House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) made his move to lead the lower chamber before the final votes were even cast against then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), three sources with knowledge of the maneuver told The Post Thursday.
“The Scalise people were definitely making moves before McCarthy could even get out of the chamber,” one Republican aide recalled.
“Obviously, they knew stuff before that we didn’t know,” the person added, referencing Democrats’ decision to back far-right Rep. Matt Gaetz’s (R-Fla.) effort to remove McCarthy, which succeeded in a 216-210 vote.
Another source confirmed Scalise’s rush to replace McCarthy as the votes were being tallied — and said the perceived slight to the now-former speaker could hurt the no. 2 Republican’s chances of winning support in his bid for the gavel.
“Getting 218 without McCarthy’s explicit backing is impossible for Scalise, and even could be tough if he gets that,” the aide said.
A spokeswoman for Scalise disputed the timeline, telling The Post: “That is categorically false. Leader Scalise did not make any calls until after McCarthy stepped down.”
“In fact, Leader Scalise did not announce his bid until hours after Chairman Jordan did,” she added.
A House Republican lawmaker said Scalise’s outreach “was too early” regardless of the exact timing and left McCarthy “pissed,” according to The Messenger, which first reported on the move.
Scalise would be the obvious choice to take up the speaker’s gavel after McCarthy’s ouster, but some aides raised concerns about Scalise’s health and ability to steer a fiercely divided GOP caucus.
The Louisiana Republican was recently diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer, and has been seen wearing a mask in the US Capitol building while undergoing chemotherapy.
In 2017, Scalise was shot and seriously wounded during a practice for the annual congressional baseball game by a left-wing extremist, but recovered after several surgeries and blood transfusions. He still walks with a slight limp.
“God already gave me another chance at life,” Scalise wrote in a Wednesday morning letter requesting his colleagues’ support. “I believe we were all put here for a purpose. This next chapter won’t be easy, but I know what it takes to fight and I am prepared for the battles that lie ahead.”
“While we have made tremendous progress so far this Congress and have demonstrated that we can unite against failing liberal policies, more work needs to be done,” he added. “We have an extremely talented Conference, and we all need to come together.”
The call for unity could be difficult given Scalise — like McCarthy before him — would have to convince hardline House Republicans to back him over Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who has also thrown his hat into the ring.
Gaetz indicated Tuesday he would support Scalise or House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) for the speakership.
But neither Scalise nor Emmer has endorsed former President Donald Trump in the 2024 election, one GOP aide noted, leaving them open to attacks of being too moderate for the current drift of the caucus.
Others, like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), have even suggested Trump should be elected as the next speaker, and the former president has expressed interest in the idea, one aide told The Post Wednesday.
Any such elevation would require a change to House Republican rules, one of which expressly states: “A member of the Republican Leadership shall step aside if indicted for a felony for which a sentence of two or more years’ imprisonment may be imposed.”
Trump, 77, is expected to visit Capitol Hill on Friday to discuss the opportunity, according to reports.
Meanwhile, Jordan has garnered support from members who both voted for and against McCarthy’s removal, including Gaetz and libertarian-leaning Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who called the Judiciary chairman his “first choice.”
Former members of McCarthy’s staff have also begun working the phones in Jordan’s favor rather than on Scalise’s behalf, Semafor reported.
The founding House Freedom Caucus member may have an opportunity to unite the warring factions of the Republican Party, another GOP aide noted.