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Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

Americans barely caring about Afghanistan is so last month.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

“More of this”, i said to the dog.

An almost top 10,000 blog!

Prediction: the GOP will rethink its strategy of boycotting future committees.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

… pundit janitors mopping up after the GOP

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

A dilettante blog from the great progressive state of West Virginia.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Not all heroes wear capes.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

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Loser Loses Again

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McCarthy goes down in flames as new challenger Gym Jordan looks to continue the noble tradition of tolerating sexual abuse of wrestlers (or participating in it) by Republican speakers. Here are the Republicans voting against Kev.

One thing I’m pondering is whether MTG is actually more clever than Boebert. MTG (and Jordan) “backed” McCarthy. Boebert is allied with Gaetz in throwing sand in the gears. I thought the MTG/Jordan move was the (relatively) smart one, since McCarthy would probably win and MTG/Jordan would have more leverage to get concessions. But maybe not. If I’m Boebert, I’d be looking to ally myself with whomever will give me more earmarks for my district. Instead, she’s allied herself with Gaetz and will just flap around like a gooney bird.

My mother had a saying about company: “after three days, the dead stink.” I’m guessing that after 3 votes, McCarthy is going to reek like fish guts sitting out in the sun.

Reader Interactions

207Comments

  3. 3.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Alison Rose:

    How many times are they going to do this with the same result?

    Like the saying goes, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result.  And the GQPers certainly qualify.

  4. 4.

    $8 blue check mistermix

    @Alison Rose:  Cue up Johnny Hartman singing “In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning” because that’s where this shitshow is headed.

  5. 5.

    Freemark

    @WereBear: So you are saying we may have no speaker for two years and it will be the libs fault. And of course this will throw the Dems into disarray.

  6. 6.

    cain

    When you elect unserious people this is what you get. You can bet that donors and “serious” strategists are getting more and more angry.

    Wait till Trump gets in on the action – he’ll have something to say for sure.

  7. 7.

    waspuppet

    If I’m Boebert, I’d be looking to ally myself with whomever will give me more earmarks for my district. Instead, she’s allied herself with Gaetz and will just flap around like a gooney bird.

    I’m not sure why you’re so sure she knows what earmarks are, or any other aspect of what her job is. Her only motivation is to not have to get a real job. Flapping around like a gooney bird is the most effort she can put into anything.

    Of the many depressing aspects of this shitshow, one of them is the media-created divide between McCarthy and “conservatives.” As if there’s a difference other than the amount of damage they’re willing to do to the country they despise yet claim to love.

    I give it 10 years before CNN is talking about the rift between MTG and conservatives.

  14. 14.

    bbleh

    This can only be due to … ELECTION FRAUD! 

    And as to “McCarthy is going to reek like fish guts sitting out in the sun,” I’m thinking a good deal of the stink is gonna rub off on the Republican brand generally, and especially on the six-year-olds-throwing-tantrums wing.

    Gonna run outta popcorn here …

  15. 15.

    Edmund Dantes

    felt sorry for AOC having to sit there and talk with Gosar earlier  when he came over and sat next to her. Shame she couldn’t just punch him for the stuff he’s said about her.

  16. 16.

    The Moar You Know

    MTG is actually more clever than Boebert

    She is evil but not stupid.  She has a knack for rabblerousing and knows when to break it out and when to put it away.  Like Reagan.  That scares me, frankly.

    Boebert is both stupid and evil.

  18. 18.

    Scout211

    From CNN
    Do you think Jordan is in on this strategy?

    Conservatives will vote for Rep. Jim Jordan on the third ballot too, according to GOP Rep. Bob Good.
    Good told CNN that he expects Jordan’s support to grow.

    He said the fact that Jordan doesn’t want the gavel is “exactly” why they want him.

  19. 19.

    $8 blue check mistermix

    @Baud: Trump has been very low-energy lately.   He’s kind of locked down at Mar-a-Lago and not doing much.  Sad.

  20. 20.

    $8 blue check mistermix

    @Scout211:

    Do you think Jordan is in on this strategy?

