The bid for a speaker of the House of Representatives continues, amid in-fighting of Republicans. This has kept the post of the speaker,one of the most important government post to be vacant for nearly two weeks. Previously the Louisiana Representative Steve Scalise dropped out of the race to be the Speaker, owing to not having enough votes. The party then turned to Jim Jordan, who was officially nominated last week.
Who is Jim Jordan?
Mr Jordan, represents Ohio’s 4th district. He is a key member of House Oversight Committee,chairs the House Judiciary Committee,and is also one of the three Republicans leading the impeachment investigation into President Joe Biden. He is also the co-founder of the right bloc within the Republicans House of Freedom Caucus in 2015. He is an avid supporter of the 45th president,who in turn also supports Mr Jordan in the Speaker race. His rise in prominence is attributed to Mr Trump.He is in line with mainstream members of his party on policies like opposition of abortions,supporting strong immigration laws and opposing gun restrictions. However he has mostly received attention for his actions involving the Capitol riot on 6th of January,2021.
He was also one of the Republicans ,who voted against certifying that Mr Biden is the legitimate winner of the 2020 Presidential election. He refused to answer questions from the House relating to the riot in the Capitol. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom after the ensuing riot by Mr Trump. He defended Mr Trump during his first impeachment trial. He worked as a sports coach prior to becoming a lawmaker, at the Ohio State University.
Third round of voting to choose Speaker
The US House of Representatives would now vote for the third time to elect a speaker .The Republican party has been in chaos and the House is effectively shut down for more than two weeks. Jordan made a plea for party unity on Wednesday. But after years of antagonising the party’s leaders, Jordan found himself unable to persuade his colleagues that he was the man to lead the chamber. Four Republicans who had supported him during the first round of ballot flipped against him on Wednesday. And only two Republicans who initially voted against him, Doug LaMalfa of California and Indiana’s Victoria Spartz,dropped their opposition.
Republican lawmakers say they have been targeted by intimidation tactics, including death threats, from allies of Jim Jordan as his bid for the US House of Representative. Reportedly several Republicans have been subjected to pressure campaigns. Mariannne Miller-Meeks ,a Republican from Iowa, and Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, have said to receive threats for opposing Mr Jordan. Kay Granger of Texas, Florida’s John Rutherford, Virginia’s Jen Kiggans are among a handful of Republicans to have complained of receiving inappropriate persuasion tactics
Mr Jordan has denied any involvement in the pressure campaign writing that ‘No American should accost another for their beliefs,’ on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Wednesday evening.
Since the ousting of Mr Kevin McCarthy there has been a long battle for this government post . The Republican controlled House cannot pass any bill, nor can they approve White House requests for Emergency Aids. This includes the potential aid for Israel amid its war with Hamas. As frustration grows, talks about empowering acting Speaker Patrick McHenry are also growing, for a temporary period of up to 90 days.However the Republicans seem divided on this.
It has been predicted by some Jordan opponents that he would lose even more support during the Third vote for the Speaker.
During the first round of voting,the results were 20 House Republicans voting against Jordan. In the Second round however the number rose to 22. Mr McCarthy had to go for 15 rounds of voting in January to secure the gravel.
There is a fast-approaching shutdown of the government ,with a conflict abroad has fueled calls for Republicans to bring the end to the vacuum of the Position as soon as possible. Congress faces many challenges that could have consequences for the US and its allies if those challenges are not met on time.
