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      Conservative Mike Johnson wins House vote to become next speaker – as it happened

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      House Republicans have voted for Mike Johnson to be the newest speaker.The vote came out to 220-209 with every House Republican voting for him.The vote marks a breakthrough in a three-week limbo after House Republicans voted to oust Kevin McCarthy from the seat earlier this month.Following the vote, House Republicans erupted into cheers and applause as the Louisiana representative was elevated to one of the highest offices in the US government.After weeks of political infighting and unsuccessful speaker nominations, the Louisiana Republican representative Mike Johnson has become House speaker.The vote came out to 220-209 with every House Republican voting for him. The vote marks a breakthrough in a three-week limbo after House Republicans voted to oust Kevin McCarthy from the seat earlier this month.
      Johnson has already faced questions over his history of supporting Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election
      Groups advocating for human rights, including LGBTQ+ and womens’ rights have said that Johnson’s speakership is a threat, condemning his far-right views and voting record.
      Democrats believe Johnson’s central role in refuting the 2020 election results and his conservative views on many social issues could help them win back the House next year.– Chris Stein, Joan E Greve, Maanvi Singh
      Now that the House has a speaker, it’s right onto business. Once the speaker is sworn in, the House will consider a resolution to stand with Israel.The broad resolution affirms Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas. It also calls for sanctions and aid. It will be interesting to see how Johnson and other Republicans land on the issue.Last month, Johnson was among 93 Republicans who supported an amendment to cut off military assistance to Ukraine, proposed by hard-right congressman Matt Gaetz.The progressive advocacy organization Stand Up America has called Johnson’s speakership “a threat to our democracy”.Following Johnson’s win, Stand Up America’s founder and president Sean Eldridge said:
      “Today is a dark day for American democracy. Mike Johnson’s record of election denial and his attempts to overturn the will of the people make him totally unfit to be second in line to the presidency. Those who have spent years trying to undermine our democracy cannot be trusted to lead it.
      Entrusting the House of Representatives to a man the New York Times called ‘the most important architect of the electoral college objections’ is proof of House Republicans’ contempt for our freedom to vote. The American people deserve a speaker who will stand up for our democracy and our fundamental freedoms, but sadly, House Republicans have embraced Maga extremism instead.”
      The Democratic Women’s Caucus has also condemned Mike Johnson’s win, citing his history of supporting legislation that targeted women’s rights including the 2022 US supreme court overturning of Roe v Wade.
      House Republicans’ new speaker of the House, Rep. Mike Johnson, is a MAGA extremist through and through. While Democrats have worked to lower costs for working women, Mike Johnson has opposed efforts to make child care more affordable, and wants to cut Medicare and Social Security and ban abortion nationwide,” the caucus said.
      “The Democratic Women’s Caucus unanimously voted no – because a vote for speaker Johnson was a vote against women,” it added.
      Johnson has previously voted against the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and the Pump for Nursing Mothers Act, bipartisan legislations that offered to give expecting and new mothers increased workplace protections.He also voted against bipartisan legislation to protect victims of sexual assault and harassment, including the Speak Out Act and the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harrassment Act.The Human Rights Campaign, the country’s largest LGBTQ+ advocacy group, has condemned Mike Johnson’s new House speakership position.In a statement released on Wednesday, the president of HRC, Kelley Robinson, said:
      “The Maga House majority has selected the most anti-equality speaker in US history by elevating Mike Johnson – this is a choice that will be a stain on the record of everyone who voted for him.
      Johnson is someone who doesn’t hesitate to express his disdain for the LGTBQ+ community from the rooftops and then introduces legislation that seeks to erase us from society. Just like Jim Jordan, Mike Johnson is an election-denying, anti-LGBTQ+ extremist, and the lawmakers who appeared to stand on principle in opposing Jordan’s bid have revealed themselves to be just as out-of-touch as their new leader.”
      Joe Biden has congratulated Mike Johnson on becoming the House’s newest speaker and called for lawmakers across the aisle to move quickly to address national security needs.In a statement released on Wednesday, Biden said:
      “Jill and I congratulate Speaker Johnson on his election.As I said when this process began, whoever the Speaker is, I will seek to work with them in good faith on behalf of the American people …
      We need to move swiftly to address our national security needs and to avoid a shutdown in 22 days.Even though we have real disagreements about important issues, there should be mutual effort to find common ground wherever we can.This is a time for all of us to act responsibly, and to put the good of the American people and the everyday priorities of American families above any partisanship.”
      In other news, Minnesota representative Dean Phillips is expected to launch a 2024 Democratic presidential primary challenge against Joe Biden.Phillips, 54, will reportedly launch his campaign on Friday, Fox News reported, citing people familiar with his campaign.From there, Phillips will travel to New Hampshire and file his name for the state’s primary ballot.Several Democrats have discouraged Phillips from running, in response to the expected announcement.“He ought to go home to Minnesota,” Democratic senator Peter Welch said to the Huffington Post.“It’s a distraction and he’s going to be hounding on the president not because of policies – the Democrats support the policies and accomplishments of Biden – so he’s going to try to unravel that. It’s not helpful,” Welch added.The Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren told the Post that she also disapproves of Phillips’s run.“It just doesn’t make sense,” Warren said to the Post. “I’m all for President Biden getting re-elected. He has delivered for America’s middle class and he’s going to win.”Despite the ire, Phillips’s campaign seems all the ready to launch. A tour bus for Dean Phillips was spotted in Ohio, CBS News reported.The bus reading, “Dean Phillips For President”, was seen driving through Ohio on Tuesday, presumably headed towards New Hampshire. The bus also featured Phillips’s slogan: “Make America Affordable Again”.Johnson is now delivering remarks in his first speech to the House after being elected as the 56th House speaker on Wednesday.After walking up to the podium, Johnson and the House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, hugged as Jeffries handed Johnson the House speaker gavel.During his speech, Johnson vowed to decentralize power in the House and have members more involved in the process, the Hill reported.“We owe that to the people,” he said.Johnson has also said that the first bill he will bring to the floor on Wednesday is a resolution in support of Israel.From Punchbowl News’ Mica Soellner:More reactions are pouring in after Mike Johnson becomes the 56th House speaker, following weeks of House electoral chaos.The Congressional Integrity Project (CIP), a liberal activist group, said those who supported Johnson “voted For Election Denial and Radical Extremism”.“All of the House Republicans who supported Mike Johnson for Speaker voted for election denial, a national abortion ban, and gutting Social Security and Medicare,” CIP said in a statement.“Johnson will use the Speaker’s power to continue to undermine our democracy, restore Trump to power, and pursue a Maga Republican agenda that throws working families under the bus,” the group said.CIP was relaunched by Democrats in 2022 as a counterpoint to House Republicans, particularly following the January 6 insurrection and the belief in the Republican party that the 2020 election results were falsified.Mike Johnson has published a statement to social media following his win as the House’s newest speaker. In a statement posted to X, Johnson acknowledged the “arduous” House speaker election process that has dominated the Republican party for weeks.“It has been an arduous few weeks, and a reminder that the House is as complicated and diverse as the people we represent,” Johnson said.“The urgency of this moment demands bold, decisive action to restore trust, advance our legislative priorities, and demonstrate good governance,” he said.Johnson further said that, as House speaker, he will work to restore “trust” in the House and “sanity” within the government more broadly.“We will restore trust in this body. We will advance a comprehensive conservative policy agenda, combat the harmful policies of the Biden Administration, and support our allies abroad,” Johnson added.“And we will restore sanity to a government desperately in need of it. Let’s get back to work,” he said.The Republican National Committee has congratulated Mike Johnson as the House’s newest speaker.In a statement released following the House vote, RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said:
      “Congratulations to the new speaker of the House, Mike Johnson! In eight months, the Republican House majority passed bills to lower energy costs, secure the border, defend parents’ rights, improve public safety, and more. When Republicans come together, we deliver results, and that’s what we need to showcase ahead of 2024. We delivered this majority to bring solutions to the American people. It’s time for Republicans to unite behind speaker Johnson and get back to work.”
      House Republicans have voted for Mike Johnson to be the newest speaker.The vote came out to 220-209 with every House Republican voting for him.The vote marks a breakthrough in a three-week limbo after House Republicans voted to oust Kevin McCarthy from the seat earlier this month.Following the vote, House Republicans erupted into cheers and applause as the Louisiana representative was elevated to one of the highest offices in the US government.Steve Scalise, once a top contender of the House speaker race only to then drop out, has voted for Mike Johnson.As with Kevin McCarthy and Patrick McHenry’s votes for Johnson, Republicans stood up and applauded the Louisiana Republican for his vote.Patrick McHenry, the House speaker pro tempore, has cast his vote for Mike Johnson as the next House speaker.Republicans stood and applauded the North Carolina Republican representative.Former House speaker Kevin McCarthy has voted for Mike Johnson as the next House speaker.In response, House Republicans stood up around him and clapped.The Democratic National Committee has criticized Mike Johnson’s House speaker nomination, calling the Louisiana representative the “new Maga speaker-designate”.In a statement released on Wednesday, a DNC spokesperson, Sarafina Chitika said:
      “Many Americans are waking up this morning wondering – who is Mike Johnson? We’re here to help: Maga Republicans’ new speaker-designate supports extreme nationwide abortion bans. He led the charge for Donald Trump denying president Biden’s legitimate election win and tried to overthrow the votes of 81 million Americans.
      He’s a leading proponent of slashing Social Security and Medicare. Mike Johnson is a carbon-copy of the Maga extremism that is deeply unpopular with Americans across the country. House Republicans will have to answer for their support for their new Maga speaker next November. Make no mistake: the American people will hold them accountable for this choice.” More

