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BREAKING: Speaker Race Erupts Into Total Chaos After Third Failed Bid

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In an unfortunate turn of events, things are only getting worse for Congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH) in his third vote for Speaker of the House as more Republicans are beginning to break rank and cast votes against him.

Some of the newest dissenters include Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) who voted for Speaker Pro Temp Patrick McHenry (R-NC) Friday morning as well as Rep. Marc Molinari (R-NY) who opted for his former colleague Lee Zeldin (R-NY). With 25 votes against Jordan, the opposition has risen beyond the “Swampy 22” who denied him the speakership yesterday.

Sources inside the meeting told veteran Capitol Hill reporter Jake Sherman that a Friday meeting between Rep. Jordan and the holdouts did not go well, calling it, “a direct, precise meeting in which JORDAN was told he will never be speaker. This group doesn’t want anything. They want Jordan to understand he will not be speaker.”

Rep. Jordan on Thursday backtracked on an agreement to support Rep. McHenry’s installation as interim Speaker through January, telling his colleagues he intended to run on a third ballot. The change of heart came after the Ohio Republican’s conservative allies urged him to stand strong and not give in to a plan that threatened to embolden Democrats with McHenry, a compromise selection.
The acidic war of words between Rep. Jordan and his establishment holdouts is the latest sign that Republicans do not yet have a path forward for nominating a Speaker who can shift the House away from its current infighting and back to governing in opposition to the Biden administration’s agenda. The expulsion of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) has upset spectators who accused the Florida Republican of acting like the proverbial dog who caught the car as Republicans now waste days unable to act on their agenda.
The White House has leveraged Republicans’ chaos to its advantage, deflecting criticism of Biden by accusing Republicans of being more interested in burning down government than living up to the responsibilities of governing. Outside allies have targeted vulnerable House Republicans with an avalanche of advertising in their districts linking them to the “insurrectionist” Jordan, a label they hope will cost the GOP its slim majority in next year’s election.


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