Evening Report

Scalise beats Trump-backed Jordan

by Amee LaTour 10/11/23 05:09 PM ET

A quick recap of the day and what to look forward to tomorrow

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Evening Report

Wednesday, October 11

Scalise wins GOP Speaker nod, House to vote

House Republicans voted 113-99 to nominate Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) to succeed Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as Speaker.

Scalise defeated Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who was backed by former President Trump, in the two-way contest to lead the conference.

While Republicans were able to advance his nomination Wednesday, Scalise will still need 217 votes from the full chamber to become the next Speaker.

A handful of holdouts could set up a floor fight, and five Republicans have already indicated they plan to vote for someone other than Scalise.

Nearly half a dozen others were publicly undecided as of Wednesday afternoon, with some indicating they plan to still back Jordan on the floor.

Flashback:

McCarthy won the the last internal nomination vote for Speaker
over Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) in a 188-31 vote in November 2022.
During the floor vote in January to actually become Speaker, it took 15 rounds of voting before McCarthy won the gavel.
The Hill’s Emily Brooks reported that Jordan has offered to give Scalise’s nominating speech ahead of the full chamber vote.

CAPTURING THE MOMENT: “Scalise’s nomination marks the pinnacle of his congressional career, which began in 2008 and has spanned more than nine years in leadership, including stints as Republican whip and, most recently, majority leader,” Brooks and The Hill’s Mychael Schnell reported.

Scalise was shot and nearly killed during a congressional baseball practice in 2017. He was recently diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer, and said “the cancer has dropped dramatically” following chemotherapy.

Check out The Hill’s live blog on the Speaker election.

Welcome to Evening Report! I’m Amee LaTour, catching you up from the afternoon and what’s coming tomorrow. Not on the list? Subscribe here.

CATCH UP QUICK

President Biden delivered remarks on the administration’s efforts to combat “junk fees,” including a proposed rule to require corporations to include all mandatory fees when communicating prices.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said “Israel’s blanket denial of food, water, and other necessities to Gaza is a serious violation of international law” while also saying the U.S. is “rightly” offering support to Israel in response to the attacks by Hamas militants.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) introduced a bill to refreeze $6 billion in Iranian funds that were unfrozen in a recent prisoner exchange deal.

NEW THIS AFTERNOON

Administration officials responding to Israel-Hamas war

President Biden and other administration officials attended a roundtable event with Jewish leaders Wednesday afternoon.

“This roundtable discussion will focus on the Biden-Harris Administration’s support for Israel following the Hamas terrorist attacks and the implementation of the National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism,” the White House said.

Also there: National security adviser Jake Sullivan, homeland security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall, domestic policy adviser Neera Tanden and senior adviser on public engagement Steve Benjamin.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to travel to Israel Wednesday and arrive on Thursday. He’ll meet with leaders there.

More coverage from The Hill:

💬 WEDNESDAY ONE-LINERS

We asked congressional experts before Wednesday’s House GOP conference vote to weigh in on what a Speaker Jordan or Speaker Scalise would indicate for the direction of the House GOP.

Here are some responses:

📣 “A Speaker Scalise would suggest a continuation of conventional GOP politics: taking strong ideological positions but being open to compromise when necessary. A Speaker Jordan would point towards a more pugnacious, confrontational, and media-oriented party that moved even closer to the Trump wing of the GOP.” — Matthew Green, professor of politics at Catholic University of America

📣 “A Speaker Jordan or a Speaker Scalise would indicate a temporary peace in the party’s internal strife. Presumably it would have been achieved by the GOP conference agreeing on some plays for the GOP majority to run, such as bringing individual spending bills to the floor and then going to conference with the Senate and supporting the resultant deals. And it has to include a deal to raise the threshold on the motion to vacate.” — Kevin Kosar, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute

📣 “Neither Steve Scalise nor Jim Jordan can overcome the irreconcilable differences within the House Republican Caucus on Ukraine aid, government funding, or the basic question of whether compromising with Democrats is an unavoidable part of politics or an unforgivable betrayal. So if either one is elected as Speaker, it will represent a triumph of hope over experience.” — Geoffrey Kabaservice, director of political studies at the Niskanen Center

CONGRESS

New York GOP reps move to expel Santos

Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-N.Y.) said he’ll introduce a resolution to expel Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) from the House. D’Esposito said five other New York Republicans are co-sponsoring the resolution.

Santos faces 23 charges after a superseding indictment Tuesday added 10 new counts over accusations of inflating campaign finance reports and charging donors’ credit cards without authorization.
Santos has denied wrongdoing on all charges.

In May, all House Republicans voted to refer an expulsion resolution to the House Ethics Committee instead of voting on it. Read more here.

IN OTHER NEWS

Changing breast cancer diagnosis rates and prospects for patients

The Hill’s Nathaniel Weixel and Julia Manchester delve into breast cancer diagnosis and survival rates, screening guidelines, stories from breast cancer patients and survivors and more in a new report.

Checking in on Louisiana’s gubernatorial race

Gubernatorial candidate Shawn Wilson (D) faces a challenging path to succeed Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) in the red state of Louisiana. The Hill’s Caroline Vakil and Cheyanne M. Daniels check in on the race ahead of the Oct. 14 all-party primary election with a focus on Black voters, who make up a critical base for Louisiana Democrats.

OP-EDS IN THE HILL

“How Texas Republicans will shape the Speaker fight” — Mark P. Jones, the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy’s fellow in political science and the Joseph D. Jamail chair in Latin American Studies at Rice University as well as a co-author of “Texas Politics Today.” (Read here)

“How to solve Republicans’ Speaker problem: Don’t elect a new Speaker” — Brian Darling, former counsel to Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) (Read here)

⏲️ COUNTDOWN

3 days until Louisiana’s gubernatorial primary.

🗓 COMING NEXT

Thursday: President Biden meets with CEOs to discuss “Bidenomics.”

AND FINALLY

The Switch Up: Books take political center stage

The Hill’s Cheyanne M. Daniels speaks with Kimberlé Crenshaw, George M. Johnson and Tiffany D. Jackson — all authors whose books have been banned — on the latest episode of “The Switch Up.” Listen here.

The podcast “explores the intersection of race and politics through intimate conversations with leading scholars, advocates and legislators from communities of color.”

Stay Engaged

You’re all caught up! Stay with TheHill.com for the latest and recommend this newsletter to others: TheHill.com/Evening. See you tomorrow.

Evening Report

Scalise wins GOP Speaker nod, House to vote

CATCH UP QUICK

NEW THIS AFTERNOON

Administration officials responding to Israel-Hamas war

💬 WEDNESDAY ONE-LINERS

CONGRESS

New York GOP reps move to expel Santos

IN OTHER NEWS

Changing breast cancer diagnosis rates and prospects for patients

Checking in on Louisiana’s gubernatorial race

OP-EDS IN THE HILL

⏲️ COUNTDOWN

🗓 COMING NEXT

AND FINALLY

The Switch Up: Books take political center stage

Stay Engaged

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