House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) has withdrawn from the race to become the chamber’s next speaker, he said Thursday night.
“It’s been quite a journey, and there’s still a long way to go,” Scalise told reporters. “I just shared with my colleagues that I’m withdrawing my name as a candidate for the speaker designee.”
“If you look at where our conference is, there’s still work to be done.”
The decision will throw the party into more chaos as it works to find a Republican who can appeal to at least 217 House lawmakers following the shock removal of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) earlier this month.
The decision is a turn of fortune for Scalise, who came out of a closed-door meeting on Wednesday ahead of his only other competitor for the speakership, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). Jordan, who earned the endorsement of former President Donald Trump last week, had thrown his support behind the majority leader in an effort to see the party move forward, and Scalise had spent most of Thursday trying to woo more votes.
But many of Jordan’s supporters refused to align with Scalise, leaving him without the votes needed to win. Some Republicans came up with odd reasons not to support him, ranging from a lack of phone calls to claims he isn’t conservative enough.
Others, however, were livid with their colleagues.
“What do you want, a fucking massage?” Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) told HuffPost of his fellow lawmakers. “This is just childish.”
Scalise’s withdrawal potentially brings both Jordan and McCarthy back into consideration.
As he left the meeting, McCarthy was asked if he would run again for speaker.
“Let the conference decide,” he said.
Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) said Jordan should be next up to try to gather the 217 votes needed.
“We’ll see” if he can, Norman said.
The House floor has basically been shuttered since Oct. 3 without a speaker, and some House Republicans are beginning to look at options in addition to quickly finding someone who could knit together 217 votes.
One idea would be to give the interim speaker, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), additional power that would allow the House to consider legislation.
Rep. Monica De La Cruz (R-Texas) said a group of moderates is circulating a petition to empower McHenry, though it’s not clear how or even if that is legally possible.
But others in the conference are wary. As the first speaker pro tempore to replace an ousted speaker, McHenry’s actions could be taken as a precedent for the next time a speaker pro tem is named.
There are signs that the constant daily meetings without a resolution are beginning to wear on Republicans.
Noting security concerns related to the Isreal-Hamas conflict, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said, “I think we should either be voting or leaving.”
Scalise said in his announcement that the party remained fractured after McCarthy’s ouster and cited “schisms that have to get resolved.”
“There are still some people that have their own agendas,” Scalise said Thursday. “And I was very clear, we have to have everybody put their agendas on the side and focus on what this country needs.”
“I think we’re gonna get there,” he added. “Ultimately, we have to come together for the country.”
