Republican leader Kevin McCarthy failed anew to win the House speakership in dramatic fourth round voting as the chamber plunged into political chaos.
Republican leader Kevin McCarthy failed anew to win the House speakership Wednesday in dramatic fourth round voting as the chamber plunged into Day Two of the new Congress with no end in sight for the political chaos that GOP conservatives have created.
"Sure, it looks messy," said Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis. But democracy is messy, he said. "The American people are in charge."But the dynamic proved no different from Day One, as Democrats re-upped their leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, for speaker, and a right-flank leader from the Freedom Caucus offered a challenge to McCarthy - nominating Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., in another history making moment. Both Jeffries and Donalds are Black.
"Today, is that the day I wanted to have? No," McCarthy told reporters late Tuesday at the Capitol after a series of closed-door meetings. Asked if he would drop out, McCarthy said, "It's not going to happen." Tensions flared among the new House majority as their campaign promises stalled out. Without a speaker, the House cannot fully form - swearing in its members, naming its committee chairmen, engaging in floor proceedings and launching investigations of the Biden administration. Lawmakers' families had waited around, as what's normally a festive day descended into chaos, with kids playing in the aisles or squirming in parents' arms.
In many ways, the challenge from the far-right was reminiscent of the last time Republicans seized power in the House, when tea party Republicans brought hardball politics and shutdown government after winning control in the 2010 midterm elections. But the holdouts forced a third and final round of voting before Republican leaders quickly adjourned Tuesday evening.
To win support, McCarthy has already agreed to many of the demands of the Freedom Caucus, who have been agitating for rules changes and other concessions that give rank-and=file more influence in the legislative process. He has been here before, having bowed out of the speakers race in 2015 when he failed to win over conservatives.
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