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Kevin McCarthy has not ruled out the idea of running again as Speaker of the House of Representatives.
The ousted speaker repeatedly said it would be up to the conference whether to nominate him again as speaker during a press conference where he praised his foreign policy in the context of the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
“That’s a decision for the conference. I will let the conference make whatever decision it takes,” he told reporters about a possible nomination for speakership. “Whether I am a speaker or not, I am a member of this body.”
“Look, whatever the conference wants, I’ll do it,” he told radio host Hugh Hewitt on Monday morning.
Moderate McCarthy loyalists are beginning to raise the prospect, as it seems unlikely that either of the top candidates — Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, or Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La. – could get the 217 votes needed to achieve speakership.
They have pointed to the outbreak of war in Israel as evidence of the urgent need for leadership in the House of Representatives.
“Look, whatever the conference wants, I’ll do it,” he told radio host Hugh Hewitt on Monday morning
Members of the leadership were briefed on the situation last weekend, but interim chairman Patrick McHenry was unable to attend the briefing because he was not elected to the position.
And until the speaker debacle is resolved, no legislation will pass to support Israel and help restore its Iron Dome.
“There are a lot of people who believe Kevin McCarthy is the right person to lead us,” Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., told reporters Monday.
“Lots of people <218,” Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, who led the movement to oust McCarthy, wrote on X. “Math is real. Time to move on.’
McCarthy antagonist Nancy Mace, R-S.C., added, “It’s not at all surprising that people who vote for trillion-dollar deficits, massive omnibus bills and CRs can’t count.”
California Republican John Duarte urged Democrats to allow McCarthy to be voted back into the presidency.
“What we do know is that there is no greater friend of Israel than Kevin McCarthy,” Duarte said.
“On the Democratic side, if we have that vote, anyone who is a friend of Israel should have a tea party or vote a present and put Kevin McCarthy back in the chairman’s chair right now,” he told Fox and Friends.
Both Scalise and Jordan are seen as more conservative than McCarthy.
“We have one of our strongest allies in the world under attack, and we are engaged in a leadership battle in the House of Representatives that should never have happened,” Duarte said.
The prospect that moderate Democrats will help McCarthy back into the speakership is a gamble; they insist that moderate Republicans should instead help put Jeffries in the speakership.
“It’s a fun messaging point that has no connection to reality,” a Democratic House aide told DailyMail.com.
“It doesn’t matter that Republicans refuse to make any concessions to Democrats, or that it’s laughable to even think of a single Republican voter Nancy Pelosi as speaker. It is the job of the majority to elect a chairman.’
Eight Republicans joined all Democrats in voting to impeach McCarthy last Monday. After the vote, McCarthy announced he would not run for speaker again, but remained coy about what he would do if someone else nominated him for the role.
Last week, McCarthy debunked reports that he was considering leaving Congress and instead revealed that he would run for re-election in 2024.
Both Scalise and Jordan are seen as more conservative than McCarthy
“I’m not resigning, I have a lot more work to do,” he told reporters.
“I want to keep the majority,” McCarthy said. ‘We’re going to expand it further.’
Meanwhile, Republicans return to Washington for a contentious week that begins Monday evening with an all-conference meeting. On Tuesday, the speaker candidates will make their pitch to Republicans on why they should have the job and on Wednesday morning they are expected to vote within the conference on who the Republican nominee for speaker should be.
Democrats will align with Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as their nominee for chairman, so with just a four-vote majority, Republicans will need almost their entire conference on board to get 217 votes in the House of Representatives.