Donald Trump was “infuriated” when he discovered he got only one vote for the Speaker of the House, despite seriously contemplating taking on the role. ABC News presenter Jonathan Karl’s new book reveals Trump considered the Speaker of the House role more than publicly stated, based on sources close to Trump and former Speaker McCarthy.
During the tumultuous rounds of voting in January this year to elect Speaker McCarthy, a record 15 rounds were required. In the seventh and eighth rounds, Trump received just one vote each.
Florida congressman Matt Gaetz nominated him. “Trump was watching all of this play out live,” Karl shared on the Stay Tuned With Preet podcast hosted by Preet Bharara.
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“All of the networks, including Fox, would display the number of votes for each candidate. Then it got to Donald Trump… one. This infuriated Trump. It was embarrassing.”
“It goes through another round, and Gaetz does it again. So Trump calls Gaetz and says: ‘knock it off.'”
There’s a funny little detail about this; Gaetz, when Trump calls him, starts the conversation by saying, ‘Congratulations, Mr. President. You are the first president since John Quincy Adams to get a vote for Speaker of the House.'”
Karl mentioned that Trump was “mad” and “embarrassed” by the situation, ensuring Gaetz didn’t vote for him again.
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In an extract from his book, Karl wrote, “Gaetz eventually realized his stunt was upsetting the former president. He then switched his vote to Representative Kevin Hern of Oklahoma for the next two rounds of balloting.”
Later, Karl wrote that Trump wanted McCarthy to be elected to end the situation that had “infuriated” him. No other votes for Trump were heard until Gaetz voted for him again during round 11.
Karl reports that some sources claim Trump directly told Gaetz to put his name down for nomination. Another source said he “simply made it clear, and Gaetz knew what he had to do.”
Later, Gaetz defended his decision to nominate the former president in a speech to the House, despite Trump facing legal issues and criminal charges.
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During the speech, the only MAGA ally Lauren Boebert could be heard applauding. No other votes were cast for Trump during the contest.
Trump initially had little interest but became engaged in the possibility when he witnessed the drama unfolding in the House, Karl said. He continued, “The idea had been floated immediately after January 20, 2021, when he lost.”
Karl discussed all these in his new book, “Tired of Winning: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party.” A Trump official has previously described Karl’s books on the former president as “disgraceful and talentless.”
The official said: “This filth either belongs in the discount bargain bin in the fiction section of the bookstore or should be repurposed as toilet paper.”
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