Verdict with Ted Cruz - Wild & Woolly Speaker Drama

00:00:00.000 This is an iHeart Podcast.

00:00:02.560 Guaranteed human.

00:00:04.960 Welcome. It is Verdict with Senator Ted Cruz.

00:00:07.480 Ben Ferguson with you.

00:00:08.660 Senator, what a way to go back to Washington

00:00:11.360 to bring people up to date on what's happened.

00:00:14.300 20 House Republicans have voted for someone

00:00:17.480 other than Kevin McCarthy.

00:00:19.300 There were multiple votes that were held.

00:00:21.680 They've decided to basically end it until noon on Wednesday.

00:00:27.460 Some people said, well, that's just because

00:00:29.000 there's a lot of family members in town.

00:00:30.700 I think the world was spinning for Kevin McCarthy.

00:00:33.540 You're there in Washington.

00:00:35.720 I think everybody in politics is surprised

00:00:38.360 by how this played out so far.

00:00:40.980 Well, it's a big deal what's happening.

00:00:43.220 It's the first time in 100 years

00:00:45.200 that the House Speaker vote went to multiple ballots.

00:00:49.000 And right now the House is in recess

00:00:52.440 until noon on Wednesday.

00:00:54.500 And noon on Wednesday, we'll find out what happens next.

00:00:57.540 There were three rounds of balloting.

00:01:00.680 And on each of the three, nobody had the 218 votes needed

00:01:06.280 to win the speakership.

00:01:09.100 And so this battle, this battle is waging.

00:01:12.620 You and I are recording this on Tuesday evening

00:01:16.960 after the House is adjourned,

00:01:18.420 but before they've gathered in the morning.

00:01:19.940 I am confident there are multiple furious conversations

00:01:24.160 ongoing right now all across Washington.

00:01:27.600 Conversations between Kevin McCarthy and his allies.

00:01:30.980 Conversations between the rebels who are opposing McCarthy.

00:01:35.660 And there likely are negotiations going on right now.

00:01:40.300 But we won't know at least until tomorrow what happens.

00:01:46.520 And it's not going to be dull.

00:01:51.400 Yeah, it's not going to be dull.

00:01:53.000 Let's talk about the history of this.

00:01:55.200 There are people, and this is even on the Democrat side,

00:01:57.920 that say, hey, we don't like this type of precedent

00:02:01.040 because then what you could end up happening in the future

00:02:03.960 is when you have tight elections,

00:02:05.420 like we just had in November,

00:02:07.620 if certain people in either side of the aisle

00:02:11.320 refuse to kind of, you know, coalesce behind their team,

00:02:16.520 then you could always be holding good people hostage.

00:02:20.400 That's how this has kind of played out on TV.

00:02:22.960 There have been others have said,

00:02:24.180 this has just become too personal

00:02:26.060 with three or four, five different members of Congress

00:02:28.580 and Kevin McCarthy,

00:02:29.400 where it really isn't about the country.

00:02:32.040 It's more of a personal issue.

00:02:33.800 I think this is a very unique moment

00:02:37.660 where you see 20 people say,

00:02:39.460 all right, maybe we go with a Jim Jordan.

00:02:41.000 We've heard people talk about Steve Scalise.

00:02:43.260 Does that really change anything?

00:02:45.340 And if you're a member of Congress right now,

00:02:47.000 especially a new member of Congress,

00:02:48.860 how confused are you by all of this on your first day?

00:02:53.340 Well, let me say several things.

00:02:55.080 First of all, I'm staying out of the Speaker fight in the House.

00:02:58.980 I've got plenty of fights over on the other side

00:03:01.500 of the Capitol in the Senate.

00:03:02.560 We are in the middle of big, big battles in the Senate.

00:03:05.600 And so I am watching with considerable interest,

00:03:09.700 but not engaging in the middle of their leadership fight.

00:03:14.860 That being said, I'll make several observations.

00:03:17.560 Number one, a big part of the reason this is playing out

00:03:21.560 is because the election was disappointing.

00:03:25.220 The election, we did a lot less,

00:03:28.220 Republicans did a lot less in the election

00:03:30.140 than we should have.

00:03:30.960 We should have a majority in the Senate.

00:03:33.700 We should have a big majority in the House.

00:03:36.940 If we'd come out of the election

00:03:39.280 and it was a 30-35 vote Republican majority in the House,

00:03:43.480 I doubt this fight would be playing out.

00:03:46.460 At that level, I think Kevin McCarthy

00:03:49.180 would have had pretty easily the votes

00:03:51.220 to be elected Speaker.

00:03:52.500 And if you win a big victory,

00:03:55.220 that is typically the result.

00:03:58.760 What is driving this is it was instead

00:04:01.440 a very frustrating election

00:04:03.260 where we didn't win a majority in the Senate.

00:04:05.960 In fact, we lost a seat in the Senate,

00:04:07.520 which is beyond infuriating.

00:04:09.220 And in the House, the Republicans have a majority,

00:04:13.720 so that's good.

00:04:15.040 But it's the narrowest majority imaginable.

00:04:17.880 It is a four-vote majority.

00:04:19.620 Now, I'll say for any Speaker,

00:04:22.720 being Speaker of a House with a four-vote majority

00:04:25.620 is an absolute mess.

00:04:27.240 Because you're right.

00:04:28.080 When you have a tiny majority,

00:04:30.200 all sorts of groups of members

00:04:32.520 are incentivized to hold out for what they want.

00:04:35.120 And that's true from conservatives,

00:04:37.360 from moderates, from liberals across the spectrum.

00:04:40.260 I think it's also more true on the Republican side.

00:04:43.600 On the Democrat side,

00:04:44.680 Nancy Pelosi had a very small majority.

00:04:47.400 But the Democrats are command and control.

00:04:49.720 The Democrats are authoritarian.

00:04:51.300 The Democrats follow orders.

00:04:53.840 It's a strength of theirs,

00:04:54.900 and it's a weakness of theirs.

00:04:56.060 On the Republican side,

00:04:59.160 a strength and weakness we have as Republicans

00:05:01.700 is we're a bunch of individualists.

00:05:04.220 We're all over the map.

00:05:05.100 That's true in the Senate,

00:05:06.080 and it's true in the House.

00:05:07.420 And so what's playing out here

00:05:10.400 in significant part is playing out

00:05:12.100 because the majority is so narrow.