    Probably behind the scenes he is, but it’s kind of like the kid looking at the hot stove.  He really, really wants to touch it but Mommy says it will burn.  If he gets to be 3rd in line to the Presidency, there’s going to be a lot more attention paid to his cover up of sexual abuse.

  21. 21.

    Anoniminous

    As long as all the GOP members are present and voting for the GOP candidates the GOP has the raw numbers to elect a Speaker. If the crazies walked out of the room then the Dems could elect Rep. Hakim Jeffries. Apparently the crazies aren’t that crazy. The other way would be for the Dems to find six GOP members to back Jeffries and get to 218 that way. Alas, that doesn’t appear to be possible. At least at this point. Maybe in two or three days, weeks, months and still no Speaker it might be. Maybe?

    Edited b/c writing is hard

  23. 23.

    Scout211

    @Alison Rose:

    On CNN live updates.

    Another Republican who is backing McCarthy predicted there will be pressure after three or four rounds of votes to either adjourn or start thinking about another strategy.

  24. 24.

    David ⛄ 🎅The Establishment🎄 🦌 🕎 Koch

    Tattaglia Gaetz is a pimp. He could
    never have out foxed Santino Kevin. But
    I wasn’t sure until this day.
    It was Barzini Gym all along.

  27. 27.

    cain

    @Edmund Dantes:

    felt sorry for AOC having to sit there and talk with Gosar earlier  when he came over and sat next to her. Shame she couldn’t just punch him for the stuff he’s said about her.

    He’s probably trolling or doing something or saying something dumb only a man can do in the presence of a woman. Plus he’s probably enjoying the circus.

    Gosar: “Hi! Are you enjoying the circus!?”

    Although part of me really wants him to ask her to “choose the from of the destructor”

  28. 28.

    Cameron

    @John Revolta: Perhaps, but MTG certainly has more scientific knowledge at her command.  I very much doubt that Boe-boe-boebert has any idea of what a Jewish space laser is or what it’s used for.

  29. 29.

    jonas

    @cain: Wait till Trump gets in on the action – he’ll have something to say for sure.

    I think the other day he issued a statement supporting McCarthy and urging Republicans to unite behind him. MTG was vocally supporting McCarthy (and trashing Boebert, Gaetz et al.) because it was — supposedly — what Trump wanted. Same with Stefanik.

  32. 32.

    $8 blue check mistermix

    @Anoniminous:

     If the crazies walked out of the room then the Dems could elect Rep. Hakim Jeffries. Apparently the crazies aren’t that crazy. The other way would be for the Dems to find six GOP members to back Jeffries and get to 218 that way. Alas, that doesn’t appear to be possible. At least at this point. Maybe in two or three days, weeks, months and still no Speaker it might be. Maybe?

    Hard to predict what a bunch of feral rats will do, but the most certain way to get primaried in 2024 is to vote for a D in 2022.  Especially a black D.  Not gonna happen.  Same reason none of the newly elected in districts in NY are going to cross over — even though they are in districts that really aren’t winnable in 2024,  their path to victory in 2024 begins with no primary challenger.

  35. 35.

    cain

    @jonas: He will probably gaslight and said he never heard of him and that someone told him he was a good guy, but he has never met him. :D

  38. 38.

    Scout211

    Again, from the CNN live updates:

    TOTAL DISARRAY!!

    Rep.-elect Mike Lawler, a McCarthy supporter, pushed back and said that they would stick by McCarthy, even if it went to 50 ballots. “We’ll keep voting, and if they want to say ‘We’re not giving in,’ well guess what, neither are we. And the vast majority of us far outweigh them.”

  41. 41.

    Tim Ellis

    @jonas: Yep, which makes McCarthy’s two losses even more enjoyable for me – yet another failed endorsement from the former so-called President.

    Honestly though the Freedom Caucus folks have a point when they accuse McCarthy of being without principles. He’s sold himself out for a decade trying to get to the Speakership.

  42. 42.

