WASHINGTON (AP) — UPDATE 10/20/23 3:09 p.m.: Republicans have dropped Jim Jordan as their nominee for House speaker in a private meeting.
Republican Jim Jordan has failed again in a third try for the House speaker’s gavel.
Digging in for a fight Jordan had said at the Capitol on Friday that Congress needs “to get to work for the American people.”
But Jordan lost ground as opposition deepened.
GOP lawmakers had been warning the hard-edged ally of Donald Trump that no threats or promises could win their support.
A hodgepodge coalition of roughly 20 House Republicans opposed his bid.
They received a barrage of death threats that have only hardened their resolve against Jordan.
In doing so, they defied a belief of many in Washington — that moderates have no backbone.
Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican centrist who has led the opposition to Jordan’s nomination, says, “Bullying don’t work.”
Third time: Charm or third strike?
After two failed votes, Jordan’s third attempt at the gavel, expected Friday, is not expected to end any better.
In fact, it is likely to produce an even worse tally for the fiery Judiciary Committee chairman — in large part because those centrist rank-and-file Republicans are revolting over the hardball tactics being used to win their votes.
“I’m still running for speaker and I plan to go to the floor and get the votes and win this race,” said Jordan, a founder of the far-right House Freedom Caucus.
The House is scheduled to convene Friday but Republicans have no realistic or workable plan to unite the fractured GOP majority, elect a new speaker and return to the work of Congress that has been languishing since hardliners ousted Kevin McCarthy at the start of the month.
Standing by their man
Jordan, so far, has failed to get enough votes to become House Speaker but his fight for the coveted leadership role isn’t done — and the devotion of many constituents back in Ohio is unwavering.
In Washington, Jordan has made a name for himself as a conservative pugilist, founder of the chaotic Freedom Caucus and staunch ally of former President Donald Trump.
In Ohio, Jordan is a hometown boy whose conservative policies and never-say-die persona on Capitol Hill have earned him a secure seat in his rural district.
One constituent told the Associated Press that a defeat for Jordan would sour his view of the Republicans who don’t vote for him.