00:05:15.480 And what it led to,

00:05:16.700 look, you and I, Ben,

00:05:17.680 have talked on this podcast

00:05:19.400 about the leadership battles in the Senate.

00:05:22.920 And I led the fight

00:05:25.520 in the leadership battles of the Senate

00:05:27.720 to reevaluate what our leadership was doing.

00:05:31.100 And in particular,

00:05:31.740 I was the one that made the motion

00:05:33.340 to delay leadership elections

00:05:35.020 until after the Georgia runoff,

00:05:38.420 to delay them and to have a real debate

00:05:40.460 about how Republicans should lead.

00:05:44.220 And I ended up getting 11 votes

00:05:47.000 that, well, getting 16 votes

00:05:52.060 in favor of delaying the election.

00:05:54.520 And then ultimately,

00:05:56.080 there were 11 votes cast

00:05:58.160 either against Mitch McConnell

00:06:00.120 or one senator

00:06:01.540 who we don't know who voted president.

00:06:03.660 That was a big deal.

00:06:04.940 We needed 25

00:06:05.920 to have delayed the elections.

00:06:09.200 We got within nine

00:06:10.960 of that happening.

00:06:12.620 That's the first leadership battle

00:06:14.120 in the Senate we've had

00:06:15.240 in the decade I've served in the Senate.

00:06:18.580 Every other time,

00:06:19.360 Mitch McConnell's been elected

00:06:20.440 by acclamation.

00:06:21.700 The same forces

00:06:23.100 that drove that leadership battle

00:06:25.000 in the Senate

00:06:25.520 are driving the leadership battle

00:06:27.980 in the House.

00:06:28.760 But why is the result

00:06:30.860 playing out differently?

00:06:32.160 And there's a very important

00:06:33.860 structural difference

00:06:35.000 between the Senate and the House,

00:06:36.400 which is why you're getting

00:06:38.080 a lot more drama

00:06:38.920 on the House side.

00:06:39.680 In the Senate,

00:06:42.020 the Senate Republican leader

00:06:44.300 is elected

00:06:45.040 only by Republicans.

00:06:47.340 In other words,

00:06:47.900 it was the vote

00:06:48.660 of what was then 50 of us.

00:06:52.200 And so Mitch,

00:06:53.680 to remain Senate Republican leader,

00:06:55.560 had to win 26 of those 50.

00:06:57.980 He had those votes

00:06:59.380 pretty solidly

00:07:00.400 in his pocket.

00:07:02.040 In the House,

00:07:04.880 last month,

00:07:06.540 the House Republicans

00:07:07.380 got together

00:07:08.160 and Kevin McCarthy

00:07:09.080 won a sizable majority

00:07:10.780 of House Republicans.

00:07:12.660 But the way the House

00:07:14.380 operates is different

00:07:15.540 because the very first thing

00:07:17.300 after the new members

00:07:18.160 are sworn in

00:07:18.780 that happens in the House

00:07:19.840 is you have

00:07:21.280 what we're seeing right now,

00:07:22.500 a vote on the floor

00:07:23.640 of the House

00:07:24.300 to elect the Speaker.

00:07:26.100 And it's not just

00:07:27.020 a vote of Republicans.

00:07:28.040 If this was a vote

00:07:28.700 of only Republicans,

00:07:30.260 Kevin McCarthy

00:07:30.880 would have won handily

00:07:31.820 like he did last month.

00:07:34.420 This is a vote

00:07:35.220 of every House member.

00:07:37.920 And to be Speaker,

00:07:39.800 you need a majority

00:07:40.660 of the members

00:07:41.640 who are present and voting.

00:07:42.940 So there are 435 members

00:07:45.680 of the House.

00:07:46.400 One member,

00:07:47.460 a Democratic member,

00:07:48.420 passed away.

00:07:49.100 So there are only 434 members

00:07:50.840 right now.

00:07:52.460 That means you need 218.

00:07:55.840 What happened

00:07:56.880 on the first ballot,

00:07:59.360 Andy Biggs

00:08:00.100 from Arizona

00:08:00.860 who's a conservative,

00:08:02.280 who's a good friend of mine,

00:08:04.000 Andy ran against

00:08:05.440 Kevin McCarthy.

00:08:07.540 And it ended up

00:08:08.680 that there were 19 votes

00:08:10.660 cast against Kevin McCarthy.

00:08:12.420 Mind you,

00:08:14.220 5 was sufficient.

00:08:15.700 He could only lose 4.

00:08:18.680 Well,

00:08:19.600 the second ballot,

00:08:22.660 instead of Andy Biggs

00:08:23.920 being the lead opposition player,

00:08:26.960 it was Jim Jordan.

00:08:28.960 And this time,

00:08:29.740 there were 19 votes

00:08:31.220 for Jim Jordan.

00:08:33.180 Now,

00:08:33.420 there is

00:08:33.920 some irony in this

00:08:36.760 in that Jim Jordan

00:08:37.820 is at least at present

00:08:40.060 vocally supporting

00:08:41.160 Kevin McCarthy

00:08:41.840 to be Speaker.

00:08:42.960 Yeah,

00:08:43.200 he actually told one member

00:08:44.840 that voted for him,

00:08:45.720 like,

00:08:45.900 I don't want this job.

00:08:47.020 And they said,

00:08:47.540 tough luck.

00:08:48.680 Basically,

00:08:49.080 we're going to nominate you

00:08:50.300 and vote for you anyway.

00:08:51.940 Well,

00:08:52.180 and it's even more than that.

00:08:53.360 Jim Jordan

00:08:53.880 on the second ballot

00:08:54.860 had literally stood up

00:08:56.320 and nominated

00:08:57.800 Kevin McCarthy.

00:08:58.820 So he was nominating

00:09:00.220 Kevin McCarthy.

00:09:02.300 And in turn,

00:09:03.820 Matt Gaetz got up

00:09:04.780 and nominated

00:09:05.280 Jim Jordan

00:09:05.940 and 19 Republicans

00:09:07.640 voted for Jim Jordan.

00:09:09.720 Then the third ballot,

00:09:12.320 Chip Roy

00:09:12.760 nominated Jim Jordan.

00:09:15.100 Chip Roy

00:09:15.700 is my former

00:09:16.380 chief of staff.

00:09:17.520 He's a strong conservative.

00:09:18.720 He's a very dear friend.