    Gravenstone

    @Baud: Probably true, but this would be the first example of Leader Jeffries in action herding his particular group of cats – compliant though they may be.

  47. 47.

    scav

    @Scout211:

    “… well guess what, neither are we. And the vast majority of us far outweigh them.”

    Well, there we go, their cunning plan! Bring in the scales and go for outright tonnage!  It’s like all those choropleth maps showing seas of red: the midwest outweighs all you coastal elites.  Pounds and Acres forever!

  49. 49.

    Kent

    @The Moar You Know: She is evil but not stupid.  She has a knack for rabblerousing and knows when to break it out and when to put it away.  Like Reagan.  That scares me, frankly.

    Boebert is both stupid and evil.

    MTG is actually more of a female Ted Cruz or Rand Paul.  Boebert is more of a female Gomert.

  50. 50.

    jlowe

    Poor K-Mac. Wants it too much. Fails to understand that showing weakness in front of the rest of the livestock won’t work here.  Must not have a Plan B or a resume worth a shiat beyond Congress, as he won’t do what’s needed – nuke the caucus, go down fighting and harm as many of them as possible, because if he doesn’t lead, no one does.

    Noticed no one in the GOP seems to be holding their hand up to take his place. Wonder if he’ll make use of that eventually.

    The confusion to the political opposition is gratifying but we do need a working Congress at some point in time. The Prez can’t do it all with EOs, even if I’d love to see him try it.

  52. 52.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    ex-GOP rep on MSNBC (Curbelo?) just taught me some history I didn’t know: Boehner won the Speaker’s vote in 2015 because enough Democrats skipped the vote that he could win with fewer than 218 votes. I have no memory of that, but I guess there are, or were, limits to my political junkie-dom.

  54. 54.

    Kent

    @Anoniminous:

    As long as all the GOP members are present and voting for the GOP candidates the GOP has the raw numbers to elect a Speaker. If the crazies walked out of the room then the Dems could elect Rep. Hakim Jeffries. Apparently the crazies aren’t that crazy. The other way would be for the Dems to find six GOP members to back Jeffries and get to 218 that way. Alas, that doesn’t appear to be possible. At least at this point. Maybe in two or three days, weeks, months and still no Speaker it might be. Maybe?

    Edited b/c writing is hard

    There would actually be no point in that because once a majority of GOPers walked back into the room they could vote Jeffries back out.

  56. 56.

    PAM Dirac

    @James E Powell:

    Dems not only can outlast Republicans, they have every interest in doing so.

    Exactly. Since the appropriations bill was passed before Christmas, there really isn’t any pressure to have a functioning House, most especially a functioning House under R control. That will change as it gets close to summer, but there is absolutely no rush to fix R problems until then.

  58. 58.

    Martin

    @WaterGirl: Parker is interesting. She’s a transgender journalist and has largely focused on media criticism around transgender issues but was an editor at Media Matters for quite a while.

    Guessing she’s reaching anyone with a role at a media platform, particularly those doing criticism of media and the right, so yeah, this blog.

  59. 59.

    Anoniminous

    @scav: ​
     
    Ah yes. The Midwest and short grass prairie states. Where not only does the number of raccoons out number the number of people they out smart them as well.

  61. 61.

    $8 blue check mistermix

    @Alison Rose:

    Guess we now know for sure that Kevin is a bottom

    Power bottom with a major humiliation/degradation kink from the looks of it.

  63. 63.

    Martin

    @PAM Dirac: The House isn’t supposed to come into session until the 23rd anyway, so the next 3 weeks are basically free for them to make Republicans look bad.

  67. 67.

    Suzanne

    @Scout211: I can’t imagine ever feeling soooooo passionately about an empty suit like My Kevin to be ride-or-die for the guy.

    I’m pragmatic. After a couple of failed votes, I’d be like, “Fuck, I’ll vote for the ham sandwich, whatever ends this.”

  68. 68.

    Cameron

    @Tim Ellis: I know it’s been brought up before, but that continues to really baffle me.  What conceivable job would be worth publicly and continuously abasing oneself like this?  I could sort of understand it if it were something like getting crucified to save everybody in the world, but this?

