Home Majority Chief Steve Scalise defended Speaker Mike Johnson’s resolution to carry last week’s failed vote on impeaching Homeland Safety Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, telling CNN in an interview the vote was a “powerful judgement name” and that it might have helped lock in GOP lawmakers on the fence.
“They felt it was essential, there have been some members that , may need been going backwards and forwards, and to lock them in,” Scalise mentioned forward of a second vote to question Mayorkas scheduled for Tuesday evening.
“I do know these are all powerful judgment calls, however to just be sure you lock everyone into who’s a ‘sure,’ and now we all know we’re one vote brief, and let’s go get that finished,” Scalise added.
Scalise missed final week’s impeachment vote – which failed in an embarrassing defeat, 214-216, with three Home Republicans voting towards it – however he’s again in Washington on Tuesday and in “full remission” following profitable stem cell remedy for a type of blood most cancers.
The vote is being held the identical evening that New York is holding a particular election to switch expelled former Republican Rep. George Santos, giving Democrats the chance to make the GOP’s razor-thin majority within the Home even tighter.
Whereas Republicans received the district in 2022 with Santos, Scalise sought to downplay expectations, noting that Republican candidate Mazi Pilip goes up towards former Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi in a congressional district that President Joe Biden carried in 2020.
“The entire Democratic equipment of the state of New York is supporting Suozzi in a Democrat-leaning seat,” Scalise mentioned. “So, if we’re capable of pull this off, it will be an actual type of shock-the-world second and present that the Republicans can win in powerful locations.”
If Democrats win Tuesday evening, Scalise wouldn’t say whether or not Republicans would remorse that Santos, who’s going through federal fees, was kicked out of Congress.
“On the finish of the day, that occurred, the Home did its will, you possibly can’t undo that. So, the true query is, can we nonetheless maintain the seat?” Scalise requested. “Santos was a shock when he flipped that seat. So , we’re going to be working laborious to carry it. And the Democrats are absolutely pulling out each cease to attempt to get it as nicely.”
Scalise backed Johnson’s vow to not take up the Senate’s $95.3 billion international support invoice that passed 70-29 early Tuesday morning. Whereas GOP Senate Chief Mitch McConnell known as on Johnson to carry a vote on the measure, which incorporates support for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, the Home speaker has mentioned that the bundle should additionally embody border safety – though Home Republicans swiftly rejected a border compromise struck by the Senate earlier this month.
Scalise mentioned that the Senate deal didn’t have any key insurance policies from the Republican immigration invoice that handed the Home final 12 months.
“That invoice remains to be sitting over within the Senate, however these insurance policies should be a part of any type of deal,” Scalise mentioned. “We’ve been clear from the start that you just’ve obtained to truly give attention to securing America’s border, particularly if you’re speaking about Ukraine.”
Scalise mentioned that an immigration invoice was “not nearly getting, , just a few folks in a room collectively and saying let’s cross a invoice that we will all agree on” – a reference to the Senate’s negotiations, which included Republican Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma.
This story has been up to date with extra developments.