It took only a matter of hours for the freshest GOP nominee for U.S. Speaker of the House to withdraw his candidacy after House Republicans made quick work out of raising support to nominate him.
Rep. Tom Emmer, the House Majority Whip and current representative for the 6th District of Minnesota, just dropped out of the speaker’s race Tuesday after winning a simple majority behind closed doors.
Emmer, 62, is a longtime Congress member. After spending several years practicing law, he was first elected to his seat in the House in 2015 and is currently serving his fifth consecutive term.
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During his time in public office, Emmer has voted to give federal protections to same-sex marriage and to advance spending bills, according to The Hill.
He represents counties surrounding the city of Minneapolis, where George Floyd was murdered in 2020. Emmer stated he was encouraged to launch an investigation into Floyd’s death, but also denounced the public unrest that followed calling it “violence and turmoil carried out under the pretext of protest.”
Jacquie and I extend our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of George Floyd. His life was inexcusably cut short, and those responsible must be held accountable. I was encouraged by the swift steps taken by the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to initiate an investigation into Mr. Floyd’s death. All Minnesotans deserve a full investigation of this terrible act.
Unfortunately, this tragedy has also spurned further violence and turmoil, carried out under the pretext of protest. These acts do not honor Mr. Floyd’s memory. Already struggling to stay afloat during this time of crisis, Minnesotans must now grapple with needless destruction of their communities.
As we have learned more information about this week’s historically tragic events, I have become deeply disappointed by the abdication of leadership at the state and local levels. The rule of law must be restored for the safety of first responders, families throughout these communities, and all Minnesotans
Emmer has worked in the past to advocate for the interests of the East African communities in his district. In 2017, he and former presidential candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar urged the Trump administration to reconsider a $17.3 billion spending cut to the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) when the Horn of Africa was on the verge of experiencing a disastrous famine and drought. Minnesota is home to one of the largest populations of Somali Americans in the United States. With that humanitarian threat looming, both congressional members worked to reverse the funding cut, noting the impact it would have on millions in the East African region.
So, who’s up to bat now to become the next U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives? Kevin McCarthy is ousted. Steve Scalise and Emmer both withdrew. And Jim Jordan is out (although he might never have had a chance). It’s back to the drawing board once again.
Presently, a political tug-of-war of sorts has been playing out between Republican conservatives and moderates over which representative could be their next speaker in a chamber in which they hold a slim majority. Hardliners aren’t fond of selecting someone who voted for the budget deal McCarthy made with Biden, Emmer included. Their agenda was to slash the budgets of several federal programs, and they aren’t budging on that end. They also wouldn’t mind putting a Donald Trump devotee in the seat.
House Republicans all together abandoned House Judiciary Chairman and known conservative firebrand Jordan as their potential nominee after he failed to secure their support in a third ballot attempt on Friday. Emmer sent a letter to House GOP members on Saturday announcing his interest in the nomination, and after a vote on Tuesday, Republicans elected Emmer as their nominee.
While Emmer was able to nab that simple majority on Tuesday, 26 Republicans said they would not vote for Emmer on the House floor, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Trump also protested the choice on his social platform, Truth Social, writing that Emmer “never respected the Power of a Trump Endorsement, or the breadth and scope of MAGA-MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
So where does that leave us? Well, on the brink of a government shutdown and in a political purgatory that won’t let up as major global conflicts — such as the one in the Middle East between Israel and Palestine — await U.S. response.
