Ken Buck Does Not Want Tom Emmer as Speaker, but Voted for Him Anyway

Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) voted on Tuesday for House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) for House Speaker without actually wanting Emmer to become Speaker.

Buck told CNN he voted for Emmer, rather than Jordan, despite not liking Emmer or wanting him to win the gavel.

“Do you really want Tom Emmer to be speaker?” CNN’s Dana Bash asked Buck after the first round of voting.

“No, I don’t,” Buck replied. “I don’t like Tom Emmer.”

“So just to underscore that: You voted for somebody because you don’t like them,” Bash asked.

“I voted for somebody because I wasn’t going to vote for Jim [Jordan],” he replied.

After the CNN clip went viral, Buck later clarified his comment was a joke.

“The office of Speaker is the hardest job in Washington. I wouldn’t wish that on my good friend @GOPMajorityWhip,” he said. 

Jordan fell 17 votes short to become speaker. Jordan and his allies will work to convince the 20 holdouts:

1. Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE)
2. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-NE)
3. Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY)
4. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL)
5. Rep. Jake Ellzey (R-TX)
6. Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY)
7. Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL)
8. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX)
9. Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX)
10. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA)
11. Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-VA)
12. Rep. Nick LaLota (R-NY)
13. Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY)
14. Rep. John Rutherford (R-FL)
15. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID)
16. Rep. Steve Womack (R-AR)
17. Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO)
18. Rep. John James (R-TX)
19. Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA)
20. Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-IN)

“The House needs a speaker as soon as possible,” Jordan spokesman Russell Dye told Breitbart News. “Expect another round of votes today. It’s time for Republicans to come together.”

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.