Friday brought two significant developments in the quest for a candidate to fill the Speaker of the House seat. First, going into the 12th round of voting Friday, Kevin McCarthy picked up 14 new votes for his bid as Speaker.

The following Republicans changed their votes:
Rep. Dan Bishop (N.C.), Rep.-elect John Brecheen (Okla.), Rep. Michael Cloud (Texas), Rep. Andrew Clyde (Ga.), Rep. Byron Donalds (Fla.), Rep.-elect Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.), Rep.-elect Keith Self (Texas), Rep. Mary Miller (Ill.), Rep. Ralph Norman (S.C.), Rep. Scott Perry (Pa.), Rep. Chip Roy (Texas), Rep. Victoria Spartz (Ind.), Rep. Paul Gosar (Ariz.), Rep. Andy Ogles (Tenn.)

Rep. Chip Roy had previously nominated Rep. Byron Donalds for Speaker. Roy noted that for the first time in history, there were two black Americans placed in the nominations for Speaker of the House. His announcement yielded a standing ovation. However, he quickly added, “we do not seek to judge people by the color of their skin, but rather the content of their character.” Roy praised Donalds, saying he was nominating him because “This country needs a change. This country needs leadership that does not reflect this city, this town that is badly broken.”

Roy said that the House rules needed to change, bringing all the Representatives together to debate issues like Ukraine, and Donalds has a proven track record.

Yet in the 12th round, McCarthy was somehow able to win Donaldson’s and Roy’s votes. There is speculation that McCarthy has only been able to secure their support through generous House rules concessions.

On the 13th round, McCarthy was able to add one more supporting vote from Rep. Andy Harris (Md.).

Between the two different votes in the chamber, McCarthy picked up a total of 15 additional votes for Speaker, moving him closer to grasping the Speaker’s gavel.

Yet as McCarthy is now within four votes of winning, Kari Lake and Gen. Michael Flynn confirmed the second significant development. President Donald Trump has now said he is willing to serve as Speaker. Lake and Flynn confirmed the news to The Western Journal that President Trump would accept the role if elected. Kari Lake said,

“I talked to President Trump last night and told him he would be great, and he should do it,” adding, “[I said] that he could take Congress from the most hated branch of [government] to the favorite branch.”

On January 5, Matt Gaetz nominated President Trump as Speaker, saying that President Trump was able to work with Democrats and Republicans. He also spoke about the numerous ways Trump helped our economy prosper, put the American people first, confronted China, and took care of veterans. He added, “President Trump, I believe, is the first president in my lifetime who did not start any new wars.”

 

Trump has been a vocal supporter of McCarthy, calling on the Republican holdouts to give him their votes. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a McCarthy supporter, thanked Trump for his help in endorsing him.
“President Trump offering his support in this race, helped the GOP stay strong, unified, and closer to stopping the Democrat’s destruction of America!

Article 1, Section 5, Clause 5 of the U.S. Constitution denotes, “the House of Representatives shall [choose] their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.” The clause allows the House to elect Donald Trump, even though he is not a sitting member of Congress. The House will reconvene for their 14th vote on Friday night.

Join The Conversation. Leave a Comment.


We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.