Some Republicans have reportedly signaled an interest in changing House rules in an effort to avoid similar chaos in the future.
Monday evening House Republicans gathered for a conference meeting ahead of Tuesday’s candidate forum. However, while little was determined during Monday’s meeting some Republicans questioned whether it’s necessary to raise the threshold needed to put a candidate on the House floor.
Fox News Digital was told that House GOP leaders are weighing an amendment to the current House rules that would temporarily raise the threshold needed to win from a simple majority to 217 or 218 votes.
In January, Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy only gained the speaker’s gavel after agreeing to changes demanded by a group of Republican holdouts including lowering the threshold to bring a “motion vacate” to only one. As it stands now, any member can file the proposal, instead of it needing to be offered at the direction of a party caucus or conference.
Multiple lawmakers indicated to Fox News Digital after their closed-door Monday meeting that the vote on raising that threshold was expected before the closed-door election.
Main Street Caucus leader Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) indicated to Fox News that he was leaning in favor of the change but had not made up his mind. “If it’s going to take us four days to get to 218, I think everybody should agree that burning that time on the floor is suboptimal.” Johnson has not publicly said who he will support yet. (RELATED: McCarthy Mulls Return To House Speaker Amid Israel Conflict)
“I don’t think we ought to be changing rules in the middle of an election. I just don’t think that’s wise. I also think there is some wisdom of having members have their surnames called out, and have to…declare it to everybody,” said Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.) who is backing Majority Leader Steve Scalise for Speaker. “Secret ballot accomplishes very little, you know, other than gives you an opportunity to freely express yourself without being made known.”
McCarthy ally Rep. John James (R-Mich.) said he signed onto a GOP letter requesting the rule change to “very quickly get back to things that most Americans are concerned with.”
“We need to secure our border, we need to address our debt, we need to address our spending – and in order to do that, we have to make sure that before we go to the floor, we have enough votes to have a Republican Speaker,” he said.
Rules Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said lawmakers shouldn’t need to change conference rules to put on a united public front.
“We did not always go in conference with person who won the election, but I never dreamed of not voting for that person on the floor. No matter how strongly I disagreed with them, the conference made the decision and they deserve my support to be speaker. We should get back to that,” he said.
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Update Rules for House Speaker
Need Interim BUT proactive
Update all House rules
They need to start making some important decisions & not wasting time.
This is to ALL Republicans in the HOUSE and SENATE, do NOT listen to RHINO Mitch McConnell. If you change the rules and a Speaker is a democrat and they are pushing their socialist agenda, you will have NO recourse to stop them. Every person must be expendable for their actions.
The rules should remain “motion vacate” to only one!