Kevin McCarthy could become the first nominee in 100 years not to win the job on a first-round floor vote if he succeeds in his bid to become speaker.
House Republicans are worried about the possibility of a fight over the gavel on the first day of the new congress. They have been meeting in private at the Capitol to find a solution.
McCarthy is trying to get the 218 votes needed to become speaker of the House, which is currently held by the Republicans.
The voters who sent the Republicans to Washington will revolt over that and they will feel let down, according to Jim Banks, a McCarthy ally.
The last time a candidate for House speaker faced public scrutiny was in 1923, when a new session of Congress descended into political chaos, with one vote after another, until a new speaker was elected. It took 9 votes to get the gavel.
McCarthy, a Republican from Bakersfield, California, who was first elected in 2006 and who remains allied with Donald Trump, has signaled he is willing to go as long as it takes in a floor vote to get the speaker's job. The former president made calls on McCarthy's behalf after endorsing him. When it was clear that he did not have the support of the people, McCarthy stepped aside.
McCarthy acknowledges that the holdouts will not budge. McCarthy said in an interview that it was all in danger.
The dilemma reflects not only McCarthy's uncertain stature among his peers, but also the shifting political norm in Congress as party leaders who once wielded immense power are seeing it slip away in the 21st century
Lawmakers have become political stars on their own terms, able to shape their brands on social media and raise their own money for campaigns. Party leaders used to give out favors in exchange for support, but House members are less dependent on them now.
If McCarthy is able to shore up the votes on January 3, the test will be whether he emerges a weakened speaker, forced to pay an enormous price for the gavel, or whether the power struggle will embolden his new leadership.
Jeffrey A. Jenkins is a professor at the University of Southern California and co-author of the book "Fighting for the Speakership."
Maybe he has more of the right stuff if he removes the rabbit from the hat.
Republicans met in private this past week for another lengthy session as McCarthy's detractors demanded changes to House rules that would diminish the power of the speaker's office
The members of the Freedom Caucus want assurances that they will be able to amend bills during the floor debates. The 72 hour rule requires bills to be reviewed before voting.
Outgoing Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and the past two Republican speakers, John Boehner and Paul Ryan, faced similar challenges, but they were able to rely on the currency of their position to give out favors, negotiate deals and win over opponents to keep them in line. They decided to retire early.
McCarthy's opponents want to bring back a House rule that would allow a floor vote to oust the speaker.
The little-used procedure was used by the early leaders of the Freedom Caucus as a threat to Speaker of the House John Boehner.
It wasn't until Pelosi seized the gavel the second time that House Democrats voted to do away with the rule and required a majority vote of the caucus to mount a floor vote challenge to the speaker.
The rule that was in place for 200 years was good enough for Thomas Jefferson, according to Rep. Chip Roy.
Roy told reporters at the Capitol that it's still a long way from being fixed.
It is not clear if McCarthy will be able to get the conservatives to drop their opposition to his leadership.
McCarthy won't be able to overcome the detractors according to several House Republicans.
He doesn't think he's going to get 218 votes. I am looking forward to when that recognition sets in and he steps aside and we can consider other candidates.
The opposition to McCarthy has promoted a counteroffensive from other groups of House Republicans who are becoming more vocal in their support of the GOP leader.
The leader of the Republican Governance Group was wearing a button that said "Only Kevin"
The tactic of lowering the threshold for reaching a majority used to be used by Pelosi and Boehner.
The leader of a conservative governance caucus said that anyone who thinks that the holdouts are going to be bullied into compliance doesn't understand how.
Newt Gingrich dropped out of the race for Speaker of the House when he didn't have the votes, and that's what Fred Upton warned McCarthy against doing.
Kevin was told to go to the finish line by his friend. The cards cannot be folded. You need to get these people to vote.
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