Evening Report

Jordan presses ahead to Round 2

by Amee LaTour 10/17/23 05:40 PM ET

Representative Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio, listens in the House Chamber at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on October 17, 2023. House Republicans are expected to hold a floor vote on Jordan to be the new Speaker of the House. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

A quick recap of the day and what to look forward to tomorrow

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Evening Report

Jordan tries to rally support ahead of second Speaker vote

TWENTY REPUBLICANS voted for someone other than Speaker-designate Jim Jordan on Tuesday afternoon, with the Ohio Republican scrambling to shore up support ahead of an expected second vote Wednesday.

Jordan needed 217 votes to win the gavel, and 200 Republicans backed him in the first round Tuesday. The 20 defectors split their support among several other Republicans not actively running for Speaker.
For comparison, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) lost 19 GOP votes in the first round of voting on the House floor in January.
This is the second Speaker election in 100 years to require multiple rounds of voting—with the first being McCarthy’s in January.

Among the 20 Republican defectors on Tuesday was Texas Rep. Kay Granger, chairwoman of the House Appropriations Committee. Granger is a key figure as Congress faces down the next funding deadline Nov. 17.

Jordan has projected confidence heading into the second round of voting, saying, “We’ve already talked to some members who are gonna vote with us on the second ballot,” The Hill’s Mychael Schnell reported.

Follow The Hill’s live blog for the latest.

MORE: Speaker math: Breaking down how many votes Jordan needs

Welcome to Evening Report! I’m Amee LaTour, catching you up from the afternoon and what’s coming tomorrow. Not on the list? Subscribe here.

CATCH UP QUICK

Israel and Hamas on Tuesday traded blame after hundreds of people were killed in a hospital blast in Gaza. A top Hamas commander was also reportedly killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.
The Hill’s Ella Lee and Zach Schonfeld walk us through the status of the four criminal cases against former President Trump and what’s next in each.
Quarters minted for 2025 will feature journalist and NAACP co-founder Ida B. Wells, Girls Scouts founder Juliette Gordon Low, astronomer Vera Rubin, disabilities activist Stacey Park Milbern and tennis and golf star Althea Gibson.

JORDAN’S DEFECTORS

Republicans who didn’t vote for Jordan on first ballot

Here are the 20 House Republicans who voted against Jim Jordan for Speaker in the first round (and who they voted for instead):

Don Bacon (Neb.) — former Speaker Kevin McCarthy
Ken Buck (Colo.) — Rep. Tom Emmer
Lori Chavez-DeRemer (Ore.) — McCarthy
Anthony D’Esposito (N.Y.) — former Rep. Lee Zeldin
Mario Diaz-Balart (Fla.) — former Speaker-designate Steve Scalise
Jake Ellzey (Texas) — Rep. Mike Garcia
Andrew Garbarino (N.Y.) — Zeldin
Carlos Gimenez (Fla.) — McCarthy
Tony Gonzales (Texas) — Scalise
Kay Granger (Texas) — Scalise
John James (Mich.) — Rep. Tom Cole
Mike Kelly (Pa.) — Scalise
Jen Kiggans (Va.) — McCarthy
Nick LaLota (N.Y.) — Zeldin
Doug LaMalfa (Calif.) — McCarthy
Mike Lawler (N.Y.) — McCarthy
John Rutherford (Fla.) — Scalise
Mike Simpson (Idaho) — Scalise
Victoria Spartz (Ind.) — Rep. Thomas Massie
Steve Womack (Ark.) — Scalise

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

NEARLY TWO WEEKS after House members voted to remove Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as Speaker, the chamber appears no closer to reaching a consensus on a new pick. As The Hill’s Elizabeth Crisp reports, it’s the longest Congress has been without a House head since 1971:

During the 1971 cycle, Congress got off to a late start. The chamber elected Rep. Carl Albert (D-Okla.) as Speaker nearly three weeks after his predecessor retired, leaving Congress without a Speaker for 18 days. McCarthy’s ouster was unprecedented and marks the first time the House is faced with electing a new Speaker this late in the session.

