[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 173 (Friday, October 20, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H5036-H5038]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          ELECTION OF SPEAKER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question now recurs upon the election of 
a Speaker. Will the tellers please come forward.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy).
  Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker pro tempore, I rise to nominate   Jim 
Jordan for the Speaker of the House.
  I have listened to the speeches this week, and I can already tell you 
what my friends on the other side will say, using their poll-tested 
phrases, but let me correct the record.   Jim Jordan is an effective 
legislator.
  To legislate is about more than the name on the bill. It is about 
reaching compromise and working long hours behind the scenes to get the 
job done.
  When you are the chairman of a committee, you are responsible for 
dozens of bills passing the House and being signed into law.
  Let me tell you a few facts that don't come out in the polls. As the 
leader of the Judiciary Committee, Jim has passed more bills through 
the House in just 3 years than the entire Democrat leadership team that 
has a collective 28 years in Congress.
  Mr. Aguilar has a whopping one whole bill signed into law; a post 
office in San Bernardino. I guess that is good enough to be Caucus 
chair.
    Jim Jordan, on the other hand, had a hand in drafting bills like 
the REINS Act to curb unaccountable bureaucrats. He helped negotiate 
and pass H.R. 2, the strongest border security bill this House has ever 
passed.
  Many of you know because you were in the room watching Jim find 
compromise, watching Jim listen to your positions and finding a bill 
that can pass.
  Let's put this in reality. We have had large majorities, but we never 
could pass a border security bill. That takes leadership.
  They are going to get upset by it. Why? Because every single Democrat 
voted against securing our border. Democrats are attacking Jim because 
they don't want the American people to remember that they voted against 
securing and keeping a wide-open border.
  They may not want the American public to know the number of people we 
catch on the terrorist watch list. They may not want people to know 
what the future holds for the security of our Nation based upon their 
policies.
  Name me one bill Democrats passed that would secure our border. I am 
waiting. You can't because they haven't.
  Mr. Speaker pro tempore, the truth is, if we measure lawmakers by how 
many bills have their names on it, we are using the wrong measuring 
stick.
  Some of the Members I know with the most bills to their name are the 
most selfish.   Jim Jordan, on the other hand, is one of the most 
selfless Members I know.
  I have known Jim a long time, and I wanted to do something different. 
I actually called the freshmen members on his committee and asked them: 
What do you think of your chairman?
  Here are just a few examples of what they said: Jim empowers every 
member of the Judiciary Committee to pursue what interests them.
  Here is another: He lets each of us take the lead on the issues that 
are important to us, even letting freshmen and junior members take 
important roles.
  Here is another: He trusts our judgment on how we handle issues and 
witnesses and always seeks our input on key issues.
  Here is another: As a freshman, he had me lead off a hearing that 
related to my subject matter expertise, and he goes out of his way to 
highlight members' successes.
  He is straightforward, honest, and reliable. That is who   Jim Jordan 
is, and that is what being a Speaker is all about.
  Now, some of you might not know this, but Jim and I have a long 
history. We take our jobs seriously.
  I first met Jim as a candidate. I traveled to Ohio. I remember 
pulling up for breakfast at a Bob Evans in Ohio. There was Jim having a 
meeting, listening to constituents.
  I traveled with him throughout the day from rotary to farm bureau, 
just listening to people that had concerns, and I watched then the same 
  Jim Jordan I see today. He was a leader, a listener, and a fighter.
  We were actually elected to Congress that same year and became close 
friends. It was a small class. There were only 13 of us, one of the 
smallest Republican classes in modern history.
  Over time, we took different routes. Jim actually ran against me for 
leader in 2018. It was a hard-fought battle, but I never once 
questioned his skills or commitment to this Conference or this country.
  After the race, I became leader, and we had an opening for the 
ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight. Jim didn't even 
apply for the job. I walked into steering; didn't tell steering.
  I walked into the other room, and I picked up the phone and I called 
Jim. I said: I know you are not running for the job, but I believe in 
what Jim Collins says in the book ``Good to Great.'' You put the right 
people in the right seats on the bus.
  Jim, you and I may have challenged one another, but you were the 
right person for that seat, and it was right when you took that job.
  It was right again when I asked Jim to step up and join the Intel 
Committee when Democrats put politics over people and turned the Intel 
Committee into an impeachment committee.
  It was right again when we asked Jim to step up and be the right 
person to lead the Judiciary Committee as chairman. Jim is the right 
person to take that seat behind me to be our next Speaker of the House.
  Mr. Speaker pro tempore, we have an important job to do. The American 
people expect us to focus on the most pressing issues.
  We have watched what a Democrat majority has done by bringing us 
inflation like we haven't seen since the 1970s.

