Foreign
Donald Trump Endorses Jim Jordan for House speaker: What You Need to Know
(iexclusivenews) – Former President Donald Trump has thrown his support behind Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio for the newly-vacated House speaker role.
In a post to his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote that the 59-year-old Jordan “has my complete & total endorsement.”
Jordan has been one of Trump’s most loyal congressional allies. He defended Trump during both of his impeachment trials and received the Medal of Freedom from him in a private ceremony in January 2021.
In his endorsement post, Donald Trump praised Jordan for his college wrestling career and his education credentials.
He also called him “a fighter for the American people and a champion of liberty.”
Jordan is facing competition from House Majority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana, who also announced his bid for House speaker on Wednesday.
A vote is expected next week in the House, which has been in recess since the removal of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
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Why was McCarthy removed?
McCarthy became the first House speaker in American history to be ousted in a no-confidence vote on Tuesday.
The House voted by a margin of 216 to 210 to remove him, with eight far-right Republicans joining all Democrats in voting against him.
The vote was triggered by Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, a vocal critic of McCarthy, who put forth the motion to vacate the office of speaker.
Gaetz said he decided to do so after McCarthy helped pass a bipartisan 45-day stopgap bill last weekend to prevent an impending government shutdown.
Gaetz claimed that McCarthy had betrayed conservatives by pushing the bill through, which included funding for vaccine mandates, abortion services, and immigration enforcement.
He also accused McCarthy of being too weak and ineffective in opposing President Joe Biden’s agenda.
Can Donald Trump be nominated as House speaker?
Some far-right Republicans have called for Trump to be nominated as House speaker, even though he is not a member of Congress.
Under congressional rules, the House speaker does not have to be a member of Congress, but only has to be elected by a majority of the House members.
However, this scenario is highly unlikely, as the House has never had a non-member in the speaker’s role in its 234-year history.
Moreover, Democrats still hold a slim majority in the House, and they are unlikely to vote for Trump as speaker.
Even if Trump were to become speaker, he would not have much power over the executive branch, as he would not be in the presidential line of succession.
He would also face legal challenges and investigations from various state and federal authorities.
Therefore, it is more probable that Trump will continue to influence the Republican Party from outside the government, and possibly run for president again in 2024.
Source: cbsnews.com