  70. 70.

    $8 blue check mistermix

    @Martin:

    The House isn’t supposed to come into session until the 23rd anyway, so the next 3 weeks are basically free for them to make Republicans look bad.

    True but who’s #3 in line to be prez if something happens to Biden/Harris?  Until they elect someone to Speaker, it’s the new President Pro Tem of the Senate:  Patty Murray.   That’ll piss off some Republicans.

  71. 71.

    cain

    lol – is Scalise running for President?

    2 million people crossing the border – haha, yeah a small town showed up.

  74. 74.

    Ken

    @Scout211: He said the fact that Jordan doesn’t want the gavel is “exactly” why they want him.

    Now what is this all reminding me of?  Oh yes, Julius Caesar, Act I Scene 2:

    CASCA. I saw Mark Antony offer Caesar a crown, and, as I told you, he put it by once; but for all that, to my thinking, he would fain have had it. Then he offered it to him again; then he put it by again; but to my thinking, he was very loath to lay his fingers off it. And then he offered it the third time. He put it the third time by, and still as he refused it the rabblement hooted and clapped their chopped hands. And for mine own part, I durst not laugh.

    Perhaps Jordan will reluctantly accept the crown, but I’m sure he’ll have his own Act III Scene 1.

  78. 78.

    Martin

    @Cameron: What you’re missing is that these are already people who made it through the sieve of willing to be publicly humiliated in the process of getting elected to congress and the sieve of promoting Republican positions, and the sieve of backing Trump. This final humiliation really isn’t a very long walk from where they already must have been.

  79. 79.

    dmsilev

    Loser on two ballots, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) remained defiant in his bid for House speaker. “We stay in until we win,” he told reporters in a brief conversation. “It will eventually change,” he insisted. “I know the path.” Pressed on the path, McCarthy declined to say.

    (Post liveblog).

  80. 80.

    Geminid

    @Gravenstone: I thought it significant in a good way that the vote to elect Jeffries Leader was unanimous. There was a fair amount of grumbling about him when Pelosi announced she was stepping back, but it was all among the chattering class. The actual caucus members were united behind him, with no dissenters.

  81. 81.

    cain

    Aguilar with a short 10 second speech followed by chanting – love it – puuuuure unity baby!

  83. 83.

    James E Powell

    @Baud:

    “Now listen, Kevin, whoever comes to you with this Jordan meeting, he’s the traitor. Don’t forget that.”

  88. 88.

    Bill Arnold

    @Baud:

    Dems can easily outlast Republicans.

    In the business world, the most important skill is bladder control.
    For these extended legislative sessions, modafinil for those for whom it is not contraindicated.

  89. 89.

    Suzanne

    Revit has crashed on me twice today, and I am still having a better day at work than Kevin McCarthy.

  90. 90.

    lowtechcyclist

    And we’re off and running with the third ballot.  Same nominees as the second ballot.  Wonder how many ballots they’ll do before they call it a night?

  91. 91.

    Betty Cracker

    Round three reference list of the 19 Nevins:

    Andy Biggs
    Dan Bishop
    Lauren Boebert
    Josh Brecheen
    Mike Cloud
    Andrew Clyde
    Eli Crane
    Matt Gaetz
    Bob Good
    Paul Gosar
    Andy Harris
    Anna Paulina Luna
    Mary Miller
    Ralph Norman
    Andy Ogles
    Scott Perry
    Matt Rosendale
    Chip Roy
    Keith Self

  92. 92.

    persistentillusion

    @WaterGirl: Same here, WG.  I’ve unsubscribed six times to no avail.  Next time she oozes over the transom, it’s going into spam and getting blocked.

  95. 95.

    Bill Arnold

    @PAM Dirac:

    Since the appropriations bill was passed before Christmas, there really isn’t any pressure to have a functioning House, most especially a functioning House under R control.

    The Biden administration has already made it clear that valid House subpoenas can only come from valid committees after the House is organized. No investigating Hunter Biden / Anthony Fauci until then!

