Jim Jordan probably can’t be House speaker. But Jim Jordan could possibly be minority leader.
That is part of the mindset driving the effort to draft the Freedom Caucus founder to succeed Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. If Republicans lose the majority and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., picks up the speaker’s gavel, Jordan, R-Ohio, could make a competitive bid to lead the GOP in the minority.
More than a 100 conservative grassroots leaders signed a letter urging Jordan to run for speaker Monday. Columnist Quin Hillyer correctly summarized the general reaction, panning the effort as “a bad idea” and adding that Jordan “can’t get anything done.” But obstruction is a relative quality: a vice in the majority and an overnight virtue in the minority.
Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has the best shot at uniting the conference and succeeding Ryan right now. He has served as a loyal lieutenant to the past two Republican speakers. He has cultivated close personal ties to President Trump. A smooth political operator and a good fundraiser, McCarthy fits the bill as speaker if Republicans win.
Jordan is somewhat the opposite. He has scalped one speaker and hamstrung another. He also cultivated personal ties with Trump but made even more personal enemies in the GOP conference in the process. A bare-knuckled ideological brawler, Jordan meets the qualifications for minority leader if Republicans lose.
“That might be the perfect job for Jim Jordan because of his fighting attitude and his fighting spirit; he doesn’t back down,” a member of the Republican Study Committee told The Hill. “I think he would be a tremendous minority leader.”
Stopping a McCarthy coronation would require a Jordan coup, an ugly street fight that the conference probably won’t countenance, unless they lose big in November. Even then, Republicans might be more comfortable giving Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., the nod to become minority leader — a post that only requires a simple majority. But frequent Fox News clips, an obstructionist reputation, and general bellicosity could make Jordan a formidable contender.
