Republican Rep. Andy Biggs to challenge Kevin McCarthy

Rep. Andy Biggs announced he will challenge Kevin McCarthy for leadership of the House GOP when elections are held on Tuesday.

‘We have a new paradigm here,’ Biggs told Newsmax. ‘And I think the country wants a different direction from the House of Representatives and it’s a new world. And yes, I’m going to be nominated tomorrow to the position of speaker of the House. We’ll see if we can get the job done.’

He acknowledged it will be tough to beat the California Republican. 

‘It’s going to be tough,’ he said. ‘Kevin has raised a lot of money and done a lot of things, but this is not just about Kevin. I think it’s about institutional direction and trajectory, and that’s where we’re going to see if we have enough people who agree that we need to change the trajectory of this place and open it up.’

Biggs, a Republican from Arizona, is a close ally of Donald Trump and supported his objections to the 2020 election results. 

But the former president is backing McCarthy’s leadership bid although his level of influence on the party in the wake of the midterms remains unclear. 

Republican Rep. Andy Biggs (above) announced he will challenge Kevin McCarthy for leadership of the House GOP

Republicans were shaken when a red wave failed to appear in last week’s election, a move that endangered the leadership of McCarthy and Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell.

Democrats retained their control of the Senate. Republicans, however, are one seat away from winning the 218 seats necessary for the majority in the House.

McCarthy is working to shore up his support among House Republicans ahead of Tuesday afternoon’s meeting, particularly among the right flank, which is where Biggs has his strength.

He needs only a simply majority to win the GOP leader spot. But he would still need to win the speakership in a vote of the entire House when the new Congress meets in early January.

In order to do that he will need conservatives in his pocke. He’ll also need them in order to move any legislation through the House. Republicans are expected to have a narrow majority when they are in power and McCarthy will need every GOP vote. 

Any faction of dissent would have substantial influence to block legislation or otherwise defy the Republican leadership. The right wing appears to be ready to exert their influence – much as liberals did to Speaker Nancy Pelosi when she had a narrow majority.

Conservative Freedom Caucus lawmakers are demanding concessions from McCarthy before giving him their backing. 

They have have a long list of asks – from prime positions on House committees to guarantees they can have a role in shaping legislation. 

Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia has thrown her support behind McCarthy who has promised her spots on the House Judiciary and Oversight committees – two powerful panels if Republicans carry through on their threat to investigate President Joe Biden and his administration. 

On Monday, McCarthy met with House GOP lawmakers for two hours in the Capitol to make his pitch. 

‘The one thing you got to think about is it´s going to be a tight majority so everyone is going to have to work together,’ he said afterward.  

‘We’ll be successful as a team and we´ll be defeated as an individual if we don’t all work together,’ he said. 

It’s not just McCarthy’s leadership that is in question ahead of the party election – his entire team, including Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the campaign chairman, faces blowback from the disappointing midterm election results.

Kevin McCarthy is working to shore up support among GOP after disappointing midterm election results

Some in the House GOP Conference have made it clear McCarthy does not have their support. 

‘There are definitely at least five people, actually a lot more than that, who would rather be waterboarded by Liz Cheney than vote for Kevin McCarthy for Speaker of the House. And I am one of them,’ Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida said on Charlie Kirk show.