House Democrats, many of whom had massive distrust with Kevin McCarthy by the end of his speakership, are loathe to see Jim Jordan become the next representative with the gavel.
In interviews with half a dozen Democrats this morning, many say that Jordan is not only the face of the impeachment against President Joe Biden, but he is also a close ally to former President Donald Trump who communicated with the White House and Trump in the days and hours leading up to January 6 and unlike McCarthy — who backtracked weeks later — never held Trump responsible for the insurrection at the Capitol.
Rep. Jim McGovern, who was the last House member on the floor on January 6, told CNN the idea of Jordan as speaker was “disgusting” and that it is as if “Halloween has come early.”
The threat of potentially having Jordan as speaker has many Democrats openly suggesting alternative consensus candidates.
Rep. Jamie Raskin suggested Liz Cheney, who would have a hard time getting Republican support. Steny Hoyer said Democrats have been having some conversations with their colleagues about a GOP alternative that could attract some Democratic support and other Democrats say they could back a Republican alternative if there was agreement on military aid to Ukraine and to fund the government.
On the flip side, if Jordan is elected, Democrats do see Jordan as an easy campaign target that could help them win back the majority in 2024.
A memo issued today by the executive director of the Democratic National Committee characterizes Jordan as a “MAGA firebrand and partisan extremist” Democrats can use as a foil for 2024.
If Jordan ascends to the speakership, Democrats believe Jordan, as a key face of the Republican Party, will be a liability with general election voters based on his positions on abortion and government shutdowns among other issues. The memo goes on to characterize Jordan as “Trump’s chief election denier in Congress.”
“As Rep. Jim Jordan prepares to hold the gavel, he’s set to become the Republican chaos conference’s most extreme speaker yet – and Republicans nationwide will be forced to answer for his unpopular track record in 2024,” the memo reads.
A source familiar says the memo was sent to key stakeholders, including DNC surrogates and state parties, to drive messaging around the 2024 election.
