House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy has begged countless lawmakers — and offered extraordinary concessions, including allowing members to easily fire him at any time — to secure the votes for speaker.
Republicans will take control of the House as the 118th Congress opens Tuesday. But McCarthy still doesn’t have the votes he needs for speaker, as a handful of GOP lawmakers remain publicly opposed.
Top members of his team tell Axios they’re optimistic about pulling it out. But they can’t point to an exact route — always a bad sign.
McCarthy unveiled a package of rules changes on Sunday for the incoming Congress in an attempt to win over Republican holdouts to his bid for speaker of the House, Punchbowl News reported. The rule changes amount to concessions to conservatives, who previously demanded similar changes. The changes include what was considered a “red line” for McCarthy — making it easier to force a vote on removing the speaker.
McCarthy’s proposed rules hand a knife to skeptics, allowing any five GOP to call for a vote to boot him at any time. In a letter of response, several hardliners still refused to commit to backing him. “He’s empowering every part of the conference,” a top GOP aide told Axios.
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