announcer: c-span is your unfiltered view of government. we are sponsored by these companies, including charter. >> charter has spent billions

empowering opportunity in communities big and small. charter is connecting us. announcer: charter commications supports c-span as public service, along with these other television providers. giving you a front row seat to democracy. announcer: coming up on "washington journal," emily brooks will join us to talk about the house speaker election. steven horsford will then talk about his position as black caucus chair. "washington journal" starts now. ♪ host: in five hours, at noon eastern, the u.s. house will return to try to elect a speaker. three more times yesterday kevin

mccarthy failed to get the majority to win. he has lost by 19 to 20 votes in six straight tallies. there were plenty of negotiations on and off the floor yesterday, but there are signs this morning mccarthy is nowhere near winning support. it is thursday, january 5, 2023. we are asking republicans only to call and ask if you support or oppose kevin mccarthy? if you support kevin mccarthy, the line is (202)-748-8000. if you oppose, (202)-748-8001. you can also reach us via text no matter party at (202)-748-8003. we are on facebook and twitter and we will look for your posts and comments @cspanwj.

the house is coming in at noon eastern. coverage will get underway at 11:50 a.m. eastern this morning. we will see what goes from there. our coverage on c-span and c-span.org, streaming live and on the mobile app at c-span now. if you support kevin mccarthy, republicans only, (202)-748-8000 the line if you support kevin mccarthy. (202)-748-8001 is the line to call if you oppose. we will get to your calls momentarily. we are joined by emily brooks who covers the house for "the hill" at thehill.com. good morning. can you tell us anything about

the negotiations going on to break that deadlock? guest: good morning. we did hear from some of the holdouts like representative roy and representative dan bishop during one of those floor votes. they were expressing positivity about how negotiations were going. i am hearing more details about what exactly those measures those holdouts have been discussing with leader mccarthy and his allies have been. one of those is potentially lowering the threshold for the motion to vacate the chair, which would essentially force the vote on ousting the speaker, which was mccarthy's original offer. that is something they are considering.

there is also potential for a bill on term limits to come to the floor. there has been discussion on the makeup of the rules committee and some key committees. the holdouts and members of the house caucus have been pushing for more representation on those committees. so, there is no agreement yet, and even those members who say negotiations have progressed, those do not account for the total group of 20 who say they will never vote for kevin mccarthy. with him being only able to lose five votes it remains to be seen what his path to speakership is. host: these negotiations a lot about the rules package, both republicans and democrats will operate, in the 118th congress. correct? guest: absolutely.

they cannot do anything until they have a rules package which cannot happen until there is a speaker of the house. a lot of this is up for negotiation up until that point. host: let me ask you about the candidacy of republican byron donalds out of florida. was it surprising he emerged as the point man in terms of the speaker candidate of the 19 or 20 that opposed kevin mccarthy? guest: it was a little bit of a surprise, but then again, nobody is really expecting that to be a very serious consensus alternative candidate to kevin mccarthy. he cannot win at this point. in the day before, it was jim jordan the members were voting for. of course, we also saw votes for people like andy biggs, there was one for lee zeldin.

this is a display from those 20 holdouts of alternatives they think could happen, but it is not quite serious. it is possible if there are more votes on the floor today they pick somebody else. lauren boebert set on fox news may she will nominate trump. it is more symbolic than serious. host: it is a long day ahead for you in your coverage. one quick question in terms of the meetings this morning. will there be a meeting of the republican conference this morning? what do you expect when the house gavels at noon? guest: i am sure they will be ongoing meetings. it is to be determined if there will be a republican congress meeting, but the discussions for what happens when the house gavels in at noon is fluid and

they were fluid yesterday and they were fluid at 8:00 p.m. last night. leader mccarthy said he did not think there was any reason to keep holding votes when discussions were ongoing and it would not be productive. depending on where those members are in negotiations it is possible they could call a motion to vacate today. that will be determined by how many republicans decide they want to keep holding votes because democrats are fine watching leader mccarthy fail on each ballot and have been voting against adjourning. host: our guest reporting is available at thehill.com and you can follow her on twitter. we appreciate you joining us on c-span. guest: thank you. host: our opening question on

the program for you for republicans only this first hour. do you support or oppose the speaker election of kevin mccarthy? if you support his nomination, (202)-748-8000. if you oppose, (202)-748-8001. first up is gloria from derby, kansas. caller: good morning. can you hear me? host: yes, we can. we can hear you just fine. caller: i just wanted to say bob roy, boebert, matt gaetz and biggs are troublemakers and hypocrites. president trump has endorsed mccarthy and these guys say they are trump supporters and they are maga people. they are nothing but hypocrites and troublemakers and they are

hurting the republican party. i do not think any of them will be reelected and i hope when mccarthy gets in he will not allow any of them to be on a committee. they do not deserve anything. and i feel very sorry for donald. he is being used by these people. he does not have enough experience to be speaker and i feel sorry for him. they are using him because they cannot find anybody else. one of them got up yesterday and was saying, we can elect the first black person for congress. they sound like democrats. this man is a nice man and i feel sorry for him. he does not have enough experience.

he should take his name off the ballot and not allow them to vote for him. host: let's go to the opposing line. republican callers only this morning. go ahead, john. you are on the air, go ahead. john in alabama? caller: yes? host: you are on the air. go ahead. caller: i would prefer any trump supporter cannot be elected. [laughs] host: ok. clarence in nashville, tennessee, supporting the bid by kevin mccarthy. caller: i do support kevin mccarthy. he was not my first choice but he certainly is at this point. my own representative, and he ogles -- andy ogles, who has not

even been sworn in, he is one of the opposers and i cannot imagine why. i cannot imagine why he and the others like him feel they have the authority within that caucus to demand some of the things they are demanding. changes need to be made from when ms. pelosi was speaker because she had 50% winning and ruled like a prison warden with her caucus. that is not so with this caucus that they are demanding more than they should. too much of it is personal stuff they want for themselves, for their glory. i do support mccarthy.

you need to let those who are opposing this know that their reelection is certainly on the line by continuing to hold out. thank you and god bless america. host: clarence on the support line, (202)-748-8000. the line if you oppose kevin mccarthy is (202)-748-8001. we appreciate the background on why you support or oppose kevin mccarthy's leadership bid. he has lost six votes in the house. wednesday, yesterday and tuesday and the house back again at noon eastern without coverage on c-span getting underway at 11:50 eastern. frank is in silver creek, georgia also supporting the bid of kevin mccarthy. go ahead. caller: i guess if i was a rep

and i had to vote, i know more about mccarthy than these other guys. i am going to have to support whoever the republicans vote for. it is probably going to be mccarthy, so you might as well get used to it. when you talk about conformity it is a form of cowardice. anybody can be a dead fish and go with the flow and that has been the problem the last 50 years in government. nobody stands up and says what is on their mind and what is right. conflict is good. without conflict you do not have resolve. republicans cannot lead, that is what the media says. you know what? the democrats are leading us straight to communism, because that is what they are, communists. host: our next caller supporting

kevin mccarthy. caller: hi. host: hi, joy. caller: i believe he has shown wisdom in the past and he would make good choices in the future in things concerning the borders we have in texas and with mexico. and i feel he is the right person to be speaker of the house. and i say vote for him, everybody. host: couple of comments on twitter. this is from elon musk, the chief of twitter and tesla and spacex. "kevin mccarthy should be speaker." from cbs' robert costa, mccarthy is waiting for the go sign. talks have not collapsed but they are not over yet. plum committee seats but is that enough?

from mike of politico saying, must read playbook in d.c. inside mccarthy's brewing speaker deal. that is the headline of the playbook. their team is reporting on negotiations. i will read you that this morning. after spending the last 48 hours on life support, kevin mccarthy's vid is seeing a potential revival. political rights following a roller coaster of a wednesday in which the california republican failed three more times to secure the 208 votes mccarthy and his critics got into a room where both sides are describing a productive conversation. after slamming coffee at midnight and working the phones until the wee hours we have a new readout of the concessions mccarthy offered his critics and where things stand. new concessions on the table, a one member motion to vacate the gop leader, acquiescing to the

demand to lower the threshold needed to force a vote ousting a speaker to just one member. rules committee seats for freedom caucus. mccarthy will give the house freedom caucus two seats on the powerful house committee. a vote on term limits. this is key for ralph norman of south carolina that has proposed an amendment limiting lawmakers to three terms in the house and major changes in the appropriations process. politico reports fears of another trillion dollar omnibus spending bill have been a driver of the conservative backlash for mccarthy. the brewing deal includes a standalone vote on each of the 12 yearly appropriations bills which would be considered under what is known as an open role, allowing floor amendments to be opened by any lawmaker. the reporting this morning from politico playbook. in california, austin opposing kevin mccarthy's speakership. go ahead.

caller: i oppose it. it is the typical establishment. it is a democracy. we are not a democracy. we are a constitutional republic. democracy would give majority rule. i agree with matt gaetz. we cannot keep going down the same rabbit hole and getting bit. we have been doing that for nearly 100 years and now we are opposing it again. i do not have a problem with kevin mccarthy on the same merit as i would have with the democrats. i would rather have mccarthy than jeffries but i do not want to go down the same establishment because they are both bad. i want to take a chance on the new guy. host: pennsylvania, betty is up

next. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. i would rather have mccarthy in rather than anybody else because i feel he knows what to do. he has been there before so he understands. i do want to vote for him. nobody else but him. host: who is your representative in the u.s. house? do you know how that member is voting? caller: no, i don't know. mozer i think it is. host: appreciate you calling in. support or oppose the nomination of kevin mccarthy to be speaker of the house. republicans only. teresa in st. mary's, ohio. caller: i want mccarthy. i think he would be good.

that is about it. host: ok. couple of folks have mentioned byron donalds who was voted on a couple of times yesterday. got some 20 votes or so in the tallies yesterday for speaker. this is an article in the fort myers news press. far right gop backs byron donalds as still that continues. the one term republican on wednesday stepped into the center of a dramatic stalemate over the election of a new speaker of the house. the far right breakaway gop faction nominated byron donalds, first elected in 2020, in an unexpected and longshot bid to serve as the chamber's leader and the third most powerful post in government. however, his candidacy to become the first african-american speaker failed to move the needle. in wednesday's voting, he

received only 20 votes. the favorite, kevin mccarthy, continued to draw overwhelming support. congressman donald's on tuesday supported kevin mccarthy in the first two rounds and then switched his vote on the third round. he was asked yesterday on fox news about that. [video clip] rep. donalds: i said i would vote for kevin on ballot one. at that point, we were deadlocked and it was clear he did not have the votes. my thought is, if he does not have the votes, what are we going to do with the conference to find some way who gets a minimum adjourn what we are doing so needed negotiations can happen? i think it was not in a good place for the republican converse to stay on the house floor. people back home we'll try to

figure out what is going on on capitol hill but what we are having is a deliberative process about house leadership and getting washington back on track. for too long in the nation's capitol, everyone has gone along. this is more about an open conversation. >> no doubt about it the republicans have lost prestige and the opponents to get mccarthy have dug in. it looks like he feels this is a lose-lose. you do not feel that way? rep. donalds: every time something goes on we find a way to make it happen and i think we will make this happen. but you have members who are no's against kevin. some of those members need to

have one-on-one meetings with him and hammer this out. i do not know if that has happened, but that is further apart than it needs to be. after i talk with you this morning i am going to sit with members and find ways we can hammer out a resolution so we can elect a speaker and get down to the business the american people sent us here to do. host: the gulf coast representatives got 20 votes in those three rounds yesterday. we are asking republicans only this morning, do you support or oppose kevin mccarthy for speaker of the house? if you support, (202)-748-8000. if you oppose, (202)-748-8001. via text at (202)-748-8003. this from jaclyn in connecticut, i support mccarthy because i am against the 20 opposers who were part of the insurrection on transfer of power. now the insurrection on the transfer of power for speaker of

the house. 100 republicans also opposed transfer of power on the 6th. russ california, 20 voters making it personal even though they agree with mccarthy's overall agenda. steve on twitter, mccarthy has earned every amount of entity democrats and other patriotic people show him. a true independent outside the house must be enlisted. from patrick, mccarthy has not always stood up for republicans. may be time for someone new. does not matter at this point. biden cannot pass anything without congress. we could hold up for the next two years. nice to see representatives working for the people. elaine is in connecticut and supports kevin mccarthy. good morning. caller: good morning. i support him 100% and i think

it is a disgrace to go on and on for days because he will be the best speaker of the house. i think he knows more and it was a disgrace the way the democrats got popcorn and things. they should have thrown them all out. it is just awful. they are doing to kevin what they did to trump. they are ripping him apart. it is a disgrace. caller: louisiana, andy is on the oppose line. caller: let's cut to the chase. the party is not unified. one person can unify the party quickly, his name is donald j. trump. make him third in line to the presidency. he would be the best unifier of the republican party. also, that would bring out the

ones that are against him now. that is a reality -- and a good southern term -- y'all should understand popcorn on the floor is disgraceful. just bring donald trump's name out and those who vote against him, they will not be elected again. thank you so much. host: to follow on your comment, "washington times" with the influence of the former president. front page story, trump has no power of persuasion with allies. former president donald trump did not move the needle wednesday by campaigning for house republicans to elect representative elect kevin mccarthy. renewed questions about his sway over the party. mr. trump warned an anti-faction of 20 lawmakers they were

risking "an embarrassing defeat" and were "playing a dangerous game" by voting against mccarthy. some say he called them individually. yet not a single one, all staunch trump allies, heeded the call. john is next in north carolina, also opposing kevin mccarthy. caller: i do not think he is capable of the job. if you look back at roy's speech and scott perry's speech, they are saying he is not fit for office. he is just another democrat hiding in the republican regime. he wants to keep our country going in the wrong direction. get rid of him. put donalds in. two years of house congress?

