House Speaker: Johnson Elected Speaker of the House, Ending Weeks of Chaos The New York Times

Table Of Content

• Boebert says McCarthy 'doesn't have 218' votes needed to secure speakership
• McCarthy confident he'll clinch speaker's gavel Friday night: 'I'll have the votes'
• No secret deals for Emmer, colleague says
• Boebert nominates Rep.-elect Kevin Hern as alternative speaker candidate to McCarthy
• McCarthy, House Freedom Caucus negotiations in a 'good spot,' but 'no deal' yet, sources say

"The American people's business is too urgent in this moment. The hour is late. The crisis is great." The members who ousted McCarthy also told reporters that they have no regrets now about ousting McCarthy. The challenge for House Republicans is they still have eight more spending bills to pass including two that have been stuck in committee because of disagreements within GOP ranks. In his letter to colleagues, Johnson set out an aggressive time table for passing the bills, but the issue will be finding a way to pass the legislation in just a narrow GOP majority.

Boebert says McCarthy 'doesn't have 218' votes needed to secure speakership

"The president needs to tell Kevin McCarthy that sir, you do not have the votes and it's time to withdraw." McCarthy was on track to once again to fall short of the 218 votes he needs to become the next House speaker. He can only lose four GOP votes, and as the sixth round of voting continued, he had already lost five votes. Called on former President Trump to pressure Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy to withdraw his name from consideration to be the next House Speaker, and instead nominated Rep.-elect Byron Donalds, R-Fla in the fifth round of voting. Rep.-elect Cori Bush, a Democrat from Missouri, called Republican Rep.-elect Byron Donalds of Florida "a prop" on Wednesday after the House Freedom Caucus nominated him to be Speaker of the House. Members-elect of the 118th Congress were expected to vote to adjourn the body after the sixth vote to allow GOP lawmakers to meet and try again to reach some agreement on a consensus candidate.

House Democrats help Johnson avoid defeat on foreign aid bills, despite GOP defections - ABC News

House Democrats help Johnson avoid defeat on foreign aid bills, despite GOP defections.

Posted: Fri, 19 Apr 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]

McCarthy confident he'll clinch speaker's gavel Friday night: 'I'll have the votes'

The voting for House speaker has entered its fourth day and its 12th round as McCarthy attempts to wrangle the 218 votes necessary to win the speakership. Six members voted “present,” including notable holdouts Reps-elect Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., and Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., allowing McCarthy to take a majority of those voting for a candidate. But a Jordan speakership would also come with baggage that could present a challenge to Republicans as they labor to hold their House majority in next year’s election, an effort that will likely hinge on drawing support from moderate voters in swing districts. Arriving to the vote Tuesday, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told reporters that he believes Jordan can clinch the gavel on the first ballot. He could afford to lose no more than three votes and still win the speaker’s gavel. Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida was among 20 Republicans who voted for alternatives to Jordan in Tuesday’s House speaker vote, dooming his bid on the first round of balloting.

No secret deals for Emmer, colleague says

Republicans have 222 seats, but with 20 Republicans opposing McCarthy, it seemed clear that either new concessions from McCarthy would be needed to win them over, or perhaps some middle ground candidate. Kevin McCarthy will try again on Wednesday to secure enough votes to become House speaker. The House abruptly adjourned Tuesday afternoon after three failed attempts to elect a speaker. The House GOP caucus will meet early Wednesday morning to strategize before returning to Capitol Hill at noon to resume voting. Rep. Scott Perry and other Republicans appear ready to keep resisting Kevin McCarthy's speakership bid on Wednesday.

Boebert nominates Rep.-elect Kevin Hern as alternative speaker candidate to McCarthy

On his way out, Good told reporters, "You never have to as me again if I'm a 'no.' I will never vote for Kevin McCarthy." Democrats continue to give Rep.-elect Hakeem Jeffries of New York their unanimous support for speaker. A 21st GOP lawmaker, Rep.-elect Victoria Spartz of Indiana voted for McCarthy earlier this week but more recently has been voting "present" to reflect her assessment that Republicans need to confer further before voting.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy says congressmen shouldn't go home until their "work" is "done" in electing a Speaker of the House. Donalds has stated interest in joining the CBC since the 2020 campaign trail. Despite repeated attempts to gain membership, he has yet to be accepted into the caucus. At the start of the 118th Congress, Democrats celebrated reaching 58 members in the CBC, and a record number of Black members elected to Congress. The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) inaugurated a record-setting number of members this week, despite denying Republican Rep.-elect Byron Donalds. Fox News' Aishah Hasnie asked him if he's cut a deal yet to which he replied "no."

