Several Republicans have entered the race for House Speaker after Rep. Jim Johnson (R-Ohio) failed to secure enough support and is out of contention.
The race for House speaker has heated up as two more Republicans have thrown their hats in the ring as the lower chamber remains in limbo since Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted from the role three weeks ago.
Reps. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) and Mike Johnson (R-La.) have entered the race, according to separate letters each has written to Republican colleagues as the contest moves forward to determine who gets to wield the gavel.
“I’m running for Speaker of the House to bring our conference together and get back to work,” Mr. Emmer said in a post on X on Saturday morning, in which he shared a Dear Colleague letter that promises to “fight like hell” to preserve the GOP majority in the lower chamber and to deliver on a conservative agenda.
He pledged to deliver strong foreign policy and a better economy, while vowing to address the “untenable debt and spending crisis” that he blamed on President Joe Biden and Congressional Democrats.
“Our constituents who sent us all to Washington to lead are counting on us to undo the damage Democrats have done and expand our conservative majority,” he wrote, asking for their support and vowing to “continue our mission to correct the course of our great nation.”
Mr. Johnson, the other newly minted contender, took to X to share a Dear Colleague letter of his own announcing his run.
The Louisiana Republican captioned his post simply: “I’m in!”
I’m in! pic.twitter.com/VSn14QkHEG
— Rep. Mike Johnson (@RepMikeJohnson) October 21, 2023
Portraying himself as a “team player and a bridge-builder with endless energy and a unique mix of skills and experience,” Mr. Johnson pledged to serve all House Republicans and “fight ceaselessly for our core conservative principles and policies.”
“I believe the survival and future of our republic may well be decided over the next twelve months,” he wrote, pointing to an “overrun” southern border and America’s adversaries “emboldened” in part because President Biden “is clearly incapable of leading and the Senate is unwilling.”
Americans’ faith in government has been “nearly lost” as powerful federal agencies have been “weaponized against the people and their faith,” he wrote.
The two new contenders’ entry into the fray comes a day after Rep. Jim Jordan’s (R-Ohio) quest to become speaker was blocked as his fellow Republicans revoked their support for his candidacy after a third, failed vote on the House floor.
Mr. McCarthy has endorsed Mr. Emmer, who has been called a “Trump hater” by Steve Bannon, the host of the “War Room” podcast and a one-time adviser to former President Donald Trump.
By Tom Ozimek
