Cracks already showing among McCarthy backers who say they don't want to fight too hard for him: report

House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy is in real danger of losing his chance to become Speaker of the House, and Semafor reports that he has another problem in addition to the Republican hardliners who say they will never vote for him.

According to the report, some of the Republicans who are currently backing McCarthy have indicated that they don't want to fight too hard for him in the coming days.

"One relatively ardent McCarthy supporter told Semafor that they would probably be willing to go up to 12 rounds of voting, which would likely last between 3 and 4 days," the publication reports. "The aide to another, slightly less ardent supporter said their member would be willing to sit through 3 to 4 rounds, or about a day’s worth of action."

Other sources told the publication that lawmakers might only tolerate one of two rounds before trying to create consensus around an alternative candidate such as Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA).

RELATED: 'Still well short': GOP's Andy Biggs taunts Kevin McCarthy for not having the votes with hours to go

All the same, such a strategy could potentially push comparatively moderate Republicans to strike a deal with House Democrats to nominate a consensus candidate that members of both parties could live with.