Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) emphatically said Tuesday that he will not run for any leadership slot. U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy is a leading candidate to become the next “Republican” majority leader in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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The competition so far officially includes only Majority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise, of Louisiana, and Georgia Rep. Tom Price, the House Budget Committee chairman and a Tea Party Caucus member.
Throughout much of Tuesday, different lawmakers who spoke with Gowdy gave different accounts on the possiblity he might enter the race. “I think we as a conference need to get behind that and make it happen”.
A spokeswoman for Gowdy said: “Chairman Gowdy is focused on the Benghazi Committee and will serve in that capacity so long as the Committee exists”.
Gowdy’s spokesman was coy, saying Gowdy appreciated the support and he looked forward to meeting with his colleagues later Tuesday for a conference-wide meeting. Trey Gowdy is the best person to do that.
The current “Republican” majority leader – liberal California lawmaker Kevin McCarthy – is the odds-on favorite to replace John Boehner, who moved the GOP to the left on a whole host of issues after he became Speaker in 2011.
Mulvaney, a South Carolina colleague of Gowdy’s and his good friend, said, “l had to beg Trey to run for re-election in 2014”. While I think he would have been a great majority leader, I absolutely respect this decision. It’s hard to be majority leader if you can’t handle personal conflict.
By Tuesday afternoon, however, Gowdy, who is preparing to question Clinton when she appears before his committee next month, sought to throw a few cold water on the simmering draft movement.
Price, a medical doctor elected to Congress in 2002, received key endorsements Monday from House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas.
“After talking w’ @TGowdySC for 20 mins, he made it clear that he is OUT of any consideration for any leadership position”, Mulvaney posted. “He isn’t the kind of guy to leave a case midstream, and it makes complete sense to me that he has made a decision to stay and continue his work on Benghazi”. “I’m not sure he knows if he’d be a good majority leader”.
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Though Labrador, Amash and Mulvaney might not be close to McCarthy now, Gowdy is, and this could help him advance a leadership bid if he so chooses.