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      Aukus will ‘get done’ despite jitters in Congress, Biden tells Albanese at White House meeting

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      Joe Biden has played down congressional jitters over the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine deal and has revealed he assured Xi Jinping that the countries involved are not aiming to “surround China”.The US president welcomed the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, to the White House and insisted he was “confident that we’re going to be able to get the money for Aukus because it’s overwhelmingly in our interest”.“So the question is not if, but when,” Biden said during a joint press conference with Albanese in the rose garden on Wednesday US time (Thursday Australian time).Biden also relayed a conversation he previously had with China’s president about the Aukus security partnership, in which Australia, the US and the UK have pledged to work together on advanced defence capabilities.“When I was asked when we put together the deal, I was asked by Xi Jinping, were we just trying to surround China?,” Biden said“I said, no, we’re not surrounding China. We’re just making sure that the sea lanes remain open, it doesn’t unilaterally to be able to change the rules of the road in terms of what constitutes international airspace and water, space, etc.”Biden and Albanese spoke to reporters after wide-ranging talks at the White House. They pledged to cooperate in numerous fields, including space, with a deal paving the way for launches of US commercial space vehicles from Australia.There was a heavy emphasis on working with Pacific countries amid intensifying competition for influence in the region.The leaders announced plans for the US and Australia to “co‑finance critical maritime infrastructure projects in Kiribati, including the rehabilitation of Kanton Wharf and Charlie Wharf in Tarawa”. They will also assist Pacific countries with banking services and undersea cables.The climate crisis formed a significant part of the talks, with plans to collaborate on battery supply chains “to explore the deepening of both countries’ manufacturing capability and work on battery technology research and development”.In their joint statement, Biden and Albanese acknowledged that “achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement will require rapid deployment of clean energy and decarbonisation technologies, and increased electrification in our countries this decade, alongside the phasedown of unabated coal power”.It was the ninth time Albanese has met with Biden since the May 2022 election, although the earlier meetings mostly occurred on the sidelines of international events.Biden and the first lady, Jill Biden, welcomed Albanese and his partner, Jodie Haydon, to the White House for a private dinner on Tuesday evening but the main diplomatic talks were held on Wednesday.The day began with a welcome on the south lawn of the White House before the two leaders held a formal meeting in the Oval Office.Biden began that meeting by apologising “again for not being able to make my visit to Australia” in May when the Quad summit in Sydney was called off because of debt ceiling negotiations in the US.“Things were a little bit in disarray here and required to be home,” Biden told Albanese.Albanese will be feted at a state dinner later on Wednesday US time (late Thursday morning AEDT).Biden described ties with Australia as “strong” and getting “stronger”, while Albanese said the alliance was based on “a faith in freedom and democracy, a belief in opportunity, a determination to build a prosperous and more peaceful world”.However, seven months after Albanese joined Biden and the British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, in San Diego to announce the Aukus plans, there remains uncertainty over congressional approvals needed for them to succeed.Aukus will require reforms to the US export control system. Congress will also need to authorise the sale of at least three Virginia-class submarines to Australia in the 2030s but some Republicans have raised concerns that will come at the cost of the US’s own needs. Australian-built nuclear-powered submarines are due to enter into service from the 2040s.Standing alongside Albanese on Wednesday, Biden urged Congress to “pass our Aukus legislation this year”.Albanese played down concerns about the deal, saying he regarded the US “as a very reliable partner”.“And I regard the relationship that I have with the president as second to none of the relationships that I have around the world, or indeed domestically, for that matter,” Albanese said.The prime minister said he was “very confident in the discussions that I’ve had with Democrats and Republicans that there is very broad support for the Aukus arrangements”.Albanese said he looked forward to “a constructive dialogue” when he visits China next month, describing such talks as important to build understanding and reduce tensions.Biden and Albanese also discussed the Israel-Hamas conflict. In their joint statement, they said Hamas attacks on Israel “can have no justification, no legitimacy, and must be universally condemned”.While pledging to “support Israel as it defends itself and its people against such atrocities”, the two leaders also called on “all parties to act consistent with the principles of international law and to protect civilians as an utmost priority”.“We are concerned at the humanitarian situation in Gaza and call on all actors to ensure the provision of humanitarian supplies to populations in need,” Biden and Albanese said.“Our two countries support equal measures of dignity, freedom, and self-determination for Israelis and Palestinians alike and we mourn every civilian life lost in this conflict. We continue to support Palestinian aspirations for a state of their own and consider a two-state solution as the best avenue towards a lasting peace.”Albanese announced that Australia would provide an additional $15m in humanitarian assistance for civilians in Gaza. More