  96. 96.

    Baud

    Meanwhile, tomorrow Biden will be in KY with a bipartisan contingent highlighting his infrastructure projects.  Quite a contrast

    ETA:  I wonder what House members will do about that trip if their still voting on Speaker.

  98. 98.

    Kent

    @hilts:Kevin McCarthy is the George Costanza of the Republican party.

    I think he is more like the Newman of the GOP.  Vile and  repellent with no redeeming qualities.

  101. 101.

    Leto

    And 6 votes for Gym. Lol

    Edit:

    Biggs

    Bishop

    Boebert

    Brecheen

    Cloud

    Clyde

    These are the six so far

  102. 102.

    Ken

    @Baud: Aha, the strategy becomes clear. Biden invites six Republican representatives from the Kentucky/Ohio border region, Jeffries gets the majority.

    This relies on the Republicans being dumb as posts, but….

  107. 107.

    rikyrah

    @cain:

     

     

    When you elect unserious people this is what you get. You can bet that donors and “serious” strategists are getting more and more angry.

    They are clowns. Pure clowns

  108. 108.

    different-church-lady

    I mean, these idiots do realize if they don’t elect a speaker they can’t have the Hunter Biden hearings of their perverse dreams, don’t they?

  111. 111.

    Cameron

    @Ken: And Louie Gohmert could give the funeral oration, “Fields, Rogaine, Countrywide, I come here not to ferry Kevin nor to cast asparagus on him….”

  113. 113.

    Geminid

    @Alison Rose: The Speaker elected in 1855 was Nathaniel Banks of Massachusetts. Banks was called “the Bobbin Boy” because he rose from teenage cotton mill worker to be a successful Bay State politician..

    Then the Civil War came along, and Banks’s political clout won him a Major Generalship in the Union Army. After the botched Red River expedition of 1864, Banks was called “the Fuck Up.”

  114. 114.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    MSNBC tells me Florida Man (19) Byron Donalds has flipped from McCarthy to Jordan in the third vote

  117. 117.

    James E Powell

    @WaterGirl:

    Who is Parker Malloy?  I somehow ended up on a list and now I get emails from her.

    Transgender writer. Gets in the social media flow from time to time. Cool sounding name.

  119. 119.

    Barbara

    I’m guessing that more and more McCarthy supporters are going to be putting more and more intense pressure on the hold outs.  The problem is that they need almost all of them.

  121. 121.

    different-church-lady

    Wait, I think I’ve got it: Santos just claims he’s been elected speaker, and everyone just goes along with it!

  123. 123.

    Ken

    And a bunch of A, B, and C reps say “Wait a minute, I thought we weren’t going to switch to Jordan until the fourth ballot…”

  125. 125.

    Edmund Dantes

    Apparently Gosar was asking AOC if it was true Dem’s told McCarthy they would leave at some point putting him over the top. AOC said “we’d never do that”

  129. 129.

    Citizen Alan

    @James E Powell:  McCarthy would walk out onto the floor of the House wearing an assless, crotchless gimp suit if he thought it would help him become Speaker.

  130. 130.

    Danielx

    If I was at all charitable towards any Republican, I’d feel sorry for McCarthy.

    However.

    1. Haven’t felt charitable towards Republicans since – well, ever.
    2. McCarthy is putting himself through ritual humiliation voluntarily, sorta. Kind of like Cultural Revolution-style self criticism.
  131. 131.

    Redshift

    If I’m Boebert, I’d be looking to ally myself with whomever will give me more earmarks for my district.

    I’m not so sure about that. I feel like part of the reason they have so many trolls in Congress is that they’re explicitly the anti-government party. They’ve spent decades telling their base that government is bad and if government does something, it’s a bad thing. The result is that the base doesn’t punish reps who don’t do anything for them, they reward them as long as they’re putting on a good performance.

  133. 133.

    Ken

    @Edmund Dantes: Maybe Gosar has a party to go to.

