WASHINGTON — For a long and frustrating third day, divided Republicans kept the speaker’s chair of the U.S. House empty Thursday, as party leader Kevin McCarthy failed again and again in an excruciating string of ballots to win enough GOP votes to seize the chamber’s gavel.
Long after darkness, glimmers of a deal with far-right holdouts were emerging. But the day’s tally was dismal: McCarthy lost seventh, eighth and then historic ninth, 10th and 11th rounds of voting, surpassing the number of 100 years ago in the last drawn-out fight to choose a speaker. By nightfall, despite raucous protests from Democrats, Republicans voted to adjourn and return Friday to try again.
The California Republican soaked up the moment without visible concern: “Apparently, I like to make history.”
The contours of an agreement with holdouts from the conservative Freedom Caucus began to take shape, including several of the key rules changes they have been seeking for months. Those changes would shrink the power of the speaker’s office and give rank-and-file lawmakers more influence in drafting legislation.
At the core is the reinstatement of a House rule that would allow a single lawmaker to make a motion to “vacate the chair,” essentially calling a vote to oust the speaker — a move McCarthy had resisted because it had been held over the head of past Republican Speaker John Boehner, chasing him to early retirement.
Even if McCarthy is able to secure the votes he needs, he will emerge as a weakened speaker, having given away some powers and constantly under a threat of being voted out by his detractors. But he would also be potentially emboldened as a survivor of one of the more brutal fights for the gavel in U.S. history.
Other wins for the holdouts include provisions in the proposed deal to expand the number of seats available on the House Rules Committee, to mandate 72 hours for bills to be posted before votes and to promise to try for a constitutional amendment that would impose federal limits on the number of terms a person could serve in the House and Senate.
The chairman of the chamber’s Freedom Caucus, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, appeared receptive, tweeting the adage from Ronald Reagan, “Trust but verify.”
Lest hopes get ahead of reality, conservative holdout Ralph Norman of South Carolina said, “This is round one.”
“We’ve got some progress going on,” McCarthy said, brushing back questions about the lengthy, messy process. “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”
With McCarthy’s supporters and foes locked in stalemate, the House cannot fully open for the new session, essentially at a standstill, unable to swear in elected members and conduct official business.