Current GOP Speaker nominee and frontrunner Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) says he will pause his search for the Speakership votes and instead back a plan for interim Speaker Patrick McHenry to serve until January.
From Newsmax:
The House has been without a leader for more than two weeks, and Jordan has twice failed to secure the 217 votes needed to claim the speaker’s gavel as he has faced opposition from Democrats and more than 20 of his fellow Republicans.
Jordan remains the speaker designee and will reserve the option to hold a speaker vote at any time.
Asked what he expected as he enterer a closed-door meeting with other Republicans, Jordan said only, “I’m not gonna know until I talk to my colleagues.”
In that meeting, Jordan said he would not seek a third vote to win the post and instead will back a plan to empower McHenry, who is acting speaker, to hold the post until January, according to Republican Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana
That option, which Democrats have said they might support, would allow lawmakers to get back to work.
President Joe Biden, a Democrat, is expected to ask Congress this week to approve as much as $60 billion for Ukraine and $10 billion for Israel, and funding for U.S. government operations is also due to expire in less than a month.
This story is developing…
BREAKING NEWS: Republican Rep. Jim Jordan will not hold a third ballot to be speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and will instead back empowering interim speaker Patrick McHenry, it was said on Thursday. https://t.co/f2wGHzaQFr
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) October 19, 2023
