U.S. Politics January 2023: Kevin McCarthy's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Life

Which is to say, it seems there's an opening for people to change their protest votes before all's said and done?

― عباس کیارستمی (Eric H.), Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Now that the floodgates have opened this looks less likely. The opposition will grow.

My guess is we endure several speakers before the 2024 election. Maybe one of them will be Speaker Jeffries.

Down 16 now.

McCarthy tries to convince all but 9 of the reps who voted for others to switch? Someone more palatable to both sides is nominated?

Here's why it's bad for McCarthy:

Ralph Norman votes for Andy Biggs. Norman had said he would vote against McCarthy on the first ballot.

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) January 3, 2023

I see. Jim Jordan could ask the people who voted for him to throw their votes to McCarthy, but Biggs now has enough votes to keep McCarthy and Jeffries at a tie.

So the ultimate outcome is that we get House Speaker Scalise, leaving most everyone wishing it had been McCarthy?

Since they removed the metal detectors, we can only hope that means that this will end in a protracted gun battle.

Scalise has the experience then

lol you beat me to it

McCarthy and Jordan heading off somewhere together

McCarthy and Jordan heading off somewhere together

Jordan's taking him to the showers to "extract some concessions".

inserting some contractual obligations

Vacating the chair

🚨🚨 NEWS: Sources tell me TEAM MCCARTHY wants to move DIRECTLY into second ballot.

JORDAN making the rounds on the floor to whip his supporters.

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) January 3, 2023

Final numbers:

MY UNOFFICIAL VOTE COUNT:

Jeffries: 212
McCarthy: 203
Biggs: 10
Jordan: 6
Banks: 1
Zeldin: 1
Donalds: 1

MCCARTHY LOSES 19 ON FIRST BALLOT

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) January 3, 2023

Biggs Banks, the lost No Limit Soldier

Can't the GOP just split up right now instead of sometime in the not too distant future?

I think we have to wait until Trump announces his 3rd party run

MCCARTHY acknowledges behind closed-doors there are likely 20 or so members voting against him, not 5

— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) January 3, 2023

Clearly a victory for McCarthy, since it was only actually 19.

McCarthy now visibly whispering (sweet nothings?) in MTG's ear

So close to losing a full 10% of his caucus...

Anything he promises results in the dilution of his power lol. This is all stupid. Meteor, hit us, please.

Really wanted "JORDAN making the rounds on the floor to whip his supporters" to end "with a wet gym towel."

Is Kevin McCarthy’s defeat Biden’s Katrina?

— New York Times Pitchbot (@DougJBalloon) January 3, 2023

Korea, Career, Korea, whatever

What a weird year this already is

OK, I've lost interest now

would Jim JOrdan as speaker just help speed dissolution? I'm sure he'd focus on really important things.

just got home after a few hours of not checking my phone. lol at him losing 19 votes. also lol at news that Jordan is trying to persuade his goon squad to vote for McCarthy, and instead, some of those goons are voting for Jordan instead. McCarthy has already lost this second round, as well.

looking forward to seeing how long Mccarthy's pledge to remove the wheel from his "car" and slam on the accelerator pedal will last

So what's the play now? All the anti-McCarthy people vote for Jordan and then Jordan throws his votes to McCarthy?

how does the second round work exactly

there is no plan, now. really, i don't think anyone knows. i don't know how this ever resolves, unless 19 people in mccarthy's own caucus suddenly figure out that they're incredibly dumb

can Jeffries briefly pretend to be a racist bigot for 5 minutes and con people into votes

xp I don't think you'd go broke betting against their ever figuring that out.

how far does this go before McCarthy approaches Jeffries with help on a compromise?

Strom Thurmond nominated

i guess if i had to bet, i would only bet $1, and i would wildly speculate that the only person who the current house GOP could agree on is going to be someone who isn't in congress (e.g., Upton, and lol Trump)

again, i think the astonishing thing is that mccarthy already bent over backwards to show himself to have absolutely no spine and to make clear that white supremacists would be running the show. i don't know what else the freedom caucus could want, they got their ideal stooge to take the heat for their corruption

josh marshall:

One of the core dynamics here is that, McCarthy’s strategy was to give the radicals anything and everything. Because that was the case, he had nothing really left to give. That’s not the only dynamic here. But it’s an important part of this. He enabled them. They want to make trouble. And the only trouble left to make was to destroy McCarthy himself.

so McCarthy's already lost again. Too bad they have to go through the whole roll call.

the idea with these repeat votes is that people change their vote after they've made their point. is *anyone* changing their vote on this round?

yes, but not in a way that helps mccarthy. Good and Gosar went from supporting Biggs (lol) to Jordan.

(e.g., Upton, and lol Trump)

Upton Sinclair as house speaker? I like it!

xp that seems like progress for mccarthy given that jordan nominated him this round. not a lot admittedly.

Jim Jordan is a gigantic piece of shit. he nominated McCarthy again for this second round, and voted from him). but it seems likely that Jordan was aware that he would become an alternative candidate during this process. by nominating mccarthy and then voting for him during failed second vote, maybe Jordan's thought (his first one) is that he can later claim to be a consensus candidate that showed real support for mccarthy, etc, but ultimately had to bow to the GOP's will to choose Jordan instead, a role he would reluctantly accept out of respect to patriotism, etc etc

but it goes without saying that there is no way that Jordan will become speaker of the house. so that whole plan is doomed as well

they should elect McCarthy, then immediately vote to vacate the chair. that would be funnier

be hilarious if a bunch of people abstained and didn't realize that only a quorum of votes cast are required (not total members of the House), and Jeffries wins

as far as the '5 votes to introduce motion to vacate' thing goes, caek otm upthread that having 19 people vote against mccarthy in the first round suggests that it's an incredibly bad, short-sighted idea. if mccarthy ends up prevailing, i would guess that he'd just abandon that whole pledge. it hasn't been adopted yet, and he would be digging his own grave to allow it

a speaker of the House has never been removed and the ability for the House to do so is theoretically, based on a memo from Jefferson. it would probably get tangled up in Court.

*theoretical

i saw it described as handing every member an signed, undated resignation letter which sounds about right.