Kevin McCarthy reportedly ‘feisty,’ on the brink of extreme humiliation
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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., left, confers with Minority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., during a news conference about the appropriations process by the majority Democrats to fund the government, at the Capitol in Washington, Dec. 14, 2022.
The House of Representatives is set to elect a new speaker Tuesday, and the presumptive front-runner — Kevin McCarthy of California — is in deep trouble hours ahead of the vote.
McCarthy held a closed-door meeting with members of the GOP caucus Tuesday morning, and reporters from various national publications, including CNN’s Manu Raju and Melanie Zanona, Punchbowl News’ Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan, Politico’s Olivia Beavers and the Washington Examiner’s Juliegrace Brufke all live-tweeted snippets from the meeting.
People inside the meeting described McCarthy as “feisty,” “defiant” and “animated” to the reporters. Needing 218 votes and with 222 members in his caucus, McCarthy can only suffer four Republican defections from his right flank and still be named House speaker. In the meeting, he reportedly acknowledged there will be as many as 20 defections.
Just to put in perspective how unusual this situation is: If McCarthy is denied the speakership on the first ballot — an outcome that seems all-but-guaranteed after the closed-door meeting — it will be the first time the House casts multiple votes for speaker since 1923. That’s the degree of public humiliation McCarthy is facing.
No one has a good read on what will happen after the first ballot. During the meeting, McCarthy reportedly went through a list of concessions he has given the hard-line conservatives in the House Freedom Caucus. Still, some members were apparently unimpressed.
Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert allegedly yelled, “This is bulls—t,” after McCarthy’s speech, and Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry reportedly said that his opposition to McCarthy stems from his handling of spending bills. Furthermore, McCarthy and Texas Rep. Chip Roy also got into a “heated back and forth,” according to reporters’ accounts.
McCarthy told reporters after the meeting that he isn’t dropping out. Earlier on Tuesday, Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise — the No. 2 House Republican — notably did not answer a Punchbowl News reporter’s question about whether he would step in and run as an alternative to McCarthy if the California Republican can’t find a way to get to 218 on multiple ballots.
Tuesday promises to be unpredictable.