00:09:19.800 And Chip Roy

00:09:21.240 gave a passion speech

00:09:22.640 for Jim Jordan.

00:09:25.160 And what happened next

00:09:26.500 was significant.

00:09:27.540 Look,

00:09:28.200 in these battles,

00:09:29.480 momentum matters.

00:09:31.440 And so everyone

00:09:32.340 is watching,

00:09:33.500 okay,

00:09:33.860 are the vote totals

00:09:34.700 going up

00:09:35.280 or going down?

00:09:38.500 And on the third ballot,

00:09:41.840 McCarthy's numbers

00:09:42.680 went down.

00:09:43.380 And in particular,

00:09:44.280 Jim Jordan,

00:09:44.880 instead of getting 19,

00:09:46.220 which is what he got

00:09:46.820 on the second ballot,

00:09:48.760 Jordan got 20.

00:09:49.800 And the vote

00:09:51.560 that flipped

00:09:52.240 was Byron Donalds,

00:09:55.540 who is a second term

00:09:57.980 House member

00:09:59.620 from Florida.

00:10:00.480 He's African American.

00:10:01.760 He's a good,

00:10:03.580 principled,

00:10:04.480 very well-liked member.

00:10:08.020 There were gasps

00:10:09.380 on the floor

00:10:09.960 of the House

00:10:10.600 when

00:10:12.740 Byron shifted

00:10:15.860 his vote.

00:10:16.380 That dynamic,

00:10:18.760 I think,

00:10:20.920 played a real part

00:10:21.980 in the decision

00:10:22.700 to say,

00:10:23.140 okay,

00:10:23.640 let's suspend

00:10:24.820 everything till noon

00:10:25.700 tomorrow.

00:10:27.400 Canadian women

00:10:28.200 are looking for more.

00:10:29.500 More out of themselves,

00:10:30.600 their businesses,

00:10:31.540 their elected leaders,

00:10:32.480 and the world around them.

00:10:33.700 And that's why

00:10:34.160 we're thrilled to introduce

00:10:35.320 The Honest Talk Podcast.

00:10:37.360 I'm Jennifer Stewart.

00:10:38.620 And I'm Catherine Clark.

00:10:39.840 And in this podcast,

00:10:41.000 we interview Canada's

00:10:41.960 most inspiring women,

00:10:43.460 entrepreneurs,

00:10:44.300 artists,

00:10:44.960 athletes,

00:10:45.580 politicians,

00:10:46.220 and newsmakers,

00:10:47.140 all at different stages

00:10:48.200 of their journey.

00:10:49.280 So if you're looking

00:10:50.360 to connect,

00:10:51.160 then we hope

00:10:51.580 you'll join us.

00:10:52.580 Listen to The Honest Talk

00:10:53.440 Podcast on iHeartRadio

00:10:54.960 or wherever you listen

00:10:55.920 to your podcasts.

00:10:56.640 When you look

00:11:00.060 at that suspension

00:11:00.980 and before we actually,

00:11:02.360 before I even ask you that,

00:11:03.220 I want to go back

00:11:03.940 to Chip Roy

00:11:05.280 and what he said

00:11:06.180 was something

00:11:07.240 that I think

00:11:07.780 was very interesting

00:11:08.500 because I was watching

00:11:09.520 this on all the channels

00:11:10.600 when it was happening

00:11:11.600 and even CNN said,

00:11:14.620 okay,

00:11:15.660 Chip has a point

00:11:16.860 he's making here.

00:11:18.000 He wasn't opposing

00:11:19.640 Kevin McCarthy

00:11:20.980 as much as he was advocating

00:11:23.560 for actually debating

00:11:26.120 amendments

00:11:26.680 and having transparency

00:11:28.200 in government

00:11:29.100 from the floor

00:11:30.380 of the House

00:11:31.120 and even the panel said

00:11:33.120 there's a lot of Americans

00:11:34.460 that are going to watch

00:11:35.200 Chip Roy,

00:11:35.740 maybe for the first time ever,

00:11:37.380 that are going to look

00:11:38.040 at this and say,

00:11:38.980 you know what?

00:11:39.840 What he's saying right now

00:11:41.160 actually makes

00:11:41.820 some pretty good sense.

00:11:44.100 Just take a listen

00:11:45.060 if you missed this,

00:11:46.120 America,

00:11:46.620 this is what he had to say

00:11:47.800 from the floor

00:11:48.300 of the House.

00:11:50.280 So this is what

00:11:51.220 the chamber looks like

00:11:52.100 when we're actually debating

00:11:53.000 and the bodies

00:11:53.580 are in the chairs.

00:11:56.120 How many times

00:11:57.320 have we been down here

00:11:58.080 giving speeches

00:11:58.740 and there's not a soul

00:11:59.600 in the chamber?

00:12:01.200 Yet this is what it takes

00:12:02.500 to get 435 people

00:12:05.580 in the chamber

00:12:06.120 and have an actual debate.

00:12:09.120 The American people

00:12:10.380 are watching

00:12:11.380 and that's a good thing.

00:12:14.140 What we're doing

00:12:15.200 is exercising our rights

00:12:17.320 to vote

00:12:18.280 and have a debate

00:12:19.440 and have a discussion

00:12:20.820 about the future

00:12:22.700 of this country

00:12:23.380 through the decision

00:12:24.680 of choosing a speaker.

00:12:26.980 This is not personal.

00:12:28.720 It's not.

00:12:30.180 This is about

00:12:30.940 the future of the country.

00:12:33.120 This is about

00:12:33.780 the direction of the country.

00:12:34.840 American people

00:12:35.420 who are looking at this body

00:12:36.480 and wondering why

00:12:37.320 we can pass

00:12:37.920 1.7 trillion dollar bills

00:12:39.660 that are unpaid for.

00:12:41.620 They can just slide in

00:12:43.220 45 billion dollars

00:12:44.860 for Ukraine

00:12:45.760 but not pay for it.

00:12:47.040 40 billion dollars

00:12:47.900 for emergency spending

00:12:48.780 and not pay for it.

00:12:49.620 10% increase

00:12:50.440 in defense spending.

00:12:51.280 6% increase

00:12:52.080 in non-defense spending

00:12:53.620 and not pay for it.

