House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that “informal conversations” are taking place for a bipartisan solution to the House speakership.
Anchor Kristen Welker said, “Are you actually having conversations behind the scenes with the Republican counterparts about trying to create a bipartisan solution, a governing coalition?”
Jeffries said, “There are informal conversations that have been underway. When we get back to Washington tomorrow, it’s important to begin to formalize those discussions.”
He continued, “At this point, that is on my House Republican colleagues. We have made clear, publicly and privately, that we are ready, willing, and able to enter into a bipartisan governing coalition that puts the American people first and solves problems for hardworking American taxpayers.”
Jeffries concluded, “We want to ensure that votes are taken on bills that have substantial Democratic support and substantial Republican support so that the extremists aren’t able to dictate the agenda.”
“The current rules of the House have facilitated a handful of Republicans being able to determine what gets voted on in the House of Representatives, and that undermines the interests of the American people,” he continued. “We can change the rules to facilitate bipartisanship, and that should be the starting point of our conversation.”
MSNBC political analyst Jake Sherman reported Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) is planning to schedule a floor vote on his bid to be speaker for Tuesday.
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