[[Page H5037]]

  We have watched what the Democrats have done by opening up our 
border, bringing in fentanyl that is killing Americans each and every 
day.
  Now we have a war in Israel.
  This country is too great for small visions. Trust me: Being Speaker 
is not an easy job, especially in this Conference, but I've seen Jim 
spend his entire career fighting for freedom, no matter what, no matter 
the odds, and I know he is ready for the job.
  It is my honor to say as a member of the Republican Conference, I am 
directed by the vote of that Conference to present for election to the 
office of Speaker of the House of Representatives the name of my 
friend, the Honorable Jim Jordan, a Representative from the State of 
Ohio.

                              {time}  1100

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair now recognizes the gentlewoman 
from Massachusetts (Ms. Clark).
  Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker pro tempore, 212, it is a New 
York area code, and it is our call for a Speaker of integrity, 
intelligence, and inclusion; 212 is our call for a Speaker who will 
protect our children, our veterans, our planet; 212 is our call for a 
Speaker who will grow the middle class, lower costs, create good-paying 
jobs, and make healthcare affordable; 212 is our call for a Speaker who 
will secure liberty, justice, and opportunity for everyone.
  Well, the unanimous call of 212 House Democrats has been answered by 
our nominee for Speaker, the gentleman from Brooklyn, the leader of our 
House Democratic Caucus, the Honorable Hakeem Jeffries.
  Leader Jeffries has answered our call, but the majority's nominee is 
disconnected. He is disconnected from the American people and their 
values. MAGA extremism is designed to divide, and it has broken the 
Republican Party. Their nominee's vision is a direct attack on the 
freedom and the rights of the American people, and he has got the 
record to prove it.
  The Republican nominee has voted against healthcare for children, for 
veterans, even for 9/11 survivors. He has opposed lowering the cost of 
insulin repeatedly. He wants to cut Social Security and Medicare. Don't 
take it from me, it was raised on the other side of the aisle just this 
week as a selling point to make him Speaker.
  Over his 16 years in the House, the Republican nominee has never 
supported a farm bill. What does that mean?
  It means he has turned his back on farmers, on rural communities, and 
the 11 million children who go to bed hungry in this country.
  The Republican nominee wants a national abortion ban with no 
exceptions for rape, incest, or the health of a mother. We want to make 
our own healthcare decisions in consultation with our families, our 
doctors, and our faith--not with   Jim Jordan.
  The Republican nominee plotted to overturn the 2020 election, 
traffics in misinformation, and is a true threat to our democracy and 
our Constitution.
  I have had the privilege of working here in the people's House for 
almost 10 years. I have gotten to know many of my colleagues on the 
other side of the aisle, and I know that they hear the same thing that 
I do, which is that the American people expect us to work together on 
their behalf.
  Well, it is not too late for the majority to choose a bipartisan path 
forward to reopen the House. Take ``yes'' for an answer.
  Every day the majority chooses to engage in a Republican civil war 
that is threatening their own members instead of engaging with us in 
the work of the American people, is a day that weakens this institution 
and the standing of our country.
  We need a Speaker who will govern through consensus, not conflict. We 
need a Speaker worthy of wielding that gavel. We need a leader who will 
defend democracy, not degrade it. More than ever, we need proven, 
patriotic, people-first leadership.
  Mr. Speaker pro tempore, I am proud to nominate Hakeem Jeffries as 
Speaker of the House.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Reading Clerk will now call the roll.
  The tellers have taken their places, and the House proceeded to vote 
for the Speaker.
  The following is the result of the vote:

