As U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., ended his bid to replace outgoing U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, on Thursday, a congressman from the Sunshine State offered a few paths forward after the GOP caucus postponed voting for a new speaker.
U.S. Rep. David Jolly, R-Fla., spoke to Sunshine State News after McCarthy’s surprise announcement on Thursday afternoon. Jolly, who is running for the U.S. Senate in 2016, said that he backed U.S. Rep. Dan Webster, R-Fla., to replace Boehner but said there was room for a “consensus candidate.”
Asked who he could see emerging as a candidate with support from all sides of the Republican caucus, Boehner pointed to a Wisconsin congressman who is well-known for being on the Republican presidential ticket, saying “Paul Ryan or someone like that.” Ryan, currently the chair of the Ways and Means Committee, has said he is not interested in being speaker but Jolly said he might change his mind if all sides encourage him.
McCarthy had been the favorite over U.S. Reps. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and Webster but made a major gaffe when he said the Select Committee on Benghazi was driven by politics, namely undermining former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the favorite for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Conservatives also had issues with McCarthy and, on Wednesday, the House Freedom Caucus came out for Webster. According to The Hill, McCarthy did not have the 218 votes needed to win the speakership even if a majority of the Republican caucus supported him.
Jolly confirmed that to Sunshine State News noting that McCarthy had “55 percent to 60 percent” support in the caucus while the rest of it backed Chaffetz or Webster. That being the case, Jolly said McCarthy would not have been able to muster enough support to become speaker of the House.
“There was not a path for him to get to 218,” Jolly said of McCarthy’s chances.
Jolly had been scheduled to speak on Webster’s behalf at the Republican caucus on Thursday but the meeting was postponed after McCarthy’s announcement. For his part, Jolly said he still backed his fellow Florida Republican.
“I do support Dan Webster,” Jolly told Sunshine State News. “I continue to support Dan Webster.”
Looking ahead, Jolly said the American people remained frustrated with Congress and threw out the possibility that the next speaker of the House could be a relative unknown who is more concerned with advancing legislation than leading the GOP.
“The time might be right for a speaker of the House who governs,” Jolly said instead of picking someone to be the “leader of the Republican Party.”
Jolly noted Republicans did exactly that in 1999 after U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., was replaced by the far lesser known U.S. House Speaker Denny Hastert, R-Ill. Noting Webster's low profile, Jolly said his fellow Florida Republican fit that bill and could govern the House without leading the GOP during the 2016 presidential race.
Looking ahead, Jolly said McCarthy abandoning his bid will lead to other contenders for the gavel. “This will not be Webster versus Chaffez,” Jolly predicted, adding that things remain uncertain.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
