Gingrich calls for urgency from House GOP in electing new speaker: ‘We can’t sit around’

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich called on House Republicans to resolve the House speaker saga, either through electing a new speaker or granting Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-NC) more powers, in a timely manner.

While speaking on Fox News’s Hannity on Tuesday night, Gingrich did not have confidence in Rep. Jim Jordan‘s (R-OH) ability to pick up enough votes to win the speakership after losing 20 Republicans on the first ballot, but he suggested that however the GOP decides to move forward, it should do so quickly.

JORDAN HOLDOUTS FLOAT NEW POWERS FOR HOUSE SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE IN INTERIM

“My sense from talking to people in the House tonight, in the next vote, he might actually get fewer, not more, votes,” Gingrich said. “If that happens, we can’t sit around and suck our thumbs and hope the world will wait until the House Republicans get their act together.”

Some Jordan holdouts have floated the idea of granting temporary powers so that the lower chamber can conduct business, as it has been paralyzed since Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was ousted from the speakership earlier this month by eight Republicans and all Democrats. Gingrich said the move would show “weakness” but that it may be the only path forward in the interim.

“This is a sign of weakness, not strength. It’s a sign of immaturity. It’s a sign of what happens when you have eight traitors sitting in the middle of your group. And nobody’s been able to figure out a solution. I’m just suggesting maybe a timeout and a few months to calm down is the only way forward. Not the best way, the only way,” Gingrich said.

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Jordan said on Tuesday that the next speaker vote of the full House would happen at 11 a.m. on Wednesday. When announcing the next vote would not be until Wednesday, Jordan expressed optimism about picking up the necessary votes to be elected.

“We’re making progress. I feel good about it. We’re going to keep going. We’ve had great discussions. Frankly, in our conference, nobody wants to see a coalition government with Democrats,” Jordan said.