Trump's inability to lift Kevin McCarthy in speaker race leaves media asking 'what power does he really have?'

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McCarthy's opponents double down despite Trump speakership endorsement

Fox News congressional correspondent Chad Pergram reports on Rep. Kevin McCarthy's struggling bid to become House speaker and former President Donald Trump's support for him.

The media were astonished at what appears to be former President Trump's "waning influence" over the GOP as his vocal backing of Rep.-elect Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as House speaker has fallen on deaf ears, failing to move the 20 conservative holdouts. 

As McCarthy continues to struggle to reach the 218-vote threshold to become speaker, Trump attempted to unify the party behind the Republican leader with a post on his social media platform Truth Social, writing "it’s now time for all of our GREAT Republican House Members to VOTE FOR KEVIN, CLOSE THE DEAL, TAKE THE VICTORY, & WATCH CRAZY NANCY PELOSI FLY BACK HOME."

"REPUBLICANS, DO NOT TURN A GREAT TRIUMPH INTO A GIANT & EMBARRASSING DEFEAT. IT’S TIME TO CELEBRATE, YOU DESERVE IT. Kevin McCarthy will do a good job, and maybe even a GREAT JOB - JUST WATCH!" Trump exclaimed. 

Except the 20 lawmakers, including some of Trump's staunchest supporters, did not budge. 

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House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and U.S. President Donald Trump react to the crowd as they hold an event on water accessibility for farms during a visit to Bakersfield, California, February 19, 2020. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

"Donald Trump, once again, was very helpful to Kevin McCarthy… got him not a single new vote," MSNBC's Chuck Todd reacted to the Capitol Hill drama. "It’s kind of a reminder of just – we’ve been chronicling how much power he’s been losing inside the party. I think this is why Trump had been so quiet for a while, for fear that his voice doesn’t matter. I think we just found out, at least when it comes to getting McCarthy over the finish line, he could maybe end McCarthy if he wanted to, but he can’t, couldn’t crown him."

NBC News ran a brutal report with the headline, "Trump’s endorsement proves worthless to Kevin McCarthy in his speaker bid."

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A headline from The Washington Post read, "The House hard-liners blocking McCarthy aren’t listening to Trump."

"In another sign of the former president’s waning influence, his efforts to bolster McCarthy’s bid as House speaker have not persuaded 20 Republicans to drop their opposition," the Post reported Wednesday. 

Boston Globe political reporter Jess Bidgood drew a similar conclusion, writing, "Trump’s backing of McCarthy did nothing to sway the House GOP rebels today — a sign of his waning influence."

NBC News ran a brutal headline about former President Trump's "worthless" endorsement of Kevin McCarthy as speaker. (Fox News Digital)

Politico declared in a headline that Trump's "spell over GOP breaks with McCarthy meltdown."

"The inability of McCarthy to secure the needed votes to be House Speaker — despite six tries at doing so — represents a unique failure on his part. But it has also called into question the extent of Trump’s own power to shape the party in his image, coming at a time when some Republicans have openly soured on his current run for the presidency," Politico wrote. 

During a panel discussion, CNN's Kasie Hunt told her colleagues, "I think at this point, Trump would have more influence in the process if he were to suddenly say that they need to get rid of Kevin McCarthy or something along those lines, because it’s very clear that he doesn’t have the power anymore to actually give Kevin McCarthy the speakership." 

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After Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., called on Trump to tell McCarthy to withdraw his bid, New Yorker staff writer Susan Glasser tweeted, "The Mar-a-Lago factor so far is not persuading the Trumpiest Trumpists to back off."

HuffPost senior politics reporter Daniel Marans summarized the episode by tweeting, "Definitely a revealing moment for Trump's influence in the GOP."

ABC News chief Washington corespondent Jonathan Karl wondered, "If Trump can’t even influence the votes of the most ultra-MAGA Republicans in the House, what power does he really have?"

New York Times correspondent Maggie Haberman said the "fear factor" of Trump "is just not present" among the 20 GOP lawmakers. 

"This House Freedom Caucus energy grows out of the Tea Party, which predates Donald Trump. Donald Trump seized on it and Donald Trump capitalized on it, and fueled it, and benefited from it and found common cause with these folks, but he didn't create this kind of energy in the House. And I think that he believes he did," Haberman told CNN's Anderson Cooper on Wednesday. "I think he believes that these are all just people who like him and will do whatever he wants – they're not seeing it that way right now. If anything, McCarthy actually lost one vote after Trump reissued his support this morning." 

"Now look, if McCarthy ends up getting a deal and becomes the speaker, Trump will claim credit. He will say he was there all along. If McCarthy loses support, Trump will be quick to support whoever looks like he's going to be the winner because that's how Trump behaves. He goes, you know, where he sees the wind blowing…this says more about McCarthy than it does about Trump. What's happening in the House right now, but it's not a good sign for Trump. He appears weak and he didn't have to. He jumped into this," Haberman added.

Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., left, and Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., right, speak with Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in the House chamber as the House meets for a second day to elect a speaker and convene the 118th Congress in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023.  (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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Puck's Tara Palmeri didn't go gentle on the former president, either, writing Trump "has truly lost his juice."

"One of the cruel ironies of all this is that McCarthy, who went to extraordinary lengths to placate Trump, is being stymied by card-carrying members of his MAGA movement. And where is Trump in McCarthy’s hour of need? Actually, I’m told from sources close to him that he’s been burning up the phone for McCarthy, but his pleas don’t seem to be making any impact," Palmeri reported on Tuesday. 

Palmeri later continued, "Truthfully, Trump doesn’t really care who leads the House. But he’s a Republican candidate for president trying to prove that he’s the leader of the party, so he had to weigh in, even if those close to him wished he didn’t. Is this all a sign that the MAGA movement has advanced beyond Trump, and even beyond Marjorie Taylor Greene and Jim Jordan, who support McCarthy? Unclear. But it is a sign that Trump has lost his juice."