    Oh, there’s a sad thought. In some swank DC hotel ballroom, under the huge “CONGRATULATIONS SPEAKER MCCARTHY” banners, the caterer is telling his staff to put the appetizers back in the warming ovens, again.

  135. 135.

    Mallard Filmore

    @Bill Arnold: 

    In the business world, the most important skill is bladder control.

    Can’t they step out and take care of business while it’s not their time to vote? There is a LOT of ‘dead’ time.

  138. 138.

    Redshift

    @Citizen Alan: Heck, based on his “negotiating” so far, McCarthy would walk out onto the floor of the House wearing a gimp suit if someone demanded it, even if they wouldn’t promise to actually support him in return, only think about it.

  140. 140.

    different-church-lady

    “I mean, what if we took the flaming dumpster and put it on a train flatbed, and then sabotaged the trestle on national TV, and then…”

  142. 142.

    Sparkedcat

    I am cheering every vote for Gym Jordan. And I loathe Gym Jordan. Ding, Ding. Round four upcoming.

  144. 144.

    Roger Moore

    @Redshift:

    I don’t know if most of the Republican base could actually tell you what an earmark is. They know they’re bad, but that’s about it. Nothing at all would stop a Republican rep from denouncing earmarks on the one hand and proudly showing off all the great new things coming to their district on the other.  These are, after all, the same people who love touting all the great stuff their district will get from a bill they voted against.

  146. 146.

    Doug R

    @Alison Rose:

    In two instances the House agreed to choose and subsequently did choose a Speaker by a plurality of votes but confirmed the choice by majority vote. In 1849 the House had been in session 19 days without being able to elect a Speaker, no candidate having received a majority of the votes cast. The voting was viva voce, each Member responding to the call of the roll by naming the candidate for whom he voted.
    Finally, after the fifty-ninth ballot, the House adopted a resolution declaring that a Speaker could be elected by a plurality.
    In 1856 the House again struggled over the election of a Speaker. Ballots numbering 129 had been taken without any candidate receiving a majority of the votes cast. The House then adopted a resolution permitting the election to be decided by a plurality.
    On both of these occasions, the House ratified the plurality election by a majority vote.

     
    https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-HPRACTICE-108/html/GPO-HPRACTICE-108-35.htm

  148. 148.

    different-church-lady

    @Redshift: ​
      By putting on the gimp suit in the first place you’re stating you’re okay with no longer having a say in the matter…

  149. 149.

    Sans Simian

    @$8 blue check mistermix:

    If [Jordan] gets to be 3rd in line to the Presidency, there’s going to be a lot more attention paid to his cover up of sexual abuse.

    And then there’s that minor matter of his starring role in the attempted autogolpe.

    Such an illustrious group.  They really need a better collective name than “Never-Kevins.” Suggestions?

  150. 150.

    Anoniminous

    @Ken: ​
     
    Fortunately cocktail weenies with American Processed Imitation Cheese Food on a saltine doesn’t go stale. And the cans of Frito bean dip don’t have to be open until it’s time.

  152. 152.

    PaulB

    C-Span has the chyron: “Fourth Speaker Vote Expected.” It’s not “expected”, C-Span, it’s required, and it will continue to be required until we have a winner.

    Only one minor surprise, with the single switch from McCarthy to Jordan. Otherwise, this is a dupe of the last vote, so far.

    All 19 of the pro-Jordan caucus continued to vote for Jordan. With the added switched vote, Jordan has 20 votes.

  153. 153.

    Qrop Non Sequitur

    @different-church-lady: By putting on the gimp suit in the first place you’re stating you’re okay with no longer having a say in the matter…

    That tracks well with the theory that McCarthy mainly only wants to hold the title.

    Are there provisions for safe words in House rules?

  154. 154.

    different-church-lady

    We know we have a speaker when white smoke comes out of McCarthy’s ears?

  155. 155.

