Jordan Withdraws from Speaker Race, Endorses McHenry in Surprise Move

The Republican’s third fallback plan is ready to be put in motion. The latest fallback plan is to make interim speaker Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) a sort of “quasi” speaker or “speaker in all but name” in order to unstick a half dozen pieces of legislation on aid to Israel and Ukraine and other legislation that can’t wait. McHenry and other members of Congress don’t believe that McHenry currently possesses the power to do that, so enabling legislation must be passed.

This is a constitutional gambit the founders of our country would have considered insane. The founders would have thought this gambit insane. They will declare that McHenry is entitled to certain powers, even though these are not found in the Constitution. His powers are based loosely on the legislation passed following 9/11 and the failed al-Qaeda attempt to fly a jet into the Capitol Building.

McHenry believes that his position as interim Speaker only allows him to oversee the election of speaker of the House. McHenry is in a very vague position, and he doesn’t even know if he wants it.

But that’s not the end of their problems. Jim Jordan, the would-be speaker (R-Ohio), finally admitted that too many Republican lawmakers hated him and wouldn’t vote for him to become speaker. He joined the group of Republicans that wanted McHenry to be interim speaker.

This project will need a lot more GOP votes to be successful. The rest of the GOP is not convinced. At least some Democrats will almost certainly have to approve McHenry as interim speaker. This is a major problem for Republicans.

Politico:

Jordan’s inner circle tried to use the idea that McHenry would be empowered to help boost Jordan’s candidacy yesterday, accusing anyone who flirted with the idea to try and turn the majority into Democrats.

“It is possible that today, a small group of Republicans will try to work with Democrats in order to build a government coalition,” warned Rep. WARREN DAVIDSON. An Ohio conservative who was helping Jordan to whip up votes. “I’ll gladly fight with the @HouseGOP in order to fulfill our promises, but I won’t surrender my agenda to anyone.”

Rep. THOMAS MASSE (R-Ky. ) quickly chimed in with a tweet that read, “I concur. It is terrible to waste a majority, I will not join a coalition led by HAKEEM JEFFRIES. I will vote for Jim Jordan.”

Some Jordan supporters want the measure to empower McHenry on the floor as soon as possible, in an attempt to defeat it and eliminate the idea forever. Jordan did have a chance, but if anyone is going to give it a second glance, it will be Kevin McCarthy, the former speaker.

McCarthy’s bid to remain in office was defeated by only eight votes. This is closer than Scalise and Jordan. McCarthy’s political action committee has earned him a lot of goodwill by donating millions of dollars to GOP lawmakers.

It is unlikely that McHenry will be empowered, especially if a significant number of Democratic voters are required to pass the bill. There’s still one last Hail Mary attempt that the Republicans could make. Why can’t McHenry start using the powers that members have talked about giving him?

BRENDAN BUCK – the former advisor to JOHN BOEHNER, PAUL RYAN, and other speakers – endorses this strategy in a recent NYT op-ed. He notes that “in the absence of clear rules the House operates based on precedent.”

“We’re in a situation that is unprecedented.” “The House rules are, in essence, whatever the simple majority says they are,” he writes.

His pitch is intriguing: A legislator should bring up a Hamas resolution. McHenry should recognize that person, writes McHenry. And when someone objects or the parliamentarian rules the resolution out of order the House can overrule the ruling.

“Mr. McHenry was daring House members to stop consideration of a policy they all seemed to want to support. If successful, this could be the end of the ability to pass laws under a temporary Speaker,” Buck writes.

The House should ideally set a time limit for McHenry to exercise his extra-constitutional power so that eventually the Republicans can get together and elect a true speaker. The longer the House leadership crisis lasts, the more insane and radical some of the solutions become.