So much right about this photo:
ETA- made the CSPAN feed!
Adjourned. We’ll be back tomorrow with an even cuter outfit. #StayTuned https://t.co/7rxsCl2i71
— Rep. Jimmy Gomez (@RepJimmyGomez) January 3, 2023
They are scheduled to begin around noon EST. If I find a live feed once it starts, I’ll add here
Here is the only live feed so far:
Other live feeds possible:
Getting ready to watch the next round of votes for Speaker. pic.twitter.com/v1tS5CJCWx
— Ana Navarro-Cárdenas (@ananavarro) January 4, 2023
Split Screen of the day:
“President leads through bipartisanship, rebuilds the nation.”
vs
“GOP throws feces at each other, badly.” pic.twitter.com/HkpTxLFhFV
— (((Evan Shapiro))) (@eshap) January 4, 2023
I’ve got end-of-the-year stuff to keep me busy, and I’ll have MSNBC on in the background.
This is a while we wait open thread
Jesse
Frist!
The chaos in the House made the news here in Germany.
Jesse
deleted
mrmoshpotato
I’m gonna go back to watching this Aussie plumber unclog this toilet. Exposed to less shit there.
danielx
That unnamed Republican was correct: this is a shit show to behold.
lowtechcyclist
The right hand headline in that split screen misspelled ‘self-own.’
mali muso
Love that baby! Maybe he should be the speaker. Couldn’t do a worse job than the current applicant.
cain
Hey, Jan 6th is coming up – so this must be insurrection week – GOP edition. The crazies are now creating an insurrection inside the GOP caucus! :-)
Jim, Foolish Literalist
from something called Puck via the Bulwark (paywalled?), more signs that trump is losing his mojo
worn
I suppose, faced with the inconvenience of being stuck at home after our testing positive for Covid on New Years Eve, we could’ve been provided with less entertaining fare than the yesterday’s clown show. Luckily the party’s production surpassed predictions.
One has to count the small blessings.
I just hope this joint gets picked up as a ongoing miniseries.
TaMara
Joe Falco
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
“I’m telling you, they had tears in their eyes when they said I should be Speaker! I can tell!”
Barbara
@danielx: I disagree. It’s certainly newsworthy but I don’t see people tuning in to watch hours and hours of peoples’ names being called and responding McCarthy or Jordan or Jeffries.
In a larger context, I really don’t know how you handle people whose sole goal seems to be to seed chaos.
dmsilev
Maybe someone should replace the gavel with a conch shell?
Ken
I hate to break the news, but…
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Barbara: We had it on in the background all yesterday afternoon. It was low key amazing
Dorothy A. Winsor
@dmsilev: Lord of the Flies? If it’s not, it should be
piratedan
hearing speculation that the McCarthy group may seek an immediate adjournment this morning because they still don’t have the votes
Baud
@dmsilev:
A gong would be apt.
Kelly
McCarthy moving out of the Speaker’s Office is the finale this story needs.
Dorothy A. Winsor
An appropriate You Tube of a Hamilton moment.
Scout211
@piratedan: CNN is reporting that the vote to adjourn requires 218 votes and the Dems are actively whipping against adjournment right now.
lowtechcyclist
Mona Charen, who I’d forgotten about entirely until just now: “The battle unfolding over the speakership is not between the extremists and the establishment. It’s between two camps of extremists.” It can’t be between extremists and the establishment, because “the Republican establishment is deader than dead.”
Yeppers to both.
Leto
@Dorothy A. Winsor: better than the three seashells from Demolition Man.
I’ve been busy with stuff around the house this morning and just tuning in now. Seeing Fred Upton’s name still in play. Loooooooool
bbleh
“President leads through bipartisanship, rebuilds the nation.” vs “GOP throws feces at each other, badly.”
Which poses the obvious question: why isn’t the President doing more to solve problems?
Jim, Foolish Literalist
I, for one, did not see this coming
but it doesn’t seem that shocking, I guess. I wonder how much of it is drawing McCarthy out on what concessions he’s willing to make.
Ohio Mom
@Scout211: The older I get, the more I appreciate and enjoy the arcana of Congressional rules.
dmsilev
@Dorothy A. Winsor: Yes, exactly.
lowtechcyclist
Looks like C-SPAN will start covering the action in the House starting at 11:50 a.m. So just a few minutes away.
Mike in NC
House Republicans will probably adjourn until Monday because they’re used to getting paid to do nothing.
dmsilev
@Baud: Another alternative is the scene from The Dark Knight where the Joker announces he has one job opening and two ‘applicants’.
