With Kevin McCarthy officially out as Speaker of the House, everyone is discussing who will take his place. And one name being bandied about, and quite vigorously, is that of Donald J. Trump.
Now, to some, the idea of making Trump House Speaker is not a new one. In fact, before McCarthy was appointed as such, Florida Representative Matt Gaetz suggested that Trump be nominated for the role.
And according to federal and House rules, that’s definitely possible. It’s also possible for him to actually get the seat. Per house rules, the Speaker doesn’t necessarily have to be a congressional member.
All that it really requires is for a sitting member to nominate him and then for the following votes to obviously go in his favor.
However, in the past, Trump had made it quite clear that the Speakership wasn’t really on his radar. He wants the White House. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
And so the job eventually went to McCarthy.
But now, things have changed a bit.
While Trump still is quite clear on his wishes to regain the Oval Office, he’s not necessarily opposed to taking the Speakership in the meantime.
As he told reporters on Wednesday, “A lot of people have been calling me about Speaker. All I can say is that we’ll do whatever is best for the country and the Republican Party.”
He added that his “focus is on being president” and that there are a few other “great people” who he believes would make a good GOP speaker. But as one Republican House aide told The New York Post, that doesn’t mean he isn’t “interested in the job.”
As Matt Gaetz recently said, “Frankly, Speaker Trump has a great ring to it.”
However, there is one little problem, namely that Trump is currently in the middle of ongoing felony indictment trials.
And that is strictly forbidden.
According to the Conference Rules of the 118th Congress, “A member of the Republican Leadership shall step aside if indicted for a felony for which a sentence of two or more years imprisonment may be imposed.”
As of right now, Trump is facing potential penalties of more than 400 years behind bars for 91 criminal counts spanning four indictments.
Then again, seeing as how the indictment trials are ongoing (most of which are bogus) and yet to be determined, there may be a workaround of some sort to be had.
Still, the idea of a Speaker, especially one not used to the inner workings of the House, trying to balance ongoing trials and legal battles while leading a legislature of more than 400 people and their aides has got to be overwhelming.
Of course, that doesn’t mean Trump doesn’t already have quite a bit of support for the possibility.
Take Representative Troy Nehls, for instance. He believes Trump might be just the right fit for the Speakership, mainly because he’s an outsider.
“The idea that we could bring in somebody from the outside because Congress has been broken for so many years, so many decades. Maybe some new leadership with a new vision would be good for the House of Representatives.”
Kevin McCarthy will NOT be running again as Speaker.
I nominate Donald J. Trump for Speaker of the House.
— Congressman Troy E. Nehls (@RepTroyNehls) October 3, 2023
Georgia’s Marjorie Taylor Greene is also all for the idea. As she posted on X, the only candidate for Speaker now for her is Trump.
The only candidate for Speaker I am currently supporting is President Donald J. Trump.
He will end the war in Ukraine.
He will secure the border.
He will end the politically weaponized government.
He will make America energy independent again.
He will pass my bill to stop…
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) October 4, 2023
Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan of Ohio says Trump would “be great.” He noted that he wants to see Trump in the White House, “but if he wants to be speaker, that’s fine too.”
And then we can elect him as president after he’s cleaned House a bit…
