Utah Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz is running for House speaker — but even he doesn’t think he’ll win in a key vote later this week.
“I want to fight to win, but at the same time, it’s clear that Kevin McCarthy has the majority of support within our conference,” Chaffetz told CNN’s Don Lemon Monday on “CNN Tonight.” “I just worry that he doesn’t have quite enough to win on the floor.”
House Republicans will vote Thursday on who they choose to back as speaker, but the full House of Representatives will hold a formal election later this month. A few dozen Republicans are expected to vote against McCarthy, the current House No. 2, in favor of someone without such strong ties to current GOP leadership — like Chaffetz.
“These races deserve a little bit of competition, and if we do so in a respectful way, we shouldn’t shy away from that,” Chaffetz said.
Chaffetz chose to make a run for the post after McCarthy said last week that House Republicans’ investigation into the 2012 attack at Benghazi were politically motivated.
“I think that Mr. McCarthy’s comments were wrong,” Chaffetz said. “I think it’s a distraction.”