Rep. Steve Scalise announced he is withdrawing his name as a candidate to replace Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the House after he failed to secure enough support from the House Republican conference to take his bid to the floor for a vote.
“I just shared with my colleagues that I’m withdrawing my name as a candidate for the speaker designee,” Scalise, R-Louisiana, told reporters following a hastily arranged huddle with fellow Republicans Thursday night in front of the press.
“If you look at over the last few weeks, if you look at where our conference is, there’s still work to be done,” Scalise continued. “Our conference still has to come together and is not there.”
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise speaks to reporters as he leaves a House Republican caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol on Oct. 12, 2023 in Washington, DC.
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Scalise seemed to lash out at his opposition, telling reporters that “there are still some people that have their own agendas” — not the country’s.
“This country is counting on us to come back together. This House of Representatives needs a speaker, and we need to open up the House again.”
Scalise said, “There’s still schisms that have to get resolved,” but he is content remaining House Majority Leader.
“I never came here for title,” he said. “I’ve had the challenges. I’ve been tested in ways that really put perspective on life — really, the 2017 shooting — when I didn’t know if I was going to make it out alive, taught me what’s important in life. And that’s my family, my faith, and I’m blessed beyond belief.”
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise speaks to reporters outside a candidate forum with House Republicans to hear from members running for speaker in the Longworth House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on October 10, 2023 . Republicans in the US House of Representatives began the search for a new leader on October 9, 2023, as the crisis in Israel injected fresh urgency into their struggle to heal the party’s bitter internal divisions. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
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Although he dropped out of the race Thursday night, Scalise said he is committed to fixing the GOP.
“I have absolutely all the right perspective, and I still have a deep, deep passion for making sure we get our country back on track and get our conference fixed,” he said. “[There are] some folks that really need to look in the mirror over the next couple of days and decide, are we going to get back on track? Are they going to try to pursue their own agenda? You can’t do both.”
Asked if he’d support Jim Jordan for speaker, Scalise told ABC News he hasn’t cut any deals and hasn’t decided who else to support for speaker.
“No deals with anybody. I’m sure there will be a lot of people that look at it. But it’s got to be people that aren’t doing it for themselves and their own personal interests,” he said.
Source: abc news