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      Jim Jordan says he’s ‘going back to work’ after losing secret ballot for House speaker candidacy – US politics live

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      Jim Jordan lost a secret ballot held by House Republicans which removes him as speaker designate, said the Republican Florida representative Kat Cammack.Steve Scalise of Louisiana said that Republicans will start over on Monday.Punchbowl News’s Jake Sherman reports that the vote margin was large, according to sources familiar with the vote.The Supreme Court on Friday kept a Missouri law on hold that bars police from enforcing federal gun laws, rejecting an emergency appeal from the state.The Associated Press reports:The 2019 law was ruled unconstitutional by a district judge but allowed to remain in effect. A federal appeals court then blocked enforcement while the state appeals the district court ruling.Missouri had wanted the law to be in effect while the court fight plays out.Justice Clarence Thomas was the only member of the court to side with Missouri on Friday.The law would impose a fine of $50,000 on an officer who knowingly enforces federal gun laws that don’t match up with state restrictions.Federal laws without similar Missouri laws include registration and tracking requirements and possession of firearms by some domestic violence offenders.The court expanded gun rights in a 2022 decision authored by Thomas. It is hearing arguments next month in the first case stemming from last year’s ruling. An appeals court invalidated a federal law that aims to keep guns away from people facing domestic violence restraining orders.Long-shot Republican presidential candidate Perry Johnson has announced his decision to suspend his presidential campaign.On Friday, the Michigan businessman released a statement, saying, “With no oppurtunity to share my vision on the debate stage, I have decided at this time, suspending my campaign is the right thing to do.”Johnson criticized the Republican National Committee and its “corrupt leaders” with “authoritarian powers.”“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the people should decide the next president of the United States, not the head of the RNC and her cronies,” he added.Johnson said that he is only suspending his campaign, rather than withdrawing entirely and plans to keep a small political team on staff “in the event the dynamics of the race change.”Tennessee’s Republican representative Mark Green is not runnning for speaker, Green’s office told Punchbowl News.With Jim Jordan out of the speaker race, here is an explainer by the Guardian’s Sam Levine on why he lost and what happens next:Why did Republicans oppose Jordan?Several of the members who are opposed to Jordan are members of the House appropriations committee, who are reportedly opposed to the way Jordan has embraced a hard line on spending cuts and shutting down the government.There is also reportedly bad blood over the way Jordan and his allies treated Steve Scalise. Scalise previously beat Jordan to win the conference’s nomination to be speaker, but withdrew his bid after it became clear he couldn’t get enough votes to win in the House. Some Scalise allies think Jordan didn’t do enough to rally Republicans around Scalise.What happens next?No one knows. Even as it was clear that Jordan had no clear path to becoming the speaker, no Republican emerged to seriously challenge him. Republicans currently have a Sunday noon deadline to announce their candidacy ahead of another round of speakership talks.For the full explainer, click here:Mike Pence has called on House Republicans to “decide what team you want to be on” as Republicans revert back to square one following their inability to decide on a speaker.Speaking on SiriusXM, the presidential candidate said:
      “Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever imagined eight Republicans partnering with every Democrat in Congress to throw out a Republican speaker of the House. All roads lead back to the eight members of what I call the chaos caucus who set all this into motion.”
      “With everything that’s happening in the world … the American people are looking to Republicans in the Congress to stop fighting with each other and start fighting for them.”
      House Republicans have set Sunday 12pm as the deadline to file as a speaker candidate.A candidate forum for the speaker will be held on Monday at 6.30pm and a secret ballot leadership election will be held on Tuesday at 9am.It remains unclear when a floor vote for speaker will be.Texas’s Republican representative Chip Roy said that it was a “mistake for the Republican conference to just walk away from arguably the most popular Republican in the Republican party.”Speaking to CNN’s Manu Raju, Roy said, “We shouldn’t have done that,” adding, “I think having the American people be able to see how we are wrestling with the tough decisions and what we’re trying to do, and doing it with intensity and doing it because we care about this country.”Former speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy is throwing his weight behind GOP whip Tom Emmer’s bid to replace him, Punchbowl News reports:It’s a boost for Emmer, but not necessarily a decisive one. McCarthy also supported Jim Jordan, and look how that turned out. Meanwhile, Punchbowl reports that Emmer is among a fairly sizable group of Republicans running for the House speaker post, or considering it:They’ll be having a busy weekend.The judge overseeing Donald Trump and his family members’ civil fraud trial in New York City fined the former president $5,000 for a post he determined violated a gag order, but did not order him to jail – yet.Here’s more on that, from the Associated Press:
      Judge Arthur Engoron avoided holding Trump in contempt, for now, but reserved the right to do so – and possibly even put him in jail – if he continued to violate a gag order barring parties in the case from personal attacks on court staff.
      Engoron said in a written ruling that he is “way beyond the ‘warning’ stage” but decided on a nominal fine because Trump’s lawyers said the website’s retention of the post was inadvertent and was a “first-time violation”.
      Earlier, an incensed Engoron said the failure to delete the post from the website was a “blatant violation” of his 3 October order, which required Trump to delete the offending message.
      Trump lawyer Christopher Kise blamed the “very large machine” of Trump’s presidential campaign for allowing his deleted social media post to remain on his website, calling it an unintentional oversight.
      Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, wasn’t in court Friday. He’d returned to the trial Tuesday and Wednesday after attending the first three days in early October, but skipped the rest of the week.
      Speaking of people who are running for office, Donald Trump has made it clear he won’t be at the third Republican primary debate in Miami on 8 November.But he will be in the city in his role as spoiler, hosting an open-air rally at the same time that his rivals for the party’s presidential nomination are taking the stage.Trump’s campaign announced Friday that the former president would be appearing at Ted Hendricks stadium in Hialeah, 10 miles from the Adrienne Arsht performing arts center in Miami where the Republican National Committee debate will take place.The former president is the runaway leader for the nomination, despite his worsening legal problems. He skipped the first debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in August, and last month’s second event in Simi Valley, California, although he still emerged as the most-talked-about candidate despite his absence.Trump has called for the RNC to cancel the Miami debate, arguing that he’s so far ahead of his challengers as to make it meaningless, and that a failure to do so would be an admission that “national Republicans are more concerned about helping Joe Biden”.Tom Emmer, a Minnesota congressman who is the third-highest-ranking Republican in the House, will run for speaker, Punchbowl News reports:Before Kevin McCarthy’s removal from the speaker’s post, the Washington Post reported that conservative hardliners were in favor of nominating him for the chamber’s top job.Jim Jordan started out the day by hinting that the House would have to stick around through the weekend to vote on his candidacy for speaker.Hours later, the GOP stripped him of the party’s nomination in a closed-door meeting. No more weekend votes for them.As CNN reports, the next phase of the speaker’s race will play out starting Monday with a candidates’ forum, but you can bet that Kevin Hern and other Republicans who throw their hat into the ring will spend this weekend campaigning within the party:Republican majority leader Steve Scalise, who was briefly the party’s nominee for speaker before withdrawing when he concluded he would not win majority support, will not run for the post again, Punchbowl News reports:Oklahoma’s Republican representative Kevin Hern has announced he will run for House speaker.Hern, the chair of the Republican study committee (the House’s largest caucus among Republicans), said:
      I just voted for my good friend Jim Jordan to stay as our speaker designate, but the conference has determined that he will no longer hold that title. We just had two speaker designates go down. We must unify and do it fast.
      I’ve spoken to every member of the conference over the last few weeks. We need a different type of leader who has a proven track record of success, which is why I’m running for speaker of the House.
      Following the secret GOP ballot, Jim Jordan said on live TV, “I’m going to go back to work.”In reference to who the next speaker would be, Jordan said, “Let’s work out who that individual is,” and added, “It’s time to unite.”White House spokesperson Andrew Bates has commented on the latest House speaker vote, urging House Republicans to “end their chaotic infighting and their competitions to out-extreme one another.” “While Joe Biden fights to advance bipartisan legislation that will protect our national security interests – including in Israel and Ukraine – provide humanitarian assistance for innocent civilians in Gaza, deliver critical border funding, compete with China, and grow our economy, House Republicans are somehow still fighting with each other,” said Bates.He went on to call upon House Republicans to “join President Biden in working on urgent priorities for American families shared by both parties in Congress.”The former House speaker Kevin McCarthy said that Republicans will now “have to go back to the drawing board”.“I’m concerned where we go from here,” added McCarthy. More

