Matt Gaetz, Key Roadblock to McCarthy Becoming House Speaker, Calls on Jim Jordan to Pursue the Job

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The most prominent of the five holdouts blocking House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) from becoming House Speaker is going on record with who he would like to see get the job.

In a Tweet on Saturday, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) — the highest-profile House Republican of the five who say they will not vote for Kevin McCarthy as Speaker under any circumstances, which would prevent him from getting the necessary 218 — voiced his holiday wish for another notable Republican to take the gavel.

“All I want for Christmas is @Jim_Jordan to realize he should be Speaker of the House!” Gaetz wrote.

Gaetz regularly floated Jordan’s name in connection with the job earlier this year, but has seldom done so in recent weeks, as the Florida Congressman has focused more on his opposition to McCarthy, rather than any alternative candidates.

“For my money, the best person to be speaker of the House would be Congressman Jim Jordan of Ohio,” Gaetz told Fox News in August. “Our base trusts him. He’s the hardest working, most talented member.”

Jordan, for his part, is supporting McCarthy’s quest to become the next Speaker.

“The guy who gets you to the Super Bowl, even if it’s a game in overtime, gets to coach the game,” Jordan told Fox News Radio last month.