Should the Dems help out McCarthy?

It's pretty eminent that Gaetz will bring up a vote to oust McCarthy.

Should the Dems vote to keep him or help out Gaetz in throwing a monkey wrench into the GOP

I'm a bit on the fence with this one.  Keeping McCarthy will continue the in-party infighting.

On the other hand - I would be curious to see who they'd put up to successfully get the numbers (in under 15 rounds of voting).


"The disdain for Gaetz is so palpable across much of the GOP conference that some members have begun to publicly rebuke him as self-destructive and selfish."
(https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/10/02/kevin-mccarthy-matt-gaetz/)

Matt Gaetz is the Ted Cruz of the House.


If the Democrats can support McCarthy on a quid pro quo basis, why not.


Who would replace McCarthy?  Someone even crazier? Why not work with the devil you know than the one you don't.


If McCarthy needs Democratic votes, then the Democrats should get concessions about how the House does business, with respect to the operation of committees and how bills get to the floor.


yahooyahoo said:

Who would replace McCarthy?  Someone even crazier? Why not work with the devil you know than the one you don't.

I think it could actually be possible that a replacement could be with someone that Gaetz hates more.  It may end up with someone the Dems could work with better.  Hmm - time will tell shortly.......


If McCarthy is overboard the Democrats should toss him a cinder block.  He is not a good guy.  He is not a competent grownup.  He created this mess by kissing up to Trump.



"Republicans should be forced to carry Kevin McCarthy to term, even if it endangers the life of the party."

(https://mstdn.social/@Strandjunker/111171850688868641)


Very Soviet-like treatment of McCarthy by the right.

I think they'll be editing him out of photographs next. 


nohero said:

Very Soviet-like treatment of McCarthy by the right.

I think they'll be editing him out of photographs next. 

DC_Draino says he is "anti-woke" on his Twitter page. All you need to know.


Republicans: They really do eat their young.


hmm, would everyone prefer Jim Jordan over McCarthy?


If Trump were able to fill in he would be in line for the Presidency if anything happened to Biden and Kamala Harris. He's probably awake tonight plotting their demise.

As for Jim Jordan, I shudder at the thought. The list of crazies that could replace McCarthy is horrifying. I think the Dems should have either tried to work a deal with McCarthy or all voted present. 


jamie said:

hmm, would everyone prefer Jim Jordan over McCarthy?

If I had to choose, I'd pick McCarthy.  This goes back to my post earlier in the thread.  Why not work with devil you know than the one you don't.  

We know enough about Jim Jordan to be very afraid if he is elected Speaker.  McCarthy was smart enough to negotiate a deal to avoid a government shutdown. Who knows what Jordan will do.


Matt Gaetz looks like a psychopath. He might very well be next on the chopping block, because a lot of republicans are now plotting to get rid of him. Next year is gonna be wild with the implosion of the Republican Party. 


I'm not sure how they will fix this.  Whoever wins will be in exactly the same boat as McCarthy.  Maybe 10 moderate Republicans ought to approach the Democrats and suggest a coalition.  They might lose their seats, but they could save the country.


DanDietrich said:

I'm not sure how they will fix this.  Whoever wins will be in exactly the same boat as McCarthy.  Maybe 10 moderate Republicans ought to approach the Democrats and suggest a coalition.  They might lose their seats, but they could save the country.

Moderate Republicans (who won in swing districts) should lose their seats in 2024 if they vote for Jim Jordan or Steve Scalise for Speaker.


Wouldn't Scalise by saner than Jordan? They are going to have to chose this week with the war in Israel going on. I doubt anyone other than those two would even want the job.


Morganna said:

Wouldn't Scalise by saner than Jordan? They are going to have to chose this week with the war in Israel going on. I doubt anyone other than those two would even want the job.

Scalise is the guy who called himself "David Duke without the baggage"


Scalise nor Jordan can muster enough votes within the Republican conference to be speaker. It looks like McCarthy could very well win back his seat. 


ml1 said:

Scalise is the guy who called himself "David Duke without the baggage"

Didn't remember that. I have heard more of Jordan's tirades on the House floor and in his committee positions. Haven't see Scalise act crazy. Mainly remember his being shot at that baseball game. I watch a good deal of congress in session and can't remember him being outrageous but the bottom line is they are not going to pick anyone that will please Democrats so we can only hope they pick someone who will negotiate. That is if Mat Gaetz allows it.


Jaytee said:

Scalise nor Jordan can muster enough votes within the Republican conference to be speaker. It looks like McCarthy could very well win back his seat. 

I did hear a murmur that he would consider it but then what do they do about Gaetz unless there is a vote to change the rules.


Morganna said:

ml1 said:

Scalise is the guy who called himself "David Duke without the baggage"

Didn't remember that. I have heard more of Jordan's tirades on the House floor and in his committee positions. Haven't see Scalise act crazy. Mainly remember his being shot at that baseball game. I watch a good deal of congress in session and can't remember him being outrageous but the bottom line is they are not going to pick anyone that will please Democrats so we can only hope they pick someone who will negotiate. That is if Mat Gaetz allows it.

IMHO Scalise gets kid glove coverage among the mainstream pundits because he was shot


ml1 said:

Morganna said:

ml1 said:

Scalise is the guy who called himself "David Duke without the baggage"

Didn't remember that. I have heard more of Jordan's tirades on the House floor and in his committee positions. Haven't see Scalise act crazy. Mainly remember his being shot at that baseball game. I watch a good deal of congress in session and can't remember him being outrageous but the bottom line is they are not going to pick anyone that will please Democrats so we can only hope they pick someone who will negotiate. That is if Mat Gaetz allows it.

IMHO Scalise gets kid glove coverage among the mainstream pundits because he was shot

yup

my recollection seems to be that every time I hear him speak on some issue he's pretty cringe and bog-standard far right nutty.


drummerboy said:

yup

my recollection seems to be that every time I hear him speak on some issue he's pretty cringe and bog-standard far right nutty.

Well if they are hoping for nutty they should just go all in and pick Santos.


Republicans have nominated Scalise to take over as Speaker of the House.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/house-gop-finally-picks-speaker-170916765.html

After nine days of chaos sparked by the sudden downfall of Kevin McCarthy, House Republicans have finally nominated a successor for the Speaker’s gavel: Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), McCarthy’s longtime number two.

In a secret ballot vote held behind closed doors on Wednesday morning, 113 lawmakers chose Scalise, with Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) earning 99 votes, a source familiar with the proceeding told The Daily Beast.

For the bitterly divided House GOP, however, a resolution to their leadership crisis is still far off.

To win the party’s nomination, Scalise simply needed a majority of votes. To survive the upcoming roll call vote in the full House of Representatives, he will need near-unanimous support from the GOP conference to secure the Speaker’s gavel and return the House to normal function.


yahooyahoo said:

Republicans have nominated Scalise to take over as Speaker of the House.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/house-gop-finally-picks-speaker-170916765.html

There are GOP members who say they’re not voting for Scalise.


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