Third House speaker hopeful goes out on third vote: Washington Photos of the Week

October 21, 2023 08:16 AM

The week started off with a sense of optimism as Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) signaled Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) would rally enough Republicans to become the next speaker of the House.

But by Friday, Jordan suffered the same fate as McCarthy — failing to secure the necessary votes to lead the fractured House GOP.

HOUSE GOP CONFERENCE VOTES TO ABANDON JORDAN AS SPEAKER NOMINEE

The House is now heading into a third week of paralysis without a speaker.

McCarthy’s ouster as speaker on Oct. 3 gave way to the first closed-door internal election for the gavel with Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) prevailing with the majority of the conference’s vote. But he bowed out of the race when he realized he didn’t have the 217 votes required to win.

Republicans then turned to Jordan, who wanted a floor vote to create a level of public pressure on the holdouts. Twenty Republicans voted against him on Tuesday in the first ballot. By Wednesday, the number of defectors grew to 22.

Jordan considered an off-ramp by backing the expansion of powers of Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-NC) through January so the House can get back to regular order.

But the GOP caucus rejected the move, and Jordan became the third Republican this month to fall short of the near-unanimous Republican support needed to lead the House. On his third and final floor vote Friday his no votes ticked up to 25.

Also this week, President Joe Biden traveled to the war zone of Israel to show support for the Jewish state after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. Meanwhile, about 300 protesters were arrested on Capitol Hill for illegally demonstrating inside a House office building as they demanded a cease-fire in Gaza. Biden is asking Congress for additional aid to Israel and Ukraine, but the House is unable to pass anything as the speaker fight drags on for an 18th day.

House Republicans will regroup on Monday with another forum to hear from a growing list of new candidates trying to become the speaker.

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Here’s a look at Capitol scenes from the week of Oct. 16 captured by Washington Examiner photographer Graeme Jennings.

House has been at a standstill since Oct. 3 and unable to elect a speaker

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), the Republican speaker nominee, speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill early Friday morning, on Oct. 20, 2023. Jordan failed to secure enough votes for the third time on Friday.

Rep. Michael Guest (R-MS) holds a list of Congressional members as the House of Representatives votes for a third time to elevate Jim Jordan (R-OH) to speaker on Capitol Hill, on Friday, Oct. 20, 2023

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy laughs following a second round of voting where Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) failed to secure enough votes to become House Speaker, on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023, on Capitol Hill. — Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy laughs following a second round of voting where Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) failed to secure enough votes to become House speaker, on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023, on Capitol Hill.

Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-NC) speaks with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) as the House of Representatives meets to elect a new speaker of the House on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) holds her son as the House of Representatives meets to elect a new speaker of the House on Capitol Hill, on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023.

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy huddles with Rep. Jim Jordan, his chief of staff Kevin Eichinger, and other lawmakers after Jordan failed to secure enough votes to be elected speaker, after the first round of voting, at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023.

Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-NC) talks with Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) as the House of Representatives meets to elect a new speaker of the House on Capitol Hill, on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023.

Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-NC) walks past the media on his way to a House Republican conference meeting, on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. Republicans spent hours discussing whether to consider empowering McHenry until January.

Demonstrators demanding ceasefire in Gaza descend on the Capitol, with arrests