Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee told Newsmax Wednesday that Republicans need to “circle the wagons” and get on with the process of electing a new House speaker after the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., from the position two weeks ago.
“This has gone on way too long,” Huckabee said during an appearance on Newsmax’s “Wake Up America.” “There are crises across the world, and it's been, frankly, a disaster for Republicans in general. It's just a bad look. And I think it's time for Republicans to do what Democrats are so good at: circle the wagons. If they have disagreements, do it behind the scenes, but don't take it out there where everybody can see the fists flying. It's just been a disaster, so I hope the rest of the Republicans get together — Jim Jordan would be a great choice — and let's get on with it. We've got things that this country needs to get done.”
Huckabee said that the 20 Republican holdouts that are opposed to Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, serving as speaker are risking the ability of the GOP to govern in the House.
“There's a real risk — I don't think it's a huge one, but there is a risk — that the Republicans could continue to splinter and the Democrats would end up somehow getting two or three Republican votes and electing Hakeem Jeffries to be the speaker,” he said. “Now, can you think of anything more disastrous and embarrassing than Republicans unable to govern, handing the gavel over to Hakeem Jeffries? It's in the realm of possibility. I don't think it will happen, surely not. But it's just how ridiculous this has become.”
Acknowledging that “people get their feelings hurt” and that heated exchanges cause “an extraordinary level of angst,” Huckabee said that congressional lawmakers need to recognize the reason they were sent to Washington, D.C., in the first place.
“At some point, everybody has to step back and say this isn't about just me,” he said. “It's about the country. It's about the people I represent. And what is it that they really want me to be doing? Nobody's going to get everything they want. That's how politics works. I always say the greatest political scientists in the world are The Rolling Stones, whose song ‘You Can't Always Get What You Want’ ought to be a real lesson for everybody. You get what you can get and you live to fight another day. But when you burn bridges, and when you let your personality and your anger and your hurt feelings burn the bridge between you and your colleagues, then you really impede the capacity to govern it all. That's a disaster.”
The next vote for House speaker is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday. It is unclear how many holdouts remain in the GOP, with some reports indicating that Jordan will lose votes in the next round and others saying he will gain.
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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