Ex-GOP House Member Tells MSNBC McCarthy’s ‘Best Case Scenario’ Is to Win on the Second Vote Tomorrow

Former Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) predicted on MSNBC, where he’s a contributor, that Kevin McCarthy’s “best case scenario” is that he will win the House speaker race on the second vote – despite a handful of Republicans having said they won’t back him.

On MSNBC Reports on Monday, host Lindsey Reiser noted to Curbelo “we have the hard no’s and the soft no’s” and asked him “how is it a win for any of the Republicans to potentially throw the entire caucus into chaos?”

“Well, Lindsey, this is the recent history of House Republicans. Kevin McCarthy, it looks like he’s going to have 222 Republicans, when he walks into that chamber tomorrow,” said Curbelo.

There will be 222 Republicans, just four more than the needed 218 for a majority, in the next Congress, which will be sworn in on Tuesday when the election for Speaker will also occur.

Curbelo continued:

But in recent years, John Boehner, Paul Ryan, with a lot more Republicans, 247, 240, in the 115th Congress, they struggled to get enough votes.

Boehner, to become Speaker, he was eventually driven out by some of these hardline Republicans that are giving Kevin McCarthy a hard time now.

And Paul Ryan, even though he was elected more comfortably, he had trouble when it came to bringing legislation to the floor. So this is just the DNA, the nature of the House Republican conference these days, and we’ll see if tomorrow, Kevin McCarthy can convince some of those hard no’s to switch.

A lot of McCarthy allies, some that I have spoken to, as soon as a few, as recently as a few hours ago, are saying that they think that best case scenario, on the second vote, McCarthy can get the 218 that he will need.

Watch above via MSNBC.