    Tim Ellis

    @Cameron: I think some folks go into DC with an aim to make the world better, or to serve the nation or so on, and some go to enrich themselves personally and get a nice career, but then some folks go just to be famous and make the history books for their “legacy”, and McCarthy is in the latter group. He just wants that Speakership so he’s in the history books, which is why he’s burning every bridge possible to just get the title even though his strategy is going to make it impossible for him to actually DO anything as Speaker. That’s the only way his approach makes sense, I think.

    But then again who knows lol, sometimes people also just do stupid stuff for nonsensical reasons that can’t really be understood.

  160. 160.

    stinger

    @Ken: I thought after the first ballot, Jeffries should have followed the Roger Stone handbook and simply declared victory (“I got the most votes!”), grabbed the gavel and the mike, and started conducting House business.

  163. 163.

    CaseyL

    This is like those game shows where the goal is ultimate humiliation of the contestants.

    And, in fact, “game show” is exactly how the GOP views public life.  They’re in it for the lulz and big cash prizes.

  165. 165.

    Salty Sam

    It’s just a matter of time before they start dropping trou, shitting in their hand and throwing it at one another, screeching like howler monkeys.

  166. 166.

    Hoodie

    @Roger Moore: Someone voting for Boebert isn’t supporting her because of the bacon she brings to the district.  Her interests actually lie in stirring shit, not going along with McCarthy.  Even if McCarthy is speaker, the GOP is not actually going to do anything. Plus, I suspect Boebert is fundamentally lazy and throwing feces is a lot easier than doing any real work for her constituents.

  168. 168.

    Josie

    @Betty Cracker: ​
    I think I would prefer Jordan or even McCarthy to Scalise. I have an impression that they are all horrible people, but Scalise is a bit more intelligent and capable of leading the caucus.
    ETA: Jordan might be helpful to us, since he would not wear well with the viewing public if he were seen more often.

  170. 170.

    eclare

    @CaseyL:   Great metaphor.  Most reality shows that I have seen try to embarrass the participants, the producers goad them into doing things, and they use sleep deprivation to manipulate the participants.

  171. 171.

    James E Powell

    @$8 blue check mistermix:

    If [Jordan] gets to be 3rd in line to the Presidency, there’s going to be a lot more attention paid to his cover up of sexual abuse.

    If that happens, there will be three more special committees investigation Hunter Biden. They will bury that story with their usual cornucopia of bullshit.

  172. 172.

    different-church-lady

    @Salty Sam: ​
      Apparently the howler monkey bit has already begun:

    Melanie Zanona
    @MZanona
    Things getting heated in House GOP meeting.

    McCarthy swore in his speech, dropping a “god damnit.” And he made clear he would negotiate no more. McCarthy also said opponents came to him with “personal asks” last night.

    Lauren boebert yelled in response to speech: “BULL SHIT”

  176. 176.

    PaulB

    And that’s it. McCarthy: 202; Jeffries: 212; Jordan: 20.

    The only change was Byron Donalds switching his vote from McCarthy to Jordan.

  178. 178.

    lowtechcyclist

    Josh Marshall: “Talk about a rigged election. My man Hakeem Jeffries has now won three times and he’s STILL not Speaker. STOP THE STEAL!!!!”

  180. 180.

    Suzanne

    @Citizen Alan:

    McCarthy would walk out onto the floor of the House wearing an assless, crotchless gimp suit 

    I would definitely tune into C-SPAN that day.
    I’d dress in something slutty and call him “Missssster Speakerrrrrr” for $500/hour.

  181. 181.

    Ken

    @lowtechcyclist: Also Josh Marshall: “I didn’t know until this day that it was Jordan all along.”

    I think he may be riffing on WandaVision‘s big series-end musical number.

  184. 184.

    dmsilev

    Math: over the course of three ballots, Gym has picked up one vote from Kevin. To reach 218 from his current 19, it will therefore take 597 additional ballots.

    Suck it, 1856 with your mere 133 ballots.

  187. 187.

    Martin

    @Hoodie: But she’s literally dozens of votes from losing that seat, and next election is presidential which doesn’t favor Republicans due to turnout trends. The problem with being a radical is you can pretty much only lose supporters, not gain them.

