Nine House Republicans issued a stern warning against electing House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to the position, adding a new twist to the contentious battle between Republicans over who will be the next speaker of the House. McCarthy requires 218 votes, but the GOP only has 222 seats; five defections would prevent him from gaining the position.
Representatives Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, Paul Gosar of Arizona, Chip Roy of Texas, Dan Bishop of North Carolina, Andy Harris of Maryland, and Andrew Clyde of Georgia, along with Representative-elects Andy Ogles of Tennessee, Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, and Eli Crane of Arizona, penned the open letter on January 1, a day after Kevin McCarthy wrote a letter titled “Restoring the People’s House and Ending Business as Usual” in which he pledged to improve.
Even though the House has 435 members, with one vacancy since the passing of Rep. Donald McEachin (D-VA), some may not be present; others may only vote “present,” which would result in their vote not being counted. This would result in a lower total than 434, requiring fewer than 218 votes to win the speakership. In addition, the representatives-elect is not House members until the speaker swears in them, so their potential votes may be irrelevant.
“Mr. McCarthy’s title, “Restoring the People’s House and Ending Business as Usual,” is a welcome and telling admission of the longstanding and deep dysfunction of the House of Representatives and a statement of aspiration to begin to set it right in the 118th Congress,” the nine Republicans stated, before cautioning, “Regrettably, despite some progress achieved, Mr. McCarthy’s statement comes almost impossibly late to address continued deficiencies ahead of the opening of the 119
“At this point, it should not come as a surprise that the expressions of vague hopes reflected in far too many of the crucial points still up for debate are inadequate,” they charged. “This is especially true regarding Mr. McCarthy’s candidacy for speaker, as the times call for a radical departure from the status quo and not a continuation of past and ongoing Republican failures. McCarthy, who has been a member of the senior House Republican leadership for the past 14 years, is solely responsible for addressing the dysfunction he now admits has persisted throughout his tenure.
As a result, there is no way to determine whether promises are kept or broken. “Additionally, some members of the Republican conference have stated that, in the absence of unanimous support for Mr. McCarthy, they would reject even the progress made so far regarding rules and changes to bill text availability, single subject and germaneness requirements, and other structural changes for the good of the body and each member.”