Rep.-elect Victoria Spartz, R-Ind., who previously voted for McCarthy, voted "present" in the fourth, fifth and sixth series. The signed statement offered support to the “20 courageous members of Congress,” who voted against McCarthy. To bow out of the speakership race are former Reagan administration Attorney General Ed Meese, Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, and David McIntosh, president of Club for Growth.

Republicans move to second round of voting; Fleischmann eliminated

Even as some lawmakers have grumbled about the revival of earmarking, neither House nor Senate Republicans have issued a binding ban against including them in spending bills. Several Republicans in both chambers joined Democrats in securing earmarks in the roughly $1.7 trillion government funding package that became law last month, with more than 7,200 projects in the bill. WASHINGTON — The House was in an uproar, unable to settle on its new speaker, forcing roll call vote after roll call vote. The Senate had quietly slipped out of the city while insurgents in the House demanded more power as the nation watched anxiously.

After the House gaveled in, lawmakers were told they could expect a vote on a Republican motion to adjourn, which would have stalled the fourth vote on the election of the speaker. However, the GOP motion to adjourn was not immediately offered as the votes may not have been there and McCarthy allies balked. Republicans control 222 votes in the House and can only lose four of those votes if one of their candidates is going to win the minimum 218 votes needed to secure a majority and win the speaker’s gavel. McCarthy has failed to gain the votes needed to be elected speaker over the past two and a half days and is on track to lose the seventh vote as well.

Majority Leader Steve Scalise threw his support behind Johnson late Tuesday, calling him a "dear friend" in a statement. "Due in large part to those usurpations, the election of 2020 has been riddled with an unprecedented number of serious allegations of fraud and irregularities," the House Republicans alleged. The brief claimed that the officials and courts in each of the battleground states unconstitutionally usurped the power granted to state legislators by changing election rules in 2020. Rep. Elise Stefanik, the chair of the House Republican conference, will deliver the speech nominating Johnson for speaker, according to a Republican aide. Johnson claimed to reporters that he's never opposed funding or aid for Ukraine.

Massie suggested that a vote to oust Johnson could result in Republicans ending up in the minority; the balance of power is so close in the House that it wouldn't take much movement to elect Jeffries as speaker. Voting to remove Johnson would lead the House to hold vote after vote "sometimes two times, three times a day," Massie noted. Thus voting for Jeffries just to end the chaos might start to look appealing to a handful of Republicans. Before the vote, the House Democratic leadership urged their caucus to vote "yes" on the motion to vacate. "The reason Kevin McCarthy went down today is because nobody trusts Kevin McCarthy," Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida told reporters after the vote.

The House is now voting on whether or not to adjourn until noon ET on Friday. Rep. Kevin McCarthy and his allies had wanted to avoid another in-person conference-wide meeting after Tuesday's in-person meeting led to private tensions spilling out into public view. House Republicans are scheduled to hold a conference call Friday, a source familiar tells CNN.

California uses a top-two election format in which only the two leading vote-getters advance to the November general election, regardless of party. Voting has been underway for weeks in Southern California, where voters are making decisions on local races, seven statewide ballot measures and Congressional contests that will determine the balance of power between Democrats and Republicans. Senate, governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, controller, treasurer, attorney general, and races for U.S. representative in Congress, state senator and state Assemblymember. Ballots can be placed in drop boxes or submitted in person at voting centers.

It also means that the endorsement by former President Trump didn’t move the meter. The House is expected to convene at noon ET to vote again on the speaker of the House. Incoming House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., was nominated by the Democrats to the speaker position.

His lack of legislative experience has been a criticism that moderates and Democrats have deployed against him in recent days. But his office has pushed back, saying he has been instrumental in getting legislation through the committees he serves on without putting his name on it. Jordan says he’s been picking up support every day and feels good ahead of the vote for House speaker. Donald Trump is reupping his support of his top ally in the House ahead of the vote for speaker. He was abruptly appointed as speaker pro tempore last week following the unprecedented ouster of Kevin McCarthy from the top spot.