Like a frenzied game of Whac-A-Mole, as soon as House Speaker nominee Steve Scalise was slammed down, dropping out of the race yesterday afternoon, Jim Jordan popped up again, re-entering the race on Friday.
Which in a normal world would not make any sense, given that Jordan has even less support than Scalise, as was shown in a 99–113 vote earlier this week. But this is Gym Jordan —proven expert in denialism — we're talking about. And it's also MAGAland, where nothing has to add up.
From NBC News:
Jordan, a Donald Trump loyalist who has burnished a reputation on the Hill as a conservative bomb-thrower, could still meet the same fate as Scalise. Because of the party's razor-thin majority, just five GOP detractors can block Jordan in a House floor vote, and a handful of moderate Republicans have already said they won't vote for Jordan.
They include Reps. Ann Wagner of Missouri, Austin Scott of Georgia, and Don Bacon of Nebraska. …
Following Scalise's decision to drop out, House Republicans regrouped and huddled behind closed doors Friday, facing deep intraparty divisions and no apparent path to 217 votes, the magic number needed on the House floor to elect a new speaker.
The chain of events began with Rep. Kevin McCarthy's ouster as speaker last week and led to Scalise's exit Thursday, all intensifying the bad blood within the party, which could make Republicans' task even harder. Some GOP lawmakers, including Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida, have pledged to vote only for McCarthy on the House floor.
"We had a process and we had a nominee and people stabbed him in the back," said Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas. "So that's not something to be proud of.
