emails capture uncertainty of the majority leader race
E-mails capture drama, uncertainty of the race
By Jonathan E. Kaplan
From inside the Cannon Caucus Room on Thursday, House Republican lawmakers and aides traded scores of e-mails with colleagues, lobbyists and allies while electing Rep. John Boehner as their new majority leader and Rep. Adam Putnam as policy chairman.
Boehner (R-Ohio) was the victor in a hard-fought contest against then-acting Majority Leader Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.).
More than a half-dozen staffers and lobbyists shared e-mails with The Hill that were sent and received that day on the condition that the senders and the receivers remain anonymous. The messages include the time they were sent and the content.
Limited changes to punctuation were made for the sake of clarity. Any information added to the e-mails appears in brackets. Additional reporting is italicized.
12:14 p.m.: Prayer by [GOP Conference Vice Chairman Jack] Kingston [R-Ga.]. Pledge, and now election for leader.
12:23: Subject: Blunt’s speakers
[Rep. Kay] Granger [R-Texas] led off, [Rep. Charlie] Norwood [R-Ga.] second, [Rep. Dave] Camp [R-Mich.] third.
12:25: Subject: [Ways and Means Chairman] Bill Thomas [R-Calif.] leads for Boehner.
12:26: Subject: Blunt’s speakers
Theme was not inspiring. The old “can’t change horses” in midstream [referring to Granger’s speech].
12:29: Boehner’s seconders: [Rep. Steve] Buyer [R-Ind.], [Rep.] Gresham Barrett [R-S.C.].
12:34: BTW, this place is FULL. Standing members.
12:34: [Rep. Mark] Souder [R-Ind.] is shredding Blunt and [the] establishment in Shadegg nomination speech.
12:40: Just started leader voting.
12:43: Voting for leader.
12:56: Still counting.
1:01: Holy S**T more ballots cast than were members. Re-voting now.
1:01: Re-vote!!!! More ballots than Members!!!!!!!!!!!
1:13: They are now saying it may have been a clerical error. No word on whether the first ballot is voided. We are in for a wild one.
1:14: [GOP Conference Chairwoman Deborah] Pryce [R-Ohio] now saying there was a clerical error. Just said [she is] now trying to figure [out] which ballots to use.
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) tells reporters that the vote of Resident Commissioner Luis Fortuño [R-Puerto Rico] was not counted.
1:17: Pryce using a floor-voting list that did not have Luis Fortuno on it, which may be the problem. No word yet on which ballots they are using.
1:18 PM: Chairman Pryce has ruled first ballot valid, and members seem to agree.
1:19: Now entertaining parliamentary questions.
1:20: It was just announced that no one voted twice.
1:23: First ballot. The original one: Blunt 110, Boehner 79, Shadegg 40, [Rep. Jim] Ryun [R-Kan.] 2.
1:25: Shadegg just asked to drop out of second ballot. Here we go. …
1:26: Maj. Leader Results: Jim Ryun’s name is being dropped off. This is weird. So top 3 stay in. 231 voting. As long as we have write-ins we can be here awhile. Shadegg has just asked for his name to be dropped off. Standing ovation. We go to round two.
1:28 : High drama and grace: Shadegg just withdrew.
At 1:30, Sean Spicer, press secretary for Pryce, shares results of the first ballot with reporters.
1:32 : Collecting second ballot now.
1:33: Ryun and Shadegg ask for unanimous consent to drop out.
1:39: More impatience: still counting, both camps look tense.
1:40: Subject: FW: Leadership update
Analysis of 1st vote: As Ryun was a public supporter of Shadegg, this may have been a move to break up 2nd ballot commitments. This may free up votes to move to Shadegg to the next round and try to survive over Boehner. Unlikely, but possible. All of this is bad news for Blunt. Odds are strongly against him winning.
At 1:41, Spicer reemerged from the room to confirm that Fortuno’s vote was not counted and that Rep. Gary Miller (R-Calif.) was absent. At 1:46, an aide to Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-Mo.) handed her an extra-large iced tea in a Styrofoam cup.
1:49: Second ballot: Blunt 109, Boehner 122
1:49:58 : Boehner wins.
1:50 PM:Boehner wins with 122!!!!!!!
1:56: Looks like we are on to policy.
2:01: Boehner gave impassioned speech for unity and such (in the room, after winning).
2:24: Counting first-ballot policy chair votes.
2:28 : Blunt getting up to speak.
2:32: Blunt just got up to give heartfelt “thanks,” and I-look-forward-to-working-with-John Boehner-speech while they tally votes.
2:35: Subj: My thoughts
Roy got as far as he could with inside votes and vote counting. Then he did the classic fourth-quarter basketball stall protecting his lead rather than charging after the undeclared and second ballot what-ifs. Meanwhile, Boehner and Shadegg worked the outside D.C. game of conservative groups and editorial pages. Roy did not engage in this tactic as he regarded the election as a members-of-Congress-only affair. As talking heads started pontificating about need for reform, Roy was seen as Mr. Status Quo, Shadegg as darling of reform, and Boehner as the acceptable guy in between.
At 3:15 p.m., Putnam (R-Fla.) fended off three GOP lawmakers to become the new policy chairman and, shortly after Spicer announced those results, the new GOP leadership team spoke to reporters.
