Will there ever be a new House speaker?
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 19 October 2023
⏱️ 25 minutes
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Summary
Why the House can’t elect a speaker to lead it. And the temporary solution some Republicans are proposing in the meantime.
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For two weeks, the House of Representatives has had no speaker. After the ouster of Kevin McCarthy, Republicans tried to push a replacement through. First, there was Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and then a second choice emerged: firebrand Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). But after two votes,
Republicans failed to get behind Jordan, a conservative best known as a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus.
Marianna Sotomayor breaks down why Republicans didn’t coalesce behind Jordan and what the party is thinking now about how to legislate without a permanent speaker.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The House of Representatives can't figure out who to put in charge. |
| 0:09.1 | For two weeks, the House has had no speaker. |
| 0:12.2 | That means no one is setting the legislative agenda, no one making sure bills get passed |
| 0:17.5 | through Congress. |
| 0:19.0 | And the House is at the standstill after one man kept trying to get the job, Jim Jordan. |
| 0:25.6 | Last Wednesday, Jordan tried and failed a second time to get the Republican party behind |
| 0:31.2 | him. |
| 0:32.2 | No, I don't know. |
| 0:35.2 | I'm going to guess we'll go tomorrow, but I don't know. |
| 0:37.4 | That's against. |
| 0:38.4 | I don't know. |
| 0:39.4 | Okay. |
| 0:40.4 | Thank you. |
| 0:41.4 | That was Bob Good, a Virginia, one of the staunchest supporters of Jim Jordan. |
| 0:44.9 | You could find. |
| 0:45.9 | He looks demoralized, defeated, and he's just off the house floor, and we are milling |
| 0:51.0 | about in this sort of chaotic scene. |
| 0:54.3 | As Paul Cain, senior congressional correspondent for the Post, and he was up on Capitol Hill |
| 0:59.4 | Wednesday, witnessing this drama unfolding. |
| 1:03.0 | Any idea what you're doing next? |
| 1:05.0 | Well, there's food, so they have to pack this for themselves. |
| 1:10.0 | Okay. |
... |
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