00:12:55.640 And not do a thing

00:12:56.420 except put language

00:12:57.200 in a bill

00:12:57.740 that prohibits

00:12:59.500 our ability

00:13:00.020 to use the money

00:13:00.820 to secure the border.

00:13:03.680 That bill gets

00:13:04.920 rammed through

00:13:05.840 and we know exactly

00:13:07.880 how it gets rammed through.

00:13:09.920 Because the defense world

00:13:12.100 and the non-defense world

00:13:14.940 come together

00:13:16.180 and say

00:13:16.760 you know what?

00:13:17.800 We're going to cut a deal

00:13:18.940 and we'll all go to the mics

00:13:20.500 and we'll all go to give speeches

00:13:21.560 and the American people 0.99

00:13:22.980 are the big losers. 0.99

00:13:24.720 That's what happens. 0.99

00:13:26.240 We know that's what happens.

00:13:28.600 The rules committee

00:13:29.720 sits up there

00:13:30.540 and passes a bill

00:13:31.480 sends it to the floor

00:13:33.000 and we have no debate

00:13:34.400 on the floor of this body.

00:13:36.320 We haven't been able

00:13:37.220 to offer an amendment

00:13:37.820 on the floor of this body

00:13:38.740 since May of 2016.

00:13:41.340 The former leader

00:13:42.020 and I have discussed

00:13:42.720 this right here.

00:13:44.680 That's true.

00:13:45.380 But the fact is

00:13:47.400 this place has to change.

00:13:50.400 It has to change.

00:13:52.960 And the change comes

00:13:54.240 by either adopting

00:13:55.480 rules and procedures

00:13:56.400 that will make us

00:13:57.380 actually do our job

00:13:58.680 or it comes

00:13:59.840 from leadership.

00:14:02.340 And people ask me

00:14:03.100 what do you want?

00:14:04.520 I want the tools

00:14:05.660 or I want the leadership

00:14:06.880 to stop the swamp

00:14:08.900 from running over

00:14:09.920 the average American

00:14:11.020 every single day.

00:14:12.200 I mean Senator

00:14:14.940 when you hear that

00:14:15.860 as he said

00:14:16.420 this is not about

00:14:17.580 the speaker

00:14:18.560 as in the person's name

00:14:19.760 this is about

00:14:20.300 rules and procedure.

00:14:22.000 I understand now

00:14:22.720 why Chip was your

00:14:23.640 chief of staff

00:14:24.340 and why you like him

00:14:25.160 so much

00:14:25.680 because for many Americans

00:14:27.380 whether you are

00:14:28.240 Republican or Democrat

00:14:29.280 you hear what he just said

00:14:31.140 and it makes a lot of sense.