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      A high-stakes diplomatic mission for Biden – podcast

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      This week, Joe Biden travelled to Israel – becoming the first US president to visit the country at war. He set out to show United States support for Israel, ease the humanitarian disaster unfolding in Gaza, win the freedom of hostages held by Hamas, and prevent a wider regional conflict that might draw in the US. So with stakes this high, how did he perform? And what does this mean for Biden politically?
      This week Jonathan Freedland is joined by Julian Borger, the Guardian’s world affairs editor, who is in Jerusalem and has been following the trip and the reactions to it.

      How to listen to podcasts: everything you need to know More

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      Jim Jordan says he will seek third vote and not planning to drop out of House speaker race – live

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      Jim Jordan said that he plans to seek a third vote and has no plans of pulling out the House speaker race.Speaking to reporters after tense closed-door meetings with other Republicans, Jordan said:
      “I’m still running for speaker and I plan to go to the floor and get the vote and win this race.”
      He added that he plans to speak with the 20 Republicans who voted against him to secure their support.In attempts to buy time for a third round of votes for his own speakership, Jordan has thrown his support behind expanding House speaker pro tempore’s powers. The current interim House speaker is North Carolina’s Patrick McHenry.Jordan’s decision to support McHenry’s interim speaker position has spurred mixed reactions, with Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene calling it “the wrong thing to do.”Republican Matt Gaetz echoed similar sentiments, saying, “We need to stay here until we elect a speaker.”Meanwhile, Democrat Jared Moskowitz hailed the decision, saying, “If there is a bipartisan deal to empower the pro-Temp, which I’m a favor of, I want to see the details of course first.”The House of Representatives remains in limbo and without a speaker, despite far-right Ohio representative Jim Jordan trying his best to rally holdout colleagues.With the House in its weeks-long gridlock, there are increasing calls from Democrats and Republicans expand the powers of the chamber’s acting speaker, North Carolina’s Patrick McHenry, so that the chamber can carry on with business.The chaos in the House of Representatives comes at precarious moment on the world stage amid the ongoing conflicts between Israel and Hamas, as well as Ukraine and Russia.
      Former Donald Trump lawyer Sidney Powell is taking a plea agreement in Georgia’s Fulton county and will plead guilty in the Georgia election subversion case.
      The US attorney general, Merrick Garland, said that the justice department was monitoring an increase in reported threats against Jewish, Muslim and Arab communities.
      Joe Biden is set to deliver a primetime address tonight at 8pm ET in which he will discuss the US response to the war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war.
      Jim Jordan’s bid for speaker appears to still be an uphill climb.Per reporters at Capitol Hill, he did not take any questions from the press after meeting with holdout Republicans.Mike Lawler, the New York Republican who voted against Jordan previously, issued a statement endorsing Patrick McHenry as an interim speaker. “In the absence of an immediate resolution, we must empower Speaker Pro-Tempore Patrick McHenry to serve as Speaker temporarily to allow us to get back to work,” he said.Meanwhile, some Senate news: Laphonza Butler, who was appointed just over two weeks ago to fill the seat left vacant by California senator Dianne Feinstein’s death, said she would not run for a full term.The New York Times reports that Butler said that the Senate was “not the greatest use of my voice”.Her appointment to serve the remainder of Feinstein’s term by California governor Gavin Newsom drew criticism, especially from supporters of congresswoman Barbara Lee, a Black Bay Area representative who had already been campaigning for the upcoming Senate term before Lee died last month.Newsom had promised that given the opportunity, he would appoint a Black woman to the seat. But he also implied he would not be appointing anyone who was already running for the senate, and said that he would instead choose an “interim” candidate. When announcing Butler’s appointment, his office made clear that she was free to run for a full term if she chose to.Still, his choice drew the ire of many Lee supporters, including the Congressional Black Caucus. “Barbara Lee, and Black women, are not mere caretakers, but the voting and organizing center of the national Democratic party,” Aimee Allison, whose organization She the People promotes women of color in politics, said at the time.Butler became the only Black woman in the senate and the first openly LGBTQ+ person to represent California in the chamber.In a statement, Butler said: “California voters want leaders who think about them and the issues they care most about. I now have 383 days to serve the people of California with every ounce of energy and effort that I have.”Butler had never held elected office. Prior to joining the senate, she led Emily’s List, a national political organization dedicated to electing Democratic women who support reproductive rights. She also served as a strategist and adviser to Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign and was a former labor leader of SEIU California, the state’s largest union, representing more than 700,000 workers.Meanwhile, Democrats are continuing to push the message that Republicans’ inability to work together to elect a speaker is a sign of the party’s incompetence ahead of a big election year.DNC spokesperson Sarafina Chitika wrote:
      Today, the Senate unanimously passed a resolution affirming their support for Israel, President Biden returned from Israel and is preparing to address the nation, and House Democrats stand ready to get back to work. All of the adults are in the room working, except for House Republicans who are – literally – cursing at one another and fighting among themselves. It’s time for the House GOP to grow up, pull themselves together, and join Democrats in working for the American people.
      In an interview with CNN, hard-right congressman Matt Gaetz, who started the push to oust former speaker Kevin McCarthy, said “This is how its supposed to be, and it’s not clearn and its not orderly… I don’t seem to mind it too much.”CNN’s Manu Raju asked Gaetz what he got out of removing McCarthy, he said, “We’re shaking up Washington, DC.”White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates has urged Republicans to “get their act together” amid their “self-inflected, extreme chaos.”In a memo released on Thursday, Bates said:
      “The House GOP’s backbiting and competition to out-extreme each other is also surfacing hardline positions that the American people have solidly rejected again and again. Including dangerous conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, radical abortion bans, and cuts to Medicare and Social Security…
      As president Biden acts to make America more secure, grow our economy for the middle class, and protect our freedoms, House Republicans are falling over one another to find out who can be the most erratic and out of step with the priorites of working families.
      They need to get their act together and join this president at the adults table.”
      In a new interview with CNN, Democrat representative Nancy Pelosi said that “you have to make him speaker,” referring to interm House speaker Patrick McHenry.Speaking to CNN’s Dana Bash, Pelosi said:
      “From a standpoint of the speakership, you really cannot give Mr. McHenry power. Someone suggested, well, just let him do this and let him do that. No, you have to make him speaker, and then he has the awesome power of the speakership.
      Question is, for how long, the longevity of it? My hearing is that it will be to the end of this session, so until the end of the year. Secondly, what is the legislative scope of it? What does it contain? And third is the structure. Do they do anything about the motion to vacate or what we do about motions, other motions on the floor?
      So it’s substance. It’s timing. It’s structure. It’ll be up to Hakeem, and we all have confidence in him,” she added.
      Jim Jordan said that he plans to seek a third vote and has no plans of pulling out the House speaker race.Speaking to reporters after tense closed-door meetings with other Republicans, Jordan said:
      “I’m still running for speaker and I plan to go to the floor and get the vote and win this race.”
      He added that he plans to speak with the 20 Republicans who voted against him to secure their support.In attempts to buy time for a third round of votes for his own speakership, Jordan has thrown his support behind expanding House speaker pro tempore’s powers. The current interim House speaker is North Carolina’s Patrick McHenry.Jordan’s decision to support McHenry’s interim speaker position has spurred mixed reactions, with Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene calling it “the wrong thing to do.”Republican Matt Gaetz echoed similar sentiments, saying, “We need to stay here until we elect a speaker.”Meanwhile, Democrat Jared Moskowitz hailed the decision, saying, “If there is a bipartisan deal to empower the pro-Temp, which I’m a favor of, I want to see the details of course first.”Here is video of Jim Jordan telling reporters that he made a “pitch” in attempts to “lower the temperature” by throwing his support behind the House speaker pro temporare.
      “We decided that wasn’t where we’re going to go. I’m still running for Speaker, and I plan to go to the floor and get the votes and win this race. But I want to a few of my colleauges. Particularly I want to talk with the 20 individuals who voted against me,” said Jordan.
      Additionally, Punchbowl News’s Jake Sherman reports that Jordan said that he expects another speaker vote and added that he wants to meet with the 20 Republicans who voted against him.It remains unclear when the next round of votes would be.Sherman also reports that House majority whip Tom Emmer as well as House majority leader Steve Scalise are curently opposed on the idea to elect a temporary speaker.Commenting on the Patrick McHenry House resolution that is set to expand the chamber’s speaker pro tempore’s powers, Jim Jordan is reported to have said:
      We made the pitch to members on the resolution as a way to lower the temperature and get back to work. We decided that wasn’t where we’re gonna go. I’m still running for speaker and I plan to go the floor and get the votes and win this race.”
      Steve Scalise, the majority leader of the House of Representatives, is reported to be opposed to the resolution to empower a temporary speaker.“I’d rather us focus on getting a speaker elected,” Scalise is reported to have said, according to Punchbowl News’s Jake Sherman.The closed-door GOP meeting is reported to be fairly tense.According to CNN’s Melanie Zanona, sources said that Florida representative Matt Gaetz was told to sit down by former House speaker Kevin McCarthy and refused.“Then Rep. [Michael] Bost ‘got all emotional’ and ‘was cussing at him’ and ‘telling him it’s all his fault,’ one member said,” Zanona added.She also reported that other Republicans are reportedly furious over Jim Jordan supporting the resolution to expand House speaker pro tempore Patrick McHenry’s powers, with some claiming that it is a self-serving move.Dan Newhouse, a Republican representative from Washington, said “We need a reset” upon being asked by CNN’s Manu Raju whether Jim Jordan should stay as House speaker nominee.Raju also reports that in a closed-door meeting, a handful of Republicans urged Jordan to drop his speakership bid but he is not yielding, according to several sources. More

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      Jim Jordan vows to press on for speaker’s chair despite second election loss – as it happened

