WASHINGTON – Former President Donald Trump said Thursday he would take the speaker of the House job on a short-term basis if Republicans deadlock selecting a new one, although high-profile members are already seeking the votes necessary to replace the deposed Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
If House Republicans can’t reach consensus on a candidate, “they have asked me if I would consider taking the speakership until they get somebody longer-term, because I am running for president,” Trump told Fox News Digital.
He added: “They have asked me if I would take it for a short period of time for the party, until they come to a conclusion – I’m not doing it because I want to – I will do it if necessary, should they not be able to make their decision.”
The former president also told Fox News Digital that he will travel to Washington, D.C., next week and plans to meet the congressional Republicans about picking a new speaker of the House.
Earlier this week, Trump downplayed the idea of running for the speaker’s job, saying his “total focus” is on the 2024 presidential race. He also said he would do whatever he can to help the Republicans come together after eight party members this week forced the removal of McCarthy.
“If I can help them during the process, I would do it,” Trump said, a comment that a few House Republicans cited in urging him to seek the job anyway.
“I’ve been contacted by multiple Members of Congress willing to support and offer nomination speeches for Donald J. Trump to be Speaker of the House,” said Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Tex., on the social media site X. “Next week is going to be HUGE.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who is vying to be Trump’s running mate if he wins the GOP presidential nomination next year, said Thursday on X that “if Trump becomes Speaker of the House, the House chamber will be like a Trump rally everyday!! It would be the House of MAGA!!!”
Who has announced they are running for speaker?
Two House Republicans have formally announced they are candidates for speaker: House Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., and House Judiciary Committee chair Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. Asked about Trump on Fox News, Jordan said: “I think President Trump wants be president of the United States.”
Other Republicans suggested that Trump is trying to exert power of the party, and declare himself kingmaker with regard to McCarthy’s replacement.
Trump did something similar when McCarthy won election to the speaker’s job in the first place. The former president took credit for breaking the impasse that had held up McCarthy’s victory for more than a dozen ballots.
During that process, one House Republican member nominated Trump for the speaker’s job: Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who led the push to remove McCarthy.
Would Trump even qualify?
Technically, the speaker of the House does not have to be a member of Congress, though they always have been.
But if Trump is somehow selected, Republicans might have to change their rules.
House Republican conference rule 26 says that a member of the Republican leadership must vacate his or her position if they have been indicted on felony charges that carry sentences of two or more years of imprisonment.
Trump faces trials for indictments in four separate criminal cases involving hush money, misuse of classified documents and efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Democrats mocked the idea of Trump visiting Capitol Hill less than three after his supporters ransacked the building during the insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021.
Responding to Greene’s call for a Trump rally every day in the House, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said: “No thanks, we’re good. We’ve seen a Trump rally at the Capitol already.”
Rep. Brendan Boyle, D-Pa., said on X: “Criminals tend to return to the scene of the crime.”