00:14:33.940 Yeah look

00:14:34.380 Chip is very smart

00:14:36.040 he's very principled

00:14:37.260 as you noted

00:14:37.880 when I was newly elected

00:14:39.120 he was my very first

00:14:40.280 chief of staff

00:14:40.940 so I have been

00:14:41.660 in a lot of foxholes

00:14:42.980 side by side

00:14:43.860 with Chip

00:14:44.320 and he is absolutely right

00:14:48.340 that having this debate

00:14:50.020 about what Republicans

00:14:53.120 will stand for

00:14:54.540 is important

00:14:55.420 irrespective of a speaker election

00:14:57.060 it's important to say

00:14:59.100 how are we going to operate

00:15:01.200 and lead

00:15:01.980 because I believe

00:15:02.860 one of the reasons

00:15:03.680 we didn't have

00:15:04.400 the kind of election

00:15:05.200 that you and I

00:15:06.300 wanted us to have

00:15:07.220 in November

00:15:07.760 is that Republican leadership

00:15:09.640 was not leading

00:15:11.920 boldly

00:15:12.800 and drawing

00:15:13.320 a clear contrast

00:15:14.160 and I've focused

00:15:16.360 my time and attention

00:15:17.340 on the Senate

00:15:18.180 that's obviously

00:15:18.820 the body in which I serve

00:15:20.120 and on trying

00:15:21.260 to press

00:15:21.920 Mitch McConnell

00:15:23.060 to stand up

00:15:25.500 and be willing

00:15:26.020 to fight

00:15:26.460 I think Chip

00:15:27.060 is exactly right

00:15:27.960 that this omnibus

00:15:29.000 was an absolute

00:15:31.000 monstrosity

00:15:32.140 it was a disgraceful bill

00:15:33.780 now

00:15:34.940 here's one of the weird

00:15:36.560 dynamics

00:15:37.240 Mitch McConnell

00:15:39.120 was urging Republicans

00:15:40.340 to support the

00:15:41.180 1.7 trillion dollar

00:15:42.420 omnibus

00:15:42.960 because he said

00:15:44.400 it would help

00:15:45.020 Kevin McCarthy

00:15:45.880 Kevin McCarthy

00:15:47.820 was publicly

00:15:48.820 urging Republicans

00:15:50.660 in the Senate

00:15:51.120 to vote against

00:15:51.800 the omnibus

00:15:52.420 he said

00:15:52.720 it will hurt

00:15:53.400 me

00:15:54.220 hurt Kevin McCarthy

00:15:55.240 that dynamic

00:15:58.420 playing out

00:15:59.380 is

00:15:59.980 ongoing

00:16:03.540 and

00:16:03.920 you know

00:16:05.400 Chip's point

00:16:06.120 about we're actually

00:16:06.840 sitting in the chamber

00:16:07.920 talking to each other

00:16:09.220 that happens so rarely

00:16:10.880 in either house

00:16:12.000 that

00:16:13.320 having a debate

00:16:14.960 about okay

00:16:15.660 we shouldn't fight

00:16:18.180 on

00:16:18.580 everything

00:16:19.620 always

00:16:20.220 that doesn't make

00:16:20.940 any sense

00:16:21.460 but we should

00:16:22.240 have a strategy

00:16:23.220 to pick

00:16:23.820 issues that matter

00:16:25.260 and stand

00:16:26.900 and fight for them

00:16:27.760 and deliver

00:16:28.280 for the American people

00:16:29.400 now

00:16:29.740 Chip has been

00:16:33.240 leading the insurgents

00:16:34.660 in the house

00:16:35.200 and the main thing

00:16:36.300 he has been pressing

00:16:37.100 for is something

00:16:37.880 that is called

00:16:38.480 the motion to vacate

00:16:40.240 which it used to be

00:16:41.860 that any individual

00:16:43.180 member

00:16:43.900 could stand up

00:16:45.580 in the house

00:16:46.080 and file a motion

00:16:47.020 to vacate the chair

00:16:48.000 and you could force

00:16:49.020 another vote

00:16:49.700 like the vote

00:16:50.240 we're having right now

00:16:51.440 you could force

00:16:52.740 at any time

00:16:53.380 that meant

00:16:54.820 that the given speaker

00:16:55.860 at any given point

00:16:56.920 had to be able

00:16:57.540 to hold 218 votes

00:16:59.140 that makes

00:17:01.440 the job

00:17:02.160 of speaker

00:17:02.700 significantly

00:17:03.300 more perilous

00:17:04.260 it is the tool

00:17:06.520 that was used

00:17:07.520 to topple

00:17:08.260 John Boehner

00:17:09.020 who I think

00:17:09.560 was truly

00:17:10.000 an abysmal speaker

00:17:11.140 Nancy Pelosi

00:17:13.640 changed those rules

00:17:14.780 and she changed 0.98

00:17:15.520 those rules

00:17:16.260 to prevent

00:17:17.820 an individual member

00:17:18.840 from filing

00:17:19.400 a motion

00:17:19.780 to vacate

00:17:20.340 why?

00:17:20.760 because she didn't

00:17:21.140 want to get toppled

00:17:21.840 she didn't want 1.00

00:17:23.420 any rebels

00:17:25.040 to be empowered

00:17:25.880 and so

00:17:26.420 what those

00:17:28.700 who are opposing

00:17:29.400 McCarthy

00:17:29.840 are pressing for

00:17:30.660 is a procedural

00:17:31.460 step

00:17:32.040 that an individual

00:17:33.740 house member

00:17:34.400 can file a motion

00:17:35.320 to vacate

00:17:35.920 why are they

00:17:36.560 pressing for it?

00:17:37.260 well the argument

00:17:37.720 they give

00:17:38.280 is that it then

00:17:40.340 gives a check

00:17:41.160 on leadership

00:17:42.060 McCarthy

00:17:43.580 at least so far

00:17:44.680 has been unwilling

00:17:46.640 to agree to that

00:17:47.680 he's publicly

00:17:48.540 agreed

00:17:49.080 to allowing

00:17:51.660 a motion

00:17:52.240 to vacate

00:17:52.980 that five members

00:17:54.160 support

00:17:54.620 but not

00:17:55.080 that an individual

00:17:55.680 member

00:17:56.000 support

00:17:56.440 right now

00:17:57.800 I think

00:18:00.540 there are

00:18:00.980 a number

00:18:01.500 of things

00:18:02.160 that are going

00:18:02.680 on

00:18:03.040 number one

00:18:04.640 it is entirely

00:18:05.300 possible

00:18:05.800 and I will say

00:18:06.320 I have zero

00:18:07.100 inside knowledge

00:18:07.900 on this piece

00:18:08.540 but it's entirely

00:18:09.220 possible

00:18:09.740 that McCarthy's 0.82

00:18:10.880 team

00:18:11.240 is negotiating

00:18:13.200 with the ringleaders

00:18:14.140 of the opposition

00:18:14.840 and perhaps

00:18:16.080 they make

00:18:16.820 concessions

00:18:17.500 on the procedural

00:18:18.200 grounds

00:18:19.000 sufficient

00:18:20.020 to get their

00:18:20.680 support

00:18:21.080 that's one

00:18:21.740 outcome

00:18:22.240 we could see

00:18:24.160 at noon

00:18:25.380 on Wednesday

00:18:25.900 another

00:18:29.040 outcome

00:18:29.740 is you

00:18:31.640 could see

00:18:32.580 growing support

00:18:34.940 behind Jim

00:18:35.560 Jordan

00:18:35.900 I don't know

00:18:38.500 if that will

00:18:38.960 happen or not

00:18:39.680 as I said

00:18:41.080 Byron Donald's

00:18:42.060 vote was

00:18:42.640 significant

00:18:43.220 a third

00:18:43.840 outcome

00:18:44.360 is you could

00:18:46.420 see a potential

00:18:47.160 third candidate

00:18:48.000 you could see

00:18:49.640 someone else

00:18:50.280 Steve Scalise

00:18:51.040 who's the

00:18:51.440 number two

00:18:52.040 behind Kevin

00:18:52.760 McCarthy

00:18:53.200 has been

00:18:54.160 discussed as

00:18:54.800 that

00:18:54.960 now Steve

00:18:55.740 nominated

00:18:56.800 Kevin McCarthy

00:18:57.520 Steve is

00:18:58.180 publicly and

00:18:58.860 vocally

00:18:59.180 supporting

00:18:59.700 McCarthy

00:19:00.180 but in

00:19:01.840 chaos

00:19:02.340 all sorts

00:19:03.200 of strange

00:19:03.660 things happen

00:19:04.380 a fourth

00:19:05.620 outcome

00:19:06.040 that would

00:19:06.380 be a

00:19:06.700 terrible

00:19:07.120 outcome

00:19:07.660 is it

00:19:09.060 is possible

00:19:09.780 some of

00:19:10.220 the more

00:19:10.520 moderate

00:19:10.960 or liberal

00:19:11.760 Republicans

00:19:12.400 could team

00:19:12.960 up with

00:19:13.280 Democrats

00:19:13.680 and we

00:19:15.540 could end

00:19:15.960 up with a

00:19:16.440 speaker

00:19:16.740 that's a

00:19:17.120 true train

00:19:17.620 wreck

00:19:17.880 that that

00:19:19.000 is either

00:19:19.480 an extremely

00:19:20.500 liberal

00:19:20.980 Republican

00:19:21.520 or God

00:19:22.280 forbid a

00:19:22.820 Democrat

00:19:23.160 now I

00:19:23.500 think the

00:19:24.180 chances of

00:19:24.740 a Democrat

00:19:25.200 speaker coming

00:19:25.880 out of this

00:19:26.360 chaos are 1.00

00:19:27.140 very very

00:19:28.340 low I

00:19:28.760 don't know

00:19:28.960 that there's

00:19:29.320 zero but

00:19:29.900 they're very

00:19:30.600 very low

00:19:31.260 but a

00:19:34.080 disastrously

00:19:35.200 left-wing

00:19:35.860 Republican

00:19:36.400 speaker is a

00:19:37.440 possibility I

00:19:38.320 don't think

00:19:39.020 that will

00:19:39.420 happen

00:19:39.800 but in

00:19:43.980 a world

00:19:44.560 of chaos

00:19:45.200 all sorts

00:19:46.080 of things

00:19:46.460 can happen

00:19:46.960 and so

00:19:47.340 those

00:19:47.920 negotiations

00:19:48.860 I think

00:19:51.480 are happening

00:19:51.940 all across

00:19:52.720 D.C.