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      Republican nominee Jim Jordan will continue his campaign for speaker of the House despite losing the second round of balloting for the position this afternoon.“We’re going to keep going,” Jordan’s spokesman Russell Dye told me.The House has once again failed to agree on electing a speaker, with Jim Jordan rejected for the second time in two days after 22 Republicans said no to their party’s nominee. What happens now? Who knows. Some Republicans want to hold a vote on giving acting speaker Patrick McHenry the job’s full powers so the chamber can get back to legislating on issues like aid to Israel and government funding. Jordan has said he would be in favor of holding a vote on that motion, but has also vowed to stay in the race. It appears we will not find out how Republicans’ conundrum resolves itself today – no more votes are expected in the House.Here’s a look back on the day:
      Capitol police were arresting protesters in a House office building, who had entered by the hundreds to demand a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and for Israel to allow humanitarian aid.
      Jordan pleaded for unity, but one of his supporters warned he would lose more support in the second round of voting – and was right.
      Romney-Cruz 2016? Not as far-fetched as it sounds, former Republican presidential candidate turned senator from Utah Mitt Romney writes in a new book.
      McHenry’s acting capacity means pretty much all he can do is gavel the House into and out of session, and count the votes for speaker.
      A Jordan opponent voted for John Boehner. Remember him?
      The House is done with voting for the day, a source familiar with the matter tells me, as Republican lawmakers remain unable to agree on elevating rightwing congressman Jim Jordan to the speaker’s post.Hours ago, the second election to install Jordan as Kevin McCarthy’s successor failed after 22 Republicans and all Democrats rejected his candidacy for speaker. The House then adjourned, though there was speculation lawmakers could return for another round of voting, or to consider a resolution to give acting speaker Patrick McHenry the job.Police have arrested some of what appear to be hundreds of protesters who converged on the US Capitol calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and for Israel to allow humanitarian aid to enter the territory.The protest was organized by activist group Jewish Voice for Peace, which said some of its members had planned acts of civil disobedience. Reporters in the Capitol say the arrests took place in the Cannon office building, where House lawmakers have their chambers and which is open to the public:Here are more photos from the protest:For the latest on the conflict in the Gaza Strip, and Joe Biden’s just-concluded visit to Israel, follow our live blog:Texas’s Republican representative Chip Roy said that to grant further powers to the House’s speaker pro tempore in order to resume the House’s business “makes no sense” and is “directly contradictory to the Constitution.”Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Roy said:
      “We should do our job and select a speaker. The constitution says that so any move to do otherwise is contrary to the Constitution and would do enormous damage to not just the Republican party but the House of Representatives. I violently oppose any effort to do that on the floor of the House…
      I think it is directly contrary to the Constitution in terms of saying that we shall choose a speaker and to go appoint somebody with the full powers of the speaker without having chosen the speaker. It makes no sense so I think we need to take a step back, do our job and choose a speaker.”
      He went on to add that he will support Jim Jordan for House speaker “for however long it takes.”As Jim Jordan fails for the second time to garner enough votes to become speaker, a handful of Republicans are speaking out about the strong-arming they have been facing by Jordan’s allies in attempts to make him speaker, including allegedly sending anonymous text messages.On Tuesday, 20 Republicans voted against the hard-right Ohioan’s speakership, continuing to leave the House in a state of limbo since extremist Republicans ousted Kevin McCarthy in a historic vote earlier this month.With Jordan struggling to secure the 217 votes needed to become speaker of the House, several Republicans have told Politico of Jordan’s “broader team … playing hardball” in attempts to garner votes.The Nebraska congressman Don Bacon – one of the 20 Republicans who voted against Jordan in the first vote – told the outlet that his wife had received anonymous texts that warned of her husband never holding office again.Screenshots of the alleged text messages sent to Bacon’s wife and shared with Politico showed one saying: “Talk to your husband tell him to step up and be a leader and help the Republican party get a speaker. There’s too much going on in the world for all this going on in Republican party. You guys take five steps forward and then turn around take 20 steps backwards – no wonder our party always ends up getting screwed over.”For further details, click here:Here is video of the moment a pro-Palestinian protestor interrupted the former treasury secretary Jack Lew’s Senate confirmation hearing for ambassador to Israel.“How many children need to be killed? Our families are dying! We need a ceasefire now!” the protestor yelled at Joe Biden’s pick as security escorted him out of the room.Another protestor then appeared, yelling: “Israel is committing genocide in Gaza … and we’re funding it!” She also was escorted out by security.Utah’s Republican senator Mitt Romney considered a third presidential bid in 2016 in attempts to stop Donald Trump with “scary” Texas senator Ted Cruz, a new book reveals.The Guardian’s Martin Pengelly reports:“Romney was willing to wage a quixotic and humiliating presidential bid if that’s what it took,” McKay Coppins writes in Romney: A Reckoning, a biography of the 2012 Republican nominee written in close cooperation with its subject.“He might even be able to swallow sharing a ticket with Cruz, a man he’d described as ‘scary’ and ‘a demagogue’ in his journal. But Romney didn’t think the gambit would actually succeed in taking down Trump. The problem was that no one else in the party seemed to know what to do about Trump, either.”Widely trailed, Coppins’ book will be published in the US next Tuesday. The Guardian obtained a copy. A spokesperson for Cruz did not immediately respond to a request for comment.For further details, click here:Democratic minority House speaker Hakeem Jeffries who received 212 votes on Wednesday urged Republicans to work alongside Democrats, tweeting:
      “The time has come for House Republicans to reject extremism and embrace bipartisanship.”
      Jeffries’ tweet follows another one he made earlier in the day in which he called on House Republicans to “get real, end the Republican Civil War and join House Democrats in a bipartisan path forward.”The House has once again failed to agree on electing a speaker, with Jim Jordan rejected for the second time in two days after 22 Republicans said no to their party’s nominee. What happens now? Who knows. Some Republicans want to hold a vote on giving acting speaker Patrick McHenry the job’s full powers so the chamber can get back to legislating on issues like aid to Israel and government funding. Jordan has said he would be in favor of holding a vote on that motion, but he has also vowed to stay in the race. We’ll see if he opts to push for a third round of voting.Here’s a recap of the day so far:
      Jordan pleaded for unity, but one of his supporters warned he would lose more support in the second round of voting – and was right.
      McHenry’s acting capacity means he can pretty much just gavel the House into and out of session, and count the votes for speaker.
      A Jordan opponent voted for John Boehner. Remember him?
      It’s tough to tell what happens next in the House.Democratic whip Katherine Clark has told members “additional votes are possible today”, but there’s no saying when, or if, that happens.A Republican aide told the Guardian’s US politics live blog that the party’s lawmakers were told to expect a meeting of the Republican conference, but that has not yet been officially scheduled.The Guardian’s Hugo Lowell is at the Capitol, and spotted one of the surest signs that lawmakers aren’t leaving anytime soon: pizza is being delivered.With their party apparently deadlocked over making Jim Jordan speaker of the House, more Republicans are calling to make Patrick McHenry the chamber’s leader.McHenry took over as acting speaker following Kevin McCarthy’s ouster two weeks ago, while the GOP has nominated Jordan to become his permanent replacement. But Jordan has now twice failed to secure a majority of votes necessary to ascend to speaker’s chair, and some supporters now think it would be best to give McHenry the job and allow the chamber to begin functioning again.Here’s California’s David Valadao, who represents a Democratic-leaning district and backed Jordan in the just-concluded round of voting:Jordan’s detractors are also making their case to give McHenry the job. Here’s Jen Kiggans, a recent arrival in the House who represents a Virginia swing district:And another vulernable Republican, Carlos Gimenez, remains upset about McCarthy’s removal. He, too, is in favor of putting McHenry in charge:Republican nominee Jim Jordan will continue his campaign for speaker of the House despite losing the second round of balloting for the position this afternoon.“We’re going to keep going,” Jordan’s spokesman Russell Dye told me.“No person having received a majority the whole number of votes cast by surname, a speaker has not been elected,” Patrick McHenry declared from the House dais.What now? Some Republicans want to hold a vote on expanding McHenry’s powers from acting speaker to full speaker of the House. Earlier today, Jim Jordan said he would be in favor of putting that resolution up for consideration.That could be a very interesting affair, since Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said the party may be open to supporting that, but McHenry gaveled the House into recess, so it seems that vote won’t happen right away.Jim Jordan has lost the second election for House speaker, as more Republicans voted against elevating him to the chamber’s leadership role.Jordan lost 22 GOP votes, two more than in the initial round of balloting on Tuesday. He received 199 votes in total, while Democratic minority leader Hakeem Jeffries received 212.Voting appears to be over, and we are now waiting for acting speaker Patrick McHenry to make the result official.Jim Jordan has for the second day in a row failed to receive a majority vote to become speaker. After McHenry confirms the election, the question will become: what will the GOP do now?There are now 21 no votes against Jordan – one more than in the first round of balloting yesterday.The election has not yet concluded, but his margin of defeat is an indication of the amount of opposition Jordan will have to overcome if he is ever to get the speaker’s gavel.Democrats, meanwhile, have unanimously voted for their minority leader Hakeem Jeffries. He has received 200 votes to Jordan’s 184.Jim Jordan’s Republican objectors have voted for other politicians, usually former members of the House.Pennsylvania’s Mike Kelly voted for John Boehner, the Republican speaker of the House from 2011 to 2015, who resigned his position in part due to trouble with the party’s conservative wing:Michigan’s John James voted for former GOP congresswoman Candice Miller, one of the more obscure names called out in this round of voting, More