i would rather have him in then mccarthy. virginia foxx as my representative and she is pretty bad also. keep on voting mccarthy. 's people did not listen to either one of those speeches, they should not be voting for mccarthy at all. host: john mentioned chip roy's comments about byron donalds. he nominated byron donalds in one of the rounds yesterday. [video clip] rep. roy: yesterday, my first vote for speaker of the house was for byron donalds. today, i am rising to nominate byron donalds for speaker of the house. [applause] byron is a dear friend, solid conservative, but most

importantly a family man who loves dearly his wife, erica, his three children, has a proven track record as a businessman, public service in the florida legislature, and now as a member of the united states congress. now, here we are, and for the first time in history, there have been two black americans placed into the nomination for speaker of the house. [applause] host: that was chip roy, not jim jordan, on the screen. the nominating speech for byron donalds, who, in three straight

rounds, got nowhere near the 218 needed to be house speaker. the house returning at noon eastern today. our coverage will begin at 11:50 as we anticipate a seventh vote. asking republicans only this morning to call and support or oppose kevin mccarthy. joe in pennsylvania, hello. caller: kevin mccarthy should not resign from the house speakership event. mike kelly is my representative in pennsylvania. if mccarthy quits, mike kelly loses -- or western pennsylvania loses our voice of mike kelly. it then gets transferred to roy and gaetz and green.

nobody else matters. those 20 will run the house of representatives and that is why i support mccarthy. mccarthy has to be there. he has to stay the line. he has to allow mike kelly to represent pennsylvania rather than roy and gaetz and green. host: margaret is on the oppose line in maine. caller: i oppose him. i would go for donalds. i think we need a change in washington and reelecting the status quo does not bring change. we do the same thing in the senate. mcconnell is always elected and i do not know why he is leader. i want some many different. host: what is the practical way to get that somebody different? byron donalds and jim jordan gets 20 votes.

kevin mccarthy cannot get 218. what is the secret to getting some of these republicans to rally behind? caller: i think we are kind of going through the process and that's what has to happen. i think people have to stand up for what they believe in. ultimately, mccarthy is either going to have to step down, because he is not going to get those votes, and maybe they go back to the table. but him thinking they are going to give in, nobody is giving in. you cannot change somebody's mind with a political ad. people know what they want and i am tired of what is happening in washington. i am tired of hearing all the things going on wrong with the states and i am in a democratic state. i would really like to see donalds get it.

i think he could be a good change and if the rest of the congress does not want to go with it, they are going to have to keep going and keep opposing. there is nothing else that can be done. host: also on the oppose line is james in katy, texas. caller: how are you doing? host: doing great. caller: i was against the 20 for mccarthy but i got to thinking. this is part of democracy and the 20 -- i did some research -- and mccarthy is a rhino. scalise talked about about donald trump with other people and mccarthy did not get the vote. they need to find somebody else they can all agree on. host: that is the question from the previous caller.

is the process we are seeing now the process of doing that? right now, no one is close. kevin mccarthy is 20 votes shy. in terms of the republican side. the democratic side is behind hakeem jeffries but the democrats will not have the numbers to get to 218. caller: they need to decide on somebody they can agree on. the only way the republican party is going to coalesce and stick together is by agreeing, all of them, the 20 that oppose and the 200 for him. byron donalds, he is not qualified. they need to find somebody that is more qualified than kevin mccarthy and that's it. host: john is also on the oppose line on the gulf coast in

florida. caller: good morning. yeah, i oppose mccarthy and i support the 20 that are trying to make changes in washington, d.c. we all know mitch mcconnell, how he goes along. we have seen him with biden yesterday. the reason why i oppose this is for changes. we have to make changes in washington, d.c. as far as a candidate, i like steve scalise. i would support him and i think the 20 that are trying to make changes, some of them will also support him. i believe donalds, i like donalds. however, i believe he needs more

experience and down the road, he will be in leadership. host: the lines are (202)-748-8000 if you support the speakership of kevin mccarthy. if you oppose, (202)-748-8001. had a woman from maine talking about the political ads. they are already out. this is from the lincoln project, which opposes a number of republicans and president trump. here is the latest. [video clip] ♪ >> ready, fight! [bell dinging] >> matt gaetz and others will not take the win. they do not care about doing the right thing for america. >> my frustration with him as we have actually given into those points. you should be in the room. the democrats are laughing, cackling. >> very clearly looking for

notoriety. >> if you want to drain the swamp, you cannot put the biggest alligator in charge of the exercise. >> the president needs to tell kevin mccarthy, you do not have the votes and it is time to withdraw. >> do you believe he is no longer viable? >> i think the path is very difficult for kevin. [bell dinging] ♪ host: that ad from the lincoln project. comments on social media. mark sends this tweet saying, is it possible mccarthy is losing because he is backed by trump? they had a horrible showing for republicans in the 2022 midterms. mary lou says mccarthy has no pride and no ethics. he is giving away the republican party to the freedom caucus. hopefully this will be the destruction of the republican party.

melissa, i am against kevin mccarthy. we do not need trump cronies in positions of power. this one says, i support mccarthy for house speaker. i suggest giving the young representatives what they want only if it benefits their districts. we go to karen in fort worth, texas supporting kevin mccarthy. caller: hi. are you there? host: yes, go ahead. caller: good morning. i am in support of kevin mccarthy. i did not know him too well the last couple of years but i got to listen to some of his speeches and i like him. i like what he had to say. these people that are still yelling for trump, they need to shut up. he ain't going to be back in. it does not matter whether he supports that guy or not.

his influence does not matter. only mccarthy matters. the 20 that are against him, they are being spoiled brats. from what i understand -- and i may be wrong, so tell me if i am -- but one of their main holdouts is the fact they want to bring back some deal where it only takes one person to stand up and nominate to vacate the seat? host: yes, that is one of the points of contention. but kevin mccarthy had offered the number at five and not one from the reporting i have seen. that has been an area of contention and negotiation over the rules of the house. caller: i mean, i don't understand exactly what that would mean. would that mean he would have to immediately vacate or would there be a vote? host: it would allow for one

member to bring the vote forward. it is a point of privilege in the house and the rule was changed when nancy pelosi became speaker. there was a raise to a higher threshold and the republicans, particularly the 20 who oppose kevin mccarthy, want to reduce that threshold to one but they have agreed on five. but it could still be a point of contention. caller: if it stopped being a rule while pelosi was in office, i think that is the most terrible person we have ever had. i do not like her at all. i am glad she is gone. i would find it hard to trust somebody who would be able to bring up a vote to oust me out of the seat because i was

putting in all the hours and hard work. i like what jim jordan had to say the other day. it is the exact same 20 that keep holding out. it is the exact same ones. they are letting all the united states down by doing that, not just their own districts. everybody else that has voted for mccarthy, they are going against everybody. host: here is the headline in "the washington post," gop stalemate continues in speaker vote. next to that they have photos of all of the republicans who have voted against mccarthy. we will look at that as we continue with your calls and look at the members. byron donalds, who was nominated yesterday, failed to get the numbers to become speaker. roy is up next in charleston,

south carolina and opposes kevin mccarthy. caller: good morning. i oppose mccarthy because he is wishy-washy and these 20 need to stand up. we need to put somebody in line that is going to do what we need to do this coming term as far as these investigations. i think we need to go outside the parties, which we can, and nominate somebody like trey gowdy. host: from upland, california, alan is on the support line. caller: i am pro mccarthy. host: tell us why. caller: i think the guy is a negotiator. i think he is willing to compromise on the process of

going and electing membership leaders. he has been honorable. he backed donald trump, who i am a very big supporter of, and frankly, i am disappointed in mcconnell and the way he has handled this whole situation. not only in the process of getting support -- too much support of the democratic agenda. i think he had a chance to stop that omnibus funding bill that went through and he basically gave the back of his hand to mccarthy, trying to let the house of representatives do its

job and set the budget to prevent that omnibus package. host: is it your view that mitch mcconnell, the republican leader in the senate, would have no influence in the determination of who republicans should choose in the house as speaker? caller: well, i think he caved too much to biden when biden took over. i think he was weak in supporting the nomination of certain states they wanted to put up as congressman and senate. but particularly the issue with the alaska election. so many other supports he did not give to the senators and

congressmen donald trump backed. mcconnell, i think, was a deadweight. host: thank you for your input. fort worth, texas and the reporting from politico on the negotiations that have happened overnight inside mccarthy's brewing speaker deal. this is part of their reporting. new concessions on the table. we touched on this earlier, but further details on the motion to vacate. the republican leader appears to have acquiesced to a demand to lower the threshold needed to force a vote ousting a speaker to one member.

while mccarthy originally indicated restoring the one member motion to vacate was a redline, his allies argued there is not a huge practical difference between this and his previous offer of requiring five members to trigger the vote. in santa cruz, california, mike is opposing kevin mccarthy. good morning. caller: good morning. shout out to all of the first responders around the country helping people dealing with climate change. host: how are you dealing with the storms this morning this past week? are you ok? caller: i am great. i am 10 minutes from natural bridge's beach. looking forward to the 20 foot surf. [laughter] i am opposed to mr. mccarthy and i will tell you why. he is a hungry guy and he is not going to get what he wants. in 2002, when i was living in

georgia, sonny perdue became governor. let's switch this around. 15 people in congress switched and make hakeem jeffries the speaker. younger guy, obviously capable, and maybe that will give things an interesting twist. i am not really in favor of the democratic agenda, but at the same time, these are power-hungry people. the electorate will tell them what to do. that is my take on it. host: richard in minneapolis on the support line. caller: good morning. hakeem jeffries is way, way liberal. you could not get any further left than hakeem jeffries. when i saw this representative on hannity last night,

she could make sense of her reasons. her opposition was mainly personal. she did not like the way mccarthy came back at their opponents. these opponents are going to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. they are going to ruin the whole country and wouldn't it be nice if a liberal like hakeem jeffries got in? these guys are playing with something they do not know. i am going to remember every one of their names and vote against them if they go over anything else. they are out of their mind. thank you and let's hope those 20 gain some sense. host: this is from the wall street journal. biden-mcconnell hailed bipartisan funding of the bridge project.