  188. 188.

    Geminid

    @geg6: Jordan will be unacceptable to members on the other ideological end of the party and they will dig in their heels. But once McCarthy’s cause becomes hopeless, the Jordan voters could join the McCarthy voters and elect Scalise. The radicals will have gotten their establishment scapegoat, and the purple district members would have blocked a Freedom Caucus member. Kind of a thesis/antithesis/synthesis solution.

    That would be a rational, harm- mitigating outcome. But things could just spin out of contol instead.

  189. 189.

    zhena gogolia

    Some good pics posted by TaMara in the comments in the thread above, of Dems bringing popcorn to the floor.

  190. 190.

    Ken

    @dmsilev: Ah, but consider the sequence.

    Ballot 1: McCarthy LOSES, 19 votes go to about five other names.

    Ballot 2: McCarthy LOSES, the same 19 votes coalesce around Jordan.

    Ballot 3: McCarthy LOSES, Jordan keeps the 19 and picks up one other.

    Clearly this is a fairly ham-fisted “Jordan as white knight riding to the rescue” narrative structure. Not that I would accuse anyone of having planned this in advance, though if that were the case, I would expect a bunch more switches to Jordan on the next ballot.

  191. 191.

    Martin

    @dmsilev:

    “How did you go bankrupt?” Bill asked.
    “Two ways,” Mike said. “Gradually, then suddenly.”

    If McCarthy loses just a few more votes, his supporters will either need to agree to Jordan or line up behind someone in order to block Jordan. I’m not convinced Jordan will take the job. I get the sense he doesn’t want the additional attention, nor does he want a job that has a likelihood of causing him to lose his seat and unlike Nancy Smash, these people aren’t up to the task of walking out of this job looking successful.

  192. 192.

    James E Powell

    @Geminid:

    Jordan will be unacceptable to members on the other ideological end of the party and they will dig in their heels

    There’s another ideological end? How many of them are there?

    I’m guessing the differences are not ideological but who promised what to whom.

  193. 193.

    Geminid

    @James E Powell: There is another ideological pole, starting with most of the purple district representatives. Their political interests would not be served by a Freedom Caucus Speaker.

    Of course, I am talking about matters of practical politics here, not moral virtue.

  194. 194.

    Frank Wilhoit

    @Redshift: Nobody hates “government” for any other reason than criminals hate police; and nobody hates government so much that they fail to notice that government money spends.  In some places, it is the onliest money there is.

  199. 199.

    Geminid

    @James E Powell: Another way to answer your question would be to list the members present who voted for the Infrastructure and CHIPS+ bills in the last Cingress. There were about twenty who broke with their caucus on each of these bills, a number comparable in size to the never-McCarthy faction.

  200. 200.

    geg6

    @Betty Cracker:

    Aesthetics are important.  Do you really want to see Gym screaming every. single. day for the next two years?  Chairman of the Judiciary Committee will put him on my tv more than enough.  At least McQarthy looks normal even if he isn’t.

  201. 201.

    Captain C

    @geg6:

    Do you really want to see Gym screaming every. single. day for the next two years?

    On the other hand, think of what that will do to Republican chances in 2024, assuming we all don’t die of being grossed out by this.

  202. 202.

    Cheez Whiz

    According to Washington Monthly, Boebert’s ask is for 1 House member to be able to call for a no-confidence vote on the Speaker. Note that that’s too much for even McCarthy to swallow for the job.

  204. 204.

    ETtheLibrarian

    Boebert doesn’t care about money for her district. She just wants attention and a significant number of voters in her district are either OK with that or hate/fear Dems so much.

  206. 206.

    ian

    @Betty Cracker:  FWIW, I think K-mac would be less likely to go for a gov shutdown than Jordan.  K-mac, for all his many faults, gets that it is bad for business and bad for his party’s image.

    Jordan may also get these things, but he is in the “burn-it-all-down” wing of the party and would more likely refuse to bring a continuing resolution to the floor that could get enough (dem) votes to pass over the objections of the whackaloons.

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