House Republicans opposing Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s endangered bid for speaker say he’s not agreeing to their demands, which include significant changes in how the GOP conference operates and major spending cuts.
They say they’re prepared to vote against his candidacy for speaker on the House floor on Jan. 3 if McCarthy, R-Calif., doesn’t cede to their demands, and they claim there are several other Republicans who will do the same.
“Miracles do happen,” Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., said when asked if there is any chance he’d vote for McCarthy. “I am a hard no. I am willing to listen for the next 33 days… I’m anxious to listen. I went to a meeting yesterday where we listened.”
Norman continued that McCarthy should tell committee chairs, “This is what we’ve got to have, cuts we’ve got to have. And if you don’t do that, all of a sudden your chairmanship may be in jeopardy.”
Norman is joined by Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., who says he’s going to challenge McCarthy on the House floor on Jan. 3., and Reps. Bob Good, R-Va., Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., and Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.
Good said it is “good news” that “the leadership challenge has encouraged the leadership to consider some changes that need to be made to how Congress operates.” But, he added, there are significant sticking points that remain, including bringing back the motion to vacate the chair, enacting a “majority of the majority” rule, and retuning legislation to regular order through committees.
Rosendale also told Fox News Digital he does not support McCarthy at this point.
“I have not seen any change in his stance that would earn my support,” Rosendale said. “There’s a group of us that presented Kevin McCarthy a list of amendments that we wanted to the House rules and to the conference rules four months ago.”
“Interestingly, since the election, he’s been much more interested in talking to us,” he continued. “They have not made enough progress… to change my stance whatsoever.”
McCarthy and his allies say they’re confident that he will have the votes on the House floor, and they have over a month left to figure out how to reach 218, which would give him the support he needs — more than half the House.
Among McCarthy’s boosters, notably, are high-profile House Freedom Caucus members Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.
Some Republicans have criticized those opposing McCarthy – alleging that they are highlighting a divide in the party when the focus should be on unifying. McCarthy, meanwhile, said on Newsmax this week that Democrats could influence the choice of speaker if conservatives don’t put down their opposition.
But Good called the idea of bipartisan cooperation on a speaker “intentional disinformation.”
