Will open this by repeating:

NANCY PELOSI HAD EXACTLY THE SAME NUMBER OF MEMBERS AS THE GOP HAS NOW.
And yet, this nonsense never happened to her.

So, there are 9 GOP Clowns interested in being Speaker.

There’s Still No House Speaker. What Happens Now?
The House has been without a permanent speaker since Oct. 3. Here is how a new one could be elected, or how the process could go off the rails yet again.

… House Republicans are expected to meet on Monday evening to hold a candidate forum for aspiring speaker nominees to present their visions for the conference.

They plan to hold an internal election for a new nominee on Tuesday — and if they elect one, Republicans could go to the House floor for a vote that same day.

But because nine Republicans are running for the job, that internal election may take longer than usual. Conference rules mandate that the party nominee must capture a simple majority of votes. If no one captures a majority on the first ballot, the candidate who received the fewest votes will be kicked off the second ballot and lawmakers will vote again. That process will continue until there is a nominee…

Could Republicans form a coalition with Democrats?
The 212 Democrats in the House are expected to continue to vote as a united bloc for Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the minority leader.

Mr. Jeffries has pitched the idea of forming a coalition government that he describes as an “enlightened arrangement.” But the idea is a long shot. And given that he has more votes than any Republican seeking the speakership, it is highly unlikely that Mr. Jeffries would agree to cede to a G.O.P. candidate without substantial concessions.

Mr. Jeffries said Democrats would team with Republicans to elect a speaker only if they agreed to change House rules to allow “governance by consensus” — in other words, allowing bills with bipartisan support to come to the floor. The Rules Committee, which determines what legislation gets a vote, is now structured so Republicans are in complete control of what bills the House considers. That means Democratic priorities are almost always blocked, and the hard right effectively has veto power on what is considered and what is not.

Mr. Jeffries said on Oct. 15 that “there are informal conversations that have been underway,” but he has since declined to offer any details about what a power-sharing agreement would look like…

You want to meet them?

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
There are 9 Republican men vying to be Speaker.

Tonight’s GOP Speaker candidate forum is brought to you by some of the worst special interest groups.

🧵Let’s meet the candidates and their sponsors:

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Tom Emmer’s Speaker candidacy is brought to you by the finance and the insurance industry, who has given him $263,000 so far this year to use his position on the Financial Services committee to protect Wall St, promote deregulation, and increase the wealth of billionaires.⬇️ https://t.co/0T8Yld8F2g
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471391061492192?t=BkAzr9rkadoxDhCkzOuj9Q&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Kevin Hern sits on Ways and Means which write our tax laws. He’s received $113,500 so far this year from the finance, insurance and real estate industries to ensure their taxes stay low, Medicare and Social Security get cut, and billionaires get more tax breaks.⬇️ https://t.co/n3TVTz7UFj
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471393506742461?t=N3jnt7I9nbh2N4LVArOf6Q&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Jack Bergman is on the Armed Services Committee, so naturally military contractors, who always look for ways to increase their contracts and profits, have given him the most amount of money this year — $36,750. ⬇️ https://t.co/RX7aLjVQCP
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471395553526205?t=ncEhqUCR4hEZQy8MH8U0pQ&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Austin Scott sits on the House Agriculture Committee. He’s taken $109,300 from Agribusiness corporate PACs so far this year, who are fighting for taxpayer subsidies and deregulation which makes the food we eat less safe, and local environments more polluted.⬇️ https://t.co/54UiXm3ryD
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471397571047919?t=EE1ySsmy5N5uMpwJFQcDTQ&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Byron Donalds sits on the Financial Services Committee, and so far this year has taken $88,500 from the companies he’s supposed to regulate.

He’s also on the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which means nothing since he’s paid by lobbyists to reform nothing.⬇️ https://t.co/uPWdPIFYFF
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471399563317648?t=EHmzOgT_nU5Jel1uLTJzIA&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Mike Johnson has taken $89,000 this year from the companies he regulates.

He also thinks women have abortions after a baby is born, so that should tell you everything you need to know about Mike Johnson, and why men shouldn’t have a say in a woman’s health decisions.⬇️ https://t.co/p6xIcrF3CO
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471402151239734?t=HkPQNxQyJ5goF4k9HztRbw&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Pete Sessions sits on the Financial Services Committee and has taken $43,000 so far this year from the financial companies who would benefit from him demanding we cut Social Security and Medicare to provide more tax breaks for Wall St and billionaires.⬇️ https://t.co/HsyE4FjGXT
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471404520952110?t=gxkoADCZnW5OEDBeo2AkTA&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Dan Meuser sits on the Financial Services Committee and has taken $85,000 this year from the companies he regulates.

He also said that climate change is a hoax, and was rewarded with $20,000 from fossil fuel PACs this year.⬇️ https://t.co/nO54qgc1hS
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471406584590683?t=7Grq5QGXzwwkZpA4yPklHw&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
Rep. Gary Palmer called climate change a hoax and helped lead the right-wing uproar over the “attacks” on gas stoves.

He sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee, and has taken $142,900 from the Oil and Gas Industry.⬇️ https://t.co/OsSw8dZiQP
(https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1716471408694346084?t=_pFd4-b1vi_k9BUUsWo-jw&s=03)

Melanie D’Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) posted at 10:07 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
No matter which of the 9 men Republicans choose to be Speaker, all will support cutting Social Security and Medicare, all will oppose protecting reproductive rights, and all prioritize the wealth of billionaires over the safety and financial security of working-class Americans.

And, the lot of them are 2020 Election Deniers.

Even the ones who ‘supposedly’ aren’t.

Emmer and Scott (the only two who voted to certify the election) signed on to the lawsuit out of Texas to overturn electors so Trump could win regardless – so they are insurrectionists too. Wish the reporting were clear on that.

And more:

For those that have asked, Bergman, Emmer, Scott & Sessions voted for $300 million in supplemental aid to Ukraine (on September 28)

Donalds, Hern, Johnson, Meuser & Palmer voted against it

I know it hurt Tappers BOTH SIDES heart to say this out loud:

Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) posted at 9:21 AM on Sun, Oct 22, 2023:
Jake Tapper to GOP Rep. Mike Turner: “I hope you don’t take this personally, but do you guys have any idea how clownish you are?” https://t.co/I5VFWyNvYq
(https://x.com/atrupar/status/1716097573042245816?t=vffFshXheh9kBGwKXvwvZg&s=03)