Free Republic

Having Talked to several senior aides on Capitol Hill (along with Chris Stirewalt and his sources on the Hill tied to the leadership) here is the picture that is beginning to form. Speaker John Boehner has agreed to stay on as Speaker--not just until the Caucus nominates someone --but, until that person can confirm 218 votes on the House floor (needed to take the Speaker’s gavel). Short of that – Boehner will stay on for the rest of this Congress and steer legislation that is pending.

Ok. Keep you friends clues, your enemies closer. That said, who's this babe that filled in for Megyn Kelly tonight? She's absolutely unhinged about McCarthy's withdrawal. She had Frank Luntz on who was equally unhinged. Evidently we all just want Washington to get along according to Luntz' all-knowing focus groups. Big smack-down to conservative obstructionists. I understand the Fox difference between hard news and opinion, but this one was off the charts. Especially for a fill-in.

Republican Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy stunned House colleagues when he announced that he would withdraw from the race to be the next House Speaker. In the immediate aftermath, Rep. Charlie Dent says "anything is possible now." To get anything done "we might have to assemble a bipartisan coalition, that’s the reality of this place," Dent told CNN moments after McCarthy withdrew from the race. REP. CHARLIE DENT: The next Speaker should not appease those who make unreasonable demands. There are a number of members of our conference. You cannot get the yes on anything. For them the end will be...

U.S. House Speaker John Boehner said on Thursday he will stay in the top post in the House of Representatives until his successor is elected, adding that he would announce the date of that vote later. "We will announce the date for this election at a later date, and I’m confident we will elect a new speaker in the coming weeks," the Ohio Republican said in a statement released after the surprise withdrawal of House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy from the race.

A group of hard-line conservatives threatened to upend the Republican race to succeed outgoing House Speaker John A. Boehner, announcing on Wednesday it will throw its support behind a little-known Florida lawmaker to become the next speaker. The House Freedom Caucus’s backing of Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.) ahead of a crucial internal party vote Thursday deeply complicates Majority Leader Kevin O. McCarthy’s bid to succeed Boehner. The group counts enough members — about 40 — to deny McCarthy the majority of the whole House he would need to claim the speaker’s chair. But in an opening for the California Republican,...

<p>McCarthy's demise comes hard on the heels of Boehner bowing out of the speakership as a sort of human sacrifice to the tea party right. And it happens as Donald Trump is in the midst of his fourth consecutive month as the Republican front-runner for the party's presidential nomination -- and with Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina, two other people who have never held elected office before, running in second and third place, respectively.</p>

Powerful Republican Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Janesville) stood firm on Thursday in his desire not to become the next Speaker of the House. Ryan, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, issued a statement after House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy shocked the GOP when he abruptly ended his candidacy to replace Speaker John Boehner. "While I am grateful for the encouragement I've received, I will not be a candidate," Ryan said. "I continue to believe I can best serve the country and this (Republican) conference as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee." CNN reported McCarthy was with his wife...

WASHINGTON — Representative Kevin McCarthy on Thursday abruptly took himself out of the race to succeed John A. Boehner as speaker, apparently undone by the same forces that drove Mr. Boehner to resign.

When House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) announced his resignation earlier this month, the likelihood that his successor would be able to navigate a series of high stakes deadlines looked uncertain at best. Since then, the leadership succession has erupted into full-out chaos. What was supposed to be a relatively smooth ascension for House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has been rocked by his own gaffes, outsider challengers, and the threat of an unprecedented floor fight that could undermine efforts to avoid a government shutdown and a historic default on the national debt before the year's end. According to Norman Ornstein,...

WMAL Radion in Washington DC just announced Rep. Kevin McCarthy has dropped his bid for Speaker of the House

Former Congressman Charles Brownson, Indianapolis Republican, used to say, “I never quarrel with a man who buys ink by the barrel.” Maybe McCarthy should not mess with conservative bloggers who have 1's and 0's by the barrel. Sniff.

Now THIS is getting interesting!!!!!

I have no more information. Just heard it on the radio.

Breaking.

Jake Sherman ‏@JakeSherman 10m10 minutes ago MCCARTHY OUT. Drops out of race for speaker. Election postponed.

Kevin McCarthy just dropped out of race for speaker. (Just heard it on Rush)

The conservative House Freedom Caucus announced Wednesday that it would back Rep. Daniel Webster to be the next speaker, which would provide enough support to the Republican conference to deny the position to establishment favorite Kevin McCarthy, the current majority leader. Emerging from a closed-door meeting on Capitol Hill, conservative lawmakers pledged to present a united front in support of Mr. Webster, Florida Republican, signaling that the same rift in the conference that forced Speaker John A. Boehner to resign would continue to roil the largest Republican majorities in the House since the 1920s. Members of the Freedom Caucus, led...

GotNews.com has been hit with a cease and desist letter from the counsel of Congresswoman Renee Ellmers amid allegations of her own martial infidelity. GotNews.com stands by its story regarding the DC, NC, and Bakersfield rumors regarding an alleged affair between Congresswoman Renee Ellmers and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. We look forward to the opportunity to avail ourselves of deposition with seated members of congress should it come to that.

"BREAKING: GotNews.com Hit With ‘Cease & Desist’ Letter For McCarthy-Ellmers Affair Story" GotNews.com has been hit with a cease and desist letter from the counsel of Congresswoman Renee Ellmers amid allegations of her own martial infidelity. GotNews.com stands by its story regarding the DC, NC, and Bakersfield rumors regarding an alleged affair between Congresswoman Renee Ellmers and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. We look forward to the opportunity to avail ourselves of deposition with seated members of congress should it come to that. The letter, reproduced here, was written by Thomas A. Farr, an attorney from Ogletree Deakins, a white shoe...

The race to replace John Boehner as Speaker of the House just heated up big time.Reports say the House Freedom Caucus will back Congressman Daniel Webster for Speaker.The other candidates for Speaker include House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz.The group recently met with Speaker candidates and came to the conclusion that Webster was the candidate to support in tomorrow’s vote.  A full floor vote will occur later this month.Congressman Curt Clawson, a former basketball standout at Purdue University and Congressman from Southwest Florida, praised Webster in a statement to Conservative Intel.“In basketball and in business it is critical that...