president biden and mitch mcconnell, made possible under the 2020 infrastructure bill, offering bipartisanship as washington lurches into a contentious era of divided government. here is the senate leader, minority leader, speaking of bipartisanship and getting things done. [video clip] sen. mcconnell: governor beshear , the house led by david osborne, chris mcdaniel took the lead in frankfurt, providing the magic funds we needed to make this project go forward. so, it is not just this project but the infrastructure bill the president signed provides dramatic additional assistance.

look at the kentucky side of the river. over $8 billion over the next five years. this is really quite significant, and as we know, even though it benefits us in ohio and kentucky, nationally, this was one of the big projects in the entire country to deal with the crumbling infrastructure we have been talking about for years. we finally stepped up together and addressed it. it is also great to see the governor of ohio here. we used to be colleagues in the senate. governor dewine. if you look at the political alignment of every one of us, it is the government working together to solve a measured problem at a time when the government needs to see examples like this of coming together and getting an outcome. host: that presidential trip

yesterday to kentucky. the president to visit border on trip to mexico. president biden intended to visit the u.s.-mexico border during his trip to mexico city next week. "we are working out the details now." those comments after the wall street journal reported the white house was strongly considering adding a visit to the border to the mexico trip. mr. biden is expected to meet mexican president and the prime minister of canada with the north american leaders summit on monday and tuesday. 10 minutes left of your comments and calls on republicans only. support or oppose kevin mccarthy for speaker? on social media, this is steve in texas. excuse me, steve in tucson, does the present situation in the house portend what might happen

in the 2024 republican convention? derek says, why do so many people have trouble with the word qualify? i think ted cruz would be a terrible president but he would qualify. you may not like mccarthy and i do not trust him but he is qualified. you claim a businessman is qualified to be president. jersey girl says, i am surprised there are no callers that say they support kevin mccarthy. i thought he was a nonstarter out of d.c. however, i enjoy how the gop is crying about the dems and their imaginary popcorn even though they created this mess. michael says, maybe they should have a ranked choice vote and the winner will be the nominee to bring to the house. now to make any, texas -- mckinney, texas and peter. caller: how are you today? host: fine. thank you. caller: i guess i am part of the

rebellion? my representative is not a congressman yet because no one has been sworn in yet. this would be his first term. i wanted to give a shout out to to the 20 brave congressmen -- well, they are not really congressman yet. think about how brave they have to be to be voting against mr. mccarthy. once you do something like this it is not like you can undo it. they risk having their offices be put in the bathroom or a parking spot outside the capitol because of what they are doing. what they are doing, in my opinion, is they are attempting to fight what many call the uniparty. that is where republicans like

me and democrats on the others, we look at our parties and think, is there really a difference between the two? as a republican, i look at mitch mcconnell and think, good grief, i am not sure what he is with the things he is doing. look at what the lame-duck session did to this new incoming 118th congress. they neutered them with the passage of this $1.7 trillion omnibus bill. there is a lot of things going on. many people are not thinking about and discussing this selection of speaker. it has nothing to do with anyone other than the members of the congress. it has nothing to do with president trump, nothing to do with mitch mcconnell. this is people in congress wanting to restore the rules from 10 years ago where bills did not get pulled out of smoke-filled rooms that were 4000 pages long and nobody

had the chance to read and they would say vote on it. this is a fight against that. it is a brave fight and i do not know if it will win, but i am so proud of my rep. host: there are no congressman yet. everybody is a member elect until the speaker is elected and they are sworn in by the speaker. if you look at the morning announcement that came overnight from steve scalise's office, he says majority leader elect. house coming in today at noon for business and after the election of the speaker of the house, swearing in of members and delegates, house resolution blank rules adoption. because there is no rules committee. landed is up next -- landon is up next in south dakota supporting mccarthy. caller: as a combat veteran,

that has lived in several different states, leaving combat and going into law i find this really upsetting. in the realm of what we are looking at right now, the platoon could not function. people would die. that is just a matter of fact. i think there are dudes in the white wakes beating on their graves -- wigs beating on their graves to get out and fix this stuff. i think the party needs to come together and what they need to do is unify behind something that makes sense. is that the best option?

yeah. is it the optimal scenario? probably not. but i think if we capitulate to a one person vote to vacate that office, i think what we do is open it up to every five weeks my dad is bigger than your dad type stuff. and the next thing you know we have somebody else. i think that is going to be problematic for the party and i think the other side is going to take advantage of that. host: appreciate you sharing your military experience and perspective on the issue. welches, oregon is next, robber. caller: good from the mountains of oregon. i am a lifelong republican. i want very much for my party to

do a time-honored thing that has happened in the past. elect one of our own and he would be a consensus candidate that would cross the line and be embraced by our party -- jim jordan. host: mr. jordan came up for a vote and fell short. how do you think they can improve that? caller: that is because he was very, and he has been, positive in not wanting to throw his hat in the ring. but i think washington the way it is, there is a strong enough -- he is compelling and i think

enough pressure was put on him and mccarthy was repeatedly denied the 218 votes, he might be pushed into it. it would not be that he sought it or was going for it, he would be pushed into it, drafted. and enough pressure would be put on him. that is what i hope and i think it would be great for our party. and it would also be one who would come to the fight not through solicitation of his own but because of a consensus push that would be so overwhelming he would have to take it. and then we would have a damn good speaker that was strong,

compelling, and certainly -- host: you are breaking up. a tweet from sue, i would like to see kevin mccarthy put some distance between himself and former president trump. other than that, i am not sure i understand the objections. paula is in palm coast, florida and she opposes kevin mccarthy. good morning. caller: good morning. not so much oppose or support but i think over a year ago i heard somebody call in with a proposal for someone to be speaker of the house. at the time i was like, that would be interesting. now with all of the stuff coming on it almost seems as if that is what the plan is. watching lauren boebert and sean hannity go added on tv live last night, she sure seems -- they

don't want mccarthy. and they are all supporting -- i cannot remember his name. who does not want the job. i believe behind the scenes they are talking to president trump and the plan is for him to be in and who is going to go against president trump? even though he is supporting mccarthy now, to me, i think there is conversations behind the scenes and they are going to say, well, how about trump? and which of the republicans are going to say, that is a bad idea? host: this is the first hour here at washington journal. here is more of the program ahead and coming up next, we will be joined by congressman

democrat steven horsford of nevada who will become the incoming chair of the congressional black caucus. the comments and russians are welcome as well and all party lines this time. -- your questions and comments are welcome as well and all party lines this time. ♪ >> if you are enjoying full tv, sign up for our newsletter -- newsletter to receive a schedule of upcoming programs, and book festivals and more. look tv every sunday on c-span two are online at booktv -- book tv.org. >> it is time to get out your

phone to start recording for your chance to win $100,000 in total cash prize -- prizes. for this year's competition, we are asking students to picture yourself as a newly elected member of congress and tell us what your top priority would be and why. make a 5 to 6 minute video that shows -- don't be afraid to take risks and there is time to get started. the debt -- deadline try is january 20, 2023. visit our website at udenam.org. >> american history tv saturdays on c-span2, exploring the people and events that tell the american story and at 8 p.m. eastern on lectures and history,

a discussion on residential want to first inaugural address with a university of kansas political communication professor and a look at -- at how herbert hoover provided aid to 10 million russians including those in the ukraine region suffering from famine. it included food and medicine and clothing. we talk about the politics of famine. exploring the american story. watch the american history t saturday on c-span2 and in full schedule of your program guide and watch any time c-span.org/history. >> washington journal continues. host: washington steven horsford

serves as the fourth district, elected to his fourth term at north las vegas air with us this morning -- here with us this morning about his new role as the chair of the congressional black caucus at the 118th congress. we haven't gotten to the 118th yet. what do you think will happen? guest: the house are united behind hakeem jeffries to be the next speaker and we have consistently voted unanimously to make sure he receives the support from house democrats. on the other set of the aisle, they have not been able to reach consensus and this is the first time in 100 years that the party in control has not been able to dominate and elect their person

as speaker and it is an embarrassment. it is unproductive we are not able to do the work of the american people. it was kevin mccarthy who set on day one they would read the constitution and now we are going into day three and they cannot agree on who is the next speaker. host: there are colors and republican members that have accused democrats of floating -- gloating. it sounds like this is the last think you guys want to happen -- thank you guys want to happen. guest: i am a member of the problem solvers congress -- caucus, have democrats and have republicans and we try to reach concessions on things like the chips act, and gun safety reform. that is what we did in the 117th and i hope to work with people

who are reasonable but kevin mccarthy has conceded to the maga republican wing and if they continue to control the process, we won't get anything done because they are going to be in chaos and confusion. host: sounds like for you and all your 143 colleagues that you cannot do anything until you are sworn in. guest: it is set. --sad. ? i am a member elect. the first action we are supposed to take up is the election of the speaker of the house and i feel for the new members of congress who have their families here. many kids that waited in have been waiting for days -- and have been waiting for days and there has been no ceremonial aspect of this quote that -- but worse than that, the american people need congress to be doing a shop in flooring costs and

focusing on getting the economy back on track after the pandemic. and making sure we are addressing importing issues. host: steven horsford is with us. (202) 748-8000 for democrats. for republicans, (202) 748-8001. independents and others, (202) 748-8002. you weren't there -- named the new chair of the congressional black caucus. the headline from the hill this week -- what is your focus for the 118th for the cbc. how does that fit in to developing legislation and policy, -- on the house floor?

guest: we celebrated our 51st year and we were the founders of 1971 by 13 founders come the original members of the congressional -- black members of the house of representatives and we have been known as the conscious of the congress, fighting for issues like voting rights and protecting our democracy and making sure that we are looking out for all constituents, critically those who are most marginalized and we have 50 eight -- 58 members, 18 million black americans represented and our job is to make sure their voices are heard in the halls of washington and on the house floor. host: in terms of how your caucus works in developing and promoting legislation, how is that done? guest: we meet every week and take policy positions as a caucus. we advanced issues like the john

lewis voting rights act. i am working on an issue negative -- initiative around racial equity and justice and -- education and we are focused on creating economic opportunity, archer for newer ship and connecting small businesses to contracting opportunities -- entrepreneurship connecting small businesses to contracting opportunities. we want to make sure our people feel empowered and half-full participation in our government. host: it was a moment on the house floor, that byron donalds, an african american rep. kim: from florida nominated by some members of his party to be house speaker. the headline from the washington post. what is on your view -- what is your view on that?

guest: there is disarray and there is chaos and confusion. they are putting up a name a day and there is no unity. on our side, we are 100% unified behind hakeem jeffries, who is a smart and capable and dedicated leader. it was the caucus share. -- he was the caucus chair. i am so proud to see him ascend as the democratic leader and the first african-american to assume a position of that level in party on other side of the capital and he will be the next speaker. host:, spend byron donalds, and for other african-american republicans in congress, they are generally not part of the caucus. historically, have they been and what you anticipate there will

be ever a republican member of your caucus? guest: there has been, we are not ideological in that sense. we want to advance issues important to the african-american community. there's nothing that excludes them but they have to seek the opportunity. i am clout -- proud of the 58 members currently members. there are new members. nine in fact that we have sworn in and we are off to a great start. host: let's get to calls to congressman hartford --horsford. caller: it is good to see you on c-span and my name is joshua martin, i am the student body president at the university of houston and one thing i can say that i appreciate throughout the

beginning with the session is the unity within the democratic party and i know that there is a lot of democrats who want to come together to move things forward so i know it can be kind of tough with the republican geordie but what is a message you have for democrats across the nation on how the party will work together to enact change and keep the progress moving within the next two years? guest: thank you and you are right, the 1/17 --117th congress was productive and effective. even though they can elect a speaker, we were able to pass meaningful and substantive legislation. it is now helping to create great and good paying union jobs and not only for highways and bridges but to address lead in

our water systems and access to the internet and making sure we have affordable public transit. so many other important investments to build up our infrastructure, but certainly for communities that have been divided due to discrimination and other systemic racism. we passed the bipartisan safer communities act, it included my bill that is a provision to break the cycle of stock -- violence by investing $250 million in community violence intervention. we elected maxwell frost, the youngest member in congress. and someone -- members of the congressional black caucus and i am excited for their new leadership and what they will bring for young voters to make sure they have a voice in the prop -- congress and one of the

things the black caucus is focusing on is getting to argument it is to engage people not only at election time but throughout the year on important issues like student debt, health care and affordability, protecting women's rights to make their own decision about their body and so many other important issues. host: let's hear from ted, republican caller from miami. caller: good morning. my question is -- i have been a republican and i chose the party because of john mccain and i want the party to do better. explain -- the democrats moving forward and doing good, but the republicans seem stuck. six times, they are stuck. is there anything you can say or explain and just for them to get them to move forward and

understand that the republicans are, they are a good party but they are stuck. is there anything you can do to explain to them to unstick themselves because i have been a republican for some time and i do enjoy the party. i chose republican because john mccain. host: ok, ted. congressman. guest: i think you are right and the republican party is stuck. there are good and decent republicans and voters who deserve to have congress work. we are going into day three and they cannot reach contestants -- consensus. we need to put people over politics and this should not have been about one person, kevin mccarthy and his ambition to be the speaker. this should be about who is

ready to be the house of representatives -- leave the house of representatives and that person for me is hakeem jeffries. he has gotten more votes since the beginning of this process, 212, and every single vote will go into the floor today and if there are six republicans who want to join with the democrats, then we will elect hakeem jeffries. guest: temple hills, -- host: temple hills, maryland. caller: good morning. do you support reparations for black people, i am talking about descendants 4 -- from american slavery. the reason why i say descendants for american slaves, because elon musk can count himself as a