Baud
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Interesting. So the feelers are coming out, forcing McCarthy to make a decision.
eclare
Got my Skinny Pop!
Alison Rose
@Barbara: I mean, there were over 40k people watching the CSPAN YT feed alone. Not exactly a huge segment of the population, but clearly it’s holding the interest of some.
Leto
@Dorothy A. Winsor: great clip. “You don’t have the votes, ah-hahahaha, you don’t have the votes!”
Leto
@dmsilev: want to see a magic trick? I’m going to make Kevin McCarthy’s dreams disappear… TADAH! Magic…
Scout211
Someone has probably already posted this, but new meme:
The Moar You Know
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: he can’t make any and if he does, he will not deliver on them. She must know this.
Barbara
@Dorothy A. Winsor: We are political junkies.
PAM Dirac
@lowtechcyclist:
Exactly, which is why talk of the one cute trick to get a speaker completely misses the point. Get a speaker and then do what? The entire R caucus would unite behind Hunter Biden’s laptop, Fauci’s lies, and making sure the IRS does catch rich people. Why should any Ds participate in enabling that? If some cute trick got say Jeffries to speaker, he’s say no to that agenda, and a vote to remove him would be called and the entire R caucus would be united in removing him. Any negotiation about finding a speaker has to really be a negotiation about finding a working governing coalition, most certainly including what the governing agenda is going to be. I don’t think that is possible at the moment. It might after a few months of chaos.
Barbara
@Alison Rose: There are people in my office who have two or even three tvs tuned to news stations all day every day — CSPAN is sometimes one of them. I know it’s of interest to many people, it’s just not very entertaining, the way some of the January 6 hearings were. That’s my main point. People are going to lose interest in watching, even if they are interested in the outcome.
Ken
Ha-ha, I see what you did there.
Er, unless you weren’t making a pun on “Loki”, the Norse god of chaos and betrayal.
Barbara
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I can see that there would be deals worth making — debt ceiling, and a whole host of others — but how could you ever trust McCarthy to keep his word?
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@The Moar You Know: Lady Olenna to Cersei Lannister: My dear, you’ve been stripped of your dignity and authority, your head shaved and driven naked through the streets. What’s left to make a deal with?
TaMara
Adding up top…I did not realize all that cuteness made the C-Span feed
Alison Rose
@Barbara: Yeah, I guess the entertainment for most of us comes from watching McCarthy get pummeled over and over. Which I suppose isn’t as fun for normal people :P
Dorothy A. Winsor
That observation really centers the discussion. This is what electing the Speaker really means
Alison Rose
@TaMara: Yeah, and AOC was cooing and cuddling the little buddy. It was adorable :)
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Ken: I think we’ll just go with yes, that’s what I meant
tobie
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Unless McCarthy promises to raise the debt ceiling, this is a lost cause. Kaptur won reelection in a tough year, so I don’t know why she’s saying this. Yuck.
Alison Rose
Just say “Please God, let this shit end today, amen”
Tom Levenson
I defer to Mr. T’s expert knowledge for a guide to what McCarthy can expect this afternoon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSPNQ82Sq4E
Ken
@Dorothy A. Winsor: Oh, good, because Loki is also famous for being made the fool when his schemes backfire — think “coyote orders from Acme catalog again”, but with more toilet humor — and that’s also just where the Republicans seem to have placed themselves.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
Maybe to get McCarthy, or Patrick McHentry, or at least Don Bacon, or somebody, to start talking about things like the debt ceiling.
Ken
@Scout211: We can turn off the Internet for the rest of the year, nothing is going to top that.
Alison Rose
Seems kinda fucked that they’re making these clerks try to count everyone while they’re all milling around.
Sure Lurkalot
I hope no Democrat votes for McCarthy. That cipher cannot be trusted, not that any of them can. IMHO, this is no time to break ranks.
Ken
“We brought fresh popcorn. Also, you are aware we can’t actually do anything until this vote is complete?”
tobie
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I hope you’re right.
Leto
@Tom Levenson: A clip of Rep Jeffries yesterday, today, and the future to come.
Also you better vote!
geg6
@Alison Rose:
They do it electronically by some device built into their desks or chairs.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Sure Lurkalot: @tobie: Kaptur’s been in Congress for forty years, and I don’t ever recall her being a rebel or a troll, like Gottheimer. I’d bet a few quatloos that this is part of the broad strategy of what Jeffries said yesterday about being ready to work with Republicans to help the country, but not to save them from themselves.
Cheryl from Maryland
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: UGH. I know Ms. Kaptur has supporters here, and she fits her district while maintaining D loyalty, but this “solid Mid-Western values” pose vs. the coastal “elite” pisses me off. First, I believe “Mid – Western values” are the same anywhere else, and second, my experiences with people from the Mid-West have not been positive. I only give her a pass as Nancy said: Just Win, Baby.
MisterForkbeard
@Kelly: However else this ends, I really hope that happens. Always nice when a power play by a total asshole just doesn’t work out.
MisterForkbeard
@lowtechcyclist: This is so right. Thanks to Mona Charen for pointing it out.
@Leto: Upton spoke out this morning, saying he’d be a consensus candidate who would give Democrats and Republicans equal seating in committees so there’s no majorities there. Which is… interesting?
I’d wait until he formally abrogrates the Hastert Rule.
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Pretty sure some of that is performative, but I’m all for Dems publicly stating they’d do the right thing for the good of the country (unlike Rs). And then extracting some concessions to do it or using it to twist the knife for McCarthy.
Steeplejack
Big douchebag energy from Mike Gallagher (R-WI), speaking now. ALL-CAPS BODY LANGUAGE.
Alison Rose
@geg6: There were two clerks literally looking at the crowd and moving their fingers around counting the bodies.
schrodingers_cat
@Cheryl from Maryland: Same here. Yeah what exactly are those solid midwestern values, bigotry with a smile on your face?
gene108
@lowtechcyclist:
I think it’s between those who are 100% committed to defaulting on U.S. debt, if they don’t get their way versus some group that’d be willing to raise the debt ceiling by either working with Democrats or not refusing to allow a bill to come to the floor.
Alison Rose
JFC is this asshole running for Speaker himself? Shut up, man.
Matt McIrvin
@PAM Dirac: There was a Washington Post article whose headline said that all but two of the Republican Reps who voted against McCarthy were election deniers.
Noted in the body of the article: McCarthy himself is an election denier, and the vast majority of his supporters are election deniers. Yes, it’s epic self-ownage.
Mona Charen is an awful person from way back. It is nice to see she has limits.
Leto
Rep Gomez stepping up to nominate Rep Jeffries, to loud applause. Sadly, no cute baby attached to him. Def Dems in Disarray :(
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Cheryl from Maryland: my theory about Kaptur may be way off, but I share your frustration with the idea of mid-western vs coastal values. I was disappointed to hear Debbie Dingell, whose gimlet-eyed pragmatism is usually right up my alley, is starting a “Heartland caucus”. That term is so loaded with the idea that some Americans– white and rural– are more American than other Americans
Ken
I am disappointed that geg6’s comment wasn’t a proposed answer to Barbara.
Ksmiami
Day 2 and I’m already sick of this Republican so called house. These people would fuck up a bake sale and should be expunged from our government- all of them.
at least Bloomberg news is coming to the same conclusion
schrodingers_cat
A reminder that this shit show is brought upon us by the voters who voted for Rs despite their track record (over 60% of white men and over 50% of white women and a small percentage of deluded white wannabe minorities) and their cheerleaders in the media.
Sure Lurkalot
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: What work will get done with McCarthy as speaker? He has not one policy position aligned with the Democrats or the good of the country. He has no spine which is why he cannot get elected speaker without peeling off Democrats. Just no.
Alison Rose
Hakeem looking sharp.
Martin
If I were Jeffries, I’d see how vote 4 goes, and if it’s like yesterday, tell 20 safe Democrats to go ahead and vote for Jordan on vote 5, just to fuck with them. I mean, it’s not like Jordan is materially worse than McCarthy given that McCarthy will do literally anything to win this vote, but at some point this stops being useful to Democrats. But why make McCarthy feel like he can just repeat this vote forever. Fuck with him a bit.
schrodingers_cat
@Matt McIrvin: She and Jonah Goldberg have been never Trump Rs since the beginning.
MisterForkbeard
Cheryl Rofer over at LGM remains awesome and unless there’s some sort of surprise here I think this is correct, though also unlikely to happen:
“The Democrats have no immediate reason to do anything but vote for Hakeem Jeffries and eat their popcorn. Longer term, it is important that the US Congress become minimally functional. A good outcome would be a compromise candidate, if the Democrats can pick off enough “moderate” Republicans. Undoubtedly they are trying to do that, but what is happening now will provide fodder for the 2024 campaign, and the danger to the moderates is from the right. So allying with Democrats to vote for governance will be difficult for them.
