Former President Donald Trump, the undisputed leader of the Republican Party and the likely candidate for the 2024 presidential election, has taken action on the crisis in Congress. Hours after expressing his willingness to temporarily take over the presidency of the House of Representatives if there is no consensus candidate within the caucus, he has offered his support to one of the two congressmen who have filed for the office. Trump chooses the radical Jim Jordan, co-founder of the Freedom Caucus, which unites the twenty extremists who made Kevin McCarthy’s life impossible and caused his historic firing.
Jordan is currently facing the candidacy of Steve Scalise, who was number two in the group behind McCarthy. Scalise filed for candidacy even though he is undergoing chemotherapy for leukemia. In principle, he enjoys more support within the group than Jordan, who represents the hard wing of the party, but Trump’s intervention could tip the scales in favor of the latter.
“Congressman Jim Jordan was a STAR long before he began his successful journey to Washington, DC, representing Ohio’s 4th Congressional District. Respected by all, he is now chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. “As President, I had the honor of presenting Jim with our nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom,” Trump wrote on Truth, his social network, after midnight Thursday. After a digression to highlight Jordan’s contributions to college sports, he added, “He is strong on crime, borders, our military/veterans and the 2nd Amendment.” [que consagra el derecho a llevar armas de fuego]. Jim, his wife Polly and their family are exceptional. He will be a GREAT Speaker of the House and he has my full and unwavering support!”
The two candidates to succeed McCarthy were already looking for support. Trump’s leadership of the party is impressive. Very few dare to contradict him. Only two of the ten members of Congress who voted for his political prosecution for his role in the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 were able to reconfirm their seats in the 2022 general election. Their role was already decisive for the hard wing’s victory. He bowed to the election of Kevin McCarthy on the 15th ballot last January, but now he is doubling down and wants one of the extremists to become Speaker of the House.
On the other hand, Jordan’s election would further complicate governance in Congress. With a Senate with a Democratic majority and a House of Representatives entrenched in the most extreme positions, legislation can be almost completely blocked. The risk of a partial government shutdown when the last-minute budget extension approved last Saturday expires on November 17 (costing McCarthy his head) increases with him as House Republican leader.
The Freedom Caucus’ positions call for drastic cuts in public spending, tougher anti-immigration policies and an investigation into Joe Biden’s business dealings by his son Hunter, which is actually already underway. After opposing his election, the radicals first rebelled against McCarthy for the agreement to suspend the debt ceiling for two years. Jordan, on the other hand, is among the bitter opponents of approving new aid to Ukraine for the war with Russia, while Scalise has so far voted in favor of such support. Trump’s preferred candidate did not vote to fire the speaker, but it was members of his group who were responsible for his firing.
Join EL PAÍS to follow all the news and read without restrictions.
Subscribe to
Texas Congressman Troy Nehls, who initially supported offering Trump the job himself, also tweeted that he had spoken to the former president by phone and that he supported Jordan. “I just had a great conversation with President Trump about the convention speaker race. He supports Jim Jordan, and I think Congress should listen to the leader of our party. “I fully support Jim Jordan for Speaker of the House,” he wrote. Matt Gaetz, the congressman who pushed the successful censure motion against McCarthy, has suggested that both Jordan and Scalise appear to be acceptable solutions to him. Jordan’s challenge is to win the support of moderate members of Congress.
Trump has cultivated contacts with members of his party’s congressmen in order to appear on Tuesday at the Capitol, which he has not visited since he became president, and to intervene in the caucus meeting in which the nomination of McCarthy’s successor is being debated. There is still no official confirmation of these plans, as the AP agency announced. She cited sources who requested anonymity as suggesting he would be there to speak to Republican lawmakers and not to campaign for the position.
The former president went a step further in exclusive statements to Fox News Digital, offering himself as a temporary consensus solution in case the Republican group couldn’t agree on the nominee. “They asked me to speak as a mediator because I have many friends in Congress. “If they don’t get the vote, they asked me if I would consider taking over as speaker of the House until they find someone with a longer term, because I’m running for speaker,” he said. “They asked me if I would take over for the party for a short period of time until they came to a conclusion. “I’m not doing it because I want to, I’m going to do it if it’s necessary, in case they don’t make the decision,” the former president added.
It is not necessary for a person to be a member of the House of Representatives to serve as speaker, although all 55 have done so so far. In Trump’s case, it’s his own caucus’s rules that would prevent his election due to the four 91-felony indictments he faces, but the same people who can vote for him could change that rule.
Follow all international information on Facebook and Xor in our weekly newsletter.
Subscribe to continue reading
Read without limits