Tracking The Election for House Speaker Mk2 – Round 3

Sorry this is late. It was computer calamity that caused the delay this time. But I have ye olde laptop up and running so let’s get at it.

What a sh*tshow, Zoomers! Jimmy Jockstrap Jordan, after deciding he didn’t want to support extending the powers of the Speaker Pro Tempore – and Patrick McHenry threatening to desert said position if his powers weren’t extended in the interim – went for a third go at the speakership only to find that said ship was sinking beneath him. Let’s revel in those figures together.

Now let’s look at a quick comparison with Kev’s 3rd round effort back in January:

But the best was yet to come.

It turned out that a significant number of GOP members of the house were incensed by Gym Sack’s scare campaign, especially death threats against members’ wives. Rather than be cowed by these terrorist tactics they used the next conference* meeting to move that Guerrilla Gym be removed from the Speaker ticket and for good reason, it was a secret ballot.

*Fun Fact: In the US House, the motley collection of GOP members is known as a ‘conference’ while the Dems use the term ‘caucus’ as their collective noun. The same is true in the US Senate.

No idea why 23 Republicans failed to cast a vote. But even if they’d all voted for Gym Shoe, he still would’ve lost. But I’m inclined to the opinion that most, if not all, would’ve voted against him which would’ve increased his margin of loss from 28 to as many as 51.

The removal of Gym Sock from the stage should clear the way for the current Speaker Pro Tempore to be granted expanded powers so the US House can at least function at a basic level, i.e. pass essential legislation and resolutions so the nation is not completely paralysed.

Patrick McHenry’s threat to resign the position could’ve plunged the House into a critical constitutional crisis. First and foremost, there’s no Speaker to declare a replacement Speaker Pro Tempore if the current incumbent vacates his (much smaller) chair.

The Clerk* of the US House of Representatives can gavel in more ballot rounds for Speaker but that’s the extent of his powers to lead in the chamber.

* The current Clerk is Kevin McCumber who took office on July 1, 2023.

It’s possible that the person next on ex-Speaker McCarthy’s Pro Tempore list would be the one to fill the vacancy if McHenry resigned but I shudder to think who that might be. There are any number of traitorous gorgons among the GOP magadons and any one of them could be second on McCarthy’s list.

That’s why it’s crucial that the temp speaker’s powers be extended and the sooner the better. Though the extension will be strictly limited, it will facilitate floor votes to authorise critical funding for Ukraine and victims of the war in Gaza, and even open a pathway to preventing a government shutdown next month. In fact, a temp could enable far better outcomes for all these dilemmas because he can’t be dismissed by a disgruntled minority in his own party in the same way they can – and did – oust their Speaker.

Extending the temp’s powers now has a higher priority than electing the next Speaker because we know which one will take the least amount of time and be more effective. Once that is accomplished, we can settle in for the next episode of the “Real House Weevils of GOP DC”.

In the immediate aftermath of Gymbo’s ousting, Forbes noted,

Moments after Jordan was removed as the GOP’s speaker nominee, GOP Reps. Kevin Hern (Okla.), Jack Bergman (Mich.), Tom Emmer (Minn.), Byron Donalds (Fla.), Mike Johnson (La.) and Austin Scott (Ga.) declared they would run for speaker, while Reps. Jodey Arrington (Texas) and Dan Meuser (Pa.) said they are considering running.

Good news, Zoomers! The number of ambitious non-entities shoving themselves forward is a guarantee that Cirque de Sh*tshow will continue to entertain us for some time to come. This is borne out by none other than failed Speaker McCarthy who won Forbes’ quote-of-the-day.

That’s the understatement of the week, Kev. It’s even worse than you realise. So stay tuned, Zoomers, for the next enthralling update!

The Furkids are donating all their frothy kofi money to Michelle’s computer repair fund. You can help them at ko-fi.com/furkids