Today is Tuesday, January 3, 2023. As anyone would have expected, Republican “leader” Kevin McCarthy suffered a humiliating defeat in the House as he was defeated in three separate attempts to anoint him as Speaker of the House. Who would have expected three defeats in this case? Maybe only one or two before other members rallied behind him, but no, McCarthy suffered a most humiliating defeat three times over – before the House adjourned for the day. Recent coverage of what just happened in Congress is laid out in an online CNN article by Annie Grayer, Clare Foran, Kristin Wilson, Jessica Dean, and Sonnet Swire entitled “Here are the 20 House Republicans who voted against McCarthy for speaker on the third ballot.”

Thus twenty repugnicans voted against him – an increase from the 19 defections in the first two rounds of balloting. McCarthy, who needed 218 votes, had failed to secure the speaker’s gavel by the third round, earning 202 votes in the final tally. Abominably, all 20 voted for Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, who himself voted for McCarthy. The new convert to vote against McCarthy was Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida, who had initially voted for the House Minority Leader in the first two rounds, and shifted his support to Jordan.

Leaving the floor today, Jordan told CNN there is “no” chance he will become speaker, adding he wants to be House Judiciary chairman. Once the chamber resumes tomorrow, Jordan said he would lobby his colleagues to back the weasel. But what will he do with the other “nay” votes? Will they change their minds now for the sake of unity? Among the 20 opponents, several encompass the far right – like Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona, and Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania. The others’ political affiliation I’m not certain of. They’ve been less raucous in their repugnant views than the ones I’ve mentioned.

Speaking about the political self-destruction that was on display in the House today, Democratic strategist James Carville told MSNBC’s Ari Melber that he has never seen the kind of political suicide than the kind committed by rebellious House Republicans who three times shot down GOP leader Kevin McCarthy’s bid to become House Speaker. In an online Raw Story article by Brad Reed entitled “James Carville torches GOP rebels for ‘political suicide’: ‘They pulled the pin and passed the grenade around!'”

In particular, Carville thought it was incredible that the anti-McCarthy hardliners were hurting themselves more than anyone else. Speaking to Melber, Carville stated, “It’s really stunning because the Republican Party has traditionally been a party of honor, and you’re supposed to throw the grenade after you pull the pin. They pulled the pin and passed the grenade around.” This is a brilliant metaphor for what these clowns have done today. This just shows how dysfunctional the party has become in the last few years.

The longtime political strategist went on to express astonishment that the anti-McCarthy rebels didn’t even seem to care about the damage they were inflicting on their own party.

I would hazard to guess that most Americans would probably not even care what is happening right now with this vote for House speaker. They are mired in their own problems. And those who are paying attention will, as Carville proffered, be inflicting the same kind of damage on Republican at the ballot box in the near future. Voters will finally vote the bums out very soon if this chaos and dysfunction continues to envelop the party of Lincoln. We will find out if the party can get its act together at 12 tomorrow when everyone reconvenes in the House chamber. Maybe someone should propose that George Santos be the new speaker.

Talking about Santos, it seems that the new embattled Representative had a very rough 24 hours during his first day in Congress, as a colleague called him a liar on the House floor during his first day in Congress. This stunning turn of events is covered in a People online article by Virginia Chamlee entitled “Embattled George Santos Reportedly Called a Liar on House Floor During Rough Day in Congress.”

Thus during his initial appearance in Congress, Santos faced a rocky first day in government as reports surfaced that he dodged reporters outside his office and was called a liar by at least one of his colleagues on the House floor.

What has been reported by various outlets is that the newcomer approached his Capitol Hill office early today and turned in the opposite direction when he spotted journalists waiting for him. Though they tried to pursue him, Santos ultimately left the area without answering any questions.

Later, while inside the House chamber, Santos “could be seen sitting alone toward the back of the chamber busying himself on his phone,” avoiding everyone, it seems.

Even though he successfully avoided contact with most of his colleagues, Santos had to make at least one public appearance – to stand on the House floor and vote for a House speaker.

When he did this, Washington Post journalist Mariana Sotomayor reported that when Santos stood to vote for Kevin McCarthy today, “a Hispanic Democrat yelled ‘mentiroso!’ which translates to ‘liar’ in English.” So from this report, it appears that Santos has rapidly become a persona non grata within the House chamber and richly justifies such a designation, given his pathological lying in order to win his seat in Congress.

As for Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills player who collapsed on the field in yesterday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, the 24-year-old is still in critical condition after suffering cardiac arrest midgame Monday night. His uncle Dorrian Glenn told CNN that Hamlin is still sedated after having to be resuscitated twice – but that he seems to be “trending upwards in a positive way.”

With this tragic incident, I’m touched by what Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Dion Dawkins told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer after the game was postponed by the powers to be. Since I’m not a football fan at all, his message truly captures what rabid spectators really lose sight of when they watch their heroes play in a professional game. I’m quoting it whole here:

“The fact that we did not have to go back out there on that field and play just shows there is care, and that’s all we can ever ask for is that we get treated as people. Because most people just treat us as athletes, and as superstars, and some people like celebrities, but in that moment they treated us like people. And being treated as a person that is cared for, it’s a beautiful feeling. And I’m thankful that I was treated as a person and so was the rest of my teammates because at the end of the day, we are people. And we have feelings, we have emotions, we cry, we hurt. And we have families, and they hurt and they cry. We’re individuals that are imperfect and the world wants us to be perfect, and I’m thankful that the NFL has definitely put us first.”

What a beautiful expression of compassion from a professional footballer who knows what it is to be human. If I had heard this last night, I’m sure I would have been sobbing after hearing it. It makes me cry even now when I type it.

Hamlin must know that his teammates and the rest of the world are praying for his speedy recovery.

Let’s see if tomorrow won’t be another day at the circus in the House chamber.

Stay safe and be well.