“an absurd and dangerous choice”
The Washington Post is posting live updates of Jacketless Jim Jordan’s quest to be Speaker of the House and second in line for the presidency. Really.
The House begins business today at noon, “two weeks to the day since former House speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted.”
“The next speaker should not be someone we already know is willing to manufacture disputes and support groundless claims to overturn an election to install the president he wants,” Jill Lawrrence writes at The Bulwark. She offers a detailed list of why the Ohio congressman is “an absurd and dangerous choice for that reason and too many others to count.” Among them is former House Speaker John Boehner’s assessment of his fellow Ohioan: “Jordan was a terrorist as a legislator going back to his days in the Ohio House and Senate. . . . A terrorist. A legislative terrorist.”
Not to mention being an election denier and Trump co-conspirator, Jeffrey K. Tulis and William Kristol remind Bulwark readers.
Jordan has Donald Trump’s endorsement. That’s another strike against him for Americans who can barely recall “normal.” It was the kiss of death for many candidates in the last cycle.
A couple of those Post updates:
Jordan mounted a pressure campaign over the weekend, part of which is the roll-call vote today is Jordan “daring his opponents to vote against him and incur the wrath of the far-right media and political ecosystem that is firmly behind him.”
Leigh Ann Caldwell adds:
“Jordan’s team has the knives out,” said one House Republican who represents a swing district, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the pressure being exerted on the member to vote for Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) as speaker.
“I’ll vote my conscience, which is a ‘no,’ but I don’t want to be a punching bag for the next three days,” the member said.
The member said Fox Newshost Sean Hannity contacted them directly, urging them to support Jordan. Hannity is saying that the war in Israel is a reason to get behind Jordan now, according to the member.
Jordan will have to woo or strong-arm over 50 more of his colleagues to win the speakership. CNN reports, “He can now only afford to lose three GOP votes on the floor, assuming everyone votes, given Florida Rep. Gus Bilirakis will be away from the Capitol for a few hours on Tuesday until he returns in the evening, his office told CNN.”
Let the games begin.
