The stunning removal of Kevin McCarthy as speaker effectively left the House of Representatives on Wednesday, as Republicans struggled to bring order to their fractured majority and begin the difficult and potentially lengthy process of unity around a new leader.

The House opened briefly

then closed with shutters before closing

with caretaker

speaker pro-tempore Representative Patrick McHenry Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick T. McHenry (RN.C.)

hold a position with very little power for the foreseeable future. Other Republicans left Washington, awaiting next steps.

The House of Representatives will try to elect a speaker next week, but the timing is far from certain as Republicans line up for their shot at the gavel amid the bitter divisions the chaos has created.

Bee

Republican Lt. Steve Scalise of Louisiana is being considered for the role, but immediately faced a challenge from Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, a favorite among conservatives who quickly announced his own bid for speaker. There certainly seemed to be other candidates emerging.

The path ahead is very uncertain. Many doubt that either candidate can get the 218 votes needed to secure the gavel, with each having its own support faction and share of opponents. Voting for McCarthy in January took fifteen terrible rounds, even though he was the conference’s consensus choice.

House Republicans plan to meet at the Capitol next Tuesday evening for a first round of intraparty voting.

“I think the circus stuff should be done behind closed doors,” said Rep. Garret Graves

(

R-La.

).

A wide-open battle for the gavel begins as Congress faces a new deadline to fund the government in mid-November. Work on legislation in the House of Representatives is at a standstill due to the vacancy in the speaker’s office, creating the potential for long-term paralysis.

Democratic leader of the Senate

Chuck Charles E.

Schumer called it a dangerous situation.

President

Joe

Biden’s impeachment McCarthy on Wednesday said the American people still expect the government to do its job in a timely manner. He addressed McCarthy head-on because he had worked with Democrats to keep the government open until mid-November, saying

:

We must stop seeing each other as enemies.

We cannot and should not be confronted again with an eleventh-hour decision that threatens to shut down the government, Biden said.

Choosing a new speaker risks deepening the divisions that have plagued Republicans in the House of Representatives all year, especially if lawmakers make new demands before pledging support.

Scalise has long been seen as a potential speaker and is revered as a survivor after he was shot in the hip during a congressional baseball team practice in 2017. But Scalise is also undergoing treatment for a form of blood cancer, forcing him away from the Capitol at times.

In a letter to colleagues asking for their support, Scalise acknowledged the difficulties currently plaguing both his health and the conference, but said he has overcome adversity before.

This next chapter will not be easy, but I know what it takes to fight and I am prepared for the battles ahead, he wrote.

Jordan, meanwhile, made his own pitch to the gavel by highlighting his supervisory work and ambitions. And reiterated Scalise’s call for unity in divided times.

The problems we face are challenging, but not insurmountable, he said.

Jordan and Scalise are expected to be joined in the race by at least one other Republican candidate: Rep. Kevin Hern

of Oklahoma

the chairman of the Republican Study Committee, the largest GOP caucus in the House.

But some Republicans, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, say lawmakers should look outside the Capitol for their next speaker, as the Constitution allows, and appoint former President Trump to the role.

Speaking to reporters at a New York courthouse on Wednesday, Trump said he will do whatever he can to help Republicans in the race for speaker, but said he is fully focused on his campaign to return to the White House.

If I can help them through the process, I would

it,” he said. ‘But

“We have some great people in the Republican Party who could do a great job as speakers.”

he said.

While choosing a new chairman is a challenge for Republicans, the more immediate challenge is moving past the extraordinary strife that has plagued their conference in recent weeks amid the fight to avoid a government shutdown.

The raw feelings were clearly evident Tuesday evening during a closed-door meeting of Republicans

when where

The members expressed their anger at the eight Republicans who joined the Democrats to oust their chairman.

Rep. Mike Kelly, a Pennsylvania Republican, pointed to the lawmaker who voted against McCarthy and said, “I’ve never been part of a worse team,” according to a Republican in the room who was granted anonymity to discuss the private conference. discuss. .

Graves said it was positive that the session had been short to avoid blows.

“We need to discuss a functional structure that ensures that a Republican majority is truly a Republican majority,” Graves said.

Some Republicans hope the looming battle over speakers can somehow unite them instead of plunging them into further disarray.

We have to get over the emotions of this week and then be done, said Rep. Keith Self, a Republican from Texas. There’s nothing like a crisis to tell people you need to work together.