In the wake of Kevin McCarthy’s shocking announcement yesterday afternoon that he was withdrawing his bid to become Speaker of the House in the wake of John Boehner’s resignation, the House Republican Caucus was thrown into chaos. The general consensus seems to be that neither of the two other declared candidates, Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz and Florida Congressman Daniel Webster, have either the support necessary to get to the 218 floor votes needed to get the job or the skills needed to bridge the gaps that divide an obviously bitterly divided caucus. Beyond them, though, the list of potential viable candidates seems to be rather short. Georgia Congressman Lynn Westmoreland, who has served in Congress since winning election in 2006, became the first person to say he was considering getting into get into the race after McCarthy’s bombshell, but he’s still a relative unknown outside Capitol Hill. California Congressman Darrell Issa, who previously served as Chairman of the Government Oversight Committee and who came to prominence during that committee’s investigations of the Fast & Furious and IRS scandals, said that he would consider getting in the race. Other names that have been mentioned in the past day include Texas Congressman Jeb Hensarling, Oklahoma Congressman Tom Cole, and Virginia Congressman Bob Goodlatte. There’s also been talk about electing a “caretaker” Speaker who would only serve until the end of the current Congress, but that seems like a desperation move. Finally, as there always is during incidents such as this, there have been those who have pointed out that the Constitution does not require the Speaker to be a Member of Congress, which has led to such bizarre things as people suggesting Mitt Romney as a candidate and Newt Gingrich saying he’d be willing to serve again.
Through all the din of speculation yesterday, though, there was one name that came through the loudest, but it’s the name of the one man in Washington who seems to be the most reluctant to take the job:
As soon as Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) shocked his fellow Republicans by withdrawing from the race for House speaker, Paul Ryan knew what was coming.
“I will not be a candidate,” the Wisconsin Republican said in a release issued less than 20 minutes after McCarthy’s stunning Thursday announcement, in an immediate bid to cut off any pressure for him to do a job he has repeatedly said he does not want.
But this time, it didn’t take. By mid-afternoon, outgoing speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) had spoken to Ryan at least twice, trying to convince the reluctant congressman that he was the only man who could save House Republicans from their self-created chaos.
By day’s end, after hunkering down for two hours in his ceremonial office a few steps from the House floor, after listening to pleas from friends to take the reins of the bitterly divided Republican caucus, he emerged, declining to explicitly state his plans.
“I’ve got no news for you guys,” Ryan told reporters, exiting the Capitol. “I’ve got nothing to add right now. . . . This is not the time or place, guys.”
As soon as Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) shocked his fellow Republicans by withdrawing from the race for House speaker, Paul Ryan knew what was coming.
“I will not be a candidate,” the Wisconsin Republican said in a release issued less than 20 minutes after McCarthy’s stunning Thursday announcement, in an immediate bid to cut off any pressure for him to do a job he has repeatedly said he does not want.
But this time, it didn’t take. By mid-afternoon, outgoing speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) had spoken to Ryan at least twice, trying to convince the reluctant congressman that he was the only man who could save House Republicans from their self-created chaos.
By day’s end, after hunkering down for two hours in his ceremonial office a few steps from the House floor, after listening to pleas from friends to take the reins of the bitterly divided Republican caucus, he emerged, declining to explicitly state his plans.
“I’ve got no news for you guys,” Ryan told reporters, exiting the Capitol. “I’ve got nothing to add right now. . . . This is not the time or place, guys.”
But, as Politico notes, there is a full court press to get Ryan to say yes, or even just maybe, to a run for Speaker:
It’s all about Paul Ryan right now.
House Republicans are frantically lobbying Ryan to run for speaker after House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) abruptly ditched his bid Thursday for speaker, leaving a gaping hole atop the fractious Republican Conference and no obvious successor to John Boehner.
The Wisconsin Republican is getting bombarded with calls and one-on-one appeals from GOP lawmakers, urging him to be the party’s white knight. Boehner has had multiple conversations with the Ways and Means Committee chairman. Even before he dropped his own bid, McCarthy told Ryan he should do it. And the list goes on: House Republican Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) spoke to him about it on the House floor, and Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) also has pushed Ryan to reconsider.
It’s unclear whether the 2012 vice presidential candidate will. Soon after McCarthy’s blockbuster decision Thursday, Ryan released a statement that “while I am grateful for the encouragement I’ve received, I will not be a candidate.”
But then the arm-twisting began. When asked later in the day whether he would run for speaker, Ryan said, “I have no comment.”
