Former Illinois Rep. Joe Walsh shocked an MSNBC panel into laughter with his earnest suggestion of who Republicans may choose as their next House Speaker.
The Republican opted for a blast from the past, exclaiming on The Weekend that Kevin McCarthy would be a “wonderful turn” for the speakership.
Considering current Speaker Mike Johnson only took the role from McCarthy in October 2023, the MSNBC pundits didn’t seem to buy that the party would opt for the switcheroo to happen again.
Symone Sanders opened the segment about the next House Speaker—noting that an election is due to take place on Friday and prospects are looking low for Johnson to keep the role.
“What’s interesting about this is that Democrats—Mike Johnson’s been in trouble before—and the last time he was in trouble, Democrats saved him, they saved his speakership, Joe. Democrats are being very, very clear… they’re saying ‘Not this time,’” she said.
Bernie Sanders’ former press secretary then read out information from an Axios article, suggesting that several Democrats who previously supported Johnson would no longer vote for him.
She summarized, “So he’s got some real issues. But Michael puts the real question on the table. If not Mike Johnson, then who?”
“Kevin McCarthy,” Walsh said without skipping a beat.
Sanders and Michael Steele seemed almost frozen in silence for a long pause, before both devolving into laughter.
Walsh later explained, “Look, the best thing Johnson has going for him is the calendar. Trump wants to do a bunch of cruel, aggressive stuff in January. A speakers’ mess messes that up.
“But Kevin McCarthy. I could see Donald Trump getting behind Kevin McCarthy. What a wonderful turn that would be. I’m just saying!”
April Ryan ripped the idea, asking, “How many votes were there to oust Kevin McCarthy? Do we want to go through that again?”
“Do we want to go through any of this again?” questioned Alicia Menendez. She also pointed out that unlike the McCarthy vote, the upcoming House Speaker election would coincide with an Electoral College count on Jan. 6, prior to Trump’s inauguration.
Ryan responded that the Electoral College count would be fine, with Democrats unlikely to fight against Trump taking up the Presidency.
However, she did point out that Johnson’s current major issue revolves around his and Trump’s inability to secure a spending bill earlier this month.
“The infighting in the Republican Party is harsh, and if they can’t get it together—the bottom line is politics is personal, and people’s pocketbooks will be impacted,” she said.
