Jake Sherman from Punchbowl News reports, and MSNBC confirms, Steve Scalise announced that he is taking himself out of the running for the Speakership in the House. This confirms earlier reported–reported here–from NewsMax, which again comes through with a scoop on news from the conservative rumor mill. (Step aside, Fox, as the favored outlet for insider leaks.)
While Scalise won the vote within the GOP Conference last week, he needed virtually every Republican to win in the vote of the full House, including Democrats. As many as two dozen Republicans stated they would never support Scalise as Speaker. Jim Jordan now becomes the presumptive favorite, but he has a number of “Never Jordan” opponents himself. The circus continues.