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      House in limbo after 20 Republicans sink Jim Jordan’s first attempt to win speaker vote – live

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      While Jim Jordan may not have enough votes to become House Speaker, another round of voting is expected today.A spokesperson for Jordan confirmed to CNN’s Manu Raju that Jordan will force another round of votes.“The House needs a speaker as soon as possible. Expect another round of votes today. It’s time for Republicans to come together,” said Jordan spokesperson Russell Dye.In his bid to become the next speaker, far-right representative Jim Jordan quickly ran into the same problem Kevin McCarthy did during his speakership election in January: the GOP is deeply divided and unable to agree on a leader.Jordan was unable to secure a majority after 20 Republicans voted for another candidate. Jordan will have another try tomorrow, but it’s unclear whether the Ohio congressman has enough clout to sustain multiple rounds of balloting to win the speakership.Democrats meanwhile were united in voting for House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York. Without any Republican support, Jeffries can’t win the speakership either.
      Democrats plan to turn Jordan’s speakership, if he is actually elected, into a campaign issue, by highlighting his extreme positions and arguing there are no moderates in the House GOP.
      Calling Republicans the “chaos caucus”, DNC spokesperson Sarafina Chitika accused GOP members of making “a mockery of our institutions” and being “incapable of governing”.
      Former speaker Kevin McCarthy was optimistic Jordan would be elected, perhaps even on the first round of votes. He has already turned out to be part wrong.
      Remember, Jordan was a “significant player” in Trump’s efforts to overturn the election, according to the House committee that investigated the January 6 attack.
      Meanwhile, Joe Biden is heading to Israel to “consult on next steps”, the White House said, as the country prepares for an invasion of the Gaza Strip in retaliation for Hamas’s terrorist attacks less than two weeks ago. For the latest on the conflict, follow our blog.
      – Guardian staffEr, scratch that. The latest is that Jordan will try to win the speakership again tomorrow. Per House GOP whip Tom Emmer, the House will vote on the speaker tomorrow at 11am.It’s looking like the House may hold another vote this evening, after Jordan supporter Gus Bilirakis returns from a funeral.Representative Pramila Jayapal, who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, called on the “handful of Republicans who try to portray themselves as reasonable” to step up and work with Democrats.“The dynamics any Republican speaker would face is the same: a slim majority, an empowered Maga wing and a divided government. Jim Jordan did not even get as many votes as Kevin McCarthy’s lowest vote total – and that was with all bullying tactics in full force,” she wrote in a statement.“Republicans simply have not been able to govern and the stakes are high. We have just a month left until the next government funding deadline. Come to the table, work with us, and let’s get real work done.”The heads of MI5 and the FBI have issued an unprecedented joint warning that the threat of a domestic terrorist attack could rise as a result of the crisis in the Middle East.The counter-terror chiefs said Jewish communities and organisations, as well as other groups, may face a heightened danger from lone actors, Hamas militants, and Iran, a supporter of Hamas, on British or US soil.Ken McCallum, the director general of Britain’s domestic spy agency, MI5, said there was a risk that “self-initiated” individuals who may have been radicalised online might respond in “spontaneous or unpredictable ways” in the UK after the terrorist attacks on Israel and what could become a drawn-out conflict.Speaking before a public summit of intelligence chiefs in California, and seated alongside the FBI director Christopher Wray, McCallum said there was also a danger that terror groups or Iran may step up violent activity and that Jewish individuals or organisations could be targeted by neo-Nazis and Islamists.“There clearly is the possibility that profound events in the Middle East will either generate more volume of UK threat, and/or change its shape in terms of what is being targeted, in terms of how people are taking inspiration,” he said.On Monday night, a gunman shot dead two Swedish football fans in Brussels. The Belgian prosecutor’s office originally said there was no evidence the attack was related to the Israel-Gaza conflict, but on Tuesday a spokesperson said a link was being explored.France was put on its highest level of security alert on Friday after a suspected radical Islamist killed a teacher and injured three others in the north of the country.The incidents come at a time of heightened counter-terror concern, given the scale of violence unleashed by Hamas’s attack on Israel 10 days ago.Wray, the FBI director, said terrorist threats were fast-evolving in the US and that “we cannot and do not discount the possibility that Hamas or other foreign terrorist organisations could exploit the conflict to call on their supporters to conduct attacks on our own soil.”Read more:It is unclear how a Jim Jordan speakership will affect US aid to Ukraine and Israel.Far-right Republicans, including Jordan, have argued that aid to Ukraine is taking funds away from domestic security issues. In line with an “America First” principle that Donald Trump touts, the hard right has advocated for a more isolationist foreign policy.Though Democrats and many Republicans still support the idea of sending funds to Kyiv, Jordan could limit what legislation reaches the House flood and therefore impact whether future aid bills are prioritized.The White House and lawmakers are currently considering emergency national security legislation that would send aid to Ukraine as well as Israel, among other things.Jim Jordan is finding support from Republicans for another round of voting on his bid to become House speaker – but not from his allies.Florida’s Mario Diaz-Balart wants the chamber to reconvene and vote again. In the first round of voting earlier today, Diaz-Balart backed majority leader Steve Scalise