-- african-american two. these people under reparations have distinct late -- lineage and do you support american -- guest: it is a very important issue and the congressional black caucus has taken the position to support a form of reparations that is being led by representative sheila jackson lee from texas. there is legislation that was drafted last congress and we will work to advance it this congress but i want to address the context of your question and that is the historic issues around slavery, jim crow, reconstruction, up to and including mass incarceration of black people even today. i was in montgomery, alabama and meeting with brian stephen seen

the legacy museum -- stevenson and -- at the legacy museum and to fully appreciate the legacy of slavery in our country and how it literally took away black wealth, and many of the major corporations that exist today profited because of slavery. a lot of people say, i did not participate in that so why will i be held accountable for it? it is not about that but acknowledging the wrongs and assuring it never happens again and investing in their communities, particularly black committees, that never were able to realize their full potential because of the stain of slavery that was part of our history. host: you mentioned student debt. how much more would you like the biden administration to do on that issue? guest: president biden canceled

up to the 10,000 dollar amount and more for students that were on pell grant and what really needs to have an is congress needs to pass legislation to a deal with the underlying -- to deal with the underlying issues of college affordability. it should not be this hard for people who want to acquire more education to be able to compete for jobs. to have to go into debt in order to be up to do that. we have 11 million job openings in this country right now and we have 10 million people who are unemployed or underemployed come out largely women and people of color, who don't have the skills for the jobs available and what i would like to see is, my bill to provide funding for short-term trading. trading about 16 weeks rather than two or four years. you don't need to go to school

for four years for jobs in demand and that is what congress should do. we are the legislative branch. host: what kind of chant do you think you have their getting it through the republican house? guest: we have bipartisan support because skills and jobs in the future is something that both sides recognize is a huge need. automation is happening and there is displacement of workers in every major -- and every major that talks to our caucus, talks about the need for a trained workforce. there is a tremendous opportunity to advance workforce development and training. host: to renee, calling from florida. democrats line. caller: good morning. good morning thompson horseman. -- congressman horseman.

coming congressman horse bird -- i mean congressman horse furred --horsford. i listen to your answer about getting six republicans to vote for representative jeffries. i don't see that happening and i would love for that to happen maybe with some concessions like giving them commit -- leading committees and stuff but is there any way and i have a question. is there anyway, like a few democrats to go over to the republican side and vote for somebody? and maybe because these 20 people who are insurrections --

insurrectionists on the inside, has an have a thing done to them and you have the insurrectionists on the outside that have been brought to trial. nothing that has happened to these people and we are showing these people the layout on the capital and it is very disturbing. guest: i appreciate your kind remarks and i tend to be over course, -- a workhorse, not a show horse. i will answer to a lot of things but my job is to get things done , question around -- your question around, will democrats were -- support the other side. we sat from the very beginning, we will work in partnership with those we can and we are looking for partners to work with to address things like reducing the cost of prescription affordability and democrats were able to cap the costs for it in us -- for insulin that is only

for seniors on medicare and what about a child who is 10 years old who has diabetes and his family cannot afford the insulin? i agree with your premise around accountability of those were involved in the january 6 attack. we are coming up on the anniversary of that. there are any people who have not been held accountable. i want to commend chairman bennie thompson who led the select committee to look into the event of january 6 along with republican member liz cheney and i commend her for working with chairman thompson to get the facts to the american people and the report that they provided and the referrals that they may so that -- to the pump -- department of justice and i hope these things get taken up by the doj and everyone who was involved on that day will be held accountable. host: we don't have a speaker

and we don't have a set of rules to vote on but republicans have released some proposed rules and there is negotiating going on about potential changes. what are your concerns over the rules offered for the 118th congress? guest: what i have heard and read are alarming and the fact that kevin mccarthy would agree and concede to the maga faction of the republican wing, the 20 members that could throw him out of office as speaker. if he were to be elected, any given day will be -- the cost nothing but chaos -- will cause nothing but chaos and confusion. now only are we not able to start the congress, i am worried on what we won't be able to do on behalf of the american people over the next two years because he has conceded so much in the rules package. we have issues like funding the

government and making sure the military has the resources they need, particular but the conflict in ukraine that we are continuing to support the people in ukraine against russia and the threats we have with north korea and iran. cannot have a congress that is controlled by extreme -- we cannot have a congress that is controlled by an extreme wing. they don't want government to work. there are some of them that are very happy the government is not open for business. in their mind, they came here to tear things down. i came here to build communities of -- up. my job is to make sure that infrastructure bill that we passed, and the chips bill and the inflation reduction act that includes climate provision and the savings for prescription drugs, that those get implemented so the people in my district, for seniors, the

teachers and nurses and small businesses get what they need from the government. this government is for and by the people and we have representatives that don't want the government to work and that is the biggest problem i see, now only in the rules package but in their ideology. host: next from jim in pittsburgh, pennsylvania. independent line. caller: jim in pennsylvania. i agree with you that this republican vote is inconvenient. liberty is inconvenient. i do find it strange and bizarre that a full political party can only, with one -- can only come up with one name for a candidate in the whole political party.

they can only come up with one name and i find that strange. host: any thoughts? guest: i don't understand the premise and it is good to hear you, jim. summer lee is one of our new members from pittsburgh and i am looking forward to looking forward -- working with her and i am looking forward to her being sworn in. host: mark is a republican caller. the morning. -- good morning. caller: representative, i agree with something -- some of things you said and i used to be a democrat and i switch to the republican party. my question is why, back in the 117th congress, not the democrats try to turn around and help out the bill -- the border portion of it, tried to take down some of the inflation that

is going on. we can afford gas or oil. electricity went of. --up. there are a lot of issues that i am finding there is a problem on both sides of the aisle but the democrats did not support any of that that ice also i am upset with that -- that i saw and i am upset with that. i did not vote for all this stuff. what i am asking you and the rest of the democrats, because i understand the lady from colorado. she is worse than aoc. she should have had aesop put in her mouth -- a sock put in her mouth but the other 20 should have been put on board so this issue is over with. host: i will give the congressman chance to report -- respond. guest: thank you for your service as a veteran and to all

of our men and women in the military serving today and to their family and veterans and to your family, i will start with that and we are hearing from our military -- i am on the armed services committee and we are hearing from our national security and defense officials. they are concerned with the fact that congress that -- has not been able to select a speaker, constitute our committees. the intelligence committee has not been named because we can't name any committees so i agree with you around the premise that we need to come together and find common ground. on your concerns about cost-of-living, i hey -- i agree that we had to do more so people can afford everything. democrats, we did pass the inflation reduction act. and did not add to the deficit and it helped take down the

national debt and we did it by making sure that some of the big corporations that were not paying any at least paid 15% so we can meet some of our obligations and it did not tax any individual who makes less than $400,000. on your concern on the border, i am for comprehensive immigration reform that provides a pathway to citizenship for the 11 billion people who are undocumented -- 11 million people undocumented here as well as making sure we have strengthening tools and resources at the border. i visited the border and i know the issues there and i am not one who believes there is one approach of -- or the other but we need comprehensive reform and people who are willing to do and work together to make that happen. host: do you see any chance of the 118th congress passing a viable immigration bill? guest: if we get to congress and

we are on day three and they cannot come together to peak -- to pick their speaker and leadership and that projects other areas of chaos and confusion later in the year. while i work with people on the other side to sign agreements on issues? absolutely. are the democrats on our side that will work to find solutions, whether on health care or immigrations are protecting people's rights, like women's rights? absolutely. host: arson steven horsford -- congressman steve horsford, we appreciate your taking your time to be here. we have plan to have congressman clay higgins. he had to cancel last like -- last night. comingp next, we will open up our phone lines as we look

forwd, 3.5 hours to the third day of the house speaker election today at noon in our live coverage stts at over 50 time on c-span and the lines are the same as they were. (202) 748-8000 or democrats. (202) 748-8001 for rublicans. for al others, (202) 748-8002. i stop -- nice job -- ♪ >> c-span now is a free mobile app featuring your unfiltered view of what is happening in washington, live and on-demand and keep up with today's biggest events with lives -- live streams of event hearings. all of your friendships -- all at your fingertips. you can stay current and find

schedule information. plus a variety up compelling podcasts -- of compelling, past -- podcasts. >> there are a lot of places to get political information but only at c-span do you get it straight from the source. no matter where you are from over east end of the issues -- or where you stand on the issues, c-span is the american network. unfiltered, unbiased, word for word. ever happens here, here, or fear, or anywhere that matters, america is watching on c-span. powered by cable. >> preorder your copy of the congressional directly -- directory of the 118th congress.

plane information on congressional committees, the president's cabinet. scanned the code on your right to preorder your copy today for early spring delivery. every purchase helps support our nonprofit operations at c-spanshop.org. ♪ >> american history tv saturdays on c-span two the people and events that tell the american story. at 8 p.m. eastern on lectures in history, a discussion on president ronald reagan's first inaugural address from 1981 with university of kansas political committee case and professor robert roland. at 9:30, look at how herbert hoover and be american relief administration provided relief for russians suffering from famine. the included food and medicine and clothing.

over institution research fellow and another person talks about the politics of famine and the future president's reputation as a humanitarian. exploring the american story. watch american history tv saturday on c-span two and find the full schedule on the program guide and watch anytime time c-span.org/history. >> "washington journal" continues. host: after six rounds of voting, there is no speaker of the house. the house is expected to come back for continued -- to continue the voting today at noon eastern and we will start our coverage on c-span at 11:50 eastern and you can follow us here on c-span and on our mobile apps c-span now and streaming live at c-span.org.

we are opening up our phone lines for the remainder of the program to hear from you from the progress. all lines are open for democrats and republicans and independents on the nomination, the effort by kevin mccarthy to become speaker and what may lie ahead. democrats, (202) 748-8000. republicans, (202) 748-8001. for independents and others, (202) 748-8002. reported earlier on potential movements on negotiations between key members in the republican congress and this is somewhat reporting from nbc and the headline, mccarthy makes concessions heading into the third day for housebuilding. they write that fierce republican infighting over who should be the next speaker has paralyzed the house of representatives and preventing lawmakers from being swarmed -- sworn in installing the gop legislative agenda.

the house enters its third day of the congress without a speaker. until republicans have enough votes, all other house business remains at a standstill. during the six speaker votes this week, 20 conservatives have stuck together to denied -- to the nine kevin mccarthy this -- the voltmeter -- votes needed. nearly all of their to 20 members will need to agree on a speaker, chaotic process moves to a seven ballot obama mccarthy and allies and foes remained deadlocked, there were signs of progress. after the sixth failed vote, mccarthy and his allies talked with his opponents in the first floor capital office. most emerged from the meeting saying there was incremental progress.

