The Quote & Quiz For 10/20/23

This week saw yet another failed attempt by Republicans to elect a Speaker. This time the candidate was Rep. Jim Jordon who unleashed a hard-right intimidation campaign that Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa said involved, “credible death threats and a barrage of threatening calls” that law enforcement officials were investigating.

Rep. Miller-Meeks gets the quote of the week:

“One thing I cannot stomach, or support, is a bully.”

1. Since ousting Kevin McCarthy, which of the following people has NOT been floated as a possible replacement?

A) Rep. Steve Scalise.

B) Donald Trump.

C) Rep. Patrick McHenry.

D) Rep. Matt Goetz.

2. One of the hard-right organizations that was pushing Jordon and calling on its supporters to harass representatives like Miller-Meeks called this group the “chaos caucus.” What group were they referring to?

A) The eight hard-right conservatives who voted to oust McCarthy and start all the turmoil.

B) The Freedom Caucus.

C) The Democrats.

D) The Republican moderates who refuse to back Jordon, but never wanted to dump McCarthy in the first place.

3. After losing on the first ballot, and lighting up the campaign to attack the moderate holdouts, on the second ballot, Jordon:

A) Lost two more votes.

B) Picked up two more votes.

C) Got the same number of votes.

D) Came within a vote of winning the Speakership.

4. Of the 22 moderates to oppose Jordon, Wisconsin representatives in that group included:

A) Rep. Mike Gallagher.

B) Rep. Bryan Style.

C) Rep. Derrick Van Orden.

D) None. They all voted for Jordon.

5. On the second ballot, Jordon got fewer voters than any candidate for Speaker since:

A) 1997.

B) 2013.

C) 1923.

D). 1797.

6. Yesterday Pres. Biden announced that he would send a military aid package for Israel and Ukraine to Congress. This might have the effect of:

A) Pushing the Republicans to elect a Speaker because they want to help Israel.

B) Making the hard-right radicals less likely to want to elect a Speaker because they don’t want to pass aid to Ukraine.

C) Emphasizing to Americans how dysfunctional House Republicans are, thus making it more likely they’ll lose their majority next year.

D) Making Trump voters realize that the chaos they revel in has real world implications, causing them to finally turn against him and the hard-right.

Answers

1: D

2: D

3: A

4: D

5: C

6: All answers are acceptable with the exception of D.

That’s it for this week. Tomorrow I’m going to enjoy the Fall Art Tour, a self-guided tour from Baraboo to Spring Green, which is as much about the drive as it is about the art. I hope you have something equally enjoyable planned. See you back here Monday.