MSNBC's Steve Kornacki has arrived to explain the ongoing fight for House speaker
As the in-fighting to select a new speaker of the House continues among the Republican Party, MSNBC is once again bringing out the nation's most beloved political journalist, Steve Kornacki, to help break everything down.
Kornacki, who has become a fan favorite following his tireless efforts to track the results of the 2020 presidential election, appeared on the network on Wednesday after Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) lost an unprecedented fourth round of voting to become speaker.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"It's mathematically impossible for McCarthy now unless somehow, for some reason, a bunch of Democrats later in this vote, abstain, vote present, something like that," Kornacki said. "This is a list of all of the 20 votes who were against McCarthy on the third ballot yesterday ... the first six [Republican] names to be called all have voted for Rep. Byron Donalds [R-Fla.]."
Kornacki noted that the "bloc of opposition" was holding against McCarthy. "Everyone who had voted against [McCarthy] on the third ballot is so far still voting against him," adding that the Democrats were continuing to rally behind Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y).
Kornacki's analysis comes as McCarthy continues to lick his wounds after becoming the first speaker candidate in a century to not be elected on the first ballot. While he was at one point considered a shoo-in for speaker if the GOP took back the House, the race to be the next gavel-holder has clearly been blown wide open.
