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Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media during the third day of his civil fraud trial in New York, U.S., October 4, 2023. /CFP
Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media during the third day of his civil fraud trial in New York, U.S., October 4, 2023. /CFP
Donald Trump is endorsing Congressman Jim Jordan to replace ousted U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the former president said on Friday.
“He (Jordan) is STRONG on Crime, Borders, our Military/Vets, & 2nd Amendment. Jim, his wife, Polly, & family are outstanding – He will be a GREAT Speaker of the House, & has my Complete & Total Endorsement!” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social app.
The post follows earlier news that Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican nomination to challenge the Democratic President Joe Biden, might agree to replace McCarthy for a short time. Fox News also reported that Trump was close to endorsing Jordan.
Two Republican lawmakers are campaigning for the speakership: Representative Steve Scalise, who was second to McCarthy on the leadership ladder, and Jordan, an outspoken conservative from Ohio who has led investigations into the Biden administration.
Republicans, who control the House of Representatives by a narrow 221-212 margin, are due to hold a closed-door forum for candidates seeking the speakership on Tuesday, a meeting that the former Republican president said he could attend. A vote is expected the next day.
Trump’s pull with House Republicans has been tested at times this year. Republicans initially did not respond to Trump’s call to elect McCarthy as speaker, waiting three days before doing so and subjecting McCarthy to a grueling 15 rounds of voting.
The meeting on Tuesday would be Trump’s first visit to Capitol Hill since his supporters attacked the Capitol on January 6, 2021, to try to prevent lawmakers from certifying his 2020 White House loss to Democrat Joe Biden.
(With input from Reuters)
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