House Speaker

WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., retained his hold on the speaker’s gavel Friday, seizing victory from the jaws of defeat in what was nothing short of a stunning first-round vote. With one vote to spare, Johnson needed 218... Read More

WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson faces a critical vote Friday on whether he will hang on to his job. The Louisiana Republican supported a bipartisan bill this month to avoid a government shutdown that many of his fellow Republicans... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., said Tuesday that he will co-sponsor a resolution to remove Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., as House speaker. Massie announced his intention during a closed-door conference meeting with his Republican colleagues early Tuesday morning. During... Read More

WASHINGTON — Newly minted House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has ambitions that include passing all eight remaining fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills by mid-November, passing the House version of the farm bill two weeks later, and laying the groundwork in... Read More

WASHINGTON — Imagine vaulting from kit manager, or clubhouse attendant, to coach. Okay, the writers of the hit Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” have already done that. But it’s not too far a stretch from what newly minted House Speaker... Read More

WASHINGTON — A time honored slogan on pizza boxes throughout the northeast and elsewhere in the country is “you’ve tried the rest, now try the best.” And that’s what the House Republican Conference will be asked to do as of... Read More

IOWA CITY, Iowa — They surely would rather be attacking the Biden administration, talking of their unwavering support for Israel and offering up the policy prescriptions they plan to enact in the White House. But as this year’s slate of... Read More

WASHINGTON — Nine candidates have entered the race for speaker of the House, possibly, just possibly, opening the final chapter of a saga that has left the chamber paralyzed for the past three weeks. As previously reported by The Well... Read More

WASHINGTON — The House Republican Conference voted to withdraw its endorsement of Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, for House speaker by secret ballot Friday afternoon, evidently seeing no need to prolong the misery after the House Judiciary chair lost in three... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, failed for a third time to secure enough Republican votes to become the speaker of the House on Friday, as even more members of his party appeared to abandon him. In the end the... Read More

WASHINGTON — A determined Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, vowed Friday to continue his quest to be the next House speaker, telling reporters gathered in the Rayburn Room of the U.S. Capitol Friday morning that a third vote was imminent and... Read More

WASHINGTON — Hardline members of the Republican conference on Thursday slammed the door on a proposal that they temporarily expand the powers of Speaker Pro Tem Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., so the chamber could get back to work while Rep. Jim... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, the combative co-founder of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, failed to garner the 217 votes he needed to become the next House speaker Tuesday, after 20 members of his conference broke ranks and voted... Read More

WASHINGTON — The House Republican conference nominated Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, to be the next speaker on Friday, but he now faces the same question that ultimately pushed Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., out of the race. Can he garner... Read More

WASHINGTON – Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga., a member of Congress since 2011, has announced that he is challenging Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio to be the next House speaker. Scott, whose Georgia district runs down the middle of the state, from... Read More

WASHINGTON — House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., withdrew from the race to be the next speaker of the House Thursday night, a stunning development that appears to have left his Republican conference in a state of absolute dysfunction. Scalise... Read More

WASHINGTON — It started happening as soon as the day’s U.S. Capitol tours began Friday morning. First there’d be an abrupt swivel of the head. Then fingers would point. And finally cellphones appeared as tourists, arms outstretched, tried to capture... Read More

WASHINGTON — House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., has entered the race to replace ousted House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., setting up a two-way contest for the post against Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. In a lengthy letter to the members... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., won election as House Speaker early Saturday morning after a last minute maneuver at the end of the 15th round of voting forestalled a motion for adjournment and another potential round of voting next... Read More

WASHINGTON — If there can be any such thing as hanging above the abyss on a yo-yo string, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., may just be accomplishing that feat. For the third straight day, in vote after vote, the man who... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and his allies in Congress are pinning their hope that he’ll finally be elected House speaker on Thursday on a promise that his political action committee won’t support candidates in open primaries in safe... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., stepped up his rhetoric against House speaker candidate Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., Tuesday night, demanding to know why his colleague is already inhabiting the speaker’s office. Over the course of a brutal afternoon, McCarthy lost... Read More