good morning to susan. caller: thank you for taking my call. i find this so frustrating and embarrassing and shameful. this is a republican party in a nutshell. anything that has trump involved turns into this chaotic mess. i would like to invite the republicans because i know there is so many decent republicans that deserve to actually be there to actually give their vote to come across and vote for jeffries. that would be unusual, but let's think about it. we want someone strong who will stand for the people and have

solid votes and that is jeffries. i think that this whole situation, mccarthy, and the 20 and others should not be allowed to be in the office. i want our department of justice to take action and these folks don't belong there. they deny our election. they were involved were january 6 -- with january 6 and we need to stand up as americans and do the right thing and please, any republicans that have it in their hearts to do the right thing, stand up today. i will leave it at that. we need to eliminate trump and the destroying republicans out of our politics. host: to frank, up next on the independent line. caller: thank you for having me on the show. we have one man, mccarthy

holding up anything -- everything. why don't we get somebody from the supreme court to come over and issue the old? let these people get their people hired and get it working instead of being a stalemate and paying them for doing nothing. host: all right. the caller points out that the mers had to be swarmed in and that cannot happen until the speaker is elected. we will hear from someone in port washington, new york. republican line. caller: i am fort washington -- i am from port washington, long island and i, community organizer and i rallied for the past two years so -- on education, certainly, my child, by choice platform and i helped george santos get elected. i was in washington dc for the first time in my life and i was

invited to the festivities. it was supposed to be a festive day and it was supposed -- it was for the most part except -- there were cameras park --pa rked. i want to comment on the crises in thousand and we need to have -- the house and we need to have a functional party. i am not a fan of mccarthy but we need to get united and he has more votes than anyone else put forward. at this time that we do the right thing for our country -- it is time that we do the right thing for our country. host: theodora, you said you supported george santos and he fabricated much of his resume. what are your thoughts now and

he will likely be sworn in. caller: it is fascinating because i got involved as a matter -- mother because i saw what was happening to my young students in schools. the schools were closed and they have to be mast --masked all day or they want to -- us to agree with experimental vaccines. i am a normal person and i complied to everything, regardless, that is how i got involved and george santos was the only person on long island who would listen to me. no one else in power rep -- and others refused to take my meetings and zimmerman had no platform on education. what was i supposed to do? i used to be a democrat and george listen to me and came to my rally. i was on cnn talking about this and i try to get the attention

of my media to come to my rally to listen to moms. a lot of moms from long island got together and started saying, what are you doing -- you are doing to my kids is not right and some backed me up. in i completely outraged by him -- am i completely outraged by him? yes. i left a message with a campaign manager and i said, tell him theodora said you should resign. nothing about him turned out to be true. his actual name is apparently anthony the father --devolder. he lied to my friend and he says he had dementia and my best friend -- [indiscernible] she opened her door to him. it turns out he is not what he

-- nothing about him adds up and i will not quit until i see some kind of accountability and i don't think you should represent me, not after everything i did because people like me flipped the districts. i got democrat parents who feel like me to vote for republicans and that is how we flip the districts. the republicans should realize there will be more elections and my democratic parents and friends and moms, will not route -- one not vote republican again not after mccarthy say nothing. the republican saying nothing. i am thankful to the person who had me in his procession and he said, come over because there was so reception in george santos office. he spoke out and issued a state -- a statement saying the right thing that we need to move past

this and we need a resolution. host: i appreciate you sharing your views on george santos. the representative elect from long island. kurt on the democrats line. caller: the morning everyone. that the -- theater with this mess going on, there will be a big movie on this and this is another chapter. i expect steve bannon to slam the doors open and throw trump in their for the seat. on top of all that, if it works out the way it will work out in the republicans get what they want and the debt ceiling is coming. we won't have a functionally -- functioning government for long. i wish they would get this mess done and get everyone in there

so we can have a government -- if we get invaded now, we will do our part but it won't be right. host: here is president biden in kentucky along with republican leaders, senator mitch mcconnell, having a big infrastructure project, the bridge in ohio and the president was asked about the ongoing election in -- for speaker in the u.s. house. >> are you concerned about the implications of their not being a functioning house of representatives at this point? pres. biden: i am. for two reasons, one, it is embarrassing for the country. literally. it is the reality that, -- you have a congress that cannot function is embarrassing.

we are the greatest nation in the world. we have had a lot of trouble. a lot of trouble with the attacks on the institutions already. that worries me more than anything us. host: another update this morning on where this -- things may be with the speaker election and they are back at noon eastern today. an article at politico.com, a glimmer of hope after late-night concessions. she writes that after spending the last 48 hours on life support, kevin mccarthy's bid for the speakership is seeing a revival. there was a roller coaster of the day where the republican failed to secure the 218 votes. mccarthy and his credits got into the room and had were both sides are describing as productive conversations, carthy

has offered his critics a number of new concessions and negotiations are fluid. one person told political a concession includes a one -- motion to vacate -- and the vote on term limits and major changes to the appropriations process. and a, north carolina -- in north carolina, david. caller: before i get to the talking points, do you mind i respond -- if i respond to the lady that called a few minutes ago? host: my response? caller: she was talking about january 6 and -- they had to take them to a secret bunker because the democrats were trying to assassinate him.

47 secret service agents had to retire because they were hit by bricks. that is why we don't care about january 6. back to mccarthy, i don't want mccarthy and i do not trust him. we had a speaker of the house from california and we don't need another one. the dude in the senate, chuck schumer, he is from new york, durban, where is he from, illinois? i don't trust mccarthy or anyone from california. i am a 70. i am a confederate, since you like bringing on people who hate americans talking about reparations.

if anyone has a problem with it -- [no audio] host: louisiana, republican line. caller: i would like to make a statement about congressman horsford. i am 63 years old and i have been in be military -- the military and he talked about reparations and i have been paying reparations my entire life. i have lost jobs because of my skin color and i need to tell you that i am a man of the melting pot of america. this reparations stuff has to stuff -- stop. he went on to say the government needs to provide for americans with their drug needs. i had to pay for my own medications from my own life -- for my own life. i would like to talk about what

is going in congress. i support the 20. if this is the only way we can shake the tree to make congress wake up and represent we the people, i am all for that. i don't like being pushed into this little box, the woke have put us in an the 20 we have our fighting back and i appreciate everything they are doing because they are bringing everything to life. host: this is the lead editorial in the washington times. their headline, time for republicans to put differences aside and elect kevin mccarthy as house speaker. the writer say that the freedom conquers -- caucus has every right to voice its concerns and complaints about how house procedures. it should not do so at the expense of the party or people.

the protest votes is supposed aware -- raise awareness and they have achieved that but enough is enough and this will prove republicans are incapable of governments. they -- people just want republicans to get issues working -- to work on issues they campaigned on, lowering inflation and holding the federal government accountable through oversight and investigation. sarah is in conover, north carolina on the democrats line. caller: i would like to the -- [no audio] you need to let democrat -- donald trump the --go. i am tired of people describing americans as hitler. when nancy pelosi tore that

speech up in front of the american people, that is shameful. as far as january 6, they need to take care of it and do it right. it was wrong with those people did and -- with what those people did and you take care. host: republican line, douglas in new york. caller: i want to bring up a different point and that is the reason why we are worried about the speaker of the house is because the power of the house is concentrated on the speaker. he can appoint committees and determine what legislation -- everything like this and in the past, this was not the case. in the past, we had conservative democrats and liberal republicans and people to get on committees by -- on what they wanted and newt gingrich came in. there was a polarization where the party in power cap changing

the rules, from 67 per -- percent votes. they keep concentrating the power and a one party and they have the speaker -- in one party and they have the speaker -- you're really putting republican and democrat and it doesn't matter who the person is and i lived in the district where george centrist -- george santos is from. people don't know what he is about but she was on the republican ticket so they voted for him. somehow, someone has to look at how the congress is run and stop the idea that, unless you are the speaker of the house, you have no power. that is what the problem is. new york has a huge problem with that, that people are even running for the state legislator because they knew if you --

unless you are the party leader, you would go to the -- the congress itself, people say it is polarizing but the congress -- change all the rules and change the appropriation measures as some of these rebels wanted to go back to the old way and somebody has to look at how the congress is run. host: do you agree with some of the proposed changes in the appropriations progress that republicans have called for? caller: i am not familiar with the details but i think we should look at how the congress is run. in my district, we had someone many years ago and i am from long island and he is on the alaska committee because republicans were in charge. instead on being all the committees on the issues he ran on, he is on other committees.

someone on long island should not serve on that committee. the point is, the organization changes itself but no one comes in and says, what you are doing is disenfranchising most of the company but people are calling in and the confederate guide calls and, what he is saying, when he doesn't want someone from california, he knows that -- congress is costly changing the rules of the ruling party has the power and that is why were -- wide we are -- why we are where we are today? --. host: republican line. caller: i watch her show -- your show constantly and i would like to talk about the fellow from down south.

even though he said things that were a little out there, i believe that that part of america, we have the right to get up and talk and say what we want. to get back on the mccarthy issue, i think his arrogant is what is preventing him from even being elected or the others from putting them out. he has moved his furniture into the offices, prior to the election, and that shows that he feels he deserves to be there and that is the only issue for him. what we need to have happen is get someone who can get in there and actually do some -- do a job that requires them to work on both sides of the aisle to make sure everyone feel like we are working for one country, not individual people or individual states or individual parties.

the fellow from the louisiana and your first taller -- caller today had similar ideas to mine. they tried to make people to see that what is going on is in about one person or one party. we need to see that everyone gets together and works for the country and that is not happening. it is almost like, tit for tat or the petty differences that keep them apart and they are not allowing each other to come together and work together as a country. i will hang up here so you can continue. i will like to say one of the thing. with the problem of our oil, we have our oil reserves and when we get into a predicament, we should be able to tap into them and using them for only our country to keep our prices low

enough so that we can rebuild what we have to do for our infrastructure and protect the people of this united states. host: appreciate that. more of your calls and an hour or so left on washington journal. (202) 748-8000, the line for democrats. (202) 748-8001, the line for republicans and for independents and others, (202) 748-8002. i will update you on the potential long compromises or other news that may come out ahead of the house session that begins at noon eastern. our coverage on c-span starts at 11:50. yesterday, they start at noon as well and i nomination for mike gallagher, this time for the fourth round of voting for kevin mccarthy. >> i listen to my call yesterday. -- my colleagues yesterday.

i have been his partner -- prorated or ordered crusades. -- pro regular order crusades. i believe that in my bones and nobody has done more to lay out a plan for how we restore the basic functioning of this institution that kevin mccarthy. nobody. [applause] you may not have gotten everything you wanted. there are things i want, i know it's not possible to get done in this congress. mr. mccarthy has gone above and beyond in terms of listening to people with concerns and laying out a plan for how we restore the basic functioning of the house of representatives. furthermore, i believe no one has done more to bring us into

the majority than kevin mccarthy. i wish we had a bigger majority, right. i wish we could do everything over the next two years. but the american people gave us an opportunity, they gave us, republicans, an opportunity to inject some basic common sense into the federal government. to pull the emergency brake on a lot of the crazy we have seen in the last few years. they are asking us to do a job. nobody has laid out a plan, a proactive policy agenda, for the direction we want to take this country in more detail than kevin mccarthy. you all had an opportunity to provide input. into that plan. and the irony of this current moment and this debate we are

having is that on the big stuff we all agree, right? we want to secure the border. we don't want the executive branch to do everything through a pen and phone. we want to work with our democratic colleagues when it comes to standing up to our enemies abroad. there are basic things we know we need to do. it is time to get to work. so, you might tweet out some more popcorn emojis, i get t write your headlines. what i see right now is energy. a tremendous amount of energy in this republican caucus who want to do the work of the people. mr. mccarthy is not asking you to endorse business as usual in the house. he's laid out a plan to renew the house of representatives and once again make it an institution that we can credibly look ourselves in the mirror and say we are working in the people's house.

