”.

VIDEO: Jim Jordan loses third House speaker vote with less support than in first two

Sunday 22 October 2023 04:00 , Benji Salmon

By Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee for speaker after an internal secret ballot.

Jordan ties for fewest votes for majority nominee under current seat numbers

Sunday 22 October 2023 01:00 , Gustaf Kilander

How the plan to save the House fell apart before it even started

Saturday 21 October 2023 22:00 , Eric Garcia

Thursday morning should have been the moment that Jim Jordan, a former championship college wrestler, finally tapped out. On Wednesday evening, some of the Republicans who had voted against his bid for House speaker had reported death threats. Mr Jordan lost even more support during the second round of voting than he did in the first.

Mr Jordan was supposed to take himself out of the running for the time being in an attempt to flip votes and, in the meantime, empower Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry so that the House could continue its business. Remember, the House has to pass either 12 individual spending bills or a continuing resolution to avoid a fast-approaching government shutdown. In addition, many House Republicans want to pass an aid package to Israel as it responds to a deadly attack from Hamas in Gaza.

But almost immediately, conservatives spat out the idea.

“We shouldn’t be setting this precedent or this will be the way we elect speakers from now on,” Rep Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, the chairman of the House Freedom Caucus that Mr Jordan founded, told The Independent. Mr Perry was part of the initial group that opposed Kevin McCarthy for speaker in January before he flipped after receiving concessions.

By Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee after an internal secret ballot.

Biden requests Congress approve $105bn for Ukraine amid speaker debacle

Saturday 21 October 2023 19:00 , Eric Garcia

Mr Jordan’s failed bid to become speaker comes after Mr McCarthy was deposed. After a majority of House Republicans nominated House Majority Leader Steve Scalise to become speaker, a handful of conservatives who supported Mr Jordan said they would refuse to back Mr Scalise.

The lack of a speaker means that the House is incapable of conducting its basic duties. The eight Republicans and every Democrat voted to depose Mr McCarthy from the speakership after he allowed for a vote on a “clean” continuing resolution to keep the government open for 48 days.

But the continuing resolution will expire by 17 November, meaning that Congress will need to pass some kind of spending bill to keep the government open. In addition, Democrats and Republicans hope to pass an aid package to Israel and many on both sides of the aisle hope to pass a package to assist Ukraine in its war against Russia.

On Friday, President Joe Biden formally requested Congress approve $105bn in supplemental money to assist Ukraine and Israel

‘It’s Groundhog Day, Groundhog Day all over'

Saturday 21 October 2023 16:00 , Eric Garcia

Ahead of the removal of Rep Jim Jordan as the nominee for speaker, the third vote on his bid came after Republicans scuttled a plan to temporarily empower Mr McHenry while Mr Jordan seeks to flip more votes, given that many members of the conference rejected the plan.

Democrats for their part called on a handful of Republicans to work with them to support House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Many Democrats decried the fact that the House was once again engaged in another exercise of voting for speaker.

“It’s Groundhog Day, Groundhog Day all over,” Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) told The Independent, criticising Mr Jordan and saying it is why he should not be House speaker. “I mean, this is what he does.”

Rep Jamie Raskin (D-MD) said Mr Jordan’s continued pursuit indicated the Republicans’ governing style.

“There’s a rule or ruin philosophy that governs the MAGA right and whether they’re gonna win and control everything or they are going to have tantrums and just burn the house down,” he told The Independent.

‘It’s not about Jordan'

Saturday 21 October 2023 14:00 , Eric Garcia

Ahead of Rep Jim Jordan’s removal as the nominated GOP speaker on Friday afternoon, Rep Ralph Norman (R-SC) told The Independent the House should have as many votes as it takes to make Mr Jordan speaker.

“It’s not about Jordan,” he said, adding that rather, Republicans who opposed Mr Jordan were mad about the eight Republicans who ejected Kevin McCarthy. “The country is bigger than that.”

Rep Vern Buchanan (R-FL), who voted for Rep Byron Donalds (R-FL), told The Independent that Mr Jordan had the right to call more votes. Mr Buchanan and other Republicans met with Mr Jordan on Thursday evening and made clear he could not win.

“A lot of just trying to confirm he doesn’t have the votes and ... he’s not gonna be speaker,” Mr Buchanan said at the time.

Jim Jordan continues to lose votes in third bid for House speaker ahead of ouster

Saturday 21 October 2023 11:00 , Eric Garcia

Rep Jim Jordan (R-OH) failed once again in his attempt to become speaker of the House on Friday, after he staged a third vote with 25 Republicans voting against him.

