Congress

After McCarthy ouster, GOP to consider new requirement for House leadership elections

Published

8 months ago

November 11, 2024

House Republicans are set to consider a variety of new internal rules proposals this week, including some proposals that tie back to the ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

While there is a broader push to amend the one-member threshold needed to trigger a motion to vacate, there are also some GOP members aiming to make internal changes to their party’s leadership election moving forward. Republicans from the various corners of the conference have put forward their proposals for the 119th Congress, which will be considered this week when the party votes on its new rules package Thursday.

Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) put forward a rules amendment that would require someone running for any leadership spot to have to resign from their present leadership post to seek another, the Florida conservative confirmed to Blue Light News this weekend.

If this proposed rules change had been in effect last October during the speakership race, it would’ve meant that a series of members who ran to replace former Speaker Kevin McCarthy would’ve needed to step down from leadership before seeking the top spot. They include Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), Republican Policy Chair Gary Palmer (R-Ala.), and even now Speaker Mike Johnson, who was then the GOP conference vice chair.

The proposal would offer more opportunities for Republicans to move up the ladder, but risk stunting those with strong leadership ambitions.

Mast described it as a lesson learned from the speakership election that ensued after McCarthy’s ouster — and one he wants to fix for the future. At the time of the speakership elections last year, he criticized the party’s leadership: “I can tell you in this moment. … I would not support any member of our current leadership … Leaders lead. And that’s not taking place,” he told CBS News at the time.

The full list of amendments that directly relate to the GOP conference, which were due Thursday evening, has yet to be reported. But centrists also filed an amendment setting internal repercussions for Republicans who oppose a procedural vote that allows the party to bring a GOP bill to the House floor for a vote, which comes after multiple instances of conservatives blocking bills from even getting proper consideration — and thus sinking leadership policy priorities under both McCarthy and Johnson.

There are also discussions about changing the discharge petition, as POLITICO first reported.

There are several broader rules discussions underway including some that impact how the floor is governed. That includes a push by some to make it harder to attempt to oust a speaker.

While the majority of Republicans despise the tool that allowed Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to lead a small cadre of Republicans in ousting McCarthy against the wishes of most in the GOP conference last October, there are some conservatives in the party who are expected to fiercely fight to keep the threshold. And thin vote margins could scramble plans to adjust it.

Jordain Carney contributed to this report.

Congress

Key GOP centrist Rep. Don Bacon will not seek reelection

Published

3 hours ago

June 28, 2025

Blue Light Newsroom

Rep. Don Bacon will not seek reelection and plans to retire at the end of his term, according to two people familiar with his plans. The announcement is expected Monday.

Bacon is a key GOP centrist in the House and represents one of only three Republican-held districts that Kamala Harris won in the 2024 presidential election.

Congress

Rep. Dusty Johnson to announce a bid for South Dakota governor Monday

Published

5 hours ago

June 27, 2025

Blue Light Newsroom

Rep. Dusty Johnson will announce a bid for South Dakota governor Monday, according to two people granted anonymity to speak about private conversations.

Johnson has served as South Dakota’s sole House representative since 2019. He’s been a key player in major deals on Capitol Hill in recent years as the head of the Main Street Caucus of Republicans.

Johnson, long expected to mount a bid for higher office, will make the announcement in Sioux Falls.

Johnson is the eighth House Republican to announce a run for higher office in 2026. Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Byron Donalds of Florida, Randy Feenstra of Iowa, John James of Michigan and John Rose of Tennessee are also seeking governor’s offices; Reps. Andy Barr of Kentucky and Buddy Carter of Georgia have announced Senate runs.

Congress

Senate slated to take first vote on megabill Saturday

Published

7 hours ago

June 27, 2025

Blue Light Newsroom

Senate Republicans are planning to take an initial vote at noon on Saturday to take up the megabill.

Leadership laid out the timeline during a closed-door lunch on Friday, Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) and John Hoeven (R-N.D.) said after the lunch. A person granted anonymity to discuss internal scheduling confirmed the noon timeline but cautioned Republicans haven’t locked in the schedule yet.

During the lunch, Speaker Mike Johnson pitched Senate Republicans on the tentative SALT deal, according to three people in the room. He said the deal was as good as Republican can get, according to the people.

Johnson noted he still has “one holdout” — an apparent reference to New York Republican Nick LaLota, who said in a brief interview Friday that if there was a deal, he was not part of it.

Leaving the meeting, Johnson was asked by reporters whether he thought Senate Republicans would accept the SALT deal. “I believe they will,” he replied. “They’re going to digest the final calculations, but I think we’re very, very close to closing that issue.”

In the meeting, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Johnson laid out details of the fragile agreement, telling Senate Republicans the House SALT deal would be cut in half, to total roughly $192 billion. They restated it would raise the SALT cap to $40,000 for five years under the current House-negotiated SALT deal, and snap back to the current $10,000 cap after that.

In related matters, Kennedy and Hoeven also said the Senate will keep its provider tax proposal but delay its implementation, which Republicans believe will help it comply with budget rules. and Johnson also told Senate Republicans that he wants to do another reconciliation bill — which senators took to mean they would get another opportunity to secure spending cuts or provisions passed that have been squeezed out of the megabill.