Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich on Jan. 2 criticized Republicans opposed Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) bid to command the speaker’s gravel, saying their refusal to back the GOP leader risks causing “chaos” within the party and Congress.
“I don’t understand what they’re doing. They’re not voting against Kevin McCarthy, they’re voting against over 215 members of their own conference,” Gingrich told Fox News.
“Their conference voted overwhelmingly, 85 percent, for McCarthy to be speaker, so this is a fight between a handful of people and the entire rest of the conference.”
The former congressman’s comment came as all 435 House members are headed to vote for their next speaker on Jan. 3, the first order of business for the newly convened Congress. But with just hours to go, it remains unclear if McCarthy will obtain enough votes to take hold of the gravel….