WASHINGTON — It’s enough to give you Whip-lash.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) dropped out of the race to become the next speaker of the House on Tuesday — just four hours after he was officially nominated — facing sharp opposition from dozens of holdings and criticism from former President Donald Trump.
Emmer, 62, dismissed Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) on the fifth ballot of the closed conference vote around 12 noon, with 117 members pledging their support to the second-ranking House Republican.
By 4:30 p.m., Emmer had withdrawn, leaving his more than 200 colleagues to discuss a dwindling number of alternatives.
The GOP caucus is expected to hold its second nominating forum later Tuesday, lawmakers told The Post, with a fourth nominating vote to follow.
Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) dropped out of the race to become his next House speaker just four hours after he was nominated after facing fierce opposition from dozens of arrests. CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Johnson and Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.) rejoined the race while Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.), who has tried for speaker twice before, removed himself from the running.
Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green (R-Tenn.) also put his name up for consideration, his spokesman confirmed, as did Byron Donalds of Florida, Chuck Fleischmann of Tennessee, and Roger Williams of Texas.
House Republicans have gone three weeks without a leader since Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted on Oct. 3 by eight of their own members, plunging the caucus into chaos.
House Republicans have gone 21 days without a leader since Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted on Oct. 3 by eight of their own members, plunging the caucus into chaos.AP
Johnson won the support of just 97 members after four rounds of early voting eliminated Hern, Scott, Donalds, Jack Bergman of Michigan and Pete Sessions of Texas.
Representative Gary Palmer (R-Ala.) and Rep. And Meuser (R-Pa.) withdrew before voting began at 9 a.m. Tuesday.
But 26 “Never Emmer” holdouts came out ahead in the next call vote to counter the rush in the vote to gauge support on the House floor.
Johnson won the support of just 97 members, following a round of early voting that saw five other GOP speaker candidates eliminated, including Rep. Florida’s Byron Donalds (top left).Getty Images
Many questioned whether Emmer should be their party’s standard bearer, citing his voting record and lack of public support for former President Donald Trump.
“I will vote conservative,” Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), who was one of the holdouts, told reporters after leaving the GOP meeting. “Tom Emmer is not a conservative.”
In a subsequent statement, Banks accused “the left wing of our conference” of blocking Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) in his speaker bid last week and chose “the single most liberal member of leadership to continue business as usual in Washington.”
Johnson and Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.), pictured above right, is reentering the race, sources told The Post, while Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.), who has tried for speaker twice before. vote, no contest.Getty Images
“They are holding our congress hostage and pushing Republicans to betray our voters and abandon our promises to the American people,” Banks said. “I will not follow him.”
Jordan won the support of a majority of conference Republicans before failing in three consecutive rounds of voting on the House floor last week, with at least 20 GOP members casting votes against the Judiciary Committee chairman on each vote.
Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) also received a nomination vote for House speaker on Oct. 11, but never went up for a floor vote.
Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) blamed “the left wing of our conference” for blocking Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), pictured above, from his speaker’s bid last week.AP
Both need at least 217 votes to win the gavel, giving each a narrow margin of error, four votes.
Emmer is the third member of the House Republican leadership to be denied or stripped of the speaker’s gavel, as backlash against his efforts began shortly after the closed nomination session ended.
Trump waded into the fray after the conference vote to denounce Emmer as a “Global RINO” and claimed that choosing him as speaker “would be a tragic mistake!”
“I have many great friends who want to be Speaker of the House, and some are really great Warriors. RINO Tom Emmer, whom I don’t know very well, is not one of them,” the 77-year-old wrote on Truth Social.
Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) also received a nomination vote for House speaker but never went up for a floor vote.Getty Images
“He never respected Trump’s Endorsement Power, or the breadth and scope of MAGA—MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! He fought me all the way, and actually spent more time defending Ilhan Omar, than I did—He’s completely out of touch with the Republican Voters,” the former president added.
“I believe he’s now learned his lesson, because he says he’s Pro-Trump all the way, but who can be sure? Did he just change because that’s what it takes to win?
“The Republican Party can’t take that chance, because that’s not where America’s First Voters belong. Voting for a Globalist RINO like Tom Emmer is a tragic mistake!”
Another House GOP member told The Post that the holdouts expressed concern in their conference meeting about Emmer’s vote to confirm the results of the 2020 presidential election, federally codify same-sex marriage and fund military aid to Ukraine.
Behind the scenes, a Trump surrogate used the phone to catch Emmer, one source told The Post, while others like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is calling for a new speaker candidate.
Trump joined the House speaker fray after the conference voted to denounce Emmer as a “Global RINO” and said that choosing him as speaker “would be a tragic mistake!” Steven Hirsch
“Today I am voting against Tom Emmer on all rounds of voting including the roll call vote because he has a voting record that I cannot support,” Greene posted on X.
“We need a Republican Speaker who reflects the values of Republican voters who can lead our conference.”
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) declared that Emmer does not have “the votes to be speaker” and asked Green to “throw his hat in the ring”.
Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) even echoed him ready to nominate Trump himself from the floor.
“Today I am voting against Tom Emmer on all ballots including the roll call vote because he has a voting record that I cannot support,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) posted on X.REUTERS
Two other sources said that Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who led the charge to oust McCarthy, had tried to shield Emmer from criticism by the former president but ultimately failed.
Tensions have eased somewhat in the conference since McCarthy’s ouster, but some say bad blood between the leadership and rank-and-file members could lead to an “outsider” candidate to fill the post this week.
Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas) said the conference would have to “move forward” if Emmer couldn’t rally support, calling for “fresh eyes” on the situation.
“It’s amazing to me that we’re in a position where you have some people who think that the candidate for speaker has to agree with them on every major issue and most of the minor issues today,” Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) added.
“It will be difficult to get anyone elected.”
Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-NC) has temporarily chaired the House Republican conference, with calls from moderates growing louder with each failed attempt by the speaker to temporarily authorize legislation to pass before the government funding deadline of 17 November.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