                             [Roll No. 525]

                             JEFFRIES--210

     Adams
     Aguilar
     Allred
     Auchincloss
     Balint
     Barragan
     Beatty
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bishop (GA)
     Blumenauer
     Blunt Rochester
     Bonamici
     Bowman
     Boyle (PA)
     Brown
     Brownley
     Budzinski
     Bush
     Caraveo
     Carbajal
     Cardenas
     Carson
     Carter (LA)
     Cartwright
     Casar
     Case
     Casten
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Cherfilus-McCormick
     Chu
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Connolly
     Correa
     Costa
     Courtney
     Craig
     Crockett
     Crow
     Cuellar
     Davids (KS)
     Davis (IL)
     Davis (NC)
     Dean (PA)
     DeGette
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Deluzio
     DeSaulnier
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Escobar
     Eshoo
     Espaillat
     Evans
     Fletcher
     Foster
     Foushee
     Frankel, Lois
     Frost
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Garcia (IL)
     Garcia (TX)
     Garcia, Robert
     Golden (ME)
     Goldman (NY)
     Gomez
     Gottheimer
     Green, Al (TX)
     Grijalva
     Harder (CA)
     Hayes
     Higgins (NY)
     Himes
     Horsford
     Houlahan
     Hoyer
     Hoyle (OR)
     Huffman
     Ivey
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson (NC)
     Jackson Lee
     Jacobs
     Jayapal
     Jeffries
     Johnson (GA)
     Kamlager-Dove
     Kaptur
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Khanna
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     Kim (NJ)
     Krishnamoorthi
     Kuster
     Landsman
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lee (CA)
     Lee (NV)
     Lee (PA)
     Leger Fernandez
     Levin
     Lieu
     Lofgren
     Lynch
     Magaziner
     Manning
     Matsui
     McBath
     McClellan
     McCollum
     McGarvey
     McGovern
     Meeks
     Menendez
     Meng
     Mfume
     Moore (WI)
     Morelle
     Moskowitz
     Moulton
     Mrvan
     Mullin
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Neguse
     Nickel
     Norcross
     Ocasio-Cortez
     Omar
     Pallone
     Panetta
     Pappas
     Pascrell
     Pelosi
     Peltola
     Perez
     Peters
     Pettersen
     Phillips
     Pingree
     Pocan
     Porter
     Pressley
     Quigley
     Ramirez
     Raskin
     Ross
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Ryan
     Salinas
     Sanchez
     Sarbanes
     Scanlon
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schneider
     Scholten
     Schrier
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, David
     Sewell
     Sherman
     Sherrill
     Slotkin
     Smith (WA)
     Sorensen
     Soto
     Spanberger
     Stansbury
     Stanton
     Stevens
     Strickland
     Swalwell
     Sykes
     Takano
     Thanedar
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Titus
     Tlaib
     Tokuda
     Tonko
     Torres (CA)
     Torres (NY)
     Trahan
     Trone
     Underwood
     Vargas
     Vasquez
     Veasey
     Velazquez
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watson Coleman
     Wexton
     Wild
     Williams (GA)
     Wilson (FL)