host: house back at noon eastern with another round of voting expected shortly thereafter. live coverage here on c-span. comments on social media about the election process. this one from hannah says, the trust factor is waning. i hope those backing him are right, but the election results inspire no confidence. raising money wasn't enough to win seats. george tweets, the bottom line is mccarthy doesn't have 218, irrespective what you want to call 209 no votes. steve in tucson says some people think the 20 anti-mccarthy group represent we the people. the people spoke their votes in november and this particular group is not representative of the majority of the votes cast. and "politico" tweeting this morning, leader mckwra*eurt tells reporters this morning i think we are making progress and they are, quote, working together to find the solution. does he have the votes? more reporting on a possible breakthrough from "the washington post" this morning. an article published about a

half-hour ago, mccarthy makes fresh concessions to try to woo hard right republicans in speaker bid. republican leader kevin mccarthy has made fresh concessions to a group of 20 lawmakers in hopes of ending their blockade of his speakership ahead of votes thursday. a stunning reversal if adopted would weaken the speaker and ensure a tenuous hold on the job. during late hour negotiations wednesday, mccarthy agreed to the proposed rule change, according to four people familiar with the talks, who spoke on the condition of an know tpheuplity to discuss private deliberations. the post reporter say in a major allowance to the hard right republicans, mccarthy offered to lower from five to one the number of members required to sponsor a resolution to force a vote on o*using the speaker -- ousting a speaker. a change the california republican previously said he would not accept. mccarthy also express add willingness to place -- expressed a willingness to place more members on the freedom

caucus on the house rules committee which debates legislation before moved to the floor. he relented on allowing floor votes towns taout term limits on members and enact specific border policy legislation. back to your calls. linda in minnesota on the democrats line. go ahead. caller: good morning, bill. how are you? host: fine, thank you. caller: i want to reiterate the text you just read when it was the 20 defectors definitely don't represent we, the people. that's very true. but the one thing that i don't hear anybody saying is that 147 republicans voted to overturn the 2020 election. and the major characters playing out in this chaotic congress we have going, every single one of them are on that list of 147. steve scalise, even byron donalds. every single one of them. in my opinion not a one of them,

if they were entangled with trump, if they were entangled with the big lie, overturning of the election, they should not have a voice right now. i know this is going to be strange even though i do agree with a few of the callers that have brought up trump, i believe that that's a possibility. that's a very scary possibility. nobody is thinking that we can have an outsider besides trump. so let's bring in somebody that both sides could agree on. how about john kasich? how about -- could you call him up? i know he's been on the show before. let's get him on. i would love to hear john kasich. i'm a democrat and i love john kasich. i think that he's one of the people, the very few people besides john mccain, i think john kasich would be the guy. let's bring him in. host: linda, the people you have to convince are the republicans in the u.s. house. democrats as well, to get to

218. caller: yes, i would have loved to have talked to the last representative and i was hoping to talk to mr. higgins coming up and i would have asked him the same question. host: sorry about clay higgins, he was to be on but he had to cancel last night. thanks for your call. oklahoma is next. sam on our independent line. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. thank you for c-span and all the people who make c-span possible. i just wanted to explain very plainly what we are witnessing here. and what we are seeing is the undoing of the political alliance of old guard republicans and the ideological dixiecrats. they got together after the civil rights movement and lo and behold it was a bad idea for the party of lincoln to hitch their wagon on to literal -- the beliefs of neoconfederates.

host: all right, sam. samuel is next, south pasadena, california. on the republican line. caller: hello. yes, thank you for taking my call. host: sure. caller: yes, i was watching this yesterday. mccarthy. i think he's going to be the speaker of the house there because, well, you know, they won a lot of concessions and everything. the thing is i want those people investigated, the january 6, i want these other people investigated, the democrats investigated. they did a lot of things that were illegal. i want trump -- biden investigated. his son investigated. and they are trying to put these people in to stop the investigation. i think biden has a lot to do with this. he's got his people in line there. he don't want to be investigated. if it turns out that 20,000 national guards were ordered by

president trump to washington and nancy pelosi and they refused it. that tells you they sure want add riot there. they got rid after good president. i want to say that i hope that mccarthy gets in. i hope that jordan investigates these people. and twitter, they are dropping all these dumps of papers from twitter. just showing what the democrats did to trump. they got rid of a good president. we were energy independent in this country. look, these democrats are so stupid they don't understand we are buying oil from other countries. we are looking for oil from saudi arabia. screwing up our reserves. i want trump to be president again and bring this country back to order. look at that border. biden's going down to the border. 700-some-odd days too late. one other thing, that

teleprompter. when he comes out of the white house to talk to the press, why does he have to bring that teleprompter with him? can't he sit there and talk to the people? let the press ask him questions without looking at that teleprompter? host: samuel in california, the caller from minnesota linda mentioned the 20 in the house. some voted in terms of their views on the 2020 election. this is a similar sentiment expressed in the new york sometimes. n.y. times.com. how far to the right the 20 dissidents stand with photos of the 20 who so far have voted against kevin mccarthy. the 12 have denied the 2020 election. 19 are associated with the freedom caucus. all of the incumbents were objectors to the count of the vote on january 6, 2021. don in eugene, oregon, democrats line. good morning, don. go ahead. caller: good morning. can you hear me?

host: yes. caller: i know my phone gets a lot of static. i had to check. host: don, we could hear you a moment ago. it's kind of phasing in and out there. sorry to hear that. yesterday on the floor when the house came in for the fourth round of votes, the fourth of what would be six rounds of vote that kevin mccarthy failed to win on any of the six so far, pete aguilar of california once again nominated hakim -- hakeen jeffries for speaker of the house. >> there is no frustration on our side. we are focused on serving the american people. in order to do that, we have to unite behind the speaker. democrats are united behind a speaker who prioritizes putting better paying jobs in industries of the future, growing up in a working class family he knows that a good-paying job and good education are key to economic

mobility. he knows that to tackle the affordability crisis in this country we need to make sure that everybody gets paid enough to live and work in any zip code. and he knows that by creating these jobs we can once again make it in america. madam clerk, as chair of the democratic caucus, i am directed by that vote of the caucus to present for election to the 118th congress, the honorable hakeem jeffries, representative elect for the state of new york for the office of speaker. host: our coverage here on c-span resuming this morning at 11:50 with the house gaveling in at noon eastern. live here on c-span. online at c-span.org. on our free mobile app, c-span now. aaron on the independent line in upper marlboro, maryland. welcome. caller: thanks for taking my call. this would almost be funny if it

wasn't so important. a lot of people familiar with the kiss principle which standards for keep it simple, stupid. the trumpikins actually have a stare down contest with the mirror in real time. thanks for taking my call. host: dallas we go. dallas, texas. this is tom on the republican line. what are your thoughts? caller: this is tom in dallas. i want to know why the republicans are -- let's just say the democrats could elect the next speaker of the house of representatives by getting the republicans to put up a moderate person that is agreeable to them. and i keep reading just little pieces of paper that there are some democrats and republicans that are meeting secretly to come up with something like that. of course it would require that

congressional black caucus to make a lot of concessions and they and the freedom caucus to make concessions. i just wish they could do that rather than every time saying hakeem jeffries is the only person representative. i just wish they could do no label thing. host: in your mind, tom, is there a candidate out there that some democrats could support and all republicans could support? caller: i don't know the exact names. i do know there was a democratic congressman and a republican congressman, i think the republican is from new jersey, that they are known as two of the people who actually are congressional candidates. the thing that would happen, of course, is if a democrat supported the republican, that's an automatic veto in the

democratic primary and vice versa. and the republican primary they are called rinos. i just wish they could figure it out. i'm kind of a no-labels person. i love the no-label group of people that seem to be forming that get things done. that's really all i can say. host: thanks for your input. some political news on the senate side. the senate is in. and functioning. they are not in session today. they will be back in a couple weeks. this from "politico" with the tweet this morning, big senate news. michigan democratic senator, debbie stabenow, announces she won't seek re-election. next is ned on the independent line in indianapolis, maryland. go ahead. caller: hi. can you hear me? host: yes. caller: i'm sorry that i'm on speaker phone. i'm inept with the smart phones.

they make me dumb. host: it sounds ok so far. we'll let you know if it doesn't. go ahead. caller: i just want to curse that guy from texas. he told my 15 seconds of fame. i think he's right. this is an opportunity for bipartisan governance. and the democrats will be bound to power. i'm -pb erstwhile republican. sort of in the middle. the representative you just had on, steven horsford, he seems like a reasonable person. people like steven horsford and chris smith on the republican side to get together and sort of steer us through. we have problems in common. we know what they are. and let's get a working majority to start facing them. as far as the not 20 does. i think we are make too big a deal of this. it's democracy in action. just a limited fringe taking

place. the last thing i wanted to say is the best idea i have heard so far that doesn't involve democrats coming over or third person parachuting in is a ranked choice voting in the caucus. that was mentioned earlier. that's a terrific idea. to the gentleman from texas, i'm with you. i learned from the republican men when i was capitol hill ideology breeds i hadocy. it's time to get back to pragmatism. thank you for taking my call. host: thank you for your call, ned. next we are joined by emily wilkins, bloomberg government congressional reporter. this morning there are reports of some breakthrough, potential breakthrough, with kevin mccarthy. those who have voted against him. what are you hearing? what can you tell us? guest: we have heard multiple reports this morning that offer a meeting last night between mccarthy, his alley, and some of the hold outs. mccarthy is willing to give a little more to what some of

these hardline members have been asking for. things like changes in the rules. making it easier for one member to force a vote to oust the speaker. seat tpepls to the freedom caucus on the rules committee. the committee that really catches legislation before it goes to the floor. has a lot of real power there. and other concession that is they have been looking for. and mccarthy is in a very difficult spot right now in terms of negotiations. obviously we are in the middle of votes. they have taken six so far. we haven't seen any change at all from these 20 hardlinessers who consistent -- hardliners who consistently voted against him. he's hoping with this deal he can get the votes he needs. it's not clear at this point how many members are going to be open or agreeable to this. certainly we have had a number of members who, hardline members who have been open to communicating saying they want to continue negotiations. for some of these folks voting against mccarthy, the trust

isn't there. it hasn't been for a while. and you are not going to find a way to get them to yes. host: in the danger for speaker mccarthy, we are hearing he's agreed to this one person, one member motion to vacate the chair. is the danger for him, potentially, that it weakens his speakership? guest: i think his speakership to a certain extent is already weakened because of what we have seen with his attempts to actually get the gavel in the first place. no doubt this raises giant concerns for upcoming must-pass bills from raising the debt limit, funding the government. these are all things that republicans have this very narrow margin on. i was talking with congressman yesterday he was like this is the easy part. wait until we actually get a bill on the floor. they are going to have to get everyone to agree on it. i think this does raise a lot of concerns for -- looked like when a potential mccarthy speakership will look like if that does play out t. will raise questions --

play out. it will raise questions what part of the republican agenda they can get done. host: is there potential repercussion on the other side, the 20 members, who have opposed his speakership so far? any blow back from that? guest: the other day when republicans met, you did have a member kind of speak up and say, you know, you guys are doing this to our conference right now. when the steering committee needs to figure out, committee assignments, they'll keep that in mind. some of these members they are used to blow back in a certain sense. it depends on the individual member and what they want. certainly none of them are doing favorites right now with mccarthy. i think what that's going to mean in terms of blowback remains to be seen. i think that's why a number of them are really asking mccarthy for committee positions, committee -- subcommittee gavels.

