Rep. Ken Buck says GOP will emerge stronger from speaker stalemate
Rep. Ken Buck, a Republican who represents Colorado's 4th Congressional District, says the Republican Party will emerge stronger from a standoff at the nation's capitol over who should be the next Speaker of the House.
After six consecutive votes, GOP leader Kevin McCarthy still can't secure the gavel. The speaker stalemate has the House of Representatives at a standstill.
President Joe Biden says it's a bad look for Congress: "I just think it's a little embarrassing it's taking so long and the way they're dealing with one another."
But Buck disagrees, "I think America will judge us on - in two years have we made the policy changes necessary? And so if clean up the swamp a little and we can move forward in a strong manner, I think we'll be judged with grace and judged positively."
Buck initially expressed reservations about McCarthy but he says the California Republican made unprecedented changes to House rules that earned his support, "I went to him and said, 'look my issue is spending,' and he immediately put in some rules that will give rank-and-file members the ability to challenge spending bills. We're going to pass 12 spending bills instead of one omni on Christmas Eve, we're going do things that make it possible for members to influence spending policy."
That isn't the case for 20 other Republican holdouts including Colorado Congresswoman Lauren Boebert, who despite urging from former President Trump, is refusing to rally around McCarthy, "The President needs to tell Kevin McCarthy you don't have the votes, it's time to withdraw."
Buck says McCarthy's opponents aren't cohesive - some want rule changes, others want policy commitments - and they keep changing their demands.
"You got 20 people dissenting at this point and they have 20 different reasons," Buck said. "They were voting for Jim Jordan and Jim Jordan was voting for Kevin McCarthy, and that didn't make sense to anybody. So they nominated Byron Donalds, who was voting for himself, so it made a little bit more sense."
Buck believes McCarthy will ultimately prevail. He blames the historic impasse on Republicans' slim majority, which gives detractors leverage: "I guarantee you if Democrats were in this situation, progressives would be asking for all kinds of things for Pelosi to give them to be Speaker."
McCarthy's Deputy Steve Scalise of Louisiana has emerged as a possible backup but it's unclear if he can garner the needed 218 votes either. Buck believes McCarthy will ultimately prevail.