00:19:54.860 right now

00:19:55.440 I think

00:19:56.000 we'll end

00:19:56.420 up with a

00:19:56.900 resolution

00:19:57.380 and we'll

00:19:57.760 end up

00:19:58.080 with a

00:19:58.380 resolution

00:19:58.940 that will

00:20:00.940 either be

00:20:01.840 a negotiated

00:20:02.800 solution

00:20:03.420 or a

00:20:06.160 consensus

00:20:06.940 candidate

00:20:07.440 somehow emerges

00:20:08.300 at this point

00:20:08.960 I have no

00:20:09.480 idea

00:20:09.760 all right

00:20:10.640 let me ask

00:20:11.220 you this

00:20:11.600 before we

00:20:12.460 wrap this

00:20:13.040 up because

00:20:13.540 obviously

00:20:14.000 there's a

00:20:14.380 lot that

00:20:14.780 we don't

00:20:15.460 know

00:20:15.820 but there

00:20:16.640 is the

00:20:17.240 optics of

00:20:18.020 this the

00:20:18.560 media is

00:20:19.280 playing this

00:20:19.920 senator the

00:20:20.780 headlines are

00:20:21.480 everywhere right

00:20:22.360 now you can

00:20:22.900 see it all

00:20:23.600 over the

00:20:24.000 country the

00:20:25.240 establishment

00:20:25.720 media is

00:20:26.140 saying the

00:20:26.440 Republicans are

00:20:27.420 in chaos

00:20:28.280 this is

00:20:28.900 anarchy

00:20:29.560 this is

00:20:30.920 making the

00:20:31.720 squad look

00:20:33.080 normal as

00:20:34.240 one headline

00:20:35.020 puts it

00:20:35.460 referring to

00:20:35.840 the AOC and

00:20:36.560 the crazies on

00:20:37.320 the left 0.86

00:20:37.780 making them

00:20:38.780 look rational

00:20:39.580 is another

00:20:40.320 way it was

00:20:40.800 put a moment

00:20:41.360 ago on TV

00:20:42.200 I don't

00:20:43.760 believe this

00:20:44.300 is catastrophically

00:20:45.500 negative in

00:20:46.240 any way for

00:20:46.740 the Republicans

00:20:47.280 I think a

00:20:48.320 grand debate

00:20:48.920 is not a

00:20:49.680 bad thing

00:20:50.400 do you see

00:20:52.080 this as some

00:20:52.900 massive debacle

00:20:54.300 taking place

00:20:55.320 or is that

00:20:56.700 just the media

00:20:57.360 doing what the

00:20:57.920 media does

00:20:58.380 saying let's

00:20:58.880 seize on this

00:20:59.380 moment look

00:21:00.100 like this is

00:21:00.640 insanity when

00:21:01.260 really this

00:21:01.900 isn't this

00:21:02.760 is just

00:21:03.140 watching the

00:21:03.680 sausage be

00:21:04.340 made

00:21:04.780 look the

00:21:05.720 media are

00:21:06.560 left-wing

00:21:06.980 propagandists

00:21:07.760 they hate

00:21:09.280 having a

00:21:09.900 debate about

00:21:11.020 Republicans

00:21:11.700 leading about

00:21:12.480 Republicans

00:21:12.960 being conservative

00:21:13.820 the media are

00:21:14.480 apoplectic about

00:21:15.380 it by the way

00:21:16.340 one of the

00:21:16.860 reasons Nancy 0.99

00:21:17.580 Pelosi didn't

00:21:18.500 face this

00:21:19.700 kind of

00:21:20.040 challenge is

00:21:20.640 she just 0.65

00:21:21.060 gave in to

00:21:21.840 the radicals

00:21:22.500 AOC was

00:21:23.320 basically the

00:21:24.160 speaker last

00:21:24.840 term on

00:21:25.960 every radical

00:21:26.900 left-wing

00:21:27.400 issue Nancy

00:21:28.420 Pelosi just

00:21:29.000 said yes

00:21:29.400 yes yes

00:21:30.160 you can have

00:21:30.700 it impeach

00:21:31.080 the president

00:21:31.480 okay yes

00:21:32.000 do it again

00:21:32.500 yes yes

00:21:33.440 everything you

00:21:34.100 want yes

00:21:34.640 yeah I

00:21:34.920 mean and

00:21:35.520 and they 0.96

00:21:36.640 all just

00:21:37.540 followed the

00:21:39.780 extreme left

00:21:40.760 that that's the

00:21:42.160 difference the

00:21:43.240 Democrats the

00:21:44.320 last two years

00:21:45.640 ran hard hard

00:21:47.020 left and they

00:21:47.680 had unity running

00:21:48.560 hard hard left 0.98

00:21:49.340 the reason there's

00:21:50.980 disagreement among

00:21:51.840 Republicans is is

00:21:53.100 there are some

00:21:53.640 Republicans that

00:21:54.480 want to be strong

00:21:56.380 conservatives there's

00:21:57.440 others who disagree

00:21:58.240 with that and you

00:21:58.980 end up with

00:21:59.860 something like the

00:22:01.440 1.7 trillion dollar

00:22:03.040 omnibus in the

00:22:03.800 Senate what was

00:22:04.560 it all the

00:22:05.160 Democrats and a

00:22:07.700 handful of

00:22:08.180 Republicans you

00:22:08.820 see that pattern

00:22:09.700 over and over

00:22:10.580 and over again I

00:22:11.920 will say one of

00:22:12.760 the complicated

00:22:13.320 pieces of this

00:22:14.140 also is Donald

00:22:16.340 Trump so Trump

00:22:19.700 likes Kevin

00:22:21.020 McCarthy they are

00:22:22.780 friends in fact

00:22:23.640 Trump with some

00:22:25.100 regularity refers to

00:22:26.360 Kevin McCarthy as

00:22:27.200 my Kevin and

00:22:28.660 they just on a

00:22:29.440 personal level get

00:22:32.360 along well I get

00:22:33.500 that I like Kevin

00:22:34.360 McCarthy personally

00:22:35.180 he's a very

00:22:35.700 affable guy he's

00:22:36.760 difficult to dislike

00:22:37.720 on the one-on-one

00:22:38.560 basis Trump has

00:22:40.620 been vocally

00:22:41.480 supporting McCarthy

00:22:42.700 not long ago an

00:22:47.120 NBC reporter

00:22:48.140 tweeted out

00:22:48.960 exclusive former

00:22:49.980 President Trump

00:22:50.720 declined to say if

00:22:52.260 he's sticking by his

00:22:53.140 endorsement of Kevin