they understand that they could be at risk for losing those after taking the stand they have. host: with the house coming in at noon today for another what we expect, another round of voting, will there be a conference meeting, conference wide meeting, or are negotiations continuing between the speaker and holdouts? guest: we know that negotiations are continuing at this point. dusty johnson told me last night one sign of optimism is people are still at the table and negotiating. they don't want to have another big conference wide meeting. the last one got very contentious. it locked in some folks as a no. they are worried if they bring everyone like that together again, things will get worse not better for mccarthy. at this point we are not expecting any conference hearings. i think it's a question of what happens at noon. do they try another notion to adjourn? do they take more time? do we wind up seeing what we saw yesterday, which is vote after vote after vote where mccarthy

fails to secure the number of votes he needs. host: do they do the 20, propose another candidate, as in byron tkoldz yesterday. are you hearing of another potential candidate that may come out? guest: i know congressman bob good has hinted they have someone waiting in the wings. another potential candidate to bring forward. at this point i haven't heard any tkefbgs names offered as to who -- any specific names offered as to who that might would be. byron donalds is comfort and being the chosen nominee. even yesterday when he was asked by reporters, is it time for mccarthy to step down. he said it wasn't. there are still negotiations to do. they should still continue to talk. it's going to be one of the outstanding question marks today. can the nominee be brought forward either from the hardline opponents or more moderate members that will get everyone together. host: great information. emily wilkins, bloomberg government congressional reporter.

thanks for being on with us. bgovernment.com where you can follow her reporting. thanks. we have about 40 more minutes left in the program. plenty of time for you to weigh in on the saker election continngoday at noon eastern. 202-7480. .202-748-8002. d 202-4 *f 74-# 001 for republicans. north carolina, go ahead. caller: thank you. first i want to apologize for the representation from north carolina previously. my point on where it's at, mccarthy has already obtained more votes than anybody tells. the longer this goes on, they are going to alienate more republicans from the party. they are losing those voters.

i have seen this. i read twitter all day just b they are losing voters. the 20 that are holding out, they are not going to change the minds of the other republicans who are voting in the party's favor. the 20 are holding out. are holding the republicans and mccarthy hostage to get what they want like being on committees. they are putting up donalds as the other opponent. he has not given any -- i'm sorry, i'm falling for my words. host: you are doing fine. caller: ok. he has not given any points of his agenda that i have heard. i'm not sure if he's just being thrown out to be something against mccarthy. people are talking on twitter, jordan needs to be, jordan needs

to be. he doesn't want t i wish he would just come out and say he doesn't want it so people would get off that horse. if this continues, i'm afraid that sooner or later there will be a republican who is tired of it and they are going to jump ship. when they do, hakeem jeffries will end up winning. we are going to be a republican majority in the house who is ruled by a democrat. i don't know why people don't think that that's just going to be a pelosi 2.0. host: glad you got through. we'll go to carol in houston. on our democrats line. caller: good morning. i almost forgetting what i wanted to say i have been on here so long. i want to say those 20 republicans they are not holding out for freedom for americans. and fighting for american people. like everybody says. they are doing the bidding of --

they have their marching orders. and they have got their whole list of things. if mccarthy doesn't give them every last single detail, he won't get the votes. anybody can read about it. club for growth. dominating the freedom caucus. it's ridiculous. they are taking over democracy. right from the jaws of the american people. just the opposite of what they are professing. i appreciate the readers educating themselves about it. finding out the truth what's really going on here. they are taking over democracy. trying to decide who is going to run. how much money they are going to get. if the republicans get any money to run. they are going to dictate. that's all i have to say.

thank you. host: next up, tulsa, oklahoma, dianne, good morning. independent line. caller: good morning. thank you so much for taking my call. i have two real comments about both sides. and it may seem petty, but it's what i have been noticing from catching the coverage. every single republican that gets near a microphone uses most of their time to trash democrats. they should be trying to solve their own problems and disagreements in their own party. they are focused as always on their hatred of democrats and rallying their bases and acting like this is somehow democrats' fault. i am on the independent line because i keep that as an option, but there are no republicans i would ever vote for at this point.

host: has it always been like that for you, dianne, that you look at not been able to vote for republicans in the past? or has that changed over the last couple years? caller: it has changed in the last couple years. i have voted for both parties. my other observation is that now the republicans are trying to swing it so people think that this is normal, and this is great for democracy. and this arguing and slowing down our government is because they have chosen that. it's a good thing. we should be happy about it. and it just isn't true. they just want -- it's the only thing lately that they have had that they can't somehow twist and blame on democrats. but they are trying. they are trying to make it seem like somehow this dysfunction is our democrats' fault and not

theirs. even one lady that got a hold of the microphone even accused democrats of bringing in booze to the congress. that's just unacceptable. nobody's mentioned it. democrats don't have equal time there when they get up to talk. they talk about their candidate. and they nominate him. and they sit down. but republicans rave about democrats and all the bad things they have done. and nobody stops them. they stand up there like they are campaigning. host: to our republican line. upland, california. mike. go ahead. caller: good morning. thanks for taking my call. i tell you what i would like to see, which i won't, is that mccarthy, if he can cull together enough votes to be assured the speakership, go

ahead and nominate pelosi. then watch the democrats go through their own little bit of craziness during the voting process. that would be fun. since once you are nominated you can't refuse it, apparently. that's about it. host: ok. this is from the lead editorial this morning in "wall street journal." the headline, who is crazy enough to be speaker? the editorial writers saying the problem any g.o.p. leader faces today is that too many republicans don't really want to hold and keep political power. they are much more comfortable in opposition, in the minority, which is easier because no hard decisions or compromises are necessary. you can rage against the swamp without having to do anything to change it. this is the fundamental and sorry truth behind the speaker spectacle and the performative g.o.p. politics of recent years. the editorial says sorrier still

because the country desperately needs an check on the excesses of progressive left that dominates today's democratic party. that's what voters said when they gave republicans the house majority. which they seem intent on squandering. yesterday in the chamber, republican chip roy of texas once again came to the microphone. this time nominating byron donalds to be speaker of the house. >> yesterday, my first vote for speaker of the house was for byron donalds. today i'm rising to nominate byron donalds for speaker of the house of representatives. byron is a dear friend. a solid conservative. but most importantly a family man who loves dearly his wife,

his three children, has a proven track record as a businessman, public service in the florida legislature, and now as a member of the united states congress. now, here we are, and for the first time in history, there have been two black americans placed into the nomination for speaker of the house of representatives.

however -- madam speaker, order -- madam clerk, order. we do not seek to judge people by the color of their skin but rather the content of their character. byron donalds -- byron donalds is a good man raised by a single mom who moved past adversity, became a christian man at the age of 21, and has devoted his life to advancing the cause for his family and for this country.

and he has done it admirably. there is an important reason for nominating byron. that is this country needs a change. this country needs leadership that does not reflect this city, this town that is badly broken. host: you can accepted us a text at 202-748-8003. this one from greg in dallas, texas, saying. i despise the so-called freedom caucus. however they are right about breaking the power of the speaker. instead of the speaker having absolute power, it should go to the members. the speaker should be worried about being recalled. therefore he can do the will of the body instead of forcing the body to do his will. next enforce supermajority rule and destroy the power of the parties. nbc says the house republicans have defined votes somewhere.

mathematically two options. one, placate the far right flame slow throwers. two, find votes among democrats. they ruled out number two. kevin mccarthy is making additional concessions to his right flank on that. reporting this morning from the hill, emily brooks in her latest story, she was with us on the program earlier, updating her story, g.o.p. discusses new concessions in behind the scenes talks on making mccarthy speaker. u.s. house coming in at noon today. live coverage starting at 11:50 a.m. eastern here on c-span. c-span.org. and on our free mobile app c-span now. taking your calls and comments up until 10:00 eastern. we also expect at 10 that the democratic leader, hakeem jeffries and leadership will hold a news conference. we'll take you there live. 202-748-8000 the line for democrats.

202-748-8001 for republicans. and 202-748-8002 for others. in mid lothian, virginia, jason on the democrats line. caller: thank you for providing open and equal coverage. i was raised republican. i voted democrat since obama. althoughdy vote for trump in the florida primary. the signs of what was coming was there already. voters thought he would listen to experts and better angels. how wrong we were. republicans, particularly in power, do not care about the country. only revenge, optics, corporate welfare. they are spineless, feckless, unable to stand up to a schoolyard bully, willing to forego any moral and ethical standing and virtue in pursuit of raw power. anyone that can still support and defend trump and trumpism is no patriot of this country. they are traitors to the american ideals. he's not a christian. he's the embodiment of seven deadly sins. christians claim him to be their messiah and savior. they are wearing his mark on

their foreheads n regards to the speaker and the g.o.p., quote-unquote, majority, they are reaping what they sow. lindsey graham said it best f he nominates trump he will joe dee stroeu us and we'll deserve t the republican majority will get nothing done for the next two years. it will be revenge, waste of taxpayer money, with zero focus on policy. they have no policy to present. benghazi, look at durham, their investigation goes nowhere. i would love to see amash or liz cheney, it would be hilarious and perfect if they are republican speaker. not going to happen. sadly the american people will suffer from the chaos and republicans will still blame democrats for their failures. my biggest priority, i would love to see ranked choice sroez voting. that's the only way we get a third party candidate that's viable. as for some of the caller republicans that talked about trump and his national guard. he requested 10,000 national guards. they weren't for the capitol, congress, they were for him and his rioters, not congress. biden did sell oil reserves at

higher prices. he's buying back at lower prices which is doing better for the country. yes, we do need immigration reforms. the border is a mess. republicans are the only ones claiming the border is open. i wonder why immigrants think the board certificate open. that's all they talk about. as biden and teleprompters, he was speaking on the tarmac without one. his mind is fine. i just -- that's about all. host: thanks. marty in georgia. good morning. caller: good morning. i would just like to remind everybody -- first of all, i would like to remind everyone that these 20 hold outs combined represent millions of americans. it's not as if they don't represent americans. i'm sure they ran on a platform. they were sent there. the establishment republicans have shown their true colors. they act more like a high school senior class looking down their nose at the freshmen daring them

to get out of line. this is democracy in action. history in the making. everyone knows that. i just want to let everybody know. remind everybody, this is democracy this is the way it's supposed to work. they do represent americans. they were sent there with a mandate. they had a platform. i said that already. the establishment republicans have proven to me, at least, there are no two parties. it's all a facade. like wrestling. i'll hang up now. host: to tammy calling from omaha, nebraska. republican line. caller: first time caller. i was wondering -- i started listening on my c-span now as i was working. tuesday. i worked longer than they were on the floor. i'm just wondering they said

they were tired and confused and wanted to go home. i was still at work. and they were ready to go home. what do they actually do? what does their workday consist of? these republicans are there to represent us. we need them to work. don't go home. stay there until you get the job done. that's what we put you there for. thank you. host: thanks for that. no indication of a schedule change of the house leaving town this week. of course we know they are coming in today at noon eastern. we'll find out more. we'll find out if kevin mccarthy does get elected speaker, and play it as it comes. live today at noon. our coverage starting at 11:50. there is a speaker race that was settled not on capitol hill but in harrisburg at the state capital in pennsylvania. the headline in the "new york

times," independent speaker in pennsylvania, surprises the statehouse. the new legislative session began at noon on tuesday. despite the cheering bouquets and wide-eyed family families they were humming with nervous anticipation. for weeks it had been unclear which party could claim a majority in the state house of representatives. the democrats won more seats in november. because of a death of and two resignations the republicans had more members for now. the election of a speaker, the new houses' first piece of business, was going to put this fiercely debated question to a test. after a long afternoon of suspense and surprise of nearly everyone in the house, the choice was made. a moderate democrat from the reading area nominated by two republicans on an almost no one's radar and who pledged in his first speech to be the commonwealth's first independent speaker. i'm sure a lot of you didn't see this coming today, said the new speaker, representative mark rozy at the rostrum. harrisburg writes "the new york times" is not the only capital

where the mere act of desiding who is in charge has proved fraught in the early days of the new year. before the session in pennsylvania began, the repeated botched attempts by republicans in washington, d.c., on tuesday to elect a speaker in the u.s. house of representatives were playing out on televisions in the pennsylvania statehouse. meanwhile democratic state representatives next door in ohio, helped elect a republican house speaker there who is not as conservative as the candidate backed by most republicans in their supermajority. we hear from pennsylvania next. anita in hellertown on the democrats line. caller: i love how pennsylvania's mirroring a lot of the country. it's pretty fascinating. a house divided will not stand is my mantra here. long time democrat. who has also voted republican on many occasions. i think the republicans are

taking this far right stance to make up for radical democrat party i don't recognize more that i grew up with. i think each is just trying to out do the other as far as radicalism is concerned. there has to be a way to come to a concession. a house divided will not stand. you watch this on tv. you see one side standing up and clapping. the other side booing. the other side standing up and clapping. the other side booing. first line of business i would do as speaker of the house having brought a blended family together myself and as qualified maybe even more qualified than kevin mccarthy, would be to mix the seats. set them up by states. set them alphabetically, whatever you need to do. a house divided will not stand. until they blend together, find some common ground, and keep come out of the woodwork in the future and stop trying to do tit for tat because the republicans need to undo what pelosi has done. pelosi wanted to undo everything trump has done.

