Republicans are meeting at 10 a.m. on Wednesday
House Republicans will meet in a closed-door meeting Wednesday morning to choose their nominee for the speakership after last week’s historic ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
GOP members will hold their internal polls at 10 a.m. after a briefing on the developing crisis in Israel, adding a sense of urgency as lawmakers work to restore order in Congress.
American families in Israel worried about kidnapped loved ones
R-Fla., Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla., told reporters after Tuesday night’s closed-door GOP meeting, “I can’t predict if we’ll have a speaker by the end of this week. If you had asked me a few days ago, before the horrific attack by Hamas on Israel, we would have had a speaker. I estimated it would take a month.”
The two officially announced candidates for the position are Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.
Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C., cast doubt on the possibility of a nominee being chosen by the end of the day, saying, “I believe there are some lawmakers who are concerned about past behavior and internal conflicts, so I think it will happen. It’s more than just a day to get this done. It takes time.”
Another factor in the equation is the anticipated rule vote before the GOP conference votes on whether to raise the threshold for selecting a speaker.
Under current rules, the Speaker nominee is decided by a simple majority vote from the party. However, over 100 lawmakers have endorsed a letter suggesting the limit be raised to 217, a majority in the House.
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, also led the calls for the rule change, saying, “The first thing on our agenda is to fix our rules, which is scheduled for tomorrow morning, I believe.”
Asked if he believed the rule would pass, Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., responded to reporters, “I hope it does.”
Buck added, “If we’re going to have a mess, I think we should have it privately.”
The timing of the full House vote for speaker is still uncertain, but it is expected to be scheduled after Republicans choose their nominee.