Lara Trump said her father-in-law, former President Trump, brought up the prospect of becoming Speaker of the House on a phone call with her Thursday.
“Just got off the phone with him not too long ago. He brought it up to me,” she said in an interview with radio host John Catsimatidis on New York City’s WABC 770 AM. “He said, ‘A lot of people are saying that I should do this.’”
She added that if Trump were to become Speaker, Congress would be the most effective “you have ever seen.”
Trump initially dismissed the idea of being Speaker, saying he was focused on his presidential reelection campaign. On Thursday, he told Fox News Digital that he would accept a short-term Speaker role to serve as a “unifier” of the Republican party “if necessary.”
Lara Trump did share some doubts, however, on whether the former president would actually become Speaker.
“Now, whether or not this is something that actually ends up happening, whether or not he goes through with it, remains to be seen,” she said. “He’s got a lot on his plate, but if there’s one person who can probably handle it all … it’s probably Donald Trump.”
“It sounds like something that he would take seriously. The truth is the American people need somebody to be there as a leader. We can’t go on with pure chaos going forward in the Congress,” she continued. “There’s a lot that needs to get done. … He’s available to serve the people of America in whatever way he possibly can. Temporarily, if that’s Speaker of the House, then maybe it will be Speaker of the House.”
Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) pledged this week to nominate Trump for Speaker and has since said at least four colleagues have committed their votes to the former president.
House Republicans are expected to debate on Speaker candidates at a caucus meeting Tuesday. Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) currently leads the House as Speaker pro tem, after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted from the job this week.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) are two declared candidates for the top House job.
Lauren Irwin contributed.