Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) and MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle went back and forth over the lawmaker’s opposition to House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) bid for speaker.
Ruhle spoke with Boebert about the issue during an interview Wednesday night.
During the conversation, Ruhle pointed out McCarthy has “200 votes,” adding, “Yesterday you backed Jim Jordan. Today you are backing Byron Donalds as speaker. He’s got 20 votes.”
She asked Boebert, “You think that guy is getting to 218 tomorrow?”
Boebert replied, “I know that there are many of our colleagues who are cheering us on silently.”
Ruhle appeared frustrated, saying, “Silently won’t help ma’am.”
The Republican remained confident they would get there with the votes.
“Look, Kevin McCarthy has been in leadership for 14 years. What does he have to show for that?” Boebert said.
She explained, “We aren’t just electing somebody who can fundraise and just rubberstamp him into office. That’s not what I was elected to do…But this is us working and actually using our votes, and I believe our Founding Fathers intended it to be this way.”
Pushing back, Ruhle told Boebert, “Okay, well, our Founding Fathers aren’t here. So let’s get real and let’s get practical.”
Watch the conversation below:
The host went on to suggest they should name names.
“I’m going to be bold. I’m going to take the leap and say Byron Donalds is not going to get to 218…So let’s go with realistic names. Could you support Steve Scalise?” Ruhle said.
Boebert responded, “I don’t think that I could support any current leadership, and I believe that many of my colleagues feel the same way. We need a change in leadership, and so that isn’t a name that I’m entertaining.”
Ruhle went on to point out that, without putting a speaker in place, none of their agenda is going to get done.
Additionally, the MSNBC host said a takeaway from the midterm elections was that Americans are ready for Congress to work together.
“What you are doing today is blocking your party. Is that what your voters asked you to do?” Ruhle said.
Boebert replied, “It’s been two days. It’s not the end of the world. We are going to come together.”
Asking her final question, Ruhle said, “Dan Crenshaw and these other Republicans, do you see yourself working with them again? In the last 24 hours, he’s called you the enemy and said you would rather work with Democrats than Republicans. He thinks you’re doing all of this for attention. And let’s be honest, you’ve never been on with me before.”
The Republican explained, “We’re going to handle the issues that the American people care about. We just need to elect a Speaker. And it’s okay if it takes a couple of days. It’s not the end of the world. There will be a new news cycle that comes around.”
CNN reported on Thursday that McCarthy has been nominated for a seventh ballot following the House’s return after adjourning Wednesday night.
The outlet noted McCarthy was unable to reach a majority during the six rounds of voting over two days.