As House Republicans argued over who should replace ousted speaker Kevin McCarthy, longtime watchers of congressional machinations had a bigger question on their minds: How could anyone avoid following in his ignominious footsteps?
“Great question,” said former Rep. Rodney Davis, an Illinois Republican.
“Even if it’s resolved quickly, the Republican Party is going to have the same structural problems that caused McCarthy to struggle as speaker,” said Matthew Green, a political scientist at Catholic University. “Some of the demands that these Republicans have are going to be extremely difficult for [the next speaker] to meet.”
