Constitution

Steve Scalise might drop out of Speaker race

Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), who narrowly won the nomination to be Speaker of the House, lacks the votes to prevail in the full House.

Published

7 months ago

October 12, 2023

Terry A. Hurlbut

Steve Scalise might drop out of Speaker race

Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), who narrowly won the Republican nomination to become Speaker of the House, might not run for Speaker after all, according to The Gateway Pundit. He seems to have found himself unable to secure the 217 votes he would need to win.

Steve Scalise hits the wall

Scalise, as House Republican Floor Leader, is second-in-command in House leadership, behind the Speaker. The post of Speaker fell vacant after Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) “moved to vacate the chair.” Steve Scalise, competing with Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), won the nomination by seven votes. Furthermore, this happened in closed session.

(Former President Donald J. Trump, whom several House members might have liked to see become Speaker, declined, and endorsed Jordan.)

But earlier today, The Gateway Pundit observed that Scalise doesn’t have the votes. (The House declined to vote on a new Speaker yesterday afternoon.) Eight House Members have indicated they will vote for someone else. That includes Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.), who plans to vote to reinstate Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as Speaker. It also includes these seven, who plan to vote for Jim Jordan. They are Representatives:

Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.),
Bob Good (R-Va.),
Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.),
Nancy Mace (R-N.C.),
Max Miller (R-Ohio),
Lloyd Smucker (R-Pa.), and
Keith Self (R-Texas).

Strangely, Rep. Gaetz was planning to vote for Steve Scalise.

As it happens, six more Representatives hadn’t made up their minds. They are Representatives:

Ken Buck (R-Colo.),
Michael Cloud (R-Texas),
Thomas Massie (R-Ky.),
Chip Roy (R-Texas),
Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.), and
Mike Turner (R-Ohio).

The House Republican Conference currently has 221 members, so Steve Scalise could afford to lose four of them. He definitely lacks eight, so even if the undecideds broke for him, he can’t win.

Breaking news

User ALX posted a bulletin from Newsmax TV saying they expected Steve Scalise to quit the race.

BREAKING: Newsmax reports that Rep. Steve Scalise will likely not be able to secure 217 votes and is expected to drop out of the race for Speaker of the House. pic.twitter.com/8nTDfER2Zq— ALX 🎃 (@alx) October 12, 2023

Former CNN host Lou Dobbs earlier encouraged Republicans to nominate someone other than Scalise.

Scalise is a nice guy but let's remember, Scalise is a descendant of Kevin McCarthy, a descendant of Paul Ryan, a descendant of John Boehner. Republicans: This is your chance to end the Swamp's corrupt business as usual — it's time for real change! #TheGreatAmericaShow https://t.co/stPxEf7MHr— Lou Dobbs (@LouDobbs) October 4, 2023

After Scalise narrowly secured the nomination, several influencers – including Rep. Greene – clearly were balking.

And now they still don’t have the votes to even take it to the floor and vote.

Train wreck.— Catturd ™ (@catturd2) October 12, 2023

This is everything you need to know about Steve Scalise for Speaker

Can’t happen

Has to be Jim Jordan to avoid WW3 pic.twitter.com/9xAnxdERXz— DC_Draino (@DC_Draino) October 11, 2023

I just voted for Jim Jordan for Speaker on a private ballot in conference, and I will be voting for Jim Jordan on the House floor.

I like Steve Scalise, and I like him so much that I want to see him defeat cancer more than sacrifice his health in the most difficult position in…— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) October 11, 2023

I will be voting for Jim Jordan to be Speaker of the House on the floor when the vote is called.

In conference, Jordan received 99 votes and Scalise received 113.

We had a chance to unify the party behind closed doors, but the Swamp and K Street lobbyists prevented that.

The…— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) October 11, 2023

This is a reference to Scalise’ diagnosis of plasma cell myeloma.

I will be voting for Jim Jordan for Speaker on the floor.— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) October 11, 2023

I voted for Jim Jordan in the Republican Conference today. I also voted for us to stay in conference until someone gets the required support of 217. No one received a majority of 221 eligible voting members. I am still supporting Jordan. The country cannot afford the status quo.— Congressman Bob Good (@RepBobGood) October 11, 2023

The House GOP Conference is broken. So we oust Kevin McCarthy and all other leaders are rewarded with promotions? How does that make sense or change anything? We need to chart a different path forward. In the meantime, I plan to vote for Jim Jordan on the floor.— Rep. Lloyd Smucker (@RepSmucker) October 11, 2023

While I had hoped to support the Republican Conference nominee for Speaker, it has become evident that all the agreements and Rules with the former Speaker are null and void.

In January, we held the line for a Rules package that restores power back to the people. We need a…— Rep. Keith Self (@RepKeithSelf) October 12, 2023

Majority Leader Steve Scalise has won the Republican nomination for speaker of the House, but his election by the full body is by no means assured. Matt Gaetz Responds to questions: pic.twitter.com/5GLMKjEN69— The Epoch Times (@EpochTimes) October 11, 2023

Oh, it's a no-brainer.

Let me tell you about this fantastic tool called the Liberty Score® by Conservative Review. It assigns grades to members of Congress based on their top 50 votes over a period of six years. This way, you can easily see if a lawmaker is really supporting… pic.twitter.com/qzwcsWuO4L— Jewels Jones (@JewelsJonesLive) October 11, 2023

That last post is especially important, mentioning as it does the Liberty Score® for federal officeholders. Steve Scalise scored 58%, only four points above McCarthy’s 54%. Rep. Jordan scores 94%.

Terry A. Hurlbut

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Terry A. Hurlbut has been a student of politics, philosophy, and science for more than 35 years. He is a graduate of Yale College and has served as a physician-level laboratory administrator in a 250-bed community hospital. He also is a serious student of the Bible, is conversant in its two primary original languages, and has followed the creation-science movement closely since 1993.