Act two of the drama that the Republican Party is going through because of the rebellion of its most extremist representatives. After the historic failure this Tuesday, when its chairman Kevin McCarthy did not receive enough votes after three votes to be elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, the session resumed this Wednesday. And the failure was repeated in the fourth and fifth votes, in which twenty of his MEPs again turned their backs on him. It is an unprecedented situation in a century that paralyzes the Chamber’s operations and plunges it into chaos.
In the moments leading up to the start of the session, US media have indicated that supporters of McCarthy, a 57-year-old congressman from California, are considering requesting a postponement so as not to repeat Tuesday’s three-straight loss show. But they didn’t have enough votes because a group of radical MPs from the party’s hard wing had left their ranks. These twenty Ultra MPs are taking advantage of the position of strength afforded them by the precarious Republican majority that emerged from the November 8 elections.
The meeting this Wednesday began with the nomination of the candidates. Joining McCarthy’s proposal and that of Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries this time is a third candidate, Byron Donalds, who will be introduced by the self-proclaimed Freedom Caucus, who are leading the Republican representatives opposing McCarthy’s election. Donalds has pooled the votes of the ultra wing and defeated the speaker election for the fourth time. The hard wing has switched candidates: They just don’t want McCarthy to win.
It’s not clear how many more votes there will be on Wednesday before the session is adjourned again. After 3:00 p.m. Washington time (9:00 p.m. in mainland Spain), the sixth began. Each vote lasts more than an hour as MPs are called by name, there are prior nomination speeches and an official recount.
Matt Gaetz, Representative of Florida’s 1st congressional district, chats with some other Republicans in the US Capitol in Washington. JIM LO SCALZO (EFE)
McCarthy must get a majority of those taking part in the vote. Assuming all 434 members participate, that’s 218 votes, but Republicans only have 222 seats. McCarthy can therefore only afford four members of his group to leave, but 20 voted for Donalds this Wednesday and one said “present”, which is a form of abstention. McCarthy lost another vote. The Democrats don’t want to take the chestnuts out of the fire for their rivals.
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The vote has to be repeated over and over again until McCarthy or someone else achieves that majority, but for now the Republican nominee doesn’t want to step down, nor are the Ultras giving in to boycotting his election. There is also little room for negotiation with the ongoing vote, so the option to unlock is not close. The record is 133 ballots in 1855, which meant a two-month block of parliamentary activity. The last time the majority failed to select the Speaker of the House of Representatives on the first ballot was in 1923, exactly a century ago.
Former President Donald Trump’s call for support for McCarthy was useless. In a message published Wednesday morning on Truth, his social network, Trump wrote: “We had some really good talks last night and now it’s time for all our great Republican members of the House to vote for it. Kevin’s [McCarthy]“. “Republicans, don’t turn a huge win into a huge, embarrassing loss. It’s time to celebrate. You deserve it. Kevin McCarthy will do a good job, maybe even a great job. Just look at it!” added the former president.
As chaos engulfs the House of Representatives, United States President Joe Biden is taking part in an act with Republican Senate Speaker Mitch McConnell, Trump’s sworn enemy, this Wednesday in Kentucky to kick off this year’s House of Representatives investment spending the infrastructure plan, which was approved in 2022 with the support of congressmen from both parties. Biden left the White House for Kentucky and was asked about the situation in the House of Representatives. “That’s not my problem,” he said at first. He added it was “shameful” that the trial was taking so long and “the rest of the world was watching”.
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