Ten days after Rep. Kevin McCarthy was ousted as speaker, Democrats are refusing to give in to pressure from the House Republican majority.
They are also intensifying their attacks on famous Donald Trump supporter Jim Jordan of Ohio, the GOP‘s new speaker nominee, branding him an extremist, an insurrectionist, and an election fraud denier.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., spoke Friday on the steps of the Capitol with a dozen Democratic lawmakers in tow. “House Republicans have chosen as their nominee to be the speaker of the people’s House the chairman of the chaos caucus, an opponent in a dangerous way of dysfunction, and an extremist extraordinaire,” Jeffries said. His main goals have been to spread false information and conspiracy theories while also dividing the American people.
If it weren’t for the united opposition of Democrats, House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, a Democrat from Massachusetts, called Jordan an “insurrectionist” and claimed he would be headed toward becoming speaker.
She referred to Jordan and the 147 congressional Republicans who protested the certification of the presidential election results on January 6, 2021, saying, “He was directly engaged in the right-wing coup which sought to overturn the 2020 election.”
According to Clark, “Every Republican who voted for him is supporting an insurrectionist against our democracy.”
The vehement remarks are a foreshadowing of how Democratic leaders will work to associate Jordan’s name with the GOP majority, particularly the swing-district members they plan to target in 2024 if Jordan is elected speaker by the party.
Democratic leadership member Rep. Ted Lieu of California remarked that with Jim Jordan as speaker, “moderate Republicans should be freaked out.” Jordan would “push for a national abortion ban” and for President Joe Biden’s impeachment, he said.
Lieu also stated that he would seek to prevent certifying a probable Biden reelection victory in 2024 if Jordan became speaker: Jim Jordan is a leading advocate of disregarding the decision of the American people during elections, and he will do all in his power to prevent the declaration of a Biden victory. That is what he previously did.
Rep. Kelly Armstrong, R-N.D., one of Jordan’s Republican allies, asserted that “a bunch of us” will aid in his efforts to secure the votes necessary for speakership on Friday.
When asked how Jordan could influence people’s opinions, Armstrong responded, “Talk to people, listen to people. He is really skilled at it. Everyone watches the partisan brawler on TV because he communicates effectively and is on topic, but he is the only one who has the support of our base to carry out the necessary actions without getting hurt.
The Democrats, according to Jeffries, seek “a bipartisan path” to reopening the House, although he didn’t specify what that would include. Democrats unanimously chose Jeffries as their candidate for speaker, but with Republicans holding a 221-212 advantage, Jeffries had little chance of being elected. However, Democrats maintain that if the GOP wants their assistance in choosing a speaker, they must bargain with them and offer concessions.
Senior politicians and staffers in both parties claim that there aren’t any genuine conversations now underway regarding a coalition speaker chosen with bipartisan votes.
A top Democratic official claimed that “no Republican has come to leadership for a serious conversation of substance.” It is the responsibility of the Republicans to approach the Democrats and seek a compromise.
Reps. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, Susie Lee of Nevada, Ed Case of Hawaii, and Jared Golden of Maine are four centrist Democrats who wrote a letter to acting speaker Patrick McHenry of North Carolina in support of extending his authority by 15-day increments so that the House can function without an elected speaker. However, McHenry lacks the capacity to increase his own power without a majority of the House voting to grant him that authority, thus it is unlikely that the letter will have much of an influence.
That notion is opposed by many Republicans. After nominating Jordan in a secret vote that ended with a 124-81 margin, they adjourned for the weekend. Jordan received 152 votes in favor and 55 votes against on a second ballot that asked members if they would support him on the House floor. To be elected, he will require 217 floor votes.
Republicans recessed the House for the weekend because they could see no imminent way to accomplish it.
Conservative Republicans said they are unconcerned that some members of their party would heed appeals from Democrats to join them as they elect a bipartisan speaker despite the instability among their ranks.
Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Oklahoma, stated, “That’s what gets you defeated in a primary.”
Tim Burchett, a Republican from Tennessee, stated, “You’d get your a– beat.”
These negotiations, according to Texas Republican Rep. Pat Fallon, have only taken place outside the GOP conference.
“People like to make a big deal out of that. It’s a rumor; I haven’t personally overheard anyone discuss it,” he remarked. But that seems very nuclear to me. Keep this traditional, shall we?
Democratic campaign chair Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington disputed Republican assertions that Democrats were to blame for the situation because of their votes to impeach McCarthy.
She stated, “It’s very disgusting that they can’t even own their filth. They have been unable to rule and cooperate with Democrats since the beginning of this Congress. They appear to be just concerned with fighting one another.
People want to see effective governance, DelBene said of his travels across competitive districts across the nation. From the Republican side, “all they’ve seen is chaos and dysfunction.”