During the second round of voting, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) proposed Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), the House Republican Leader.
Prior to the second round of voting for speaker, Jordan, the probable next chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, declared, “I stand to nominate Kevin McCarthy for speaker of the House.”
In March 2022, Jordan told Ashley Oliver of Breitbart News that if McCarthy asked him to nominate him, he would “be pleased to.”
During his McCarthy nomination speech, Jordan said the following:
“For this Congress, I believe we have three goals. We have three essential tasks to complete in the 118th Congress. Pass the legislation that addresses the issues first. In just two years, our country no longer has a border, a military that is unable to meet its recruitment targets, bad energy and education policies, record spending, record inflation, record debt, and a gov’t that has become weaponized against “We the People,” the very people we are supposed to represent.”
“To remedy all of that, legislation must be passed. And I’m hoping my fellow Democrats would follow suit.”
“We can never, ever let something like the measure that passed 12 days ago, $1.7 trillion in spending, ever pass again,” he continued.
The disagreements between the House Republican Conference’s members “pale in contrast,” according to Jordan, to those between “we and the left.”
He continued, “We had better band together to fight for all these things.”
Jordan claimed that 16 years ago, he and McCarthy both joined the House.
“And I genuinely do believe Kevin McCarthy is the best person to lead us, or I wouldn’t be standing here making this statement,” he added.
“We don’t always agree on everything, but I admire his courage and battle, and I appreciate that Kevin told me that when you are knocked down in life during the worst times is when you must decide whether you can get back up.” Jordan stated, “And I’ve always seen him do that.”
Jordan cited the Bible when he remarked, “Fight the good fight, complete the race, and preserve the faith.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who opposes McCarthy’s quest for speaker, nominated Jordan for speaker after Jordan delivered his fervent speech in support of McCarthy, claiming Jordan isn’t “beholden” to lobbyists and special interests.