Ahead of Mr Jordan’s removal as the nominated GOP speaker on Friday afternoon, he said in an early morning press conference that he would continue his pursuit of the speakership.

“There’s been multiple rounds of votes for speaker before,” he told reporters before the vote. “We all know that. I just know that we need to get the speaker as soon as possible.”

But Mr Jordan lost the votes of Reps Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Marc Molinaro (R-NY) and Tom Kean (R-NJ). Many of the Republicans who defected voted instead for Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry. In addition, some Republicans were absent and missed the vote, lowering the threshold of votes needed to block him.

Rep Ralph Norman (R-SC) told The Independent the House should have as many votes as it takes to make Mr Jordan speaker.

READ MORE

Far-right caucus chair calls threats ‘red herring’

Saturday 21 October 2023 08:00 , Gustaf Kilander

The chair of the House Freedom Caucus, Rep Scott Perry, downplayed the attacks and death threats sent to GOP members voting against Mr Jordan, calling it a “red herring”.

“There are people out in the world that dislike us and threaten us. That’s nothing new. It’s nothing new to any member of Congress. We all know it. That is another red herring,” he said, according to Punchbowl News.

“No one in this town seemed to mind the pressure campaign from all the lobbyists … in January. But suddenly now they mind all the calls, and the emails and the texts,” he added.

In a meeting on Thursday, an ally of Mr Jordan, Rep Warren Davidson, argued that it wasn’t the fault of the group around Mr Jordan that the holdouts were receiving death threats, saying instead that they were getting targeted because they voted against Mr Jordan, Punchbowl reported on Friday morning.

‘Genuine concerns about the threatening tactics’

Saturday 21 October 2023 05:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Rep Drew Ferguson also revealed on Thursday that he had been the subject of death threats.

“As the Republican Conference designee, I supported Congressman Jordan on the first ballot. Following the first vote, I had genuine concerns about the threatening tactics and pressure campaigns Jordan and his allies were using to leverage members for their votes,” he said in a statement.

“I discussed this directly with Jim, and planned to support him on the second ballot. When the pressure campaigns and attacks on fellow members ramped up, it became clear to me that the House Republican Conference does not need a bully as the Speaker. I cast my vote for Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a principled conservative and unifying leader,” he added. “Shortly after casting that vote, my family and I started receiving death threats. That is simply unacceptable, unforgivable, and will never be tolerated.”

A GOP source later told Axios that Mr Ferguson “told the conference that he‘s had to have a sheriff stationed at his daughter’s school over death threats from the far right. Also one at his house”.

Wife of Nebraska congressman targeted

Saturday 21 October 2023 04:15 , Gustaf Kilander

Rep Don Bacon told Politico that his wife received a number of anonymous emails and texts from people pushing the message that the Nebraska representative would lose his seat unless he backed Mr Jordan.

“He has more courage than you. You won’t put your name to your statements,” Mr Bacon’s wife responded, according to the screenshots shared by Politico.

The tactics of Mr Jordan’s allies are considered to have backfired after he lost further support on the second and third ballots. The pressure campaign often included not-so-veiled threats of primary challenges from the right.

“Jim’s been nice, one-on-one, but his broader team has been playing hardball,” Mr Bacon told Politico on Tuesday.

Mr Jordan doesn’t appear to have been directly involved in the strategy employed by his allies and supporters.

Another GOP holdout, Rep Steve Womack of Arkansas, said that his office has been inundated with profane calls, but “no real substantive threats,” according to CNN.

On Wednesday, Mr Jordan shared his disdain for the death threats.

“It should never happen,” he said. “It’s just wrong, and we don’t want it to happen to anyone, any American, anybody, any member of Congress. It’s just wrong.”

Earlier, Mr Jordan wrote on X that “no American should accost another for their beliefs … Stop. It’s abhorrent”.

Mr Womack said, “Frankly, just based on what I’ve been through – I can only speak to myself and what my staff has been through over the last 24 or 48 hours – it is obvious what the strategy has been: Attack, attack, attack. Attack the members who don’t agree with you, attack them, beat them into submission”.

By Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee for speaker after an internal secret ballot.

‘I have received credible death threats’

Saturday 21 October 2023 03:30 , Gustaf Kilander

Ms Miller-Meeks voted for Mr Jordan on the first ballot but chose to back Rep Kay Granger of Texas on the second vote on Wednesday, and she also voted against Mr Jordan on Friday’s third ballot.