Speaker elections typically happen in January when members start the congressional term. Previously, Speakers have only been elected in the middle of a session when past Speakers have died or resigned. In 1961, the House ran for 28 days with a temporary leader while then-Speaker Sam Rayburn (D-Texas) suffered from pancreatic cancer.

The U.S. is barreling toward a potential government shutdown if a spending plan isn’t adopted by Nov. 17, and lawmakers have also called for more aid for Israel and Ukraine amid conflicts in both countries. Until a new Speaker is chosen, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) is leading the chamber in a limited capacity.

white house

Biden’s Israel trip

President Biden will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials Wednesday in Tel Aviv amid a war that has already claimed several thousand lives since Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

“The meetings will focus on the humanitarian situation and reiterating that the U.S. believes that Hamas does not represent the majority of the Palestinian people,” The Hill’s Alex Gangitano reported.

The visit comes ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive in Gaza, which Hamas controls and has been under heavy bombardment by Israel.
More from Gangitano: “Biden is walking a fine line between his support for Israel and the country’s right to defend itself following the attacks last weekend and the looming humanitarian crisis in Gaza.”

CONGRESS

Senate, House push for action against Iranian funds

Lawmakers are pressing for U.S. actions against funding sources for Iran following the attack on Israel by Hamas, whom Tehran has long backed.

IN THE SENATE: On Tuesday, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and John Kennedy (R-La.) introduced a bill that would freeze the transfer of $6 billion in Iranian assets. The U.S. and Tehran agreed to the transfer in a prisoner exchange deal last month.

Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas) introduced similar legislation in the House last week.

IN THE HOUSE: More than 100 members — 63 Democrats and 50 Republicans — sent President Biden a letter Monday urging the administration “to take all necessary steps to cut off Iranian funding sources,” including the maximum enforcement of sanctions.

IN OTHER NEWS

Uptake of PrEP for HIV increasing, but disparities remain

Preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates 36 percent of those who could benefit from preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV got a prescription for it last year. The Hill’s Joseph Choi delves into the PrEP landscape.

Egypt, Jordan key players in Israel-Hamas conflict

The Hill’s Laura Kelly lays out the crucial role Egypt and Jordan will play in the Israel-Hamas conflict ahead of President Biden‘s visit to the region. Read the full report here.

OP-EDS IN THE HILL

“The GOP-led House is in chaos. Bipartisanship is the only path forward.” — Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.), chair of the New Democrat Coalition. (Read here)

“The only thing holding the GOP back is the GOP” — John Feehery, a partner at EFB Advocacy and former longtime senior GOP staffer (Read here)

⏲️ COUNTDOWN

22 days until the third GOP presidential primary debate.

🗓 COMING NEXT

Wednesday:

President Biden will meet with leaders in Israel.
Senators will receive a briefing on Israel and Gaza from Biden administration officials at 3:30 p.m. ET

AND FINALLY

“No, I don’t like Tom Emmer. I figured this would be the worst job in America.” — Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) to CNN on whether he wants Emmer to be Speaker after voting for him (Buck later said he was joking)

Stay Engaged

You’re all caught up! Stay with TheHill.com for the latest and recommend this newsletter to others: TheHill.com/Evening. See you tomorrow.

Evening Report

Jordan tries to rally support ahead of second Speaker vote

CATCH UP QUICK

JORDAN’S DEFECTORS

Republicans who didn’t vote for Jordan on first ballot

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

white house

Biden’s Israel trip

CONGRESS

Senate, House push for action against Iranian funds

IN OTHER NEWS

Uptake of PrEP for HIV increasing, but disparities remain

Egypt, Jordan key players in Israel-Hamas conflict

OP-EDS IN THE HILL

⏲️ COUNTDOWN

🗓 COMING NEXT

AND FINALLY

Stay Engaged

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