Republican Jim Jordan loses first vote for US House speaker

WASHINGTON, Oct 17 (Reuters) – Combative right-wing Republican Jim Jordan didn’t win a primary vote on Tuesday to function speaker of the U.S. Home of Representatives, however extra votes had been anticipated to observe that might put on down his opponents.

The Ohio lawmaker backed by former President Donald Trump gained 200 votes, in need of the 217 wanted to win the job, as 20 of his fellow Republican voted in opposition to him. All 212 Democrats voted for his or her chief, Hakeem Jeffries.

The loss signifies that for now the Home stays leaderless, because it has been since a handful of Republican hardliners engineered Kevin McCarthy’s ouster as speaker two weeks in the past. That has left Congress unable to answer wars within the Center East and Ukraine, with only a month to go earlier than the U.S. authorities faces one other partial shutdown deadline.

It isn’t clear what number of of Jordan’s Republican opponents would maintain agency in subsequent votes. McCarthy by no means obtained lower than 200 votes in 15 rounds over 4 days in January.

If Jordan prevails, a conservative who has spent years combating with leaders of his personal social gathering might find yourself in probably the most highly effective jobs in Washington, placing him second in line for the presidency behind the vice chairman.

“He’s a patriot, an America First warrior who wins the hardest of fights,” Republican Consultant Elise Stefanik stated as she nominated Jordan for speaker on the Home ground.

Seven Republicans voted for Steve Scalise, the No. 2 Home Republican whose personal bid for speaker fell aside final week and 6 voted as an alternative for McCarthy. Three Republicans voted for Lee Zeldin, who retired from Congress in January, and Republican Representatives Tom Cole, Tom Emmer, Thomas Massie and Mike Garcia obtained one vote every.

“It is clear that the Republican convention continues to be divided, and I am deeply involved that the chaos of the previous few weeks would solely proceed if Congressman Jordan turns into speaker,” Consultant Lori Chavez-DeRemer stated on social media after voting for McCarthy.

McCarthy and Scalise each voted for Jordan.

Jordan, a founding father of the hard-right Home Freedom Caucus, has for a lot of his profession been seen as a divisive power on Capitol Hill, tangling with Republicans and Democrats alike. However, he gained the Republican nomination for speaker final Friday and has been consolidating help from former opponents within the social gathering.

Republicans management the Home by a slender 221-212 margin, giving them little room for error on divisive votes like this one.

After the vote, Jordan could possibly be seen on the Home ground speaking with lawmakers who had voted in opposition to him.

New Republican challengers might emerge if Jordan doesn’t decide up help, together with Patrick McHenry, who’s briefly filling the speaker’s chair, and No. 3 Home Republican Tom Emmer.

Jordan’s supporters say he could be an efficient advocate for spending cuts and different Republican priorities in negotiations with Democratic President Joe Biden and the Senate, which can also be managed by Democrats.

‘DOING TRUMP’S BIDDING’

Democrats have recoiled at Jordan’s candidacy, portray him as an extremist who would take orders from former President Donald Trump.

Democratic Consultant Pete Aguilar stated on the Home ground that Jordan’s election would present america’ enemies that “the very individuals who search to undermine democracy are rewarded with positions of immense energy. We’re speaking about somebody who has spent their complete profession attempting to carry our nation again.”

Jeffries has advised a bipartisan deal that might give extra powers to the non permanent speaker, based on a Democrat who spoke on situation of anonymity.

Jordan comes on the job from a profoundly completely different angle from different leaders in Congress, who usually wield affect by elevating cash and maintaining their social gathering united.

A fixture on conservative media shops, Jordan amplified Trump’s false claims of election fraud in 2020. As chair of the Home Judiciary Committee, he’s serving to lead an impeachment inquiry into Biden that Democrats decry as baseless.

He helped discovered the Home Freedom Caucus, which then-Speaker John Boehner dubbed “legislative terrorists” earlier than members of that group pressured him to retire. Jordan was an architect of presidency shutdowns in 2013 and 2018.

Jordan had a extra productive relationship with McCarthy, who was pressured out by a small group of Republican insurgents.

Republicans nominated Scalise to succeed McCarthy final week, however he deserted his bid after he was unable to consolidate help – a improvement that some Republicans blame on Jordan and his supporters.

Earlier than getting into politics, Jordan served as a wrestling coach at Ohio State College. Former college students in 2018 accused him of turning a blind eye to sexual abuse of faculty wrestlers by the wrestling staff’s physician. He denied these allegations and a college investigation discovered no arduous proof that he knew of the abuse.

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