It’s being reported that President Trump is working hard to make Kevin McCarthy the new House Speaker, despite criticsm from conservatives.
They report that Trump has been calling his allies in the House and encouraging them to support McCarthy.
Here’s more via CNN:
Former President Donald Trump has been privately encouraging allies to support House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s bid for House speaker, according to two sources familiar with the effort, believing that the California Republican will be an asset down the road should the former president find himself in a contested 2024 primary.
House Republicans are expected to meet Monday evening to discuss the leadership candidates, and have a closed-door vote on Tuesday. McCarthy will only need a simple majority to advance from Tuesday’s vote, but the vote on the House floor for speaker will come when the new House convenes in January, and McCarthy will need 218 votes at that time to win the speakership.
Trump reaffirmed his support for McCarthy’s leadership bid in an interview with Fox News last week and he has since been working the phones to persuade Republican allies to back him, particularly conservative members who remain skeptical of McCarthy.
The news comes on the eve of Trump’s expected announcement for a third presidential campaign. The former president and the California Republican have spoken multiple times since the midterm elections, sources said, and McCarthy’s camp is hoping Trump’s endorsement will help win over some of the staunchest Trump supporters who have been critical of McCarthy.
They also report that Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene is supporting McCarthy and encouraging her colleagues to do the same:
Despite Trump’s pro-McCarthy campaign, it hasn’t fully broken through. Some of Trump’s staunchest allies have been all over conservative media attacking McCarthy. However, one notable Trump ally who will actually get to vote in the speaker’s race went on Steve Bannon’s podcast on Monday and expressed support for McCarthy: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who called it a “bad strategy” and “risky” to challenge McCarthy given their likely razor-thin majority.
McCarthy has worked hard to court Greene, from having weekly meetings with her in his office to promising her better committee assignments after Democrats kicked her off committees for incendiary remarks.
I think at the end of the day it’s going to be hard to keep McCarthy from becoming Speaker, especially with the likes of MTG and Trump supporting the ‘establishment’ candidate.