With McCarthy out, Georgia Republicans struggle to look ahead
MTG's future in GOP conference uncertain post-McCarthy
Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s ouster has essentially put the business of the American people on hold — and left Georgia Republicans struggling to figure out who should succeed him.
Just 269 days after winning the gavel on the 15th ballot, a small faction of far-right McCarthy detractors joined with all Democrats to oust the California Republican from the job he has spent his entire career “gunning” for.
The ouster vote itself was a product of several concessions McCarthy made to those very detractors in order to become Speaker in the first place.
Republicans adjourned the House for the rest of the week shortly after the vote was tallied, even as Congress stares down another government shutdown threat and has no Speaker to help the country avoid it.
We know that at least two Republicans are running for the Speaker nomination, and other candidates are expected to join the race. But with no succession plan in place and a heavily divided GOP conference, it is simply impossible to predict who the next House Speaker will be.
It’s worth noting that none of the McCarthy rebels are from Georgia. In fact, most of the nine Republican members of the Peach State’s congressional contingent have been among his staunchest allies. And the absence of a clear path forward, combined with their conference’s one-week deadline to choose a new leader, has left them struggling to figure out who (and what) comes next.
Take U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene for example. The Rome Republican has gained national prominence for her brash style of politics and her ties to dark-web conspiracy theories.
But McCarthy took Greene under his wing. Shortly after their party took control of the House, the Speaker wasted no time assigning Greene to influential committees after the Democratic majority stripped her of her committee assignments in the previous Congress.
Greene supported McCarthy for Speaker on all 15 ballots last January. She also (reluctantly) supported his deal with President Joe Biden to raise the debt ceiling. Her newfound reputation as the “McCarthy Whisperer” strained her relationship with her far-right colleagues — which might have been an ominous foreshadowing of the events of this week.
McCarthy’s ouster is a setback for Greene, whose popularity with GOP small donors had become a key resource for the GOP Conference’s campaign apparatus. It is not guaranteed that the next Speaker will be as welcoming. Nevertheless, she already has a successor in mind: Donald Trump.
Though the idea of the former President becoming Speaker is far-fetched, Greene says that Trump is “the only candidate” she is supporting, even though he isn’t a candidate (the Speaker is not required to be a sitting member of Congress).
Who is actually running?
Rep. Steve Scalise, the No. 2 Republican in the House, is seen as an early frontrunner. And he can count on the support of at least two Georgia Republicans. U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter of Pooler is throwing his support behind the Louisiana Republican, as is Rep. Austin Scott of Tifton.
Another Georgian who seems likely to back Scalise is Rep. Drew Ferguson of West Point, who is believed to have leadership ambitions of his own.
The second candidate is House Judiciary Committee chairman and conservative lightning rod Jim Jordan.
The rest of Georgia’s Republican delegation has yet to weigh in on the Speaker’s contest, but that will soon change: Republicans are hoping to elect a new Speaker by next Wednesday.
One Georgian whose vote could be critical is U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde. Despite joining the attempts to derail McCarthy’s coronation, Clyde did not support this week’s motion that resulted in the Speaker being ousted. But now he and other conservative lawmakers could once again be at the center of a marathon speaker’s race.
With just a five-seat majority in the 435-member chamber, Republicans face a daunting task to find a candidate who can assemble 218 votes, as there are several issues where the conference remains sharply divided.
Will a new Speaker continue supplying aid to Ukraine? Will they work with President Biden and Senate Democrats to continue funding the government? Will they cave to the same concessions that led to McCarthy’s downfall?
And, perhaps most importantly, can they get 218 votes?
These questions, along with the business of the country, are all up in the air until a new Speaker is chosen.