00:22:53.920 McCarthy for speaker

00:22:54.800 tonight telling me in

00:22:56.300 a brief phone

00:22:56.900 interview he has had

00:22:57.760 calls all day asking

00:22:59.660 for support and

00:23:00.560 quote we'll see what

00:23:01.940 happens we'll see

00:23:02.760 how it all works

00:23:03.500 out that's a

00:23:05.400 potential big

00:23:07.400 deal depending on

00:23:09.600 what Trump does in

00:23:10.460 the next 24 hours if

00:23:11.920 he continues to

00:23:12.940 support Kevin that's

00:23:14.400 one outcome if he

00:23:15.400 decides to withdraw

00:23:17.520 his support or

00:23:18.360 support another

00:23:19.000 candidate that could

00:23:20.360 change the dynamic

00:23:21.440 very significantly

00:23:22.600 well and in that

00:23:23.860 tweet that you just

00:23:24.760 mentioned to talk

00:23:26.280 about the five that

00:23:27.180 started this

00:23:28.000 Congressman Gates

00:23:29.380 immediately tweeted

00:23:30.180 that out saying

00:23:31.160 you know and

00:23:32.000 quoting it and

00:23:32.760 then said Trump

00:23:33.540 knows McCarthy

00:23:34.360 can't get there

00:23:35.240 so he sees that

00:23:36.680 moment to say

00:23:37.360 aha see I'm

00:23:38.800 winning here

00:23:39.580 because Donald

00:23:40.640 Trump didn't come

00:23:41.360 out tonight and

00:23:42.040 say I still stand

00:23:42.980 behind Kevin

00:23:43.580 McCarthy

00:23:44.000 well and

00:23:45.800 unfortunately you're

00:23:47.040 also seeing

00:23:47.840 divisions within

00:23:49.280 within the house

00:23:51.100 that that are

00:23:51.980 getting pretty

00:23:52.580 tense you know

00:23:53.440 Marjorie Taylor

00:23:54.120 Green went out

00:23:54.960 and blasted

00:23:56.240 Chip Roy and

00:23:58.100 blasted Matt

00:23:58.980 Gates because

00:24:00.080 she's supporting

00:24:00.820 Kevin McCarthy

00:24:01.520 and so so she

00:24:02.980 had had some

00:24:04.340 very angry

00:24:05.060 things to say

00:24:06.060 there are all

00:24:08.700 sorts of strange

00:24:09.880 dynamics look one

00:24:11.060 of the things that

00:24:11.780 drove it

00:24:12.340 as I understand

00:24:14.500 it is is the

00:24:16.840 house Republican

00:24:17.620 conference met

00:24:18.500 today and I

00:24:21.700 wasn't in the room

00:24:22.420 I'm not in the

00:24:22.960 house but from

00:24:24.400 the public

00:24:24.840 reports leadership

00:24:26.400 came out really

00:24:29.140 strong and

00:24:29.860 aggressive indeed

00:24:30.880 anonymous quotes

00:24:33.060 supporting leadership

00:24:33.880 were saying that

00:24:35.280 McCarthy quote

00:24:36.280 they'd never seen

00:24:37.060 anyone taken to

00:24:37.880 the woodshed as

00:24:38.720 much as as

00:24:39.440 Kevin took the

00:24:41.440 the the rebels to

00:24:44.220 the woodshed and

00:24:45.960 in particular it's

00:24:48.080 been reported that

00:24:49.180 Mike Rogers stood

00:24:52.020 up and threatened

00:24:53.180 Republicans who

00:24:55.700 didn't vote for

00:24:56.700 Kevin would lose

00:24:57.600 their committee

00:24:58.040 assignments that

00:24:58.720 they would be

00:24:59.340 punished and

00:25:00.880 stripped off of

00:25:01.780 committees and

00:25:02.420 and that Chip Roy

00:25:04.280 has been very

00:25:04.840 vocal that that

00:25:05.600 pissed him off and

00:25:06.500 that threat if

00:25:09.820 anything drove the

00:25:11.280 numbers the other

00:25:12.120 way and and and I

00:25:13.140 could see that

00:25:13.760 sometimes leadership

00:25:14.780 gets punitive and

00:25:17.840 you know what if

00:25:19.320 you've got a 30

00:25:20.140 vote majority

00:25:20.960 leadership can be

00:25:22.480 punitive if you've

00:25:24.620 got a four vote

00:25:25.400 majority

00:25:26.020 you might not want

00:25:29.300 to play that card

00:25:30.100 it's it's pretty

00:25:31.740 dangerous to make

00:25:33.100 threats because it

00:25:35.540 can end up making

00:25:36.880 those who disagree

00:25:37.820 with you dig in

00:25:39.120 and and and that

00:25:41.080 may be playing out

00:25:41.820 there as well

00:25:42.360 it's going to be

00:25:43.720 very interesting how

00:25:44.720 this ends up what a

00:25:45.840 way to go back to

00:25:46.760 to Washington for a

00:25:48.180 new Congress I

00:25:49.780 I still agree with

00:25:50.780 you and what you

00:25:51.440 said a moment ago

00:25:52.400 this is just going to

00:25:54.100 be entertaining to

00:25:55.240 watch I do not

00:25:56.320 believe this is quote

00:25:57.200 hurting the

00:25:57.820 Republican Party or

00:25:59.480 some sort of horrible

00:26:00.640 debacle that will

00:26:01.700 never oh that you

00:26:02.840 know we'll never be

00:26:03.740 able to overcome I

00:26:05.380 just don't buy those

00:26:06.520 liberal headlines from

00:26:07.540 the lefties over the

00:26:08.820 next 10 12 hours

00:26:10.400 center it's good to get

00:26:11.940 back in a rhythm with

00:26:12.900 you I know you're

00:26:14.180 excited let me say one

00:26:15.140 more thing as we wrap

00:26:16.020 up yeah which is

00:26:18.380 something else

00:26:18.900 happened today that

00:26:19.640 I thought was

00:26:20.180 actually quite shocking

00:26:21.160 and it was on the

00:26:21.780 Senate side so the

00:26:22.980 Senate side the new

00:26:23.860 senators were sworn in

00:26:24.820 that always happens

00:26:25.640 that swearing in

