Speaker 1 (00:00):
This morning, a defiant Congressman Kevin McCarthy is vowing to forge ahead in his bid to become the next Speaker of the House.
Kevin McCarthy (00:07):
Is it the day I wanted to have? No.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
McCarthy fell short in three rounds of voting yesterday.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
A speaker has not been elected.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
Multiple far-right republicans refused to back him for speaker, including Congressman Matt Gaetz.
Matt Gaetz (00:21):
Maybe the right person for the job of Speaker of the House isn’t someone who has sold shares of themself, for more than a decade to get it.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
McCarthy’s staff already moved some of his belongings into the speaker’s office. Overnight, Gaetz wrote a letter to the agency that maintains the Capitol Building, asking, “How long will he remain there, before he’s considered a squatter.” Gaetz and other Republicans who voted against McCarthy, nominated Congressman Jim Jordan.
Jim Jordan (00:46):
I’m being clear, I want to chair the committee.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
But Jordan said he has no intention of being speaker. He says he backs McCarthy.
Jim Jordan (00:53):
We’re not that far away. We only need 11 more votes to win. So I think from a whole perspective, he even talked to everybody. It’s not that far away.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
For the first time in nearly 100 years, the party in control of the House was not able to elect a speaker after the first round of votes. And now some observers say Louisiana Congressman Steve Scalise, the second highest ranking GOP House member could have the inside track to become Speaker, although he’s never expressed interest in the job.
Barbara Comstock (01:22):
He’s a fairly popular candidate and leader. He’s been in leadership for a while, so him not openly campaigning, not necessarily wanting this: I mean, who would want this sort of ungovernable majority? That may be kind of the best selling point for a Steve Scalise.
Speaker 1 (01:41):
Meanwhile, House Democrats are boasting about their unity after choosing their new leader, Hakeem Jeffries. Some Democrats relishing the Republicans’ chaos. Congressman Ted Lieu posted an image of himself holding a bag of popcorn, writing, “About to go to the House floor.” New members of Congress cannot be sworn in until a speaker is elected. There’s no rule requiring the speaker to be a current member of Congress. But experts say bringing in an outsider is an unlikely option.
Barbara Comstock (02:07):
The problem here is this group of sort of malcontents: these sort of dead-enders. They don’t trust anybody. So they certainly aren’t going to trust an outsider. And the kind of person that from the outside that they might have would be I think overwhelmingly opposed by an overwhelming majority of the Republican caucus.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
And while the chaos plays out on Capitol Hill, a very bipartisan event will play out in Kentucky today. President Biden will join Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in the Senator’s home state, to highlight infrastructure spending and a massive bridge rebuilding project.