for House speaker:Jim Jordan is down, but he’s not out yet, and could yet become speaker of the House. From the Guardian’s Sam Levine, Joan E Greve and Lauren Gambino, here’s a rundown of what we know about the Ohio Republican and far-right fixture:As the House gears up to vote for its new speaker, all eyes are on Jim Jordan, a founder of the hard-right Freedom caucus. But while the Ohio congressman and his allies say they will have the votes soon, Jordan also has a long history of controversial views that many of his own party members and constituents are not aligned with.Here are some of the key things to know about Jordan as a politician – and a look into how he might act in the role of speaker.Jordan was closely involved in Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the electionJordan was a “significant player” in Trump’s efforts to overturn the election, according to the House committee that investigated the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. As early as November of 2020, he was part of discussions with Trump campaign and White House officials examining whether Mike Pence could overturn the election. Immediately after the election, he met with Trump campaign and White House officials at the campaign’s headquarters to help develop a strategy of repeatedly, and falsely, saying the election was fraudulent, the New York Times reported.On 2 January 2021, Jordan led a conference call with members of Congress and the White House in which they discussed urging Trump supporters to march to the Capitol. The day before the January 6 attack, Jordan texted the then White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, to pass on advice that Pence should “call out all the electoral votes that he believes are unconstitutional as no electoral votes at all”.After the violence at the Capitol, Jordan was one of several members of Congress to whom the White House reached out to try to delay counting of electoral votes. He received five calls from Rudy Giuliani, one of Trump’s closest allies, that night, according to the January 6 committee. The two men spoke at least twice that night. Jordan later said he spoke with Trump on January 6, but could not recall how many times.While Jim Jordan may not have enough votes to become House Speaker, another round of voting is expected today.A spokesperson for Jordan confirmed to CNN’s Manu Raju that Jordan will force another round of votes.“The House needs a speaker as soon as possible. Expect another round of votes today. It’s time for Republicans to come together,” said Jordan spokesperson Russell Dye.New York representative Anthony D’Esposito, who voted against Jordan, released a statement following the first round of votes. In his statement, D’Esposito alluded to concerns that Jordan may not understand the concerns of his district.“I want a Speaker who understands Long Island’s unique needs. Restoring the SALT deduction, safeguarding 9/11 victim support funding, and investing in critical infrastructure are our priorities,” said D’Esposito, who voted for former US representative Lee Zeldin.“I look forward to discussions with candidates.”The DNC released a statement chiding Republicans for failing, once again, to elect a House Speaker.Calling Republicans the “Chaos Caucus”, DNC spokesperson Sarafina Chitika accused GOP members of making “a mockery of our institutions” and being “incapable of governing.”“Serious times demand serious leadership, not the GOP’s MAGA clown show with Trump as its ringleader,” said Chitika, in part.North Carolina representative Wiley Nickel issued a statement calling Jim Jordan a “problem starter” after Jordan failed to gain enough votes to become House speaker.Nickel, a Democrat, emphasized that Jordan remains “Donald Trump’s biggest ally in spreading false claims about the 2020 election” in a statement released shortly after the failed first vote.“I came to Congress because pro-democracy Republicans, Independents, and Democrats made their voices heard in my district,” Nickel said.“My constituents want a House Speaker who can bring Congress together, find common ground, and get things done. During his 16-year tenure in Congress, Jim Jordan has done none of that.Republicans held a floor vote to elect rightwing firebrand Jim Jordan as speaker of the House, and quickly ran into the same problem Kevin McCarthy did during his speakership election in January: the GOP is deeply divided and unable to agree on a leader. Jordan was unable to secure a majority after 20 Republicans voted for other candidates, and the Democrats offered him no support. The Ohio congressman has vowed the press on, much like McCarthy did earlier this year, but it’s unclear if Jordan has enough clout to sustain the 15 rounds of balloting it took McCarthy to secure his election as speaker. We’ll find out in the hours and days to come.Here’s what else has happened today:
      Democrats plan to turn Jordan’s speakership, if he is actually elected, into a campaign issue, by highlighting his extreme positions and arguing there are no moderates in the House GOP.
      McCarthy was optimistic Jordan would be elected, perhaps even on the first round of votes. He has already turned out to be part wrong.
      Matt Gaetz, who orchestrated McCarthy’s removal, backed Jordan for speaker.
      After announcing the final vote tally, Patrick McHenry, the acting speaker of the House, gaveled the chamber into recess.Besides GOP nominee Jim Jordan and Democratic minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, McHenry listed the others who had received votes in the inconclusive election. These were:
      Republican Majority leader Steve Scalise, who received seven votes.
      Former House speaker Kevin McCarthy, who received six votes.
      Former New York congressman Lee Zeldin, who received three votes.
      California congressman Mike Garcia, who received one vote.
      Minnesota congressman Tom Emmer, who received one vote.
      Oklahoma congressman Tom Cole, who received one vote.
      Kentucky congressman Thomas Massie, who received one vote.
      It’s a similar, perhaps worse, level of dissent to what McCarthy faced at the start of the year. In his speakership election’s first round of balloting, he received 203 votes, while Jeffries received 212 votes, and other candidates received 19 votes. More

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      The Guardian view on Biden’s urgent mission: the US pivots back to the Middle East | Editorial

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      In the wake of the carnage wrought by Hamas in southern Israel, killing at least 1,300 people; with bombs still raining upon Gaza, having killed at least 3,000; and with 199 children and adults still held hostage, the horror is increased by the prospect of this violence begetting more.The US hopes two aircraft carrier groups in the eastern Mediterranean, non-stop shuttle diplomacy by the secretary of state and a presidential visit to Israel will see off the twin spectres of even greater humanitarian disaster in Gaza and regional catastrophe drawing in Hezbollah in Lebanon and perhaps others. Officially, Joe Biden’s visit to Israel on Wednesday will demonstrate that the US stands with Israel. It may offer Benjamin Netanyahu, disgraced in the eyes of his nation, a political lifeline. But if it is a warning to Hezbollah and Iran, it is also being used to rein in Mr Netanyahu. The US reportedly agreed to the trip only after Israel agreed to move on humanitarian aid and safe areas for civilians to avoid the bombing.But the statement that the two countries will “develop a plan” for delivery is noticeably modest. Even if implemented, it might not hold. Though Israel told the US it would restore the water supply to southern Gaza on Monday, those on the ground report only tiny quantities getting through. And while aid is essential, delivering food and medicines is hard to do and of limited use while air strikes continue.More critical may be the fact that the US, with its own disasters in Afghanistan and Iraq in mind, is pressing Israel to think hard about its plan for Gaza. President Biden warned publicly on Sunday that occupying Gaza would be a mistake. At that point, a ground incursion was regarded as imminent. But his visit has pressed pause, and on Tuesday, the IDF spokesperson Richard Hecht remarked: “Everyone’s talking about the ground offensive. It might be something different.”What happens in Gaza is likely to determine what happens in the north. On Monday, Israel gave an unprecedented order for residents close to the Lebanon border to evacuate south. The area has already seen rocket and missile attacks and border skirmishes. Hezbollah and Israel have trodden carefully since the 2006 war, for which Lebanese civilians mostly paid, though the militant group has built up its fire power and tested the boundaries. But Hezbollah has indicated that it has two red lines: the forcible displacement of large numbers of Palestinians outside Gaza – though Egypt has made it clear it does not want them – and a ground invasion aiming to destroy Hamas: Israel’s stated intention. Behind Hezbollah stands Iran; its foreign minister has warned of “multiple fronts” opening against Israel if it continues to kill civilians in Gaza.Iran does not want to lose Hezbollah, its main proxy force. But nor does it want to see Hamas wiped out. If that looks likely, experts suggest that it would probably also ask Iraqi militias to deploy to Syria or Lebanon. Washington has sent clear warnings to Tehran to stay out of it, while also indicating that it is not looking for a fight. The danger is that while neither the US nor Iran want to be drawn in further, the dynamics on the ground have their own momentum.The unendurable violence witnessed this month in part has its roots in the belief of the US and other governments that the conflict at the heart of the Middle East was unsolvable but manageable, and could be sidelined. Many warned at the time that was wrong. It appears all the more impossible to manage now – and yet that is precisely why the US and others must attempt to do so. More