00:26:26.520 happens on the floor

00:26:27.340 of the Senate and

00:26:29.120 the vice president who's

00:26:30.500 the president of the

00:26:31.160 Senate swears them in 0.92

00:26:32.140 and then afterwards you

00:26:34.040 go to the historic

00:26:34.920 Senate chamber and you

00:26:36.260 do a reenactment of

00:26:37.420 the swearing in and and

00:26:39.460 the reason you do that

00:26:40.700 is because family

00:26:42.380 members are not allowed

00:26:43.260 on the floor of the

00:26:43.840 Senate so when you're

00:26:44.600 actually getting sworn in

00:26:45.800 your wife can't be 1.00

00:26:46.820 there your husband

00:26:47.500 your kids your

00:26:48.240 parents and so what

00:26:51.700 has always happened

00:26:53.020 certainly for as long

00:26:54.080 as I I'm aware of it

00:26:55.280 is after the at the

00:26:57.480 official swearing in

00:26:58.520 you go to the historic

00:26:59.360 chamber and the vice

00:27:01.980 president will swear you

00:27:03.220 in and you know in my

00:27:04.640 case when I was sworn in

00:27:05.780 10 years ago Heidi holds

00:27:07.100 the Bible and your kids

00:27:08.360 are there your parents

00:27:09.300 are there your family's

00:27:10.320 there and it's look it's

00:27:11.680 a great like it's it's a

00:27:13.140 big exciting thing when

00:27:14.580 you're being sworn into

00:27:15.460 the Senate it's nice to be

00:27:16.560 with your family and

00:27:17.300 celebrate it well

00:27:19.200 something an historic

00:27:21.540 first occurred which is

00:27:23.860 Kamala Harris's office

00:27:25.440 put out a notification to

00:27:28.560 to the senators being

00:27:29.700 sworn in that anyone

00:27:31.180 attending the the the

00:27:32.760 swearing in reenactment

00:27:34.280 must have a negative

00:27:36.580 COVID test within 24 hours

00:27:38.840 performed by a capital

00:27:41.140 physician or you wouldn't

00:27:42.120 be allowed in this was

00:27:43.020 true for anyone over two

00:27:44.460 years of age Wow and I

00:27:47.620 gotta say look the vice

00:27:49.600 president particularly in

00:27:51.120 a 51 49 Senate has almost

00:27:54.560 zero responsibilities you

00:27:57.260 know the the old famous

00:28:00.200 quote from John Nance

00:28:01.660 Gardner is the is the the

00:28:03.280 vice president is presidency

00:28:05.200 isn't worth a bucket of

00:28:06.440 warm spit about the only

00:28:09.560 thing the vice president

00:28:10.960 does is swear in the new

00:28:13.160 senators you break a tie but

00:28:15.220 in a 51 49 Senate they're

00:28:17.160 gonna be a lot fewer ties

00:28:18.300 and so Kamala is literally

00:28:23.900 saying I'm not gonna do my 0.99

00:28:25.780 damn job and and I it was 0.99

00:28:30.100 astonishing and I have to 1.00

00:28:31.420 admit offensive and it pissed

00:28:32.920 me off and and and I'm gonna

00:28:35.080 give a shout out to one of the

00:28:36.320 new senators Mark Wayne

00:28:37.360 Mullen is new Republican

00:28:38.520 from Oklahoma who who

00:28:41.460 decided he and his family

00:28:43.700 screw you we're not gonna do 0.99

00:28:44.980 it and he put he put out a 0.98

00:28:46.120 quote that says COVID just

00:28:48.040 exists for those who are in

00:28:49.040 the bubble and that his

00:28:49.900 family has things to do back

00:28:51.200 in Oklahoma such as going to

00:28:52.800 a school and wrestling

00:28:53.660 tournament the senator said he

00:28:55.420 didn't want a false positive

00:28:56.700 on a COVID test unnecessarily

00:28:58.340 complicate things when going

00:29:00.200 back to Oklahoma and quote I

00:29:02.420 really don't care about a

00:29:03.420 picture with Kamala Harris he

00:29:04.680 had it now it's time for you

00:29:08.380 to take him to dinner right

00:29:09.460 this isn't this could be your

00:29:10.540 new best friend look good for

00:29:12.540 him for standing up but I gotta

00:29:16.180 say like that the absolute

00:29:18.920 dripping arrogance and 0.69

00:29:20.860 condescension of I will not

00:29:24.520 allow you to be in the room

00:29:26.120 with me unless you take a COVID

00:29:28.820 test and I won't do my job as

00:29:31.640 a result I I've never seen

00:29:33.220 anything like it and and

00:29:34.780 including if you're two years

00:29:36.720 old in one day right

00:29:38.000 relationships between the

00:29:39.900 White House and and and the

00:29:41.760 Senate were already not very

00:29:43.340 good and and and this that was

00:29:46.820 just Maria Antoinette would be 1.00

00:29:50.000 proud of Kamala's performance

00:29:51.480 today you can't make it up

00:29:53.400 senator it's going to be a very

00:29:55.120 very interesting year in

00:29:56.640 Washington we'll keep you all

00:29:58.800 updated on it we'll have the

00:30:00.160 latest on what happens with the

00:30:02.080 speakers vote we can promise

00:30:04.400 you that again great to be

00:30:06.260 back with you the new year

00:30:07.200 sir I know you had a nice

00:30:08.300 little vacation with your

00:30:09.360 family as well and we'll be

00:30:11.300 back with all you guys that are

00:30:12.920 listening right now in just a

00:30:14.780 couple of days this is an I

00:30:17.160 heart podcast guaranteed human

00:30:20.040 man I'll see you next time

Verdict with Ted Cruz - January 04, 2023

Wild & Woolly Speaker Drama

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