Some conservatives have taken to calling it a “hostage situation” in the House chamber as GOP Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy went down yet again in defeat after three more rounds of voting.
While it’s easy to say McCarthy was “defeated,” it’s worth pointing out he’s still getting 90% or more of Republican support. His only catch is that with such a tight GOP majority, he can’t manage to get to the necessary magic number of 218 with everyone in the room.
Therein lies, perhaps, the eventual maneuver that could end this standoff. If A number of Democrats decide to vote “present” instead of for Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, it would lower the threshold needed for McCarthy to take the gavel. So far, the Democratic caucus seems unified in letting this Republican trainwreck keep repeating itself day after day.
It’s clear, however, that some McCarthy backers and pundits are getting irritated. Huckabee was on Fox News during the afternoon repeating these sentiments on-air:
The tiny group of GOP tots having a tantrum over @kevinomccarthy have made their point, but it's time to quit holding the whole country hostage w/ these dead-end tactics. Some of the hold-outs are friends & people I supported, but ENOUGH! Vote @kevinomccarthy & do your job!
— Gov. Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) January 4, 2023
A number of others, including several Representatives backing McCarthy, echoed similar statements. Essentially, they argue, McCarthy has put in a lot of work over the years and has the backing of 90% of the caucus, so it’s time to relent and move on. The point was made, some concessions were achieved, and now it’s time to get back to business and get things in order.
Rep. Mike Gallager, a backer of McCarthy, explained that while the process looks bad, it’s merely an example of democracy which is often a messy process:
Gallagher: Yesterday our colleagues on the other side of the aisle were tweeting their bags of popcorn that they had out. They love it. pic.twitter.com/ycnsUtg4I7
— Acyn (@Acyn) January 4, 2023
It’s true, democracy is often messy. It’s filled with ebbs and flows of power, raucous and passionate debate, and often even the most unpleasant of circumstances, such as this, where people with very opposing views must somehow find consensus.
I’d give you the vote totals for rounds four, five, and six, but they look identical to yesterday’s numbers. McCarthy is topping out around 201 votes with another 20 going to someone else and at least one Republican voting “present” as a protest to the whole charade.
Perhaps the question worth asking is why McCarthy, for apparently as shrewd as he is, wasn’t prepared for this eventuality and working hard over the last two months to avert this prolonged and embarrassing process. How did he not know it would be this hard to assume the role of Speaker?
Will this be a preview of what Thursday looks like or is someone about to blink?
Three votes on Wednesday, three identical results – and McCarthy is no closer to being speaker of the House.
McCarthy again claimed only 201 votes on the sixth ballot, just as he did on the two previous rounds Wednesday, according to the House clerk. McCarthy also fell short in three votes on Tuesday; he needs 218 to prevail, and it’s unclear how he can get there.
A group of 20 conservatives again voted for Byron Donalds on the sixth ballot, as they did on ballots four and five.
A former McCarthy supporter, Victoria Spartz, voted “present.”
Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries remained the top vote getter, with the support of 212 Democratic colleagues.
While a lot of screaming and yelling is happening in the pundit class calling for the 20 holdouts to give in and back McCarthy, no one seems to want to budge. Can this really go on a third and/or fourth day without someone deciding that maybe it’s time to negotiate?
Speaking of negotiation, what’s McCarthy doing to end the standoff other than taking an approach of waiting them out? Take the reigns, Kevin, and start leading your caucus. Maybe you’ll win some support back.
Maybe the third time’s the charm for McCarthy or maybe the dam will break in another direction to clear the log jam. So long as McCarthy still has Trump backing him, which, at the moment, he does, it’s likely he’ll continue standing against the MAGA rebellion.
The House will reconvene once more tonight before throwing in the towel and starting again on Thursday.
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