“After one round of votes, with my support, he was not able to secure enough votes for the Speaker nomination and my initial concerns about threatening tactics of Jim Jordan’s supporters, including from members of Congress, increased despite assurances,” she said.

“Since my vote in support of Chairwoman Granger, I have received credible death threats and a barrage of threatening calls. The proper authorities have been notified and my office is cooperating fully,” she added. “One thing I cannot stomach, or support is a bully.”

“I understand that voting against Rep Jordan is not popular at this time. I respected Jim enough to vote for him, knowing he did not have the votes to be elected,” Ms Miller-Meeks said.

‘Family members have been approached and threatened'

Saturday 21 October 2023 02:45 , Gustaf Kilander

Rep Ken Buck said that he had been “evicted from my office in Colorado. I have notice of an eviction because the landlord is mad with my voting record on the Speaker issue”.

“And everybody in the conference is getting this. Family members have been approached and threatened. All kinds of things are going on. There’s going to be some tension,” Mr Buck told NBC.

Rep Ken Buck is getting death threats after refusing to vote for Jim Jordan

Saturday 21 October 2023 02:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Several Republicans voting against Rep Jim Jordan for speaker have revealed that they have become targets of death threats.

Republican Iowa Rep Mariannette Miller-Meeks revealed in a lengthy statement that she received “credible death threats and a barrage of threatening calls” after refusing to back Rep Jim Jordan for speaker.

Rep Ken Buck of Colorado told NBC on Thursday that his office has received four death threats. Rep Drew Ferguson of Georgia has reportedly stationed police at his home and his daughter’s school.

Rep Don Bacon of Nebraska, another GOP member who didn’t vote for Mr Jordan, told Politico this week that his wife received texts and emails, urging her to convince her husband to back Mr Jordan.

READ MORE

‘Constant barrage of phone calls'

Saturday 21 October 2023 01:15 , Graig Graziosi

Rep Ken Buck said his vote against Mr Jordan earned him multiple death threats and about 20,000 angry voicemails.

“Right now is this constant barrage of phone calls, we have — I have six full-time people answering the phones,” he told NBC News.

Mr Buck said he is not the only House Republican to vote against Mr Jordan and face the wrath of MAGA constituents, with GOP representatives Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Drew Ferguson and Don Bacon also reportedly having received threats for refusing to back Mr Jordan.

“Everybody in the conference is getting this,” Mr Buck continued. “Family members have been approached and threatened. All kinds of things are going on.

“I think the best move is for Jim to withdraw at this point,” he added. “I think he may need another vote to be convinced that he’s not going to get there, which is fine. He was the nominee. The conference should give him that respect. But I think at some point, we need to move on and find the 217 votes for a plan.”

By Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee for speaker after an internal secret ballot.

GOP congressman says he’s facing eviction from his home-state office after voting against Jim Jordan

Saturday 21 October 2023 00:30 , Graig Graziosi

A Republican congressman says he’s facing retaliation — including receiving an eviction letter for an office in his home state — for refusing to back Rep Jim Jordan‘s attempts to be House speaker.

Congressman Ken Buck of said the landlord who owns his office in Windsor, a town in north-central Colorado, terminated their contract after he voted against Mr Jordan.

“I have notice of an eviction because the landlord is mad with my voting record on the speaker issue,” Mr Buck told NBC News on Thursday.

Eight Republican representatives, led by Congressman Matt Gaetz, voted with Democrats to remove Kevin McCarthy as the speaker of the House on October 3. The move, which was condemned by much of the congressional GOP, left the House in disarray.

House Republicans have yet to coalesce around a new speaker. Congressman Steve Scalise attempted a run, but could not gather the support. Mr Jordan — Donald Trump’s favoured candidate — has also tried, but has failed three times.

By Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee for speaker after an internal secret ballot.

READ MORE

These are the Republicans who didn’t vote for Mr Jordan on the third ballot on Friday

