Republican Kevin McCarthy is under growing pressure from restless Republicans, and Democrats, to find the votes he needs or step aside, so the House can open fully and get on with the business of governing.
When the House resumes at noon Thursday it could be a long day. The new Republican majority was not expected to be in session on Friday, which is the anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. A prolonged and divisive speaker's fight would almost certainly underscore the fragility of American democracy after the attempted insurrection two years ago.
Some Republicans appear to be growing uneasy with way the House Republicans have taken charge after the midterm election only to see the chamber upended over the speaker's race in their first days in the new majority. A new generation of conservative Republicans, many aligned with Trump’s Make America Great Again agenda, want to upend business as usual in Washington, and were committed to stopping McCarthy’s rise without concessions to their priorities.
And a McCarthy-aligned campaign group, the Conservative Leadership Fund, offered another concession, saying it would no longer spend money on elections “in any open-seat primaries in safe Republican districts." The far-right lawmakers have complained that their preferred candidates for the House were being treated unfairly as the campaign fund put its resources elsewhere.
“I'm ready to vote all night, all week, all month and never for that person,” said Florida Republican Matt Gaetz.
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