(TheLastPatriotNews.com) – Exposing a seemingly solid rift in GOP ranks, US Rep. Lauren Boebert blasted House Majority Leader Steve Scalise even though he won the House Speaker nomination in a divided party vote. Boebert is one of numerous congressional Republicans refusing to back his candidacy.
In a private House GOP meeting on Wednesday afternoon, Scalise (R-LA) won the Republican speaker nomination with 133 votes. Eight members abstained.
At the same time, his rival, Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), scored 99 votes, and some conservatives left the meeting refusing to support the winner in a general speakership vote, Breitbart News reports.
Earlier this month, Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted after eight conservative representatives sided with the Democrats in a motion to vacate.
Scalise needs 217 votes to become the new speaker of the chamber, where the GOP has a 221-212 majority.
Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert was among those Republicans declaring they would not back Scalise and would still cast a vote for Jordan – even though the latter urged his colleagues to vote for his rival.
“I will be voting for Jim Jordan to be Speaker of the House on the floor when the vote is called,” Boebert declared in a post on X.
“In conference, Jordan received 99 votes, and Scalise received 113. We had a chance to unify the party behind closed doors, but the Swamp and K Street lobbyists prevented that. The American people deserve a real change in leadership, not a continuation of the status quo,” she insisted.
Four other Republican House members also made it clear they remained committed to endorsing Jordan on the floor: Reps. Max Miller (R-OH), Thomas Massie (R-KY), Chip Roy (R-TX), and Nancy Mace (R-SC).
Meanwhile, Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) has pledged to vote on the floor for the ousted former speaker, Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
These dissenting voices alone suffice to thwart Scalise’s nomination on the floor, the report points out.
At the same time, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) is expected to have the unified support of all 212 Democrats for his nomination when it reaches the House floor.
Amid continuing uncertainty about their nominees’ chances, House Republicans put off the speakership vote that had been set to take place later on Wednesday.
