Are You Frustrated At The GOP For The House Speaker Mess?

In a tense private meeting this past Thursday, Jim Jordan, the head of the House Judiciary Committee from Ohio, decided he’ll try for the third time on Friday to become the Speaker of the House. But people think he’s going to be unsuccessful again.

Here’s why this is important: Jordan didn’t get as many votes the second time as he did the first time around. Both parties, the Republicans and Democrats, thought about giving more power to Patrick McHenry, who’s kind of a temporary Speaker. But a lot of people didn’t like that idea.

At first, Jordan thought about stepping back from trying to be Speaker and supported the idea of boosting McHenry’s role for a while. However, some of the more conservative members didn’t like the idea of working together with the Democrats. One of these members, Tom Emmer, who has a significant role in the House, openly said on Thursday, “We should never, ever agree to a government where Democrats have a say. We should only be trying to get all Republicans on the same page.”

Looking at the bigger picture: McHenry himself has said he won’t make any new laws with the power he has now. So, some members from both parties in the House want to give him the power to do so, but only for a short time.

There’s a sense of urgency because the government will run out of money in less than a month, and a lot of people in Congress want to get moving on providing help to Israel and Ukraine.

In short: The last two attempts to elect a GOP Speaker haven’t worked out, and things aren’t looking hopeful for anyone who might be able to bring all the different opinions in the party together.