Republicans hit the pause button on their plans to elect a House speaker Wednesday afternoon as they worked to unite their GOP conference behind giving the gavel to Rep. Steve Scalise.
The Louisiana Republican won the majority of votes in a closed-door meeting earlier Wednesday, defeating Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio.
Some of the party’s hardline conservatives, however, left the meeting pledging to vote for Mr. Jordan despite Mr. Scalise’s conference win.
Republicans can only afford to lose a handful of GOP votes if they hope to elect a Republican speaker on the floor, where Democrats also vote for a candidate.
The House gaveled in Wednesday afternoon and immediately called a recess that will allow them to hold a vote later. Behind the scenes, top Republicans worked to shore up the roughly 217 votes Mr. Scalise needs to win the House speaker election. The Democrats have nominated Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York.
Mr. Jordan, following his defeat in the conference vote, told his backers to throw their support behind Mr. Scalise, who is currently the majority leader. Mr. Jordan has offered to nominate Mr. Scalise for speaker when the House holds the vote.
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But several GOP holdouts have not changed their minds.
While Mr. Scalise and Mr. Jordan are aligned politically, Mr. Jordan is considered more conservative and is a hero among Republican hardliners who have long admired his willingness to stand up to the GOP leadership on spending and major policy issues such as border security.
“I will be voting for Jim Jordan to be speaker of the House on the floor when the vote is called,” Rep. Lauren Boebert, of Colorado, said after the GOP nominated Mr. Scalise on a secret ballot. “The American people deserve a real change in leadership, not a continuation of the status quo.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Republican, said she plans on voting for Mr. Jordan, who, she said, “is prepared to take on the fight” against the Democrats in the Senate and White House.
Reps. Chip Roy of Texas and Thomas Massie of Kentucky said they were not ready to back Mr. Scalise.
Members of the conservative Freedom Caucus, founded by Mr. Jordan in 2015, gathered near the Capitol on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the pending election.
SEE ALSO: House Republicans scramble to avoid chaotic floor fight for speaker
Rep. Byron Donalds, a Florida Republican who backs Mr. Scalise, said after the Freedom Caucus meeting the floor vote should be postponed until the GOP meets again privately to ensure it can round up the 217 votes.
But top Republicans are eager to restart legislative activity, which has been suspended since last week when a group of rogue conservative lawmakers paired with all House Democrats to eject Rep. Kevin McCarthy from the speaker’s chair.
They appointed a temporary speaker, Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, but he is not authorized to conduct legislative business.
Mr. Scalise, 58, sounded confident on Wednesday that he’ll round up the votes. He said his first action after he wins the gavel will be to bring up a resolution, written by House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul of Texas, supporting Israel as it works to defeat the terrorist organization Hamas, which invaded the country over the weekend and killed more than a thousand Israelis.
“We see how dangerous of a world it is, and how things can change so quickly,” Mr. Scalise said. “We need to make sure we’re sending a message to people all throughout the world, that the House is open and doing the people’s business.”
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
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