                              JORDAN--194

     Aderholt
     Alford
     Allen
     Amodei
     Armstrong
     Arrington
     Babin
     Baird
     Balderson
     Banks
     Barr
     Bean (FL)
     Bentz
     Bergman
     Bice
     Biggs
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (NC)
     Boebert
     Bost
     Brecheen
     Bucshon
     Burchett
     Burgess
     Burlison
     Calvert
     Cammack
     Carey
     Carl
     Carter (GA)
     Carter (TX)
     Ciscomani
     Cline
     Cloud
     Clyde
     Cole
     Collins
     Comer
     Crane
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Curtis
     Davidson
     De La Cruz
     DesJarlais
     Donalds
     Duarte
     Duncan
     Dunn (FL)
     Edwards
     Emmer
     Estes
     Ezell
     Fallon
     Feenstra
     Finstad
     Fischbach
     Fitzgerald
     Fleischmann
     Flood
     Foxx
     Franklin, Scott
     Fry
     Fulcher
     Gaetz
     Gallagher
     Garcia, Mike
     Good (VA)
     Gooden (TX)
     Gosar
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Green (TN)
     Greene (GA)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guest
     Guthrie
     Hageman
     Harris
     Harshbarger
     Hern
     Higgins (LA)
     Hill
     Hinson
     Houchin
     Hudson
     Huizenga
     Issa
     Jackson (TX)
     Johnson (LA)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson (SD)
     Jordan
     Joyce (OH)
     Joyce (PA)
     Kelly (MS)
     Kiley
     Kim (CA)
     Kustoff
     LaHood
     LaMalfa
     Lamborn
     Langworthy
     Latta
     LaTurner
     Lee (FL)
     Lesko
     Letlow
     Loudermilk
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Luna
     Luttrell
     Mace
     Malliotakis
     Mann
     Massie
     Mast
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McClain
     McClintock
     McCormick
     McHenry
     Meuser
     Miller (IL)
     Miller (OH)
     Miller (WV)
     Mills
     Moolenaar
     Mooney
     Moore (AL)
     Moore (UT)
     Moran
     Murphy
     Nehls
     Newhouse
     Norman
     Nunn (IA)
     Obernolte
     Ogles
     Owens
     Palmer
     Pence
     Perry
     Pfluger
     Posey
     Reschenthaler
     Rodgers (WA)
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rose
     Rosendale
     Rouzer
     Roy
     Salazar
     Santos
     Scalise
     Schweikert
     Scott, Austin
     Self
     Sessions
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smucker
     Spartz
     Steel
     Stefanik
     Steil
     Steube
     Strong
     Tenney
     Thompson (PA)
     Tiffany
     Timmons
     Turner
     Valadao
     Van Drew
     Van Duyne
     Wagner
     Walberg
     Waltz
     Weber (TX)
     Webster (FL)
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Williams (NY)
     Williams (TX)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Yakym
     Zinke

                               SCALISE--8

     Diaz-Balart
     Ferguson
     Gonzales, Tony
     Granger
     Kelly (PA)
     Rutherford
     Simpson
     Womack

[[Page H5038]]


  


                               McHENRY--6

     Bacon
     Chavez-DeRemer
     Fitzpatrick
     Kiggans (VA)
     Lawler
     Miller-Meeks

                               ZELDIN--4

     D'Esposito
     Garbarino
     LaLota
     Molinaro

                               DONALDS--2

     Buchanan
     James
       

                              McCARTHY--2

     Gimenez
     Kean (NJ)
       

                            GARCIA, MIKE--1

       
     Ellzey
       

                                EMMER--1

       
     Buck
       

                              WESTERMAN--1

       
     Stauber
       

                        ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--0

                             NOT VOTING--4

     Gonzalez, Vicente
     Hunt
     Payne
     Van Orden

                              {time}  1200

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The tellers agree in their tally that the 
total number of votes cast is 429, of which the Honorable   Jim Jordan 
of the State of Ohio has received 194, the Honorable Hakeem Jeffries of 
the State of New York has received 210, the Honorable Patrick McHenry 
of the State of North Carolina has received 6, the Honorable Byron 
Donalds of the State of Florida has received 2, the Honorable   Tom 
Emmer of the State of Minnesota has received 1, the Honorable Lee 
Zeldin of the State of New York has received 4, the Honorable   Steve 
Scalise of the State of Louisiana has received 8, the Honorable  Mike 
Garcia of the State of California has received 1, the Honorable Kevin 
McCarthy of the State of California has received 2, the Honorable Bruce 
Westerman of the State of Arkansas has received 1.
  No person having received a majority of the whole number of votes 
cast by surname, a Speaker has not been elected.

                          ____________________