In the wake of Rep. Kevin McCarthy withdrawing his candidacy to replace Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), the California Republican speculated that the House could be ungovernable.
In a phone interview with the National Review’s Rich Lowry, McCarthy said that he would not have “enjoyed being speaker this way” and speculated the House may need to hit “rock bottom” before it can become governable.
kevin mccarthy in phone intv: freedom caucus wanted things he couldnt give them, realized "I wouldnt have enjoyed being speaker this way"
— Rich Lowry (@RichLowry) October 8, 2015
mccarthy in phone intv: asked if house is governable? "I dont know. sometimes you need to hit rock bottom"
— Rich Lowry (@RichLowry) October 8, 2015
McCarthy’s withdrawal comes after two key events: First, he received flak for publicly suggesting that the Benghazi select committee was more concerned with bringing down Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s poll numbers than it was with getting to the bottom of the attack that took the lives of four Americans. Such remarks drew criticism even from conservatives. Second, the House Freedom Caucus — a small but dogged collection of ultra-conservative congressmen — uniformly endorsed Rep Daniel Webster (R-FL), a second-term congressman, over McCarthy. Without this group, McCarthy was sure to lose the election, so he withdrew. He will, however, remain in his current role as House Majority Leader, meaning he is still in charge of governing this ungovernable group.
Rep. Pete King (R-NY) agreed that the House is indeed in disarray.
Rep. Peter King tells me that members are crying in cloakroom, unable to handle the unrest and confusion. "A banana republic," he says.
— Robert Costa (@costareports) October 8, 2015
The Freedom Caucus has made life extremely difficult for the current speaker, as it forced a government shutdown in 2013 and has threatened another this year over federal funding for Planned Parenthood. Boehner’s attempts to crack down on rebels were unsuccessful, and he ultimately decided he would rather resign than continue to try to hold the Republican caucus together.
Now it’s entirely unclear what could happen. Boehner could stay on until the matter gets settled.
Or perhaps House Republicans will look further afield than current members of the House of Representatives — or even people who currently hold public office.
SPEAKER ROMNEY?: now have enough sources to report there is real, serious (tho still limited) talk about it. (!) #tcot #p2
— Lisa Desjardins (@LisaDNews) October 8, 2015