Texas Republicans urge Chip Roy and other McCarthy opponents to let Congress get to work

U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-California, speaks to members of the media as he walks to the House chamber before a fourth ballot vote for speaker of the House on the second day of the 118th Congress in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 4, 2023. (Credit: Craid Hudson/Sipa USA via REUTERS)

WASHINGTON — Texans are slated to chair some of the most influential committees in this congressional session. But without a speaker of the House, they can’t take their gavels. And it’s getting on their nerves.

“Everything flows from the speaker being elected. We can’t even get sworn in. I can’t start my committee. We’re held hostage until we get this thing resolved,” said Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, who is slated to lead the House Foreign Affairs Committee and lead the party’s investigations into the Biden administration’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan.