Former US President Obama announces his support for Kamala Harris! Former US President Obama announces his support for Kamala Harris!

"STRONG on Crime, Borders, our Troops/Veterans, and the second amendment to the constitution. Jim, his wife Polly, and his family are phenomenal - he will be a great Speaker of the House and has my full and complete support!" Trump said in a post today on his social media app Truth Social.

Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination against Democratic President Joe Biden in the 2024 presidential election, said yesterday that he might agree to fill McCarthy's seat for a short time.

Jordan, an outspoken conservative from Ohio, is leading investigations into the Biden administration. In addition to Jim Jordan, Rep. Steve Scalise, who trails McCarthy on the leadership ladder, is also campaigning for the House of Representatives.

Republicans, who control the House of Representatives by a slim margin of 212 to 221, will hold a closed-door meeting on Tuesday for the candidates for speaker of the House. Former Republican president Trump has said he may attend. A vote is expected the following day.

But anger over McCarthy's ouster could make it difficult for Republicans to nominate a new speaker.

House rules do not require the speaker to be a member of Congress. But Trump has his hands full, facing four lawsuits, two of which relate to his attempts to reverse his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. Trump is accused of 91 felonies in these cases.

Republican Party rules in the House of Representatives prohibit a person facing felony indictments from serving as speaker.

Trump's closeness with Republicans in the House of Representatives has been tested at times this year. Republicans initially did not respond to Trump's call to nominate McCarthy as speaker, waiting three days and subjecting McCarthy to a grueling 15-round vote before choosing him.

Republican congressional leadership sources are silent on the possibility of Trump becoming speaker.

If he attends Tuesday's meeting, it would be Trump's first visit to Capitol Hill since his supporters stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Jim Jordan had 20 votes against McCarthy

Jim Jordan, a longtime Trump ally, was nominated by some Republican opponents to be speaker of the House in January. But he received 20 votes in one round of voting. Jordan also challenged McCarthy in the race for minority leader in 2018.

Jordan is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, one of three panels at the center of the impeachment investigation into President Joe Biden. A fiery politician, Jordan has often publicly sparred with Democrats over investigations into then-President Trump.

In a letter to his colleagues, Jordan called for uniting the caucus, saying, "We can focus on changes that will improve the country and bring us together to offer real solutions."

Before his political career, Jordan was a wrestling coach and served at Ohio State University from 1987 to 1995. Wrestlers from that time say the team doctor molested them and that Jordan knew about it but did nothing. Jim Jordan denies this allegation.

Steve Scalise's health problems and controversial speech

Steve Scalise announced his candidacy in a letter to his colleagues. Representative Matt Gaetz, who spearheaded McCarthy's ouster, said he would support Scalise taking over.

The Louisiana representative was critically wounded in a 2017 shooting during practice for a charity baseball game. He could face questions from the caucus about his health, as he announced in August that he was being treated for multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer.

Scalise was criticized in 2002 for speaking to a white supremacist group affiliated with former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke. Scalise said it was a mistake and that he regretted it.

Editor: Albert Owen