it's destroying the country. i just hope they can all find a way to come together and be -- everybody needs to be more moderate right now. host: on to east north port, new york, independent line. norma, good morning. caller: good morning. i'm calling from the huntington new york area, george santos, unfortunately, is my congressman now. my heart does go out to those who innocently worked for him. they must be terribly disappointed. host: it's interesting. the last hour and a half you are the third person calling from his district. go ahead with your comment. caller: we are very upset, a lot of us. one of the things that has occurred to me is where was the opposition research? where was the run and hittington democrat committee? where was the -- huntington democrat committee? where was zimmerman, his opponent, who didn't do any opposition research. for example i have a masters from new york university.

you want to confirm that, you can call the burr sars office, give them my name and they will tell you whether i have a master's degree or not from new york university. it's not a big deal to find this out. i think what we have here in huntington is the perfect storm of how elections should not be held. i am a retired educator. i'm just here to say, there is a lesson for all of us. please research the person you are voting for before you vote. thank you. host: ohio is next up on the republican line. brady. go ahead. caller: i was just calling to say that i stand behind mccarthy all the way. they can't come to a conclusion today, to get mccarthy in to be the speaker of the house, man, somebody needs to call and have donald trump come back and have him be the speaker of the house of representatives -- have him

be the speaker of the house. another thing that bothers me, every time somebody gets on there and start talking about this is the first black man, first black lady being the speaker, whatever. we all bleed red. we are all equal. that's all i need to say. thank you. host: 15 more minutes left in the program. we expect to take you live to a news conference at 10 eastern this morning with the house leadership, hakeem jeffries, house democratic leader, and other leadership as well. expected to get under way at 10:00 eastern this morning. continuing to take your phone calls and comments on the speaker election. which resumes today at noon eastern. our coverage actually starting at 11:50. yesterday some veterans serving in congress spoke about the speaker fight on the house floor. here are the comments here of representative michael waltz. >> i'm going to hand off in just a moment, before i do to get

their perspective on what this all means to us, why they ran, and what's going on in the last few days, before i do, i just want to take a minute to read what our adversaries are saying. north korea, iran, venezuela, cuba authoritarian regimes all over the world are pointing to what's going on in the house of representatives and saying, look at the messiness of democracy. look how it doesn't work. how it can't function. and in contrast, to their authoritarian regimes. just a couple of quotes from chinese state media, from the global times, the events are chaotic, phenomena of spread and aggravation of the disease of u.s. political systems. what happened in the highest hall of u.s. democracy is not a simple farce but a political thriller with huge destructiveness and wide ranging and far-reaching impact. faced with a political chaos in the u.s., there is a sharp

question whether the political class of the country is able to govern. whether the internal conflicts and contradictions of one of the major political parties contaminate the entire system. i think my colleagues would join me in that this is unacceptable. some points have been made, concessions have been made, and now it's time to move on, to move forward, and to govern the way the american people elect us to do. host: back to your calls and comments. james in richmond, virginia. democrats line. caller: yes, sir. good morning. i would like to -- i'm a democrat. i'm black. 87 years old. mr. mccarthy should offer himself e was light reith there at the insurrection. the republican knows it. can't say it in public. but they know. they don't trust him. he should opt out himself.

respect. now they got him right where they want him. they do not trust him. he would be respect where he step right out and got out of there himself. thank you. host: thank you. farmington, missouri, next up. danny on the independent line, good morning. caller: thanks for taking my call. you can't count on anybody. there is always congress, right? this doesn't surprise me at all. how convenient senate has gone home. nobody's going to notice that with all this farce going on. i think the democrats might be missing an opportunity here to go ahead and seat mccarthy before their fractured committee or whatever comes together. they would seat him and republicans would still be

fractured. i think that would be -- host: do you think that it benefits the democrats to have kevin mccarthy as speaker? caller: it might be the better choice of what they might wind up with. probably. he's more middle road. i think this country is screaming for a legitimate independent party. we got -- that's what murd me to independent fore-- pushed me to independent forever. when independents turned on tulsi gabbard on that election. disgraceful. i thought she was a bert candidate. better candidate. i think they missed an opportunity to keep the republicans fractured. it would be just another farce like it usually is. something else. i want to asking i haven't heard anything about the u.s. women's

gymnastic team suing the f.b.i. over -- ignoring their complaints about this satanic possesseds in aar fellow. i ignore their complaints for a year. if you have any information on later date, i would appreciate it. i haven't heard or read anything about it. host: don't have any information to give you on that particular lawsuit, danny. we have covered the issue more broadly on this program in the past. daniel in danville, kentucky, republican line. hello. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. i'm here in kentucky and wanted to speak for everybody in the republican party and say what are we doing? we waited for such a long time for majority and try to set policy in the house. now that we have it, we are putting a halt to all the projects we were hoping to make. we are playing right into the hands of everyone on the other

side of the aisle. why do you think so many democrats voted to stay on the floor last night and not adjourn? they want to let the american people see the division within the republican caucus. the republican caucus is going to have to come together and choose someone that can actually win. that may not be the gentleman from california. this has got to stop so the american people can see that the republican party is not the party of division. but of prosperity. i just appreciate you for taking my call. host: roll call this morning, headline, house staffers stuck in limbo. as their bosses fight over speaker. uncertainty swirling around the house speakership has had far-reaching effects for members, their families, and increasingly staffers transitioning into new roles and beginning work of making congressional offices run. representative kevin mccarthy's attempts to woo a small group of fierce opponents failed on wednesday. the california republican fell short of the majority threshold needed to secure the speakership and the house adjourned for the night without a new leader.

the house's tree vails are significant not only because it's the first time in a century that a speaker vote went to multiple ballots, it's also brought the legislative process to a pwraoeupbding halt. quote, wowed an end in site we can't plan for the future. this delay has hindered our ability to conduct any legislative business. we can't introduce bills. we don't know our committee assignments. our office was hoping to introduce a bill this week. we don't know if that's possible. the aide continues, an awful way to begin a new congress, whoever the speaker is, it's a sign what the next two years will be like. chaotic and dysfunctional. roll kale writes, the chaos especially pronounced for freshmen members. many of whom are still in the process of hiring and may have only about half their staff roles filled. according to the president and c.e.o. of the congressional management foundation. a nonprofit that aims to help lawmakers improve their operations. in asheville, north carolina,

good morning to ann. democrats line. caller: good morning. i am a strong democrat. i think that the republican party needs to be ousted. kevin mccarthy is a trump supporter. he's trying to finish the january 6 riot. and he's trying to bring donald trump back in office. donald trump needs to be held accountable for his actions. what donald trump does -- has done, and continues to do he needs to be in prison. if it was barack obama or anyone else, this republican party would have taken him out of office or done whatever they had to do to get rid of him. the republicans should not even be a political party anymore.

they should listen to liz cheney. the bushes nor the cheneys voted for donald trump. and they are republicans. i guess they still don't see that. they think donald trump is such a great guy. donald trump's taxes, $750, that's all he paid? and he's this big-time millionaire? and he pays zero dollars. if it was you and i, we are in trouble. i.r.s. is coming after our taxes. those 147 up there fighting for kevin mccarthy shouldn't have a word to say. they shouldn't even be in the house of representatives. host: on to our republican line, newport, north carolina, this is bailey. good morning. caller: good morning. host: go ahead. caller: the american people voted for what party they wanted to run the house. which this time it was the

republicans. why not just have the republicans that do the voting and democrats not? and then if the democrats win for what party to run the house, leave the republicans out of who chooses the speaker. that's my point. host: bailey, the constitution says the house, it doesn't say -- didn't consider parties back then. it says, i believe the exact phrasing is the house shall choose its speaker. it sounds like the interpretation of that means the whole house, which at this point is 434 members. republican and democrat. chad ta*d on the independent line in michigan. caller: i would like to talk about why these 20 are standing out so much. i think they are doing it for the main reason that mccarthy would push the democratic agenda more than anyone else they would

put up themselves. mccarthy wants to see the world economic forum out there in the open. so they can push their agenda on the rest of us with the globalist agenda. by doing that, and take ago tako stand. they are trying to show us how democracy really works. this is for the people, by the people. that's really all i got to say about that. host: frank on the line. bayside, new york, democratic caller. go ahead. caller: hi. good morning. i would like to make two points. number one, trump broke the party. he destroyed it because he went down so he's decided to take everybody down. number two, i think this puts the democrats in the driver's seat. let's face it jeffries is never

going to become the speaker at this point. why not -- kevin is willing to sell his soul. why not make deals with him that, look, we'll give you some votes, you will be the speaker if you push part of our agenda. he's making deals with everybody. there was one congressman that says he's been selling him part of himself for years. why not do that. host: we have been trying to keep track of some of the negotiations and reporting on negotiation that is apparently have happened late yesterday and into this morning. the latest reporting from the hill, this headline, house speaker election coverage, mckwra*eurt -- mccarthy discusses concessions but no deal struck overnight. the house is headed into the third day without a speaker. republicans say negotiations progressed overnight.

despite the progress, however, there remains no deal between representative kevin mccarthy and his g.o.p. detractors. some of his opponents are signaling they are dug in. negotiations are ongoing. the house is set to reconvene at noon for a historic seventh speaker vote. mccarthy fell short on the first six, losing 20 republicans in l three votes on wednesday. and that is from the hill, the hill.com. live in the next minute or two to the visitor center at the capitol, the briefing room there, to hear from the -- hakeem jeffries and democratic leadership. that will get under way momentarily. we'll continue to take your calls until then. calvin next on the republican line in bellevue, florida. caller: hello. i'm speaking this morning. we live in america. america belongs to all people.

jesus christ gave us this great and beautiful country. why are we separated like we are? mr. mccarthy has had his turn. he ought to be man enough to step down and let the republicans nominate the person they want. he's had his turn. he's had seven votes. he didn't make t that means he's out. he ought to be man enough to step down and let the party take the person they want. it's time to come together. jesus christ died for us there on the cross. and he meant what he said. host: so comments on social immediate gentleman. this -- media. if mccarthy caves to the extremist we lose. maybe they should vote present, lowering the vote threshold, and

make them impotent without actually voting for a republican. bill from salinas, california. it's interesting the party that wants to force its own will on issues like abortion, gun control, minimum wage, is now being embarrassed by the mini majority that wants to force its will. they have no interest on governing. they are trying to continue the insurrection from within. wisconsin, independent line. caller: i am tired of the insurrection. it's been shown through the twitter files that our intelligence community, the government, was basically running -- on the american public. we need to hold these people accountable. we need to hold the media

accountable for propagating lies. they are trying to bury the stuff they found out in the january 6 committee. what are they afraid of coming out? we found out that fauci lied about everything. we fund a gain of function. we're putting -- host: beverly in huron, ohio. democrats' line. good morning. caller: hi. it's my understanding that anybody can be speaker of the house and so i think they should vote for liz cheney or obama or rob portman. i know that rob portman retired, but i think he would be an excellent speaker of the house.

i don't agree with him on everything, but he would be an excellent speaker. so i think they should ask liz cheney to be speaker of the house. she's republican and she would be wonderful. she did a great job with the january 6 insurrection. so liz cheney gets my vote and this call represents 1,000 people that agree with me but do not call. thank you very much. host: thanks, beverly. a chance for us to point out courtesy of the archives at archives.gov, the u.s. constitution, legislative -- establishing legislative bodies, article 1 and section 2 of the house of representatives in section 2, the house of representatives shall choose their speaker and other officers, is right there in section 2. and that's what's going to