Friday 20 October 2023 23:45 , Gustaf Kilander

1. Rep Don Bacon voted for Mr McHenry

2. Rep Vern Buchanan voted for Mr Donalds (Flipped to vote against Mr Jordan on second ballot)

3. Rep Ken Buck voted for Rep Tom Emmer

4. Rep Lori Chavez-DeRemer voted for Mr McHenry

5. Rep Anthony D’Esposito voted for Mr Zeldin, the 2022 New York GOP gubernatorial nominee.

6. Rep Mario Diaz-Balart voted for Mr Scalise

7. Rep Jake Ellzey voted for Mr Garcia

8. Rep Drew Ferguson voted for Mr Scalise (Flipped on second)

9. Rep Brian Fitzpatrick voted for Mr McHenry (Flipped on third ballot)

10. Rep Andrew Garbarino voted for Mr Zeldin

11. Rep Carlos Gimenez voted for Mr McCarthy

12. Rep Tony Gonzales voted for Mr Scalise

13. Rep Kay Granger voted for Mr Scalise

14. Rep John James voted for Mr Donalds

15. Rep Thomas Kean voted for Mr McCarthy (Flipped on third)

16. Rep Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania voted for Mr Scalise

17. Rep Jen Kiggans voted for Mr McHenry

18. Rep Mike Lawler voted for Mr McHenry

19. Rep Nick LaLota voted for Mr Zeldin

20. Rep Mariannette Miller-Meeks voted for Mr McHenry (Flipped on second)

21. Rep Marc Molinaro voted for Mr Zeldin (Flipped on third)

22. Rep John Rutherford voted for Mr Scalise

23. Rep Mike Simpson voted for Mr Scalise

24. Rep Pete Stauber voted for Mr Westerman (Flipped on second)

25. Rep Steve Womack voted for Mr Scalise

Jordan gets 194 votes on third ballot

Friday 20 October 2023 23:00 , Gustaf Kilander

On the first vote, 20 Republicans voted against Mr Jordan, and 22 did so on the second. Mr McCarthy took 15 rounds of voting before he managed to get across the line in January.

Out of 429 total votes, Mr Jordan received 194, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries received 210, interim Speaker Patrick McHenry got six, Rep Byron Donalds got two, Rep Tom Emmer received one vote, former Rep Lee Zeldin got four, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, the first GOP nominee, got eight votes, Reps Mike Garcia and Bruce Westerman got one vote, and Mr McCarthy got two.

Mr Jordan received the GOP nomination for the speakership on Friday following Mr Scalise’s failure to gather the support he needed. Mr Scalise chose to end his bid before bringing it to a floor vote.

This comes more than two weeks after the ouster of Mr McCarthy when eight House Republicans voted with all the Democrats to remove him from the post after just nine months.

Back in January, it took 15 rounds of voting for Mr McCarthy to become speaker.

Who are the 25 Republicans who took down Jim Jordan on third ballot?

Friday 20 October 2023 22:15 , Gustaf Kilander

Rep Jim Jordan lost further support on the third ballot, with the number of Republicans voting against him increasing to 25.

Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy took to the floor of the House on Friday to nominate Mr Jordan as his replacement as the third vote on his speakership bid got underway.

“Jim Jordan is an effective legislator. To legislate is about more than the name on the bill,” he said. “It’s about reaching compromise and working long hours. Behind the scenes to get the job done.”

Mr Jordan held a short press conference on Friday morning, lasting only about ten minutes and taking few questions from reporters.

“Between the first one and the second vote, you all said we’re gonna lose 10, 15 votes,” Mr Jordan told the press. “We picked up a few we lost a few. I think the ones we lost can come back. So look, there’s been multiple rounds of votes for speaker before.”

READ MORE

GOP division goes beyond moderates versus conservatives

Friday 20 October 2023 21:30 , Gustaf Kilander

The division within the House Republican Conference goes far deeper than simply a battle between moderates and conservatives.

A Jordan-backer told Punchbowl News that many blame Majority Leader Steve Scalise, the first GOP nominee for speaker, for the chaos, adding that his reputation is “forever” destroyed with them.

Many supporters of Mr Jordan reportedly think that Mr Scalise has covertly been whipping up the opposition against Mr Jordan even as he publically votes for him on each ballot.

On Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee for speaker after an internal secret ballot.

‘Rule or ruin philosophy that governs the MAGA right’ has hijacked the House

Friday 20 October 2023 21:23 , Eric Garcia

Another day, another round of votes, another meeting in the House basement. And nothing is fixed.

This has been the perpetual state of the US House of Representatives this whole past week that began with Rep Jim Jordan, the man once called a “legislative terrorist,” seeming almost destined to take the speakership, culminating in the triumph of radical Republicans and ending in dramatic fashion on Friday afternoon. During a secret ballot, Republicans rejected Mr Jordan as the party’s nominee for speaker.

This had come after Mr Jordan had lost a third ballot to become speaker, with three Republicans from districts that voted for President Joe Biden adding to the tally against him.

