‘Our Adversaries Are Watching’: Top House Republican Blasts Chaotic Speaker Election As a ‘Dangerous Game’ For Democracy

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, blasted the internal division in the House GOP that continues to derail the election of a new speaker.

McCaul was asked by reporters after a GOP Conference meeting on Thursday “if the House is paralyzed right now” and what that means for the GOP agenda and the Israel-Hamas War.

“Yes, it’s a dangerous game that we’re playing. It just proves our adversaries, right, that democracy doesn’t work,” McCaul answered, adding:

Our adversaries are watching us and Israel is watching. They need our help. I have my resolution condemning Hamas, supporting Israel. We can’t even vote on that until we put a speaker in the chair. And I’m going to remind my colleagues about how dangerous this is. Israel’s going to need an aid package.

I’m having discussions with the White House about that. But if we don’t have a speaker, we can’t assist Israel in this great time of need after this terrorist attack. So I think we’re playing with fire and we need to stop playing games in politics with this and vote a speaker in.

As of now, Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), the House majority leader, has been nominated by the Republican Conference to replace ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), but it appears he may not have enough votes to win a floor vote. Scalise’s inability to rally all the House GOP members around him has led to speculation he may step aside.

Watch the clip above via C-SPAN.