The Democrats can wait for the Republican factions to try to stare each other down for a week or so. I don’t expect to see any big changes today.”
Alison Rose
[deleted and moved to new thread]
Jim, Foolish Literalist
Some day, I hope the statue of MLK JR on the Mall comes to life like the Golem Of Prague to slap the crap out of every bigoted Republican who trots out the “content of their character line”
for those not watching, some goober from Texas is nominating Byron Donalds (R-FL) for Speaker, because he’s a “Christian man” who loves his wife and children
schrodingers_cat
@Martin: I wouldn’t do that unless you really want Jordan to become the speaker.
If I were Jeffries I would offer the Rs from bluish purple districts enticements to declare themselves independent and caucus with the Ds.
How many R representatives are there in the districts that Biden won?
Tom Levenson
@Leto: Both clips are awesome. “You can’t talk that smack and not get knocked back!”
GibberJack
@Scout211: Excellent. They should not spare the republicans from public exposure and humiliation from their self-created shit-show.
Another Scott
@Martin: I strongly disagree. There’s no pressing need for this to end today. There’s nothing on the House calendar until January 24.
The GQP need to fix this. They’re the majority, they have to figure it out.
My $0.02.
Cheers,
Scott.
circular reasoning
Was the calculus of putting up Donaldson to be able to 1) have a fig leaf for their racism and 2) scare the rest of their caucus to McCarthy rather than accept another “blah” man in a position of power? Going to be pretty telling if this is the vote that gets him over the top.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@schrodingers_cat: eighteen
schrodingers_cat
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: How many can be turned?
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: found the Jeffries line
lowtechcyclist
@Another Scott:
Strongly agree. When your adversaries are busy embarrassing themselves, let ’em go to town.
WaterGirl
What was the clapping for just now?
circular reasoning
I just learned that Donalds (not Donaldson as I had earlier) was the one who changed his vote yesterday from McCarthy to Jordan in Rd. 3. Maybe this was his reward???
I should really not try to find logic with these folks actions.
Ken
“You’ll lose, obviously, but a hundred years from now you’ll have that footnote in the history books, as the first black person the House Republicans ever nominated for, well, anything.”
artem1s
@tobie:
she’s gonna get primaried from the left if she breaks rank. I thought she was smarter than Ryan but I guess not.
circular reasoning
@Ken: You must have been in the room with them then!
Has that Caddyshack vibe of the Dalai Lama’s tip
Warblewarble
Quevin flop , flops again.
Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I live in a mid-western city, and still think that a ‘heartland’ caucus is a good idea. It’s not because mid- westerners are any more American, but that rural areas have different industries and needs. I think Dems would do a better job addressing those issues.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony: I agree on the substance– reaching out to rural areas and smaller cities and the rust belt, I’ve just always found that term to be racially loaded
Nettoyeur
@schrodingers_cat: Goldberg aka Doughy Pantload only went anti Trump when he realized it was gonna pay better for him to be an anti Trump “principled” reactionary than a Trumper crazy. This is the guy who wrote a book claiming that liberals are in fact fascists because well, they accept realities that are inconvenient for wingnuts. Also, too because liberals accept the metric system used by everyone except the US and the post Brexit UK (whose economy is melting without easy access to Europe). Doughy actually wrote screeds against the metric system…
H-Bob
@lowtechcyclist: Agree with letting the Republicans embarrass themselves. Although the Democrats should be coming up with memes and quips about how the Republicans can’t even elect their own guy so they’re gonna screw up the country. Or how the Republican caucus is a 2008 do-over. And run ads with those quips throughout the next 2 years.
Geminid
@artem1s: I think people are jumping go conclusions here and inferring too much from this statement. These are the words of a staffer, and I cannot tell what they actually mean so far as what Kaptur’s actions might be. But from what I know of Marcy Kaptur, she’s about the last person I would expect to break ranks with her leadership and her caucus.
jnfr
I guess I’m just gonna sit here and watch McCarthy keep losing over and over. I’m not sure why the Rs want to keep watching it happen, but here we are.
Craig
@Geminid: yeah, This.
Another Scott
The 6th nominating speech for McCarthy is telling us that they’ll emerge stronger as a result of this process.
Haha.
Good one.
Cheers,
Scott.