Shortly thereafter, the House GOP conference once again met in a conference room in the lower corridors of the Capitol as two aides pushed a cart of bags from District Taco, a serviceable but by no means great Mexican spot on the Hill.

This cycle has repeated itself too many times over since Republicans took the House majority in January. But hardly anything ever comes of these meetings except for more bickering within the conference. For the longest time, the hard-right faction refused whatever Republican leadership was begging them to take.

READ MORE

McCarthy agrees that GOP conference is broken

Friday 20 October 2023 21:00 , Gustaf Kilander

Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was asked on Friday following the third failed ballot for Rep Jim Jordan on Friday if the House GOP is broken.

“We’re in a very bad place right now, yes,” he said.

By Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee for speaker after an internal secret ballot.

Nine Republicans running or considering going for speakership

Friday 20 October 2023 20:46 , Gustaf Kilander

GOP source: Jordan’s team ‘doesn’t f****** understand numbers'

Friday 20 October 2023 20:30 , Gustaf Kilander

A source within the GOP told Axios on Friday that the group around Rep Jim Jordan “doesn’t f****** understand numbers” and that some are now concerned that as some members are leaving Washington, DC, it could possibly lead to Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries being elected speaker.

Mr Jordan was later booted as the GOP speaker nominee in an internal secret ballot.

Republicans to return Monday for candidate forum

Friday 20 October 2023 20:11 , Gustaf Kilander

Acting Speaker Rep Patrick McHenry said on Friday afternoon said Republicans will return on Monday for a candidate forum following the removal of Rep Jim Jordan.

The “election process” will then begin on Tuesday morning, he added.

“The reason why I made that decision is, we need space and time for candidates to talk to other members,” he told the press.

A large and growing number of Republicans were starting to make calls to sound out fellow members about who they might support.

Republicans relentlessly try to blame Democrats amid GOP dysfunction

Friday 20 October 2023 20:04 , Gustaf Kilander

Like several other Republicans, Rep Austin Scott of Georgia tried to blame the Democrats after the removal of Rep Jim Jordan as the nominee for speaker.

“How does it make the Republican party look?” CNN’s Manu Raju asked Mr Scott.

“I think it makes Congress as a whole look very bad… The Democrats are not innocent in this. They’re not,” Mr Scott claimed.

Minority Whip Clark blasts Jordan for wanting to cut Social Security and Medicare

Friday 20 October 2023 20:00 , Gustaf Kilander

The Democratic House Minority Whip, Katherine Clark of Massachusetts, slammed Rep Jim Jordan as she nominated Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries ahead of the third speakership ballot on Friday.

“He wants to cut Social Security and Medicare ... it was raised on the other side of the aisle just this week as a selling point to make him speaker,” Ms Clark said.

“MAGA extremism is designed to divide and it has broken the Republican Party. Their nominee’s vision is a direct attack on the freedom and the rights of the American people. And he’s got the record to prove it,” she said of Mr Jordan.

“The Republican nominee has voted against health care for children, for veterans, even for 9/11 survivors,” she added.

“Over his 16 years in the House, the Republican nominee has never supported a Farm Bill. What does that mean? It means he has turned his back on farmers, on rural communities, and the 11 million children who go to bed hungry in this country,” Ms Clark said.

“The Republican nominee wants a national abortion with no exceptions for rape, incest, or the health of a mother. We want to make our own healthcare decisions in consultation with our families,” she said.

Ms Clark added that Mr Jordan “wanted to overturn the 2020 election,” and called him “a true threat to our democracy and our Constitution”.

By Friday afternoon, Mr Jordan had been booted as the GOP nominee for speaker after an internal secret ballot.

Texas Republicans brings up Democrats and southern border after Jordan ouster

Friday 20 October 2023 19:58 , Gustaf Kilander

Rep Chip Roy of Texas attempted to pivot from the GOP dysfunction to blaming Democrats for lacking border security on Friday afternoon following the ouster of Rep Jim Jordan as the nominee for speaker.

Jordan says he ‘got to know’ GOP members

Friday 20 October 2023 19:52 , Gustaf Kilander

Acknowledging his defeat on Friday afternoon, Rep Jim Jordan said he “got to know members in our conference that I didn’t really know that well over the last three weeks”.

Jordan concedes

Friday 20 October 2023 19:48 , Gustaf Kilander

Conceding defeat after his ouster as the GOP nominee for speaker on Friday afternoon, Rep Jim Jordan said, “We need to come together and figure out who our Speaker’s going to be. I’m going to work as hard as I can to help that individual”.