Jordan Gears Up For Second Round Speaker Vote: ‘We’re Gonna Keep Going’
The House of Representatives will hold another vote later on Wednesday morning on Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan’s bid to become speaker.
On Tuesday afternoon, Jordan, the second Republican nominee for the position this month, fell 17 votes short of the 217 he needed to win.
“We’re gonna keep going. I’ve had great conversations, great discussions with our colleagues,” Jordan said late Tuesday. “No one in our conference wants to see any type of coalition government with Democrats. So we’re going to keep working, and we’re going to get to the votes.”
The House will reconvene at 11 a.m. ET for the next scheduled vote, but many members of Congress are unsure of what to do next.
On Tuesday night, New York Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis said on Fox News that anyone who claims to know what will happen next is “full of it.” Malliotakis has stated that she will continue voting for Jordan and has predicted that his popularity will increase.
“I think there’s some movement, and that’s positive. So the idea is to build consensus, that’s positive, not to jump ship just because it didn’t work in the first round,” she said. “As I see it, he’s the person who can bring the factions together now. If he can’t, quite frankly, then we have bigger problems.”
However, Jordan has opponents in other Republican factions.
Late on Tuesday, after Jordan failed to garner enough votes to become Speaker, the editorial board of The Wall Street Journal issued a scathing rebuke of the dysfunction among House Republicans.
The statement from the board follows House Majority Leader Steve Scalise’s (R-La.) withdrawal from the race last week due to pressure from Jordan’s allies.
“With each turn of the screw, the eight Republicans who deposed Mr. McCarthy look more foolish all the time. They didn’t have a plan for what to do next. They didn’t have an alternative candidate for Speaker. What kind of an idiot mutineer takes over the man-of-war, tosses the captain overboard, and then spends two weeks pulling ropes at random, hoping like hell that the thing will somehow drift ashore before the supplies run out?” WSJ wrote.
“The People’s House always includes some unserious characters, but now it has serious work to do,” it added.
“The House needs a speaker as soon as possible. Expect another round of votes today. It’s time for Republicans to come together.” Jordan spokesperson Russell Dye told reporters.
Last week, after he threw his hat into the ring to become Speaker, Jordan revealed that one of his first official acts would be to ensure that Israel has all it needs in its war against Hamas.
“Sunday Morning Futures” anchor Maria Bartiromo told the Ohio Republican during a show segment, “Tell me what your first directive would be as a speaker,” to which he responded, “To help the state of Israel.”
“There will be some resolution on the floor to support the state of Israel,” Jordan continued, adding that he planned to consult with House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) and the Senate.
“We will work with the State Department and the White House,” Jordan continued. “But that is something that I think gets bipartisan, bicameral, full support from the United States government because, again, this is our great friend and great ally, the state of Israel.”
“We need to give Israel the time, the space, the resources so that they can win and win decisively and send a message to these evil people who did this to” Israel, Jordan added.
“There is a special bond between the state of Israel and the American people,” Jordan said. “We need to make sure we continue that and help them win this as quickly as possible.”
“We need to make sure that they have what they need to win and send a message to stop this kind of ridiculous stuff and take action against these people who are doing these terrible things,” said Jordan.
