American politician Steve Scalise will not succeed Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House of Representatives. The Republican, who was put forward as a candidate last Wednesday, did not receive sufficient support within his own party on Thursday. To appoint Scalise chairman, House Republicans had to agree almost unanimously. After all, the party only has a small majority in the House, which meant that a small number of opponents were enough to block his chairmanship.
Scalise was narrowly elected as candidate by his parliamentary group last Wednesday. The very conservative politician received 113 votes, rival and Donald Trump-supported Jim Jordan 99 votes. The resistance to Scalise within the Republican party was therefore not unexpected. Several Republicans also announced almost immediately after the vote that they wanted to block Scalise’s appointment, which was seen as a more moderate option.
Also read this article about it the looming open division within the Republican party
Republican crisis
Scalise’s withdrawal as candidate for chairman further deepens the governance crisis within the Republican Party. Last week, eight Republicans lost their confidence in McCarthy, forcing him to relinquish his presidency after just 269 days – a record. It was also the first time that Congress had… speaker dropped off. It is unclear who is now the main candidate for the presidency.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives has an important position in American politics. For example, without a speaker, the House cannot pass new laws. The chaos has led some Republicans to propose expanding the interim president’s powers.