By Jonathan E. Kaplan
From inside the Cannon Caucus Room on Thursday, House Republican lawmakers and aides traded scores of e-mails with colleagues, lobbyists and allies while electing Rep. John Boehner as their new majority leader and Rep. Adam Putnam as policy chairman.
Boehner (R-Ohio) was the victor in a hard-fought contest against then-acting Majority Leader Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.).
More than a half-dozen staffers and lobbyists shared e-mails with The Hill that were sent and received that day on the condition that the senders and the receivers remain anonymous. The messages include the time they were sent and the content.
Limited changes to punctuation were made for the sake of clarity. Any information added to the e-mails appears in brackets. Additional reporting is italicized.
12:14 p.m.: Prayer by [GOP Conference Vice Chairman Jack] Kingston [R-Ga.]. Pledge, and now election for leader.
12:23: Subject: Blunt’s speakers
[Rep. Kay] Granger [R-Texas] led off, [Rep. Charlie] Norwood [R-Ga.] second, [Rep. Dave] Camp [R-Mich.] third.
12:25: Subject: [Ways and Means Chairman] Bill Thomas [R-Calif.] leads for Boehner.
12:26: Subject: Blunt’s speakers
Theme was not inspiring. The old “can’t change horses” in midstream [referring to Granger’s speech].
12:29: Boehner’s seconders: [Rep. Steve] Buyer [R-Ind.], [Rep.] Gresham Barrett [R-S.C.].
12:34: BTW, this place is FULL. Standing members.
12:34: [Rep. Mark] Souder [R-Ind.] is shredding Blunt and [the] establishment in Shadegg nomination speech.
12:40: Just started leader voting.
12:43: Voting for leader.
12:56: Still counting.
1:01: Holy S**T more ballots cast than were members. Re-voting now.
1:01: Re-vote!!!! More ballots than Members!!!!!!!!!!!
1:13: They are now saying it may have been a clerical error. No word on whether the first ballot is voided. We are in for a wild one.
1:14: [GOP Conference Chairwoman Deborah] Pryce [R-Ohio] now saying there was a clerical error. Just said [she is] now trying to figure [out] which ballots to use.
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) tells reporters that the vote of Resident Commissioner Luis Fortuño [R-Puerto Rico] was not counted.
1:17: Pryce using a floor-voting list that did not have Luis Fortuno on it, which may be the problem. No word yet on which ballots they are using.
1:18 PM: Chairman Pryce has ruled first ballot valid, and members seem to agree.
1:19: Now entertaining parliamentary questions.
1:20: It was just announced that no one voted twice.
1:23: First ballot. The original one: Blunt 110, Boehner 79, Shadegg 40, [Rep. Jim] Ryun [R-Kan.] 2.
1:25: Shadegg just asked to drop out of second ballot. Here we go. …
1:26: Maj. Leader Results: Jim Ryun’s name is being dropped off. This is weird. So top 3 stay in. 231 voting. As long as we have write-ins we can be here awhile. Shadegg has just asked for his name to be dropped off. Standing ovation. We go to round two.
1:28 : High drama and grace: Shadegg just withdrew.
At 1:30, Sean Spicer, press secretary for Pryce, shares results of the first ballot with reporters.
1:32 : Collecting second ballot now.
1:33: Ryun and Shadegg ask for unanimous consent to drop out.
1:39: More impatience: still counting, both camps look tense.
1:40: Subject: FW: Leadership update
Analysis of 1st vote: As Ryun was a public supporter of Shadegg, this may have been a move to break up 2nd ballot commitments. This may free up votes to move to Shadegg to the next round and try to survive over Boehner. Unlikely, but possible. All of this is bad news for Blunt. Odds are strongly against him winning.
At 1:41, Spicer reemerged from the room to confirm that Fortuno’s vote was not counted and that Rep. Gary Miller (R-Calif.) was absent. At 1:46, an aide to Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-Mo.) handed her an extra-large iced tea in a Styrofoam cup.
1:49: Second ballot: Blunt 109, Boehner 122
1:49:58 : Boehner wins.
1:50 PM:Boehner wins with 122!!!!!!!
1:56: Looks like we are on to policy.
2:01: Boehner gave impassioned speech for unity and such (in the room, after winning).
2:24: Counting first-ballot policy chair votes.
2:28 : Blunt getting up to speak.
2:32: Blunt just got up to give heartfelt “thanks,” and I-look-forward-to-working-with-John Boehner-speech while they tally votes.
2:35: Subj: My thoughts
Roy got as far as he could with inside votes and vote counting. Then he did the classic fourth-quarter basketball stall protecting his lead rather than charging after the undeclared and second ballot what-ifs. Meanwhile, Boehner and Shadegg worked the outside D.C. game of conservative groups and editorial pages. Roy did not engage in this tactic as he regarded the election as a members-of-Congress-only affair. As talking heads started pontificating about need for reform, Roy was seen as Mr. Status Quo, Shadegg as darling of reform, and Boehner as the acceptable guy in between.
At 3:15 p.m., Putnam (R-Fla.) fended off three GOP lawmakers to become the new policy chairman and, shortly after Spicer announced those results, the new GOP leadership team spoke to reporters.
posted by SCGOP at 5:09 PM
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