Top Republican: ‘Deal Will Have to Be Done’ With Democrats If GOP Can’t Elect House Speaker

Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, speaks in Washington on Aug. 12, 2022. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

A top House Republican said that if the GOP cannot elect a House speaker in the near future then a “deal will have to be done” with Democrats in the lower chamber, coming after the Democrats’ minority leader made a similar claim.

In an appearance on CBS' “Face the Nation” on Sunday, Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio) was asked about whether there is a scenario in which certain Republicans will have to work with Democrats to elect a speaker, coming around two weeks after Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted. Mr. Turner, who heads the powerful Intelligence Committee, said he prefers to elect a Republican and supports Rep. Jim Jordan’s (R-Ohio) bid.

“I think Jim Jordan will be an excellent Speaker. I think he’ll be able to get to 217. If not, we have other leaders in the House. And certainly, if there is a need if the radical, you know, almost just handful of people in the Republican side, make it unable … to be able to return to general work on the House, then I think obviously, there will be a deal [that] will have to be done,” Mr. Turner said.

Reports have indicated that Mr. Jordan, who heads the Judiciary Committee, is seeking a floor vote on Tuesday. Last week, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) withdrew his bid for the speaker’s gavel after he was nominated over Mr. Jordan.

Days later, Mr. Jordan sought the GOP nomination for speaker and won. However, there are questions as to whether he will be able to reach 217 votes.

Republicans control the lower chamber by a slim 221–212 margin, meaning they can afford to lose no more than four votes if Democrats vote against him as a bloc—as they are expected to do.

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Over the weekend, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said in an interview that there have been talks behind the scenes among Republicans and Democrats to elect a speaker that include a bipartisan governing coalition.

“We have made clear publicly and privately that we are ready, willing, and able to enter into a bipartisan governing coalition,” Mr. Jeffries said during an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday. “We can change the rules to facilitate bipartisanship, and that should be the starting point of our conversation,” he added.

“We want to ensure that votes are taken on bills that have substantial Democratic support and substantial Republican support so that the extremists aren’t able to dictate the agenda,” Mr. Jeffries said, adding, that current House rules “have facilitated a handful of Republicans being able to determine what gets voted on in the House of Representatives, and that undermines the interests of the American people.”

Some House Republicans, however, have indicated that it appears Mr. Jordan can get to 217 votes.

Representative Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio, speaks to reporters as he arrives for a Republicans caucus meeting at the Longworth House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on Oct. 13, 2023. (Julia Nikhinson/AFP via Getty Images)

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Tenn.), who publicly backs the Ohio Republican’s bid, said multiple GOP lawmakers will vote for someone other than Mr. Jordan in the first and second rounds. However, it’s likely to change in the ensuing rounds of voting.

“I think in the first round, you may have some people who have to get it off their chest. They feel obligated to vote for [former Speaker] Kevin McCarthy at least once or [Majority Leader] Steve Scalise at least once or Donald Trump,” he told The Washington Times. “Then they’ll converge toward Jordan. I think it’ll be a lot to jump on after the first or second round.”

Meanwhile, on Monday, Mr. McCarthy said he feels “very good” about the prospects of Mr. Jordan being able to get enough votes.

“The real challenge here is, and I know a lot of people out there are afraid that Republicans will break off and go work with Democrats, the only reason anybody’s even talking about that is because eight Republican members worked with every single Democrat to remove me from speaker and put us into this tailspin and all based upon keeping government open,” he told Fox News’ “Fox and Friends.”

Mr. McCarthy criticized the several Republicans who voted to oust him. Those Republicans had argued that Mr. McCarthy was making too many concessions to Democrats while also signing bills for U.S. military aid overseas, namely Ukraine, while not prioritizing Americans.

“This is what’s so absurd about all this [is] that ... eight people worked with every single Democrat to make a political decision here to disrupt America,” he argued. “That’s where we have to … be a little calmer, show the leadership and come together and put America back on the right foot.”