Steve Scalise is GOP nominee for Speaker — Trump loses his choice

Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) will likely be the new Speaker of the House, the Daily Beast reported Wednesday. It means that Donald Trump's endorsed Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) was not successful.

House Republicans spent most of Wednesday morning behind closed doors in the Longworth office building on Capitol Hill, debating over who should take the helm after the previous speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was ousted.

It means Scalise is the nomination, but he still has to be elected the full chamber. CNN reported that vote was expected this afternoon.

Republican Reps. Scalise and Jordan were among the top two contenders in the race, with Scalise pulling a lot of support from members willing to endorse publicly.

In polls, regular Republicans only support Jordan at 28 percent, whereas Trump's MAGA fans back him at 38 percent, a YouGov poll revealed Wednesday.

Republican Rep. Ken Buck revealed to the press that he would only vote present because both Jordan and Scalise voted to overturn the 2020 election results and wouldn't say whether or not Joe Biden won.

“If we don't have the moral clarity to decide whether President Biden won or not, we don't have the moral clarity to rule," Buck said.

Jordan made it clear that he would demand that the White House break the law and essentially "close the doors" to the United States, including to asylum seekers. Such a demand would require a change to the laws, neither the White House, nor Jordan, can do it unilaterally.

While Jordan has been the source of the investigation into the Biden administration's "weaponizing" government. It has been a significant flop, with more news coming out about the way Donald Trump used his government to strike back against his foes. Members of his own party have been critical of Jordan for his efforts failing.

Among the criticism against Scalise is a comment he made comparing himself to former KKK grand wizard David Duke, "but without the baggage."