Amid the pressure, Ryan canceled all of his fundraising activity over the next 48 hours.
GOP lawmakers are scrambling to find a replacement after McCarthy’s sudden departure from the speaker’s race and Boehner slated to leave Congress at the end of the month. Boehner, who said he will stay on as speaker until a successor is chosen, scheduled a Friday meeting with the Republican conference to figure out how to move forward.
It took no time for Ryan’s name to surface, yet again, as the best candidate who could unite the divided conference and shepherd through the divided House must-pass legislation, such as raising the debt ceiling and keeping the government funded.
“He is uniquely gifted and qualified for that position,” South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy said, who has also resisted calls to run for a top leadership job. He called Ryan the “smartest kid in the class.”
California Republican Devin Nunes also is pressing Ryan to jump in.
“I think Paul Ryan is the only eligible candidate,” Nunes said.
In addition to all the comments from fellow caucus members, Ryan is also being pressured to run by several top ranking Republicans. Speaker John Boehner, who has said he’ll remain on the job until the party finds a replacement, reportedly spent hours on the phone with Ryan trying to bend his ear, and canceled a scheduled appearance on The Tonight Show to stay in Washington to deal with the fallout from McCarthy’s announcement. McCarthy himself said that Ryan would be an excellent choice for Speaker, as did Wisconsin Governor and close Ryan ally Scott Walker. Throughout it all, though Ryan has remained stoic and non-committal and there is no indication as of yet that he’s willing to change his mind. This is consistent for Ryan, who has had the opportunity at least twice before to make a run for the Speaker’s chair with the support of House conservatives but declined the opportunity in favor of immersing himself in the policy wonk work of being Chairman of the Budget Committee, and now the Ways & Means Committee, that he seems to immensely prefer to the day-to-day political glad-handing that being Speaker or any member of leadership involves.
Looking at it from Ryan’s point of view, there seems to be little incentive for him to take a job that he has no seeming interest in having. If John Boehner’s tenure has proven anything, it is that being Speaker of the House at the head of this Republican Caucus is a completely thankless task filled with immense political risks and little political upside for someone as young as Ryan who still has a potentially long political career ahead of him. No matter who sits in the chair, they will be denounced by the House Freedom Caucus and the others who has pushed the caucus to the right for any signs of impurity and any deals that they make with the White House, the Senate, or House Democrats. This is not the kind of politician that Ryan has been since he was elected in 1998. If anything, he hews closer to the Boehner/McCarthy mold in that he has a long history of being willing to reach across aisles and make deals, as witnessed perhaps most strikingly in the deal that he helped reach with Senate Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray in the aftermath of the 2013 government shutdown. If that’s an indication of how he would govern as Speaker, and it probably is, then it’s likely that the purists who might now be saying that they’d support him will be quickly denouncing him the same way they have gone after Boehner, McCarthy, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Add into this calculus the fact that Ryan has made clear on repeated occasion the fact that being Speaker would make it nearly impossible to spend the time with his young family that he considers important, and it’s hard to see why he’d change his mind from the emphatic denial he issued yesterday. Until he gives that final no, though, or until Republicans settle on another candidate, Paul Ryan is likely to be subjected to pressure to take up a job that he clearly doesn’t seem to want.
Update: The Washington Post reports that Ryan is reportedly reconsidering his previous denials, but has not made any commitments yet:
Paul Ryan is seriously considering a bid for House speaker. He’s consulting his wife, Janna, and should make a definitive decision soon, according to top GOP sources.
Despite repeatedly and sincerely insisting he doesn’t want the job, the Wisconsin congressman is under intense and increasing pressure from all corners of the House Republican Conference to assume a position that puts him second in the presidential line of succession.
That includes public support from Kevin McCarthy, the majority leader who shocked Washington by abruptly withdrawing from the speaker’s race yesterday, and private support from John Boehner, who had two long phone conversations with Ryan after the McCarthy bombshell. The current speaker told Ryan that he’s the only person who can now unite the House GOP.
It seems unlikely that we’ll hear anything from Ryan on this before the end of the day, though, and with the long Columbus Day Weekend coming up it’s probably that the fate of the Speakership will remain up in the air for the time being.
Update #2: Shortly before Noon, Ryan’s Communications Director released the following statement:
Brendan Buck, Ryan’s communications director, said “Chairman Ryan appreciates the support he’s getting from his colleagues but is still not running for Speaker.”
After meetings today on the Hill, Ryan is headed back to Wisconsin, where I’m sure this week’s developments will be a topic of conversation.
