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Hours before vote, small GOP opposition to John Boehner grows

By Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan
1/6/15 9:47 AM EST

Thirteen House Republicans have now publicly proclaimed that they will try to strip John Boehner of a third term as speaker of the House.
That’s well short of the number needed to push the public election into full chaos, but House Republican leadership is closely monitoring every movement at this stage, and working to shore up support for the Ohio Republican.



Boehner’s opposition grew Tuesday morning just a few hours before the vote. Michigan Rep. Justin Amash wrote on Facebook that he would “vote for a new speaker” after eight years of Boehner as leader. In 2013, Amash voted for Idaho Rep. Raul Labrador for speaker. And Texas Rep. Randy Weber, who voted for Boehner in 2013, said he would throw his support behind his fellow Texan, Rep. Louie Gohmert.
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“Let’s all get behind Judge Louie Gohmert for Speaker!” Weber wrote on Twitter. “He has my vote! He’s not afraid to take the fight to the president & his veto pen!” Florida Rep. Curt Clawson, who replaced Trey Radel after he was arrested for cocaine possession, will also vote against Boehner.
Boehner’s allies — including the GOP leadership — believe they have the support for Boehner to remain speaker, although they concede that they could lose the support of between 15 and 20 Republicans. There is concern that the opposition could balloon on the House floor. Races like this are unpredictable.
In order to secure a third term as speaker, Boehner needs to secure the majority of the votes of those lawmakers present and voting for any candidate. At this point, it’s not clear what that threshold will be. At least 12 House Democrats will be in Manhattan attending Mario Cuomo’s funeral Tuesday in Manhattan.
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Air travel is already slowed – Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is holding aircrafts at their destination until 10 a.m., and is experiencing delays of between 15 and 30 minutes for airplanes in the air. GOP leadership has no plans to push off the vote, sources said.
Dissenters who are here have been plotting. Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie told reporters he planned to work Monday night to deny Boehner’s re-election. Almost no one believes that the two declared candidates – Gohmert and Florida Rep. Ted Yoho – will be the next speaker. But the anti-Boehner group thinks if it pushes the election to a second ballot, they could sweep Boehner aside and find a new speaker. If the vote goes to a second ballot, absolute chaos could ensue. Boehner has enough allies — upwards of 100 — who have privately vowed they will never vote for another candidate for speaker besides Boehner. That would make a so-called compromise candidate almost impossible to elect. Many of Boehner’s allies have said for months that they will keep voting for Boehner until the opposition subsides.
Several sources said Indiana Rep. Marlin Stutzman is helping lead the effort to push the vote to a second ballot – neither he nor his chief of staff responded to several emails. Others members involved with trying to push Boehner out include Virginia Rep. Dave Brat, Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar, Iowa Rep. Steve King, Oklahoma Rep. Jim Bridenstine, North Carolina Rep. Walter Jones and freshman Alabama Rep. Gary Palmer.