Republican Kevin McCarthy was set to easily become the next president of the United States Congress, But the turn to the extreme right of sectors of his party, encouraged by former President Donald Trump and culminating in the assault on the Capitol two years ago, made things difficult for him.
This week, McCarthy failed 13 times in his attempt to achieve the necessary votes in the Lower House (at least 218) to preside over it, in a situation unprecedented for a century, despite the victory of the Republicans in the mid-term elections in November.
The reason: the rebellion of twenty ultras from his party, grouped under the so-called Freedom Caucus, who presented alternative candidates for the Presidency of the chamber and who criticize McCarthy for not having negotiated with them a reform of the debate regulations or the names to lead congressional committees in the new legislature, among other matters.
McCarthy was one of the first party leaders to express his support for Trump after the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 by a mob of followers of the ex-president and that he was instigated by himself, but this gesture does not seem to have convinced the radical Republicans, linked to “Trumpism”.
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Even the appeal that Trump himself made this Wednesday to his supporters to achieve a consensus and to support the legislator for California did not work.
“Now is the time for all of our great Republican members of the House to vote for Kevin, close the deal and take victory,” he said in a message on his social network, Truth Social. “Republicans, don’t turn a huge win into a giant, embarrassing loss,” added Trump, announcing that he will run for his party’s nomination next year in the presidential election.
It is not even clear the power of influence that Trump may have on the faithful to MAGA (Make America Great Again, the motto that the former president used in his first electoral campaign), as the “doctrine” of the former president is known, whose support for certain candidates in the elections last November resulted in some disastrous cases in terms of results.
(Also: USA: Trump’s call to Republicans to close crisis and support McCarthy)
Two years ago, dozens of House Republicans refused to endorse Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election, buoyed by Trump’s unsubstantiated allegations that Democrats had engaged in voter fraud.
These accusations were the pretext that the followers of the ex-president used to break into the Capitol and interrupt that ratification process.
The dispute in the House
However, two years later and now that they have a majority in the Lower House, have been unable to name McCarthy at this time, the favorite candidate of the party apparatus to lead this chamber.
It had been exactly a century since a “speaker”, as the speaker of the House of Representatives is known, had not been elected on the first ballot. The differences between McCarthy’s supporters – grouped under the label “Only Kevin” (Only Kevin) – and his detractors – “Never Kevin” (Kevin never)” – reflects the internal quarrels in which the party is mired.
(You can read: The political tension that is coming in the US with the possession of the new Congress)
Now is the time for all of our great Republican House members to vote for Kevin
Even so, McCarthy was never a figure of full consensus: In 2015, with the Republicans leading the House, he surprisingly resigned to position himself at the top of his party in Congress due to a lack of sufficient internal support.
Born in California 57 years ago, McCarthy aspires to lead the House of Representatives after serving as leader of the Republican minority since 2019. From 2014 and until then, with the Republicans leading the chamber and John Boehner and Paul Ryan as “speakers”, he held the position of “number two” of this chamber.
In August 2014, when he held that position, he made history by rising with just over seven and a half years active in the halls of the Capitol.
When he ran for President of the House of Representatives in November, McCarthy promised that he would face each day with one goal, to address the needs of his fellow citizens.
McCarthy assures that by this Friday night he will have the necessary votes. “I will have the votes,” said the candidate in statements to the CNN television network, after the end of the 13th vote, which he lost again by a narrow margin.
(On other topics: Former President Trump’s tough battle to avoid jail)
Leaving the chamber, McCarthy assured the media that thanks to the length of this process -which has already lasted four days- the Republican Party will be “more effective and efficient” when it operates as a majority in the Lower House.
“The government is definitely going to be more responsible,” he added. After four grueling days of negotiations with the twenty Republican ultras who denied him their support, McCarthy is close to achieving his goal.
In the 13th vote that was held on Friday afternoon, McCarthy achieved a total of 214 votes in favor, leaving him two short of achieving a majority given the quorum that was in Congress.
Thus, he only has to convince two others from the group of ultra-republicans, reluctant to become the next “speaker” of the Lower House. Arithmetic would allow him with four votes against him to continue being elected.
McCarthy aspires to become “speaker” in the 14th vote to be held this Friday night starting at 10 pm, an important political figure in the country whose functions include setting a large part of the legislative calendar, deciding which projects are voted on and when.
Without a president of the Lower House, the 118th Congress cannot start and the only option to elect it is to continue voting until a candidate reaches a majority.
INTERNATIONAL WRITING*
*With information from EFE
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