(LibertySociety.com) – Now that California Republican Representative Kevin McCarthy is no longer Speaker of the House for the 118th Congress, other members are stepping up in hopes of being selected. While Ohio Representative Jim Jordan was adamantly opposed to being nominated back in January, it was likely due to his support of McCarthy for the position. During the debate on October 3 before the vote that ousted McCarthy, Jordan went to bat for him again. After Florida Representative Matt Gaetz led the charge to end McCarthy’s speakership, he immediately threw his support behind Jordan. Kentucky Republican Representative Thomas Massie also quickly endorsed Jordan after he announced he would be vying for Speaker.
Jordan is a hardliner who is often attacked by the Democrats and the mainstream media because he is relentless in his pursuit of accountability for what he views as the misdeeds of Democrats and the Biden administration in particular. He chairs the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government and the House Judiciary Committee. He has exposed the collaboration between social media platforms and the federal government during hearings that have aided in the censorship lawsuit Missouri v. Biden. That suit is successfully making its way through the courts, exposing the censorship of conservatives leading up to and following the 2020 presidential election.
Hours after Jordan announced his bid, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise added his name to the running. Scalise released a lengthy statement, encouraging his colleagues to come together and mend the rifts in the Conference.
Scalise has represented the state of Louisiana in Congress since 2008. He was shot at the Congressional Baseball Game by a Bernie Sanders supporter on June 14, 2017, and was hospitalized for over a month. He returned to Congress in September 2017. He has been in a leadership position since 2014, serving as the House Minority and Majority Whip up until he ascended to House Majority Leader.
Republicans have signaled that they intend to unite behind a single candidate before heading to the floor to publicly nominate and vote for a new Speaker. Notably, Republican Representative Troy Nehls announced on October 5 that he would be nominating former President Trump during discussions with his colleagues. Trump has not ruled out the possibility.
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