A quick break from the celebration over a most successful Democratic debate to give an update on another thing giving Democrats much pleasure; the ongoing clusterfuck in the House GOP caucus and their ongoing series Who's the Speaker? And while Paul Ryan continues his "I really, really don't want to do this" act, all sorts of wannabe Speakers are coming out of the woods to put forth their credentials. You want to know how bad it's getting? Try this one on for size:
If Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan doesn’t run for Speaker of the House, Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke is in.
Zinke was touring eastern Montana Tuesday, with bus stops in Glasgow, Wolf Point, Culbertson, Bainville and Sidney. In an email, Zinke press secretary Heather Swift said his schedule was packed but confirmed his interest in the speaker’s gavel.
Now, you may find yourself asking yourself one question. Who the fuck is Ryan Zinke? Well, as
Steve Benen points out, there's a reason for that:
This, of course, led many of us to ask an important question: who in the world is Ryan Zinke? It turn out, the far-right freshman was just elected to Congress for the first time last year. If a member tried to become Speaker after nine years, he or she would be seen as inexperienced, but Zinke says he’s ready for the big promotion after just nine months.
Indeed. If the House is like a high school (and believe me, sometimes it barely seems on the emotional level of a nursery school), this would be like some pipsqueak freshman walking onto the football field and declaring, "I'm the starting quarterback!"
Yet Zinke seems serious about this, even boasting that his phone has been ringing "off the hook" with support for a run. And really, why wouldn't he? Is he any more absurd than any of the other wannabes taking a look at the race? As Tiger Beat on the Potomac puts it, no one has majority support in this crew:
The half-dozen or so Republicans seriously looking at running believe they can unite the warring GOP Conference. But most or all of them would face a serious challenge wooing the several dozen hard-line conservatives who don’t have the numbers to get one of their own in the No. 1 spot but have demonstrated that, if they stick together, they can veto other candidates.
Other than Ryan, none of the speaker possibilities, at least right now, appears to have the kind of support across the conference it would take to win 218 votes on the House floor.
With the Tortilla Coast Gang in full cray-cray mode, of course not. And really, with this current crop of contenders, are you surprised?
There’s no love lost between conservatives and some of the current or would-be candidates: Reps. Jason Chaffetz of Utah and Bill Flores and Pete Sessions of Texas. Others considering a bid are Reps. Mike McCaul, Mike Conaway and Mac Thornberry — also from Texas — as well as Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Mike Pompeo of Kansas (after publication, a spokesman for Thornberry said he wasn't running for speaker).
Just for comparison, Kevin McCarthy was considered out of his depth as a Speaker because of lack of experience, having been in the House less than a decade. Several of those wannabes (Chaffetz, Flores, Pompeo, etc.) have even
less experience than McCarthy.
And if Ryan continues to say no (and really, I don't blame him), it's likely only going get worse. As Benen puts it:
If/when Paul Ryan definitely rules out a bid, the party may very well end up with 20 or more contenders – not one of whom would be seen as the obvious favorite.
And you thought the GOP WH clown car has TARDIS level room.
So go for